MICHAEL PAGÁN

PAGANOVA

Capri Records

Michael Pagán, piano/keyboard/composer/arranger; Louie Pagán, electric & upright bass; Ray Demarchi, drums; Michael Herrera & David Chael, tenor, alto & soprano saxophones.

The opening tune races off my disc with fire and is appropriately called “Burn it Forward.”  It gives the listener a taste of what’s to come, spotlighting the various players in Pagán’s quintet with several solo bars. This arrangement introduces us to their mad creativity during these spurts of improvisation. The two saxophones establish the melody.  Then they are joined by the rhythm section where Michael Pagán takes a hot and enthusiastic solo on piano.  Each of the saxophone players steps forward, one at a time, to share their own improv skills.  I am swept along in their energy and excitement.  The bass of Louie Pagán takes a sturdy and solid walk underneath the excitement, acting as the basement for their musical house. When Louie steps stage-center on his electric bass, he is dynamic during his solo excursion. They trade fours with Ray Demarchi on drums and Demarchi does not disappoint.  Now we have met the players, and each one is obviously a master of their instrument.

A tune called “Guess Who’s Blues” is surprisingly, a very well-written waltz.  Michael Pagán has penned five of the eight songs this ensemble offers. Pianist, Pagán has been a respected fixture on the Kansas City jazz scene for the past two decades. He has performed worldwide with a number of notable jazz musicians, also in jazz venues as a solo pianist, with his own trio, as bandleader of the Michael Pagán Big Band, and with his quintet that he calls ‘Paganova.’  As a composer and arranger, Michael Pagán has written and produced nearly two-hundred works.

On this project, it’s somewhat of a family affair.  Dynamic bassist, Louie Pagán is an independently established composer and producer.  He is also Michael’s son and an assistant engineer on this project.  Angie Pagán heads their design department.

The beautiful addition of Kenny Wheeler’s smoky ballad, “Where Do We Go From Here” is interpreted by the two saxophone players, both individually and harmonically. David Chael’s rich tenor solo demands my full attention.  When Michael Pagán soaks up the spotlight during his solo, Louie is right there on bass, walking briskly beside him like one of the President’s bodyguards. The mood and music changes direction on “Gaviota” (a Clare Fisher tune) as the group embraces a warm, Latin groove.  Once again, the unification of spirits during the father and son trading fours on keyboard and bass makes for an exciting arrangement. The title of this song is Spanish for Seagull. The horns fly freely, like birds, diving and gliding their way across my listening room with precision in their musicality.  Towards the end, Demarchi takes a much-appreciated drum solo.  They swing us into a happy-go-lucky, bebop arrangement of Pagán’s tune “Just the Other Day.”

This is an album of charm, creativity and comfort that invites the listener in, like the arms of a loving grandmother, you feel warm and safe in this musical hug.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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