“FIRST BRASS.” Allan Botschinsky. M-A Music NU...

“FIRST BRASS.” Allan Botschinsky. M-A Music NU 1580 (K-Tel International, 15535 Medina Road, Plymouth, Minn. 55447, (800) 328-6640).

Incredible!

Hard though this may be to find, it’s worth the effort. Recorded in Hamburg, it is the work of only four musicians who, through multiple overdubs, sound like a 16-piece orchestra. Botschinsky, a Dane, arranged and (except for Brahms’ Lullaby) composed all 10 pieces; he and England’s Derek Watkins play trumpets and fluegelhorns while the Dutch brothers Bart and Erik Van Lier are heard mainly on trombone and tuba.

There is no rhythm section per se, though the ingenuity of the writing gives the illusion of one. In addition to the implacable (but never too heavy) tuba beat, there are rhythmic devices ranging from a banjo sound (via muted trumpets) to celesta effects and a Basie-like ending.

So brilliant is the recording, and so precise the playing, that a live performance by a full brass ensemble probably could never duplicate it. Some of the music has a jaunty, swinging flavor: “Alster Promenade” is at once rhythmic, Germanic and hypnotic.

The solos justify the praise heaped on this group by Quincy Jones, Dizzy Gillespie and Doc Severinsen.

“First Brass” is not a technical gimmick; on the contrary, this is sheer techno-logic. 5 stars.

“‘RENAISSANCE.” Branford Marsalis. Columbia FC 40711. The marvelous sense of time on the part of all four men (Marsalis on tenor, Kenny Kirkland on piano, bassist Bob Hurst and drummer Tony Williams) does wonders for the racehorse opener, “Just One of Those Things.” Still, the cuts that will be most played and best remembered are the pensive J.J. Johnson tune “Lament” and Jimmy Rowles’ “The Peacocks,” with Marsalis on soprano sax and Herbie Hancock taking over the keyboard for an ethereal solo. The closing “St. Thomas” is an unaccompanied sax solo, a ploy that works only sporadically even when Sonny Rollins does it. 4 stars.

“GUESS WHO’S IN TOWN.” Bobby Short. Atlantic 7-81778-1. Andy Razaf, the lyricist who co-wrote countless hits with Fats Waller, Eubie Blake and others, is the subject of this worthy dedication. Short, his perennial ebullient self, sings and plays his way through a charming program with a backing far more jazz-oriented than is his wont: Marshall Royal, Harry (Sweets) Edison and Buster Cooper are generously allotted blowing space. This was the late Phil Moore’s last go-round as a producer, and one wonders: Who else could have refurbished “Honeysuckle Rose” so gracefully, or have conceived “Ain’t Misbehavin’ ” as a waltz? “Black and Blue,” by the way, is an old Razaf-Waller song, far superior to the similarly titled tune sung by Phyllis Hyman. 4 1/2 stars.

“THEN AND NOW.” Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra. Atlantic 7-81801-1. The concept: one side of old Dorsey hits, one side of newer tunes in big-band settings. It doesn’t work, because the singer around whom this is mainly built, Carole Taran, is at best competent; the arrangements are serviceable and the trumpeter-leader Lee Castle has a few mildly pleasant solos. 1 1/2 stars.

“CARLA.” Steve Swallow. Xtrawatt 2. True, Swallow wrote all the music for this low-key set, plays bass and synthesizers, but the formidable presence throughout is Carla Bley, who introduces the themes on organ, joined here and there by Larry Willis on piano and Hiram Bullock on guitar. A generally light fusion or quasi-Brazilian beat underlines the melodies, some of which are harmonically charming though melodically very simple. What is solemn and soulful here becomes gloomy and churchy there, with mixed results. 3 stars.

“HARRY CONNICK JR.” Columbia CK 40702. Who does this young upstart think he is? Erroll Garner? Thelonious Clunk? Don’t be disconcerted; once you get past his variously loping, limping, fancy, funny, clunky, clever treatments of a couple of standards, Connick emerges as a pianist/composer of genuine merit and obvious promise. Only 19 when he made this CD a year ago, he is the first (apparently) white product of the Marsalis/New Orleans school: He studied with Ellis Marsalis, appeared recently in Los Angeles opposite Branford Marsalis, and the record was produced by the 21-year-old Delfeayo Marsalis. CBS put this out with no liner notes, not even any composer credits, though presumably the unfamiliar tunes are his own. “E,” despite its title, is a blues in B flat. 3 1/2 stars.

“NEW BEGINNING.” Gordon Brisker Big Band. Discovery DSCD 938. Brisker’s arrangements and tenor sax are the batteries that charge this talent-packed 14-man Los Angeles band. Dipping into a well-mixed bag from Shorter to Porter, with four originals, he puts his many soloists on display: Rick Culver’s soul-searching trombone in “Lament,” Jim Germann’s cavernous bass clarinet in “Land of the Snake People,” Bob Summers’ trumpet passim. Underlining it is a highly culinary rhythm section with Victor Lewis on drums and John Beasley on piano. Were it only economically feasible, this would be a splendid band to keep together. 4 stars.

“WORKIN’ WITH THE MILES DAVIS QUINTET.” Prestige OJC 296. Davis is the only survivor of this 1956 quintet, which included John Coltrane, Red Garland, Philly Joe Jones and Paul Chambers. Suffice it that this set includes “Four” (not the original version but a fine one), “It Never Entered My Mind” and the Jamal “Ahmad’s Blues.” This is one of another flood of bargain-rate ($6.98) Original Jazz Classics on Fantasy’s many labels: Prestige, Contemporary, Milestone, Jazzland, Riverside. There are other gems by Cannonball Adderley, Kenny Burrell, Dexter Gordon, Shelly Manne, Sonny Rollins, McCoy Tyner. Many of them, like “Workin’,” rate 5 stars.

“AFTER MIDNIGHT.” Nat King Cole. Capitol CDP 7 48328 2. Diving into the jazz/pop CD reissue pool, Capitol has surfaced with four Nat Coles of which this, one of the rare jazz sessions from his later days, is the most indispensable. He swings vocally and at the piano, with four rotating guests: trumpeter Harry (Sweets) Edison, alto saxophonist Willie Smith, Juan Tizol on valve trombone and violinist Stuff Smith. The CD includes five additional tracks. Given the digital remastering and the overall evidence of Cole’s pianistic gifts, this is a must. 5 stars. (The others are “Cole Espanol,” in Spanish; “The Very Thought of You,” a ballad vocal set with Gordon Jenkins charts, and “Nat Cole Sings/George Shearing Plays.”)