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Josh Levinson Sextet: Chauncey Street

  Tobias Fischer

Levinson is a trumpet guy out of Brooklyn, a situation that doesn’t scream uniqueness. But one major advantage he’s got is that Freddie Hubbard’s Goin’ Up LP came out in 1960 – that sort of sound being as warmly addressed as this definitely counts for a lot.

Levinson’s early career was spent in funk bands, later in small combos, so on the whole this album (his 2nd) makes a lot of sense. Throwback bop on the title track and the obliviously reverent 70s burn of “For Freddie” isn’t the whole story at all; there’s a lot of Latin and funk vibe throughout. I suppose this would have gotten a lot of attention in 1975, but even now there’s always room for a pleasantly club-atmospheric collection of solid originals (!) by a damn good trumpeter who not only knows post-bop and all that came before, but obviously lives for it.

You’ll be filing this with your oldschool-style favorites for sure.

By Eric Saeger

Homepage: Josh Levinson Sextet