For those unaware, at his 70th birthday party, veteran bassist Nat Reeves received quite a surprise. My dear friend Ken Kitchings, who is the owner of the SideDoor Jazz Club and a genuine supporter of the music, handed me a card that said for my birthday he wanted to record me with the musicians of my choice.

In his very productive career, the bassist has uplifted the music of many giants from the who’s who of jazz including Sonny Stitt, Jackie McLean, Kenny Garrett, Mulgrew Miller, James Williams, Benny Golson, Donald Byrd, Pharoah Sanders, George Coleman, and Harold Mabern in addition to being an influential professor for 40 years at the Hartt School.

Nat Reeves could have had his pick of nearly any jazz artist for his project. He decided on Steve Davis, Eddie Henderson, Jeff Tain Watts, Eric Alexander and Orrin Evans. The result is that Reeves is at the head of an all-star band, one that performs songs that have a special meaning for the bassist.

Now In Time is a recording reflecting on a 50-year career. The moment of reflection exists within the larger flow of time, drawing attention to the present as part of the past. Nat Reeves has combined his vast experiences with veteran band leaders and his current relationships with fellow musicians. Compositions selected are from his performances with composers Sonny Stitt, Jackie McLean, Pharoah Sanders, Kenny Garrett and Mulgrew Miller.

Other compositions were selected by the album’s musicians and add their signature sounds to the recording. Reeves’ original compositions complete this project and propel the recording into the spectrum of contemporary jazz innovation, honoring the tradition while pushing creative boundaries.

1. Blue Ridge
2. Katea’s Dance
3. Appointment in Ghana
4. Portrait of Jennie
5. Sounds of the Flying Pygmies
6. For RJ
7. Dave’s System
8. The Creator Has a Master Plan
9. On Green Dolphin Street
10. Alice in Wonderland
11. Samba D’Blue
12. Waltz for Ellis

The first release on the new label of renowned jazz club The SideDoor opens on the playfully confident Blue Ridge and the decadently controlled Katea’s Dance and then we get the formidably sculpted Appointment in Ghana, the sheer elegance of Portrait of Jennie and both the joyfully embroidered Sounds of the Flying Pygmies and the gently sterner fare of For RJ.

Along next is the colorfully spirited Dave’s System and the melodically jaunty The Creator Has a Master Plan, and they are in turn followed by the late night, smokey jazz club appeal of On Green Dolphin Street, the sumptuously melodic Alice in Wonderland, the set rounding out on the rhythmically emboldened Samba D’Blue, coming to a close on the delicately hued Waltz for Ellis.

Official Purchase Link

www.natreeves.com