July/August 1999

Jim Rotondi
Jim’s Bop
Criss Cross Jazz

By Chuck Berg

Rotondi is a solid trumpeter whose crackling neo-boppish fights recall Freddie Hubbard and Lee Morgan. His charts, like the Silver-esque El Patito are similarily strong. With inspired support from tenorman Eric Alexander, pianist Harold Mabern, bassist John Webber, and drummer Joe Farnsworth, Rotondi’s adroit mix of standards and originals take us from the high-flying All of Nothing at All to the leader’s gospel-influenced Last Call, co-written with Alexander.