Eric Wyatt, Borough of Kings: Strong set of tunes from saxophonist Wyatt, who recalls some of Coltrane’s earlier period work, though balances things out with some straight-ahead post-bop work on this recording, too. The sextet features a nice line-up that includes pianist Benito Gonzalez, trumpeter Duane Eubanks, trombonist Clifton Anderson, bassist Ameen Saleem, and drummer Shinnosuke Takahashi. Nifty take on Coltrane’s “Countdown,” though it’s really some of the Wyatt originals that speak to the Coltrane sound. There’s one oddball contemporary track that doesn’t quite fit in with the rest, but that criticism is more one of cohesion. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the track itself, and it certainly doesn’t detract from this strong effort.
