Jeff Hackworth - What a Wonderful World (1999)

Versatile saxophonist Jeff Hackworth, from the Buffalo, NY, area, has gained experience ranging from big band swing to blues. His debut CD,Just for You, concentrated on tasteful contemporary fare. For his sophomore effort, Hackworth presents a blues-oriented program in the austere setting of sax-organ-drums trio. With a smaller number of players to deal with, each musician is more exposed and has greater responsibility for maintaining the melodic, chordal, and rhythmic requirements of a song. This cohesive trio is certainly up to the task. Hackworth bends and shapes notes into nice phrases and thoughtful lines, with a rich, full, well-controlled tone. Jones fully utilizes the Hammond B3 organ's potential, supplying decent pedal bass lines, rich chordal backgrounds, and engaging solos (he's ready to be recorded as a leader, if he hasn't been already). Drummer Kent Leech provides a solid, reliable foundation. The program is a nice mix of three Hackworth originals, a couple well-known standards (the title track and Young and Heyman's "Love Letters"), and a couple lesser-known tunes. Stanley Turrentine's "Ciao, Ciao" is a fitting closer, since Hackworth displays some of the Sugar Man's influence on this disc. (DaCapo 51002)~By Dave Hughes

Jeff Hackworth - tenor saxophone; Bobby Jones - Hammond B3 organ; Kent Leech - drums.