Billy Childs: The Winds of Change album review — exhilarating

Billy Childs doesn’t so much flit between classical music and jazz as stride. In his wake is a canon of original music ranging from orchestral commissions and chamber works to contemporary small-group jazz. He initially gained notice playing piano, first as a jobbing teenage professional in his native LA and later as a pianist in Freddie Hubbard’s band. Joining the late trumpeter in 1978, aged 21, he stayed for six years; he has led his own bands ever since.

This album, titled The Winds of Change, features a sharp-edged trumpet-and-rhythm quartet and draws inspiration from Childs’ experience of growing up in LA. Early musical influences are referenced by covers of Chick Corea’s “Crystal Silence” and Kenny Barron’s “Black Angel” and original compositions pay respect to the soundtracks of 1960s and ’70s Hollywood noir. But with trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire in exhilarating form and an All-Star rhythm section breathing interactive fire, the album resonates with the here and now.

The set begins with the stabs, skipped beats and forward motion of “The Great Western Loop”, named after the hiking trail that stretches from British Columbia to Arizona. The mood is panoramic, the band close-knit, and drummer Brian Blade adds drama and thrust.

In contrast, the title track reflects on the melancholy of city life. The piece was originally written as an orchestral feature for the late trumpeter Roy Hargrove. Here the ebb and flow narrative is rendered in rich piano-trio voicings and Akinmusire’s powerful technical grip. Later in the set, “The End of Innocence” unfolds over a rippling mid-tempo pulse, “Master of the Game” is playful, and covers are respectfully re-cast. The compositional form is rigorous, emotions are stretched and the band adds a myriad of details on the fly.

The album ends with the trio gently expanding Childs’ “I Thought I Knew” over the firm, warm-hearted counterpoint of Scott Colley’s assured double bass. The balance of freedom and form is complete.

★★★★☆

‘The Winds of Change’ is released by Mack Avenue