Publication Date: August 1, 2011
Author: Terrell Holmes

Trombonist David White has made a wonderful contribution to the big band genre with Flashpoint, an album of mostly originals that taps the wells of orchestral jazz with imagination, cleverness and style. 

White says in the liner notes that Duke Ellington is one of his biggest influences and this is evident throughout the album. The scampering brush intro by drummer Paul Francis underscores the tap dance pedigree of the rousing opener, Ellington's "David Danced Before the Lord With All His Might", the hyperactive sibling of "Come Sunday". The bragging brass of alto saxist Omar Daniels and trumpeter Michael Irwin highlight White's fine arrangement. With its brass regality, hip swing tempo and shifting textures, White's "Love in a Blue Time" is right out of Duke's playbook. Trombonist Melissa Gardiner contributes her strong voice to "Mister Shepherd's Blues", Sam Dillon adds his brand of bluesy tenor, followed by an inventive trumpet solo by Miki Hirose. 

White shows a sophisticated compositional sense on ballads as well. His dramatic trombone intro and the solos of pianist Nick Consol and Dillon augment the serenity of "Eyes Closed". The soulful tenor of Sam Taylor drives "First Light"; the lush "Pandora" has a considerable amount of Wayne Shorter in its DNA and the orchestra shines collectively on the symphonically layered "Secrets". 

White also has a biting sense of humor. The gutbucket grittiness of Stephen Plekan' s baritone sax plays off Volker Goetze' s light touch on the flugelhorn on the darkly comedic "I Have a Bad Feeling About This". The satirical ''I'll See You in Court" recalls many of jazz' past masters - Consol's pulsating piano opening sounds like it could come from Jelly Roll Morton, the brass salvos are straight out of Basie's big band and the overall edginess recalls Mingus' "Fables of Faubus". Flashpoint is a winner because of the way that the stellar musicianship brings out the best in White's excellent composing and arranging.