Brian Trainor's Portraits includes his own impressions of people he has admired (none of whom are jazz musicians), as well as works by others honoring fellow jazz players. With a strong band including trumpeter/flugelhornist Cecil Bridgewater, saxophonist Steve Marcus, bassist Vince Fay and drummer Bill Jones, the pianist kicks off the CD with a driving arrangement of Thelonious Monk's In Walked Bud which incorporates an unusually funky bassline in its introduction and closing. Marcus' explosive tenor is the centerpiece of the turbocharged take of John Coltrane's Mr. P.C. Vocalist Kelly Rodrigues is added for the powerful ballad tribute to Jimmy Garrison, with Bridgewater's lush flugelhorn providing superb accompaniment, along with the leader. Trainor's compositions are fascinating and a bit off the beaten path. Bardot is a trio chart that suggests the complexity within the troubled life of the famous French actress, while the percussive, strident blues Ali suggests the bluster of the famous heavyweight boxing champion, with Trainor's rapid-fire chords suggesting his fast footwork and flurries of punches knocking his opponents senseless. This is a fine effort by a pianist and composer who died too young, only in his mid-fifties. ~ Ken Dryden, Rovi

1		In Walked Bud
2		Wallace Shawn
3		A New Path to the Waterfall
4		Mr. P.C.
5		Bardot
6		Teardrops for Jimmy
7		Ornette or Not
8		Ali
9		Baldwin
10		A Cup of Joe for Lost Friends

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