ECM

Looking back at this year’s Grammy Awards, its both tragic and repulsing to think the folks at the RMAA had nary the wherewithal to acknowledge the passing of flugelhorn maestro Kenny Wheeler during the In Memoriam segment of the big show.

Wheeler was one of the most renowned reedists to come out of the British jazz scene. And while many may think of Chuck Mangione and his goofy hat and beard embracing his brass on the cover of Feels So Good when it comes to the flugelhorn, it was this Toronto-born player who truly put the instrument on the map with the way by which he utilized it through his orchestral approach to composing for small jazz ensembles.

Songs for Quintet is Wheeler’s final recording, crafted with love at London’s Abbey Road alongside four of his favorite sparring partners—Stan Sulzman on tenor sax, guitarist John Parricelli, Chris Laurence on double bass and drummer Martin France. He was already not in the greatest of health when the group began recording this session in December of 2013. But the frailty of his performance throughout these nine songs and interplay with the others only adds to the sheer beauty of the record as a whole. And the instances when the ensemble does roll into full swing, like on “1076” and “Old Time”, not to mention a great version of “How It Was” from his old outfit Azimuth, Wheeler still blew his horn with the lungs of a man with some serious fight left in him until the bitter end.

Songs for Quintet serves as a perfect bookend to cap this great player’s time at ECM, if not for the simple fact that it is his best work since his label debut Gnu High, a super session with Keith Jarrett, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette (hunt it down!) that ushered him into a four-decade run of respect and renown from fans and peers alike.

Shame on you, Grammy people, for overlooking the late, great Kenny Wheeler in 2015.