Cal Tjader - The Best Of The Concord Years (2004)

Vibraphonist Cal Tjader only recorded on the Concord label for three short years, but during that time he released six well-received albums. The Best of the Concord Years draws from that storehouse to fill two discs with choice cuts from La Onda Va Bien, Gozame! Pero Ya, Heat Wave, The Shining Sea, A Fuego Vivo, and Good Vibes. Although these tracks don't follow a chronological order, the arrangements and overall flavor flow easily from composition to composition. There's the sparkling arrangement of Ogden Nash/Kurt Weill's "Speak Softly," featuring Roger Glenn's atmospheric flute work, which is perfectly matched to Tjader's light touch on the vibes. There are also surprises like the Latin take on Stevie Wonder's "Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing," with a fine vocal by Carmen McRae, and an extra mellow take on John Coltrane's "Naima." The fact that certain players turn up again and again offers an explanation of how Tjader was able to record many of these pieces without rehearsal or planned arrangements. Pianist-composer Mark Levine provides both rhythmically intense chording for a piece like "Shoshana" and the gentlest of leads on "Naima," while steady hands like bassist Rob Fisher and percussionist Poncho Sanchez lay down the rhythmic underpinning so essential to Latin jazz. The Best of the Concord Years offers a good introduction to Tjader's last few years of work, and will more than likely induce many to purchase the individual albums he made for Concord.