(Big Band, Trombone) Roy Wiegand Big Band — Whatever Floats Your Bone — 1996, MP3, 320 kbps

Veteran trombonist Roy Wiegand Jr. is an L.A. mainstay for many years since establishing himself on the bands of Stan Kenton, Woody Herman and the New York studios and theaters. This album, his fourth as a leader, may be the surprise big band release of the year, sporting virtuosic writing and soloing throughout.
Wiegand's playing alternates between a relaxed jazz approach and sweet melodicism a la Urbie Green, complete with spectacular high-note endings. The arrangements are mainly the efforts of Howie Shear, who also takes the bulk of the trumpet solos in a fiery post-bop style. Shear attains his peak as a writer with his harmonic reworking of Chick Corea's Spain, with it's symphonic-sounding orchestration, and unorthodox charts of Summertime and Bess, You Is My Woman Now. Other featured soloists include Ray Pizzi on various reeds, Dave Pozzi on tenor (who else but Roy would have gotten Pizzi and Pozzi together?), John Opferkuch with several outstanding piano solos, Jack Nimitz on baritone, Steve Wilkerson, tenor, Bob Magnusson, bass and Bob Leatherbarrow on drums. Roy's son, Roy III, takes a fat-toned trumpet solo on Dindi. Frank Strazzeri arranged his own Relaxin' and the album ends with a pretty Ave Maria (Bach/Gounod) based on Urbie's version.
This release should be a must for fans of big band and jazz trombone sounds, and offers close to 70-minutes packed full of exciting playing and writing. It definitely floats my bone!

Roy Wiegand (trumpet, trombone); Ray Pizzi (alto flute, woodwinds, saxophone, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone); Steve Wilkerson (woodwinds, saxophone, tenor saxophone); Jack Nimitz (woodwinds, saxophone, baritone saxophone); Angela Wiegand, Bill Byrne (woodwinds, saxophone); David Pozzi (tenor saxophone); Howie Shear, Bill Armstrong, Tony Terran, Dave Trigg (trumpet); Bill Tole, Les Benedict, David Stout , Ernie Tack (trombone); John Opferkuch (piano); Bob Leatherbarrow (drums); Machito Sanchez (percussion)