Joshua Redman’s album Momentum is another rich and diverse crossroads of musical worlds that is exciting and appealing to me. Funk, Rock and elements of Psychedelia may not be what you would expect to hear on an album bearing the name of Joshua Redman, a long time Jazz band leader and composer. The albums Elastic and Momentum both showcase a unique modern Jazz trio - The Elastic Band: Joshua Redman on saxophone, Sam Yahel on keyboards and Brian Blade on drums. As the group’s name suggests, the music receives a bit of “stretching” by way of synthesizers, rock rhythms, effect pedals and an all-around edgy, electric sound as opposed to the soft, intimate sound of acoustic Jazz. Here is the group playing one of Sam Yahel’s compositions “Shut Your Mouth” at the Newport Jazz Festival:

Sam is a master of the Hammond B3 organ, and he was able to carry his musical understanding and experience to Joshua’s trio, creating a fresh and influential new sound. I had the great privilege of studying with Sam, and I was always amazed by his strong feeling of time and left hand playing, as well as by his personal and idiomatic compositions. This short transcription features both of these and offers a lot of ideas for bass playing and thematic writing. And perhaps most importantly, it’s just a lot of fun to play!

P.S. - There are some “out of time” moments in the original recording. It’s always difficult to notate moments like that, so don’t be alarmed by the odd meter bars - they are just a basic guide. If you listen to the recording and follow the sheet music, I’m sure you’ll be able to follow the melody without counting complex rhythms.