Jamil Sheriff Big Band
Ichthyology
GLP ***
Pianist Sheriff lectures at the Leeds College of Music as do some other members of the 16-piece big band here, beginning modally on ‘Future Car’. It is, despite the title, a lively 1950s-era set of wheels that runs on gas rather than petrol (or for that matter hydrogen), equipped with a tantalising solo from Jamie Taylor who then digs digger with a more extensive feature on third track ‘T.T.F’. Nine tracks in all composed and arranged by Sheriff, the title track (the word refers to the study of fish) has a lovely far-away feel to it in the horn theme eventually allowing Sheriff to emerge. The pianist, who’s 36, formed his own octet a decade ago and released Daydreams on GLP and later Backchat for 33 records five years ago, so he’s a seasoned bandleader and composer and Ichthyology points to further development three years on from the big band having been founded. His influences on the evidence here seem to range from Gil Evans (‘T.T.F’) to Oliver Nelson (at least as far as the horns are concerned), and Sheriff likes close harmonies and improvising around a scale. You’ll hear little clashes rather than blaring horns in his arranging but in a year when prevailing fashions have favoured Ellingtonia this is a bit different. Of the soloists Tori Freestone from Compassionate Dictatorship on flute particularly emerges well, and Taylor is a name to watch out for. SG