Three Drummers, One Restless Saxophone
Brecker pushes his tenor through three different rhythmic worlds and comes out sounding entirely himself.
Time Is of the Essence opens with the kind of busy, hard-driving energy you expect from a Michael Brecker session: his tenor saxophone runs fast and bright over a band that never quite sits still. Pat Metheny's guitar sits in the mix with a clear, chiming presence, and the overall feel is modern mainstream jazz, tight and muscular, built for listeners who like their horns sharp and their grooves insistent.
What makes the record stand out is its rhythm section rotation. Three different drummers take on separate tracks, Jeff "Tain" Watts, Bill Stewart and Elvin Jones, and each one changes the character of the music. Watts pushes things forward with crisp, modern propulsion, Stewart brings a looser, more floating pulse, and Jones, late in his own long career, adds that deep, rolling swing that anchors everything around him. Hearing the same saxophonist adapt to all three is the real pleasure here.
This is Brecker's sixth album as a leader, and it sits comfortably in the middle of his catalog. It isn't the place to start with him, but it's a good one for a listener who already likes his playing and wants to hear him working in several moods on a single record. The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings gave it 3.5 out of 4, a strong rating that reflects its polish and its sheer playing.
