Steve Shark's Trio O' Tribute Albums Dept.

Whilst [grammar - Ed.] riffling through my vast collection of wax cylinders last night, I came across a surprisingly large number of tribute albums.

Produced to celebrate a certain artist's work, they're often made with the best of intentions, although there are some which just appear to be cash-in hack jobs. In many ways, they can seem rather pointless, particularly when they're assembled so that different artists appear on each track in a wide range of styles. They're never going to have the cohesion of the originals when they lack the context in which they first appeared. However, they can sometimes have the effect of making you go back to the original, or even to introduce you to somebody new, so I guess these are positive consequences of tribute albums.

I've chosen jazz tributes for this screed. They're all purpose-made projects - not just compilations of previously available material - and the featured performers vary on the tracks of each album, sometimes quite wildly.

First up, "That's the Way I Feel Now" (1984) - a tribute to Thelonious Monk. There are some real jazz heavyweights here - Steve Swallow, Gil Evans, Steve Lacy, Carla Bley and Elvin Jones - as well as more mainstream names such as NRBQ, Donald Fagen, Todd Rundgren, Dr John, Peter Frampton and Joe Jackson. As you might expect, it's an eclectic mix, although more biased towards a jazz feel. Todd Rundgren and Gary Lindo's take on "Four on One" is bizarre, to say the least - I think I hate it, but perhaps it's just too ridiculous to hate. Some experiments work very well, however - Joe Jackson's use of strings on "Round Midnight" is inspired. It's the more straightforward jazz treatment of Monk's compositions that work best here, however. Everything else seems to show its age - Fagen's synth on "Reflections", for example, is just so dated with its pitch wheel bends. Stand out track? Carla Bley's interpretation of "Mysterioso", but with Sharon Williams and "Monk's Mood" a close second, complete with a gorgeous trio of French horns - not a "jazz" instrument normally. Great to also see long time Monk tenor player Charlie Rouse show up on a track. On the whole, inconsistent but interesting nevertheless.

Charlie Parker gets the tribute treatment next with "The Passion of Charlie Parker" (2017). It makes no attempt to emulate Parker and adopts a vocal approach with many of his lines and solos given lyrics in a vaguely Lambert, Hendricks & Ross style. That's not to say that there isn't plenty of blowing - especially from the tenor of the splendid Donny McCaslin - and most songs have plenty of room for him (and other instrumentalists) in between the beginning and end vocals. Many of the singers here are new to me, but none of them disappoint. One of the better known names, Madeleine Peyroux, opens the album with a bubbly and playful but subtly swinging take on "Ornithology", which is a sheer delight. In complete contrast, the more obscure Jeffrey Wright tackles "KC Blues" in a semi-sung, semi-spoken style, which both curses (Fuck you, Kansas City) and praises the subject of the song. There's an electric guitar in the mix, sometimes squalling and sometimes nagging, which works really, really well. The songs' lyrics deal with the significant elements of Bird's life, such as his marriage to Chan, his mental health and his self-revelatory breakthrough into bebop. This album has really grown on me and I think it's got a lot more to offer on future listenings.

The last album in this trio is probably the one that echoes its subject most closely of the three. Not surprising when many of the participants actually worked with him. Miles Davis tribute album "Miles From India" (2008) blends Indian instrumentation and scattered vocals with jazz fusion, but it's not as cheesy as it sounds. There aren't many sitar-like sounds and the Indian flavour is largely down to the percussion rhythms. It breaks down to about 80% jazz and 20% Indian in overall feel. Miles alumni Mike Stern, John McLaughlin, Benny Reitveld, Pete Cosey, Adam Holtzman, and Vince Wilburn Jr all make appearances, along with Lenny White and Chick Corea, amongst other notables. Apart from a couple of earlier tunes like "So What" and "All Blues" this draws from the 70s and 80s Miles repertoire. "Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" is excellent with Cosey on top form and a tabla break which sounds totally appropriate with the space age guitar dipping in and out behind it. On "Jean Pierre", Mike Stern really shines, as he did with the tune back in 1982 on "We Want Miles". The composition receives an exciting but respectful treatment and ends with what I assume is either an Indian instrument or a synth sounding very psychedelic. I think Miles himself would have sounded quite at home on this album.

To snag this trio of tributes, all you have to do is answer this laughably simple question: name your favourite tribute album.

[Ed.'s note: As Steve didn't supply any pitchers for this piece I was lucky enough to source this very appropriate "tribute to swimsuits" image from my private collection - Ed.]