Search - Warren Smith & the Composer's Workshop Ensemble :: Old News Borrowed Blues

On Old News Borrowed Blues, Warren Smith gathers the Composer's Workshop Ensemble to explore his approach to music, which he refers to as a little bit inside, a little bit outside. Starting the album out with an energetic big band opener, the band follows up with Rivers State Suite, a polyrhythmic multi-segment tone poem inspired by a trip to Nigeria. The Hungarian Gypsy Song features a haunting melody on soprano sax with tasteful backup from the rest of the band. After another more traditional big band number, One More Lick for Harold Vick, the album closes with the sprawling avant Free Forms 1 4, a less structured, open piece with intro bass work, and an over-the-top baritone sax solo followed by solos from other horns and vibes, and a closing poem read by Warren Smith.