Background
McBride and his group Inside Straight of saxophonist Steve Wilson, pianists Eric Reed and Peter Martin, vibraphonist Warren Wolf, and drummer Carl Allen, have performed annually at the New York jazz club Village Vanguard starting from 2007 and been interrupted only by the lockdown as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. McBride has recorded two studio albums with Inside Straight, ''Reception
Brian Pristley of '' Jazzwise'' wrote, "The excitement of the performance communicates to the audience (and vice versa), while the intensity of the mostly long tracks ensures that you don’t notice the length." Mike Jurkovic of '' All About Jazz'' noted, "McBride needs no further introduction save to say he has heightened fun into an art form. His playing, even at its most pensive and persuasive, proclaims that better times are here even if just for the immediate moment. The immediate gig. This immediate assemblage of keen minded, high flying musicians. And this is their last set of the three-night stand so they'd like to play for you now." Matt Collar of AllMusic commented, "Of course, pulling all of this together is McBride, whose robust and sinewy basslines remain as impressive as ever." David Whiteis of the '' Jazz Journal'' added, "McBride, as always, is strong-fingered and nimble, attaining a remarkable variety of tonal colorations while maintaining his rhythmic sureness even as he bends, twists, and contorts the tunes’ metric structures to his own ends: a paradigm of unforced, unselfconscious virtuosity."Track listing
Personnel
* Christian McBride – bass * Steve Wilson – alto saxophone, soprano saxophone * Carl Allen – drums * Peter Martin – piano * Warren Wolf – vibraphoneReferences
External links