Number Five

In the past, trumpeter and composer Tom Harrell frequently recorded with large groups. But in the last few years, he’s focused on collaborating with his excellent quintet. 2012’s *Number Five* is his fifth release with that same lineup: Harrell, tenor saxophonist Wayne Escoffery, keyboard player Danny Grissett, bassist Ugonna Okegwo, and drummer Johnathan Blake. *Number Five* starts with a smoking duo version of Dizzy Gillespie’s “Blue ‘n’ Boogie.” (A number of cuts involve various subgroupings of the band.) Spurred on by hard-swinging drums, Harrell bobs and weaves through the song’s changes with great aplomb, and Blake turns in a dazzling drum solo. The whole band appears on the title cut, which has strong statements from each of the individual members. The Harrell original “The Question” is a lovely, mellow piece for flugelhorn, saxophone, and Fender Rhodes. Two tracks (the standard “Star Eyes” and Tadd Dameron’s “A Blue Time”) find Harrell tackling the pieces without accompaniment. The man has a burnished tone and a sense of lyricism that\'s a joy to behold.