September 2, 2019. It’s very easy for friends to become chosen family in the City of Brotherly Love. Terell Stafford, Dick Oatts, Bruce Barth, Tim Warfield, David Wong and Byron Landham created Family Feeling not only because of jazz scene ties, but by the camaraderie that comes from being part of the Temple University family.
Each of these players are faculty members of Temple’s Boyer College of Music and Dance, and each have played key roles in the success of up-and-coming jazz musicians, much like they have done from each other. Pianist and master composer and arranger Bruce Barth is responsible for all of the music, and his band- of -brothers are the perfect group to deliver it.
“Blues for Mr. Tyner” pays lovely homage to Philly legend McCoy Tyner, right down to his percussive left hand. John Coltrane is he subject of “Mode for Trane,” which is built with the modal scales that became synonymous with the late Philadelphia resident’s recordings. “T Staff Flies Again” is a nod to the graceful musical style of Terell Stafford, the man responsible for gathering this group under the Temple University umbrella.
This is an album of heavy hitters; the players are at the top of their game and the tunes highlight the strengths of each of them. This family affair is the perfect addition to the musical celebration we present to the WRTI listening-family every night.