Long Tall Sunshine

The fourth release by drummer Barry Altschul's 3Dom Factor, with Jon Irabagon on reeds and Joe Fonda on bass, recorded live during a 2019 European tour. The trio spans three generations of the music — Altschul came up in the 1960s and '70s with Paul Bley, Sam Rivers and the group Circle (alongside Chick Corea, Dave Holland and Anthony Braxton); Fonda emerged in the 1980s and '90s; and Irabagon, the youngest, in the 2000s. Across five Altschul originals, including the title track and the band's theme 'The 3Dom Factor,' the group moves fluidly between hard-bop swing and free playing, often within a single piece — heads stated straight before the trio stretches them open. With no chordal instrument, the music rests on the interplay of saxophone, bass and drums, a sound that reaches back to the open trios of the post-Coltrane era while sounding anything but nostalgic. One of the most acclaimed projects of Altschul's late-career resurgence.