Prime Time

TOM LUNDBERG [tbn] and his octet have issued PRIME TIME [Max Frank Music mfm007]. What we have here are jazz interpretations to 12 TV themes [64:11]. This is not a new concept, even commercial jingles have been mined, but in most cases the music is just jazz-up. Here the themes are given fine arrangements [Terry Vosbein] that are fairly understated and are further mellowed by main soloist Lundberg’s trombone treatment. Bethany Hankins’ violin adds nice color throughout. A gimmick, to be sure, but well done and very listenable.

Prime Time (Max Frank Music – 007) is a collection of a dozen television theme songs played by an octet led by trombonist TOM LUNDBERG. The group comprises Lundberg on trombone, Will Boyd and Doug Rinaldo on reeds, Bethany Hankins on violin, Ben Dockery on keyboards, Harold Nagge on guitar, David Slack on bass and Keith Brown, all musicians based in the Knoxville, Tennessee area. Terry Vosbein, a professor in the Music Department at Washington & Lee University, has provided the catchy arrangements. Not having been an avid television watcher, many of the themes that are familiar to most viewers from shows such as Monk, The Muppet Show, The Mary Tyler Moore show, Frasier, Maude, Jeopardy, Night Court, The Jeffersons, Chico and the Man, Mannix, Sanford and Son, and The Rockford Files, are new to my ears. This is not a detriment to enjoying the clever writing of Vosbein, and the musicianship of the players. While having the “Theme” theme to give the album a concept is a good one, this is music that can be enjoyed on its own merit, unrelated to its origins. It should find some prime time in your listening rotation. (maxfrankmusic.com)