One of the leading avant-garde jazz trumpeters is Lester Bowie. With The Odyssey Of Funk & Popular Music he made a rather pop-like CD, on which pop songs, jazz standards and even a classical song (Nessun Dorma by Puccini) have been recorded. It has certainly not become a trap for commerce, because the arrangements for his Brass Fantasy are very special and leave room for idiosyncratic improvisation.
There are performances of songs from Notorious Big (Notorious Thugs) and The Spice Girls (Two Become One); Also worth listening to are Don't Cry For Me Argentina and Marilyn Manson's Beautiful People, a rather heavy song with plenty of erratic and exuberant playing by this formation. The CD opens with The Birth Of The Blues, appropriate for this versatile musician, who was born in St. Louis. Striking on this CD is the fine playing of tubaist Bob Stewart and the excellent playing of trombonist Joshua Roseman. Humor, a funky groove, fun to play and originality dominate this jazz CD, which will probably also pleasantly surprise those who do not like avant-garde jazz. (JW)more