What's a nice, clean-cut hard-bopping trumpeter, one of the best to hit the jazz scene in the '90s, doing growing dreadlocks, wearing baggy pants and making a funk-soul CD?
Roy Hargrove's latest release, "The RH Factor, Hard Groove," follows a string of excellent hard-bop workouts that kept to the centerline of jazz tradition. Before this release, Hargrove turned out several stellar works: a classic set of Cuban jazz, a lovely collection of ballads with strings, and a high-flying tribute to Charlie Parker. "Hard Groove," a pun on his name, is a definite departure, which swaps swing for funk, intricate chord changes for soulful vocals and rapid-fire technique for slow bass grooves.
The change is a little surprising. Hargrove hit the pinnacle of the jazz world with last year's "Directions in Music: Live at Massey Hall," a superb tribute to Miles Davis, whose role Hargrove took, and John Coltrane, covered by Michael Brecker. The group was organized by Herbie Hancock, who could have chosen any trumpeter in jazz but wanted Hargrove.