Looking for America
For over forty years, Carla Bley has written music that infuses jazz traditions with her own personality. She continues to lead a variety of ensembles, from small combos to large-scale big bands. WithLooking for America, Bley returns to the big band format. Totaling 18 pieces, the group is a rich blend of 13 horns, two keyboards, and a rhythm section. She has worked with many of the featured musicians for decades, and Bley consequently composes and arranges with their individual voices in mind. Here she returns to a theme she's visited before, most notably on herEuropean Tour 1977album (with the piece "Spangled Banner Minor and Other Patriotic Songs"). Touching on the whole of the North American continent, there are nods to Mexico ("Tijuana Traffics") and Canada ("O Canada"). Once again, Carla Bley excels at deconstructing the familiar.--David Greenberger