James Clay & David "Fathead" Newman
The Sound of the Wide Open Spaces!!!!

Fundamentally, it's the three of them, James Clay on tenor saxophone and flute, David "Fathead" Newman on tenor saxophone, as leader and co-leader respectively, and Cannonball Adderley, in this case playing the not unusual role of producer, forming the core of this "The Sound of the Wide Open Spaces!!!!" released by Riverside Records in 1960. This year is rich in side events for the three, which, in the overall context of Afro-American music, are essentially placed within the historical-musical range with both personal and artistically significant events: Newman was actively involved in Ray Charles' group, and 1960, for "The Genius," means definitive consecration with "The Genius Hits the Road," an album featuring "Georgia on my Mind" and opened by the swinging version of "Alabamy Bound," in which Newman's tenor, rather than giving birth to a solo, unleashes a scratchy blow very r&b like's. James Clay, debuting as a leader with "The Sound of the Wide Open Spaces!!!!," inserted his flute into the soft sound of Wes Montgomery and his "Movin' Along." In 1960, having set his saxophone aside, Adderley was often found behind the recording console with decent results, as seen in the debut of brothers Gap and Chuck Mangione in "The Jazz Brothers," an album that also showcases the talent of a superb and underrated saxophonist like Sal Nistico, or in "The Resurgence of Dexter Gordon," marking Dexter Gordon's return, a "renaissance" after the well-known extra-musical events of the previous decade. Furthermore, the artwork also aimed to provoke evocative responses, with Gordon depicted on the cover with a pensive look while smoking, clearly trying to recreate the iconic power of another similar but far more famous photo.

The paths of Our trio, therefore, converge in this album with the participation of reliable and prestigious sidemen like Wynton Kelly on piano, Art Taylor on drums, and Sam Jones, from Cannonball's group, on double bass. At the starting line, they are ready with the excellent performance of "Wide Open Space," which makes it clear from the very theme, clearly of bop origin, the harmony between Clay and Newman that allows them to be complementary without any shadow of domination, Newman with a soul flavor and Clay with a hard assault. This characteristic is refined track by track until it reaches the pinnacle with "Some Kinda Mean," a synthesis of their fluid chemistry. It makes for an almost unrivaled version; a judgment that might also arise from the comparison with another version of this track by bassist Keter Betts ("Jazz Samba" Getz & Byrd), recorded around those days for another album, "The Soul Society," with our own Sam Jones as leader. In essence, the version on Jones' album lacks impact, a characteristic that is abundant in Clay and Newman's album. The trail of this successful musical encounter will also lead to an intriguing version of "What's New," in which Clay's flute has the opportunity to leave an additional mark of the Texan musician's class and maturity. This is a historiographically "minor" album; you certainly won't find it among the "essentials"; if it weren't for Ray Charles' "reference," Newman's name would sadly be even less considered. But if you were to speak with those who follow jazz a bit more thoroughly, you would see that Clay and Newman would be given the place of honor they deserve. This album deserves it just for the simple fact that it sounds beautiful to the ears. And then, in case that's not enough, Cannonball guarantees it.