Jazz Reviews : Saxophonist-Composer Hank Crawford and Trio

Hank Crawford, the saxophonist-composer who first came to prominence in the 1960s in the band of singer Ray Charles, blew into town last weekend for a two-night stint at Birdland West in Long Beach. Though widely regarded as a soulful funkmeister, Crawford’s five-tune opening set Friday night was long on soul and short on funk.

Working in an acoustic trio setting (James Polk, piano; Kenny Crutchfield, drums; Jeffrey Littleton, bass), Crawford performed a deft balancing act between the blues and jazz, resulting in a pleasant, if not too fiery, opening set.

Against a tasty synthesizer (the only non-acoustic element) background that created the old Hammond B-3 organ sound, Crawford launched into a slow rendition of “Sugar.” Crawford, who stuck with the alto saxophone for the entire set, overreached at times but nonetheless managed to show himself an effective melodist.

His two best efforts came during the course of four tunes--two from the jazz repertoire and two from the blues. Freddie Hubbard’s “Little Sunflower” received its due from Crawford as he improvised endless variations on the tune’s compelling theme.

More refined was a rendition of Dizzy Gillespie’s “A Night in Tunisia.” Switching gears from swing to Latin, the tune provided pianist Polk with his best solo setting and gave way to a neatly inventive drum solo by Crutchfield.

On the blues side came “Please Send Me Someone to Love,” in a Percy Mayfield arrangement, and the set-closing “Mellow Down,” a nicely melodic tune from Crawford’s pen. In both instances, Crawford showed himself to be an uncompromising blues man whose instrumental skills matched his soulful approach.