Wow -- from the opening track "Fuego A La Jicotea"
(a huge hit for Marvin Santiago) you'll know right
away that this swinging salsa-mambo-jazz release is
something special. Assembled by trumpeter Richie Vitale
and tresero Carlos Konig, this selection of compositions
— ranging from the aforementioned classic "Fuego..."
to the Senen Suarez composition "La Sopa En Botella"
to Marcelino Guerra's "Ahora Sí, Oye Mi Rumba" to
Thelonius Monks "Evidence" — boasts a thoughtful sophistication
and respect for music of very high standards. — Descarga.com
Hold on, gentle listener! The boys wave the flag
early, with the opening notes of the title track,
letting all comers know that they have indeed come
to play, and to play hard. Throughout, one hears that
this is a band used to playing together, a group of
eminently skilled musicians, each with his own singular
abilities to be sure, yet committed to the common
goal of swinging together--and swing they do.
Smalls Jazz Club, in Greenwich Village's West
Side, the heart of New York City, was the ideal setting
for Richie's second CD. With its intimate sound and
appreciative audience, it completed the search for
the proper atmosphere to record live jazz.
Richie's first release as a leader, "Dreamsville,"
featured his friend, Gary Bartz on alto saxophone.
Says Richie of Bartz, "I'd listen to Gary as
a kid, him and Jackie McLean. I knew this was the
real deal." After sitting in with Gary a couple
or times in New York, Richie remarks, "I knew
this was the cat I was looking for.
