And, really, it’s not such a mystery as to why these two-whose friendship goes back to middle school-hadn’t, until now, cut an album together DeFrancesco’s facility for playing bass lines with his left hand and his feet has often obviated his need for bassists. The icon is McBride’s oldest friend in music, organist Joey DeFrancesco.
With Christian McBride, the question isn’t what can or can’t he do the question is, rather: What hasn’t he done yet? On For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver, the latest from the Christian McBride Big Band (CMBB), the do-everything bassist teams up, incredibly for the first time, with another locally sourced, larger-than-life contemporary jazz icon.
