Brass Knuckles

Excellent

Zane Massey has two very good acoustic jazz albums out, Brass Knuckles from 1993 and Safe to Imagine from 1996. If you like Joshua Redman, Roy Hargrove, and acoustic jazz, then check out Zane.

Zane Massey(son of trumpeter/composer/arranger Cal Massey) is a saxophonist who deserves to be much better known. Recorded during November, 1992 this powerful and exciting trio album features Massey(tenor & soprano sax), Hideiji Taninaka(bass) & Sadiq M. Abdu Shahid(drums). William Parker plays arco bass on track 2 replacing Taninaka. Zane grew up in an intensely musical environment listening to rehearsals at home with people like John Coltrane and it shows on this debut album.All eight tracks feature tremendous playing from the trio with the highlights being Cal Massey's 'Message From Trane', the exuberant 'Walk Right In' and the beautiful ballad 'Through The Eyes Of A Child' dedicated to Zane's daughter Xochi.'Brass Knuckles' is an overlooked album which should appeal to anyone who enjoys passionate and adventurous modern jazz.