Nelson Rangell expresses himself through a variety of woodwind voices, from the piccolo to the tenor saxophone. So it makes perfect sense that he should take on a remarkable number of jazz styles as he treks through the history of modern jazz (and funk) on his new CD, “My American Songbook Vol. 1” (Koch Records). After more than a dozen discs that could be pigeonholed as laid-back “smooth jazz,” Rangell threw my own expectations for a very pleasant loop.
“It’s not really a typical smooth jazz record; it’s a broader expression than that,” says the Littleton resident. Rangell lives the family life “straight up with a Labrador” while plying his trade as a musician. “This record was a decision to ‘cast my fate to the wind.”‘
Rangell’s pensive take on Vince Guaraldi’s ’60s pop-jazz hit “Cast Your Fate to the Wind” is one of many sincere covers featured on “My American Songbook Vol. 1” that demonstrates his broad range of tastes and appreciation for the music that has influenced him from his formative years at Denver’s Manual High School.
Not many musicians would release a disc with interpretations of Stevie Wonder and Earth, Wind and Fire as well as the sadly obscure pianist Hampton Hawes or the composer Leonard Bernstein. His choices may appear to be deliberately eclectic at first, but after listening, it’s obvious that Rangell wants to communicate – in his own voice – his love for what he observes as the finer aspects of American culture.
His respect for the “songbook” is what unifies the diverse tunes covered in the project.
While Rangell uses his entire spectrum of instruments on the disc, he shines on alto sax. With an effervescent approach to the chord changes of the Miles Davis-associated “Billy Boy” and the Charlie Parker-identified “Cherokee,” it’s clear that he enjoys a technical challenge.
“I wanted to do ‘jazz played smoothly’ (as opposed to ‘smooth jazz’). That version of ‘Cherokee’ is in kind of a halfway Metheny-ish sort of fashion,” Rangell said in reference to guitarist Pat Metheny, who also treads a fine line between the smooth and adventurous. “None of the record is two-chord music!”
But will smooth-jazz radio embrace Rangell’s new direction?
“It would appear that they are going to play ‘Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing”‘ (the new disc boasts a funky, ear-friendly version of the Stevie Wonder song),” says Rangell. According to the website for KJCD-FM in Denver, the song is being played along with other new music from David Sanborn, Richard Elliot and, well, Earth, Wind and Fire in collaboration with saccharine saxophonist Kenny G.
So far, so good for Rangell’s new and more diverse musical direction. It’s a path he’d like to continue to pursue.
“I’m a much more complicated cat with a musical lineage that goes much further (than preconceived notions),” Rangell says. “My American Songbook Vol. 1” is part of his evolving journey as a jazz artist.
So far, Rangell looks at his career as “a tremendous blessing and a very interesting road. If I can continue to do this, I feel like as lucky a guy as there is on the planet.”
Set list
Dale Bruning and Jude Hibler pay tribute to “The Timeless Music of Antonio Carlos Jobim” at Dazzle on Thursday … Dotsero relaxes on its own turf, Jazz@jacks, Friday and Saturday … pianist Pamela York and vocalist Sherry Williams perform at the Broomfield Methodist Church on Friday and the Trinity Presbyterian Church on Saturday … Bill Frisell brings his trio (his two Boulder shows earlier this year sold out) to the Boulder Theater June 8 … longtime Ray Charles associate and deeply soulful saxophonist David “Fathead” Newman plays two nights at Dazzle, June 23-24.
Bret Saunders’ column on jazz appears every other Sunday in A&E. Saunders is host of the “KBCO Morning Show,” 5:30-10 a.m. weekdays at 97.3-FM.
