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Schapiro 17: New Shoes: Kind of Blue at 60

By Jack Bowers
April 10, 2020
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Schapiro 17: New Shoes: Kind of Blue at 60

2019 marked the sixtieth anniversary of the

Miles Davis

trumpet
1926 - 1991

" data-original-title="" title="">Miles Davis sextet's acclaimed album, Kind of Blue (Columbia). While the tributes didn't exactly pour in, New York-based composer / arranger

" data-original-title="" title="">Jon Schapiro took it upon himself not only to revisit that classic session but to re-orchestrate it for a large ensemble (the Schapiro 17) and flesh it out with half a dozen compositions of his own and another by pianist

Roberta Piket

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Roberta Piket. In keeping with the spirit of the occasion, all of Schapiro's themes (and Piket's) on the splendid two-CD set New Shoes are anagrams of Kind of Blue—"Boiled Funk" 1-5 by Schapiro, "Foiled Bunk" by Piket. The last four of Schapiro's essays include subtitles: "Dark of Night," "Worth Your While," "Old Feet, New Shoes" and "A Smile." There is a closing theme, also labeled (not surprisingly) "Boiled Funk."

Of course, the five movements in the original album aren't overlooked, simply reshaped by Schapiro to accommodate his superb seventeen-member ensemble, not in pursuit of the unlikely goal of improving upon the memorable performance of Davis,

John Coltrane

saxophone
1926 - 1967

" data-original-title="" title="">John Coltrane,

Bill Evans

piano
1929 - 1980

" data-original-title="" title="">Bill Evans and their colleagues but instead saluting their historic endeavor while refreshing and amplifying it for a new generation of listeners. To that end, the five longest tracks on New Shoes are those on the seminal Kind of Blue: "So What," "Blue in Green," "All Blues," "Flamenco Sketches" and "Freddie Freeloader." The end result is an anthology that not only lends added color to the original but in some cases (dare it be said?) swings even harder.

Disc 1 opens (naturally) with Schapiro's prefatory "Boiled Funk," whose shifting tempos accommodate agile solos by tenor saxophonist

Paul Carlon

saxophone, tenor
b.1968

" data-original-title="" title="">Paul Carlon and trombonist

Deborah Weisz

trombone

" data-original-title="" title="">Deborah Weisz. "Foiled Bunk," which follows, is a showcase for Piket's inquisitive solo piano and leads to a burnished, angled version of "So What," with

Alex Jeun

trombone

" data-original-title="" title="">Alex Jeun shining on trombone and

Rob Wilkerson

saxophone, alto
b.1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Rob Wilkerson faring likewise on soprano sax. Piket's tasteful piano introduces the meditative "Dark of Night," on which Wilkerson, again on soprano, spreads his intuitive wings, before CD 1 closes with "Blue in Green," a horn-driven anthem whose genial midsection features tenor

Rob Middleton

saxophone, tenor

" data-original-title="" title="">Rob Middleton. Disc 2 opens on a fiery note as trumpeter

Andy Gravish

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">Andy Gravish's blistering solo enlivens "Worth Your While." The swinging continues apace on "All Blues," an up-tempo spree enclosing ardent solos by tenor Carlon, trombonist

Alex Jeun

trombone

" data-original-title="" title="">Alex Jeun and trumpeter

Eddie Allen

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">Eddie Allen and zealous work by the ensemble. Alto

Candace DeBartolo

saxophone, alto

" data-original-title="" title="">Candace DeBartolo is exceptionally keen and resourceful on the fast-moving "Old Feet, New Shoes," while guitarist

Sebastian Noelle

guitar
b.1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Sebastian Noelle is loose and eloquent on the easygoing "Flamenco Sketches."

Piket makes a charming reappearance on "A Smile," soloing with her usual insight and assurance. Schapiro's lustrous arrangement of "Freddie Freeloader," the last of the five songs reprised from Kind of Blue, calls to mind the great

Henry Mancini

composer / conductor
1924 - 1994

" data-original-title="" title="">Henry Mancini whose jazz works were invariably hip and engaging. Its shifting tempos are subdued by a number of able soloists including Piket, Gravish, Harris, Carlon, bassist

Evan Gregor

bass, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Evan Gregor and baritone

Matt Hong

saxophone, baritone

" data-original-title="" title="">Matt Hong. Speaking of swing, the square-shouldered finale, "Boiled Funk: Theme" has that in abundance, pressing implacably onward (alongside brief echoes of

Jimmy Forrest

saxophone, tenor
1920 - 1980

" data-original-title="" title="">Jimmy Forrest's "Night Train") behind crisp solos by Piket, Middleton, Carlon, Gravish and trombonist

Nick Grinder

trombone

" data-original-title="" title="">Nick Grinder. Before closing, praise must be accorded to

Jon Wikan

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Jon Wikan for his sharp and tasteful drumming and to Gregor for his exemplary timekeeping, each an indispensable component of the album's success, as are Schapiro's bright and impressive charts. And even though Schapiro's warmhearted homage to Kind of Blue was completed some sixty years after the fact, it would surely have warranted an appreciative bow and earnest tip of the hat from the maestros who did it first.

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Track Listing

CD 1 — Boiled Funk; Foiled Bunk; So What; Boiled Funk 2: Dark of Night; Blue in Green. CD 2 — Boiled Funk 3: Worth Your While; All Blues; Boiled Funk 4: Old Feet, New Shoes; Flamenco Sketches; Boiled Funk 5: A Smile; Freddie Freeloader; Boiled Funk / Theme.

Personnel

Jon Schapiro

composer / conductor

Bryan Davis

piano

Andy Gravish

trumpet

Eddie Allen

trumpet

Noyes Bartholomew

trumpet

Rob Wilkerson

saxophone, alto

Ben Kono

saxophone, tenor

Candace DeBartolo

saxophone, alto

Paul Carlon

saxophone, tenor

Rob Middleton

saxophone, tenor

Matt Hong

saxophone, baritone

Deborah Weisz

trombone

Alex Jeun

trombone

Nick Grinder

trombone

Walter Harris

trombone

Roberta Piket

piano

Sebastian Noelle

guitar

Evan Gregor

bass, acoustic

Jon Wikan

drums

Album information

Title: New Shoes: Kind of Blue at 60 | Year Released: 2020 | Record Label: Summit Records

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