Jim Brenan

Jim Brenan 11: 50 / 50

by Jack Bowers
March 8, 2019

A popular jazz magazine once had (and perhaps still has) a list of CDs in most issues labeled “beyond category." 50 / 50, the debut (?) recording by Canadian saxophonist / composer Jim Brenan's eleven-piece ensemble, would fit quite comfortably therein. It is as hard to ascertain Brenan's frames of reference as it is to unravel his game plan. That's not to say the music on offer isn't ambitious or interesting, as that is certainly not the case. The melodies ...