HBC (Tone Center Records, 2012)
When three of the finest fusion musicians get together, you get HBC. The fabulous trio features guitarist Scott Henderson, bassist Jeff Berlin, and drummer Dennis Chambers.
HBC demonstrate their admirable skills by performing a great collection of pieces written by jazz fusion pioneers such as Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Joe Zawinul and Billy Cobham. Jeff Berlin contributed one original track and the trio composed two additional pieces.
If you like the cutting edge type of fusion, with the vibrant energy of electric guitars and bass and creative drumming, you’ll really enjoy this album. There’s no wimpy smooth jazz anywhere.
Highlights include the band’s exciting rendition of Wayne Shorter’s ‘Footprint,’ Joe Zawinul’s ‘D Flat Waltz’ and ‘The Orphan,’ the kick ass original HBC blues piece ‘Wayward Son of Devil Boy’ and the beautiful composition for bass ‘Threedom.’
“The trio is all about interplay,” reveals guitarist Scott Henderson. “Jeff and I have always had a very high level of communication when we play together, and putting Dennis in the mix notches it up even higher. He’s an extremely musical drummer, but at the same time has the ability to bring the energy up to scary levels.” Bassist Jeff Berlin adds, “We pretty much have the same vision of how three strong players should sound together. We function well on many levels; we’re friends and love to hang. We’re also individually dedicated to high standards of playing.”
“We all agreed to the repertoire but Scott picked most of the songs,” says Jeff.
“I thought it would be cool if a guitar trio covered songs by keyboard players like Joe Zawinul and Herbie Hancock, though we did some Wayne Shorter tunes as well,” explains Scott.
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