Being With You

Cornettist Ruby Braff leads a nine-piece band for this tribute album featuring music associated with the great Louis Armstrong; the personnel are Jon-Erik Kellso, cornet, Dan Barrett, trombone, Scott Robinson, baritone sax/clarinet, Jerry Jerome, tenor sax, Bucky Pizzarelli, guitar, Johnny Varro, piano, Bob Haggart, bass and Jim Gwin, drums. Braff also contributes a vocal on “Little One” and Joe Wilder plays flugelhorn on one track - “Royal Garden Blues”.It should be obvious that this is quality mainstream jazz with a nod towards Dixieland formats and the tunes all being standards from the Armstrong era; the soloing is of a high standard and the subtle ensemble work is effective and sympathetic to each soloist.Music by seasoned jazzmen steeped in the tradition and a fine tribute to Louis.The CD has a playing time of 62.32 minutes.Amazon have now stopped providing sound samples – a stupid and extremely inconvenient move for all prospective purchasers – check out YouTube or the like for tracks from the album.