Profile

Album review

Jeremy Pelt makes his debut as a leader with Profile, a nearly all-original outing that features Robert Glasper on piano, Gerald Cannon on bass, and Ralph Peterson on drums. Tenor saxophonist Jimmy Greene also plays on all but two tracks, while altoist Jaleel Shaw and guitarist Mike Moreno lend their talents on one tune apiece. In addition to his formidable trumpet chops, Pelt displays a mature and engaging compositional voice. On "Pieces of a Dream" and the bright bossa "We Share a Moon," he builds forms around unexpected rhythmic contours, pushing himself and the band well beyond the safe zone. He also gets tremendous results by leaving the groove loose, as on the opening "Aesop's Fables" and the longest piece, "Jigsaw." The latter comes to a rolling boil when Glasper, one of jazz's most promising young pianists, lays out and yields the floor to Greene's hell-raising tenor. But Pelt has a cooler, melodic side as well; he brings it out on "A Song for You" and the closing quartet ballad, "You Won't Forget Me." Cannon and Peterson, the session's veterans, provide a robust rhythmic engine without overshadowing Pelt's precocious musicianship.
© David R. Adler /TiVo