Guitarist Mark Whitfield is one of the young jazz musicians from America who have their roots in bebop. With "7th Ave. Stroll" he has taken a new path, which leaves more room for improvisation and an own sound. The album is dedicated to guitarist Danny Barker, who died in 1994, who played with Cab Calloway in the 1930s. Whitfield is accompanied by two rhythm sections: one composed of Tommy Flanagan
… (piano), Dave Holland (bass) and Al Foster (drums), the other of Stephen Scott (piano), Christian McBride (bass) and Gregory Hutchinson (drums). Swinging starts the album with "Washington Square thoroughfare". The title track also swings enormously. A beautiful ballad is "A Brooklyn love". Some of the other great songs on this CD are the standards "Spring in Manhattan", a duet with bassist Christian McBride, "Sunday in New York" and the closing "Autumn in New York", a duet with pianist Tommy Flanagan. A gem of his own composition is "Sunset at waterside".more
