One of my favorite things about having way too many albums on my computer is sticking iTunes on shuffle mode to see what comes up. This morning, I re-stumbled upon Jackie McLean's album "A Fickle Sonance," a pretty standard -- though thoroughly swinging -- Blue Note hard bop set (priced now at just $3.68 on Amazon). The lineup is great: Tommy Turrentine on trumpet, pianist Sonny Clark (whose recordings I could listen to all day, even the obscure and poorly recorded tracks), Butch Warren on bass, and drummer Billy Higgins.
McLean does step out of the box at times. The title track carries a number of surprises, with an oddly angled head followed by an up-tempo barn-burner of a modal solo section. But generally, this is a bluesy, greasy set. "Lost," in particular, is an extremely comfortable track to ease into, with McLean's soulful explosions being matched well by Clark's galloping one-note lines. Definitely take a listen if you have the chance.
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