MUSIC REVIEW : Jazz So Good That It Should Be on Records

Someone get this group on tape, please. Saxophonist David Newman’s five-night engagement at Elario’s, including a rare appearance by local pianist Cecil Lytle, is producing better music than Newman’s last album, a live date at the Village Vanguard in New York City.

The choice of Lytle, music professor and provost of Third College at UC San Diego, to complete a quartet including Jim Plank on drums and Bob Magnusson on bass, was an inspired move by Rob Hagey, Elario’s talent coordinator.

Though Lytle knows Haydn as well as he does Monk and Coltrane, he also founded the university’s revered gospel choir, so his soulful roots go way back. The pairing with Newman, a Charlie Parker disciple who took several detours into blues and R&B;, most notably with Ray Charles, results in some swinging chemistry.

Newman plays several horns, but, because airlines make it difficult to bring the full array, he is only using tenor sax and flute. Thank the airlines: Listeners are gaining a rare opportunity for some extended exposure to Newman’s fine flute work.

The first set on opening night Wednesday began with the standard “Sweet Lorraine,” on which Lytle’s tastefully restrained playing helped the rhythm section find a simmering groove. Newman and Lytle both contributed solos, but the juices weren’t yet flowing.

Newman switched from sax to flute for “Delilah,” an exotic number with a Brazilian beat that provided the perfect backdrop for his sensuous, tropical flute work. He has a special rapport with the instrument, standing with eyes closed to produce a stream of melodic ideas, shaped by subtle vibrato and bird-like trills.

Fats Waller’s “Ain’t Misbehavin’ ” came next, and Dallas-born Newman showed why he’s considered one of a handful of classic Texas sax men. His tone isn’t as full as some, but it is buttery smooth, and he controls the pacing and dynamic range to attain the maximum emotional impact.

Sparks really began to fly on Cedar Walton’s “The Holy Land,” as Newman loosened up and attacked his solos with more authority. This bluesy tune was the perfect setting for Newman’s subtle improvisations, built around the tenor’s mellow middle range.

Lytle was especially strong here, making mini-meditations of repeated right-hand patterns, with plenty of space in between to set them off. At times, his playing has the laid-back swing and melodic inventiveness of vintage Herbie Hancock.

For “Sunflower,” Newman switched to flute again, turning out a breathtaking, extended solo, reminding you how rare it is to hear someone with a genuine mastery of this difficult instrument. He was back on sax to close the set with “Hard Times,” the signature song from his 1959 debut album.

Newman and Company will appear nightly at Elario’s through Sunday, with three shows tonight and Saturday night (9, 10:30 and midnight) and two on Sunday night (8:30 and 10:30).