Mack Avenue Superband At Birdland; Christian McBride Interview

Christian McBride rolled into Birdland recently with an all-star band made up of his label mates on Mack Avenue.   In addition to being an ace of bass, McBride is a great conversationalist.  He tossed off some great lines.  For example, when talking about saxophonist Tia Fuller: “Any musician: what you hear out of their instrument is a reflection of their personality; all of the passion and beauty that comes out of Tia’s horn – that’s who she really is.”  He clearly has nothing but great feelings towards his current collaborators.

On trumpet; Sean Jones –  “One of the premier musicians on any instrument of his generation and my kind of dude.”

On drums; Carl Allen – who CB first met about thirty years ago when he was in high school and has the ‘deepest connection’ with: “We don’t even have to look at each other, we already know what the other is going to do.”

On vibes; Gary Burton – “It’s a real thrill to spend some time on the road with a master…none of us take it lightly”

On piano, Christian Sands – who has been playing with his namesake for about five years.  “Probably the hottest and one of the most well-respected young musicians coming up on the scene.”

When I asked about his relationship to Birdland, he praised the booking as well as the room at the current iteration of the storied joint on 44th (for the last two decades) between 8th and 9th avenues.  He also disclosed that the original club on 52nd and Broadway is now FlashDancers! He even recalled that his first ever gig in New York was at the 2nd Birdland on 105th (and Broadway) in the fall of 1989.  Don’t miss a rare chance to see McBride lead his big band later this month at JALC.

Gary Burton… good vibes!