Just Roll With It

From the clean, rapid-fire soloing of the opening track, to the edgy guitar sounds of Sideways, guitarist Corey Christiansen exploits the nuances of the instrument, while showcasing an expansive compositional palette on Roll With It, his third recording as a leader. Christiansen explores a set of originals firmly planted in the soul-jazz tradition yet with a modern improvisational group aesthetic. Featuring NY-based organist Pat Bianchi, Seattle drummer Matt Jorgensen, and tenor saxophonist David Halliday.

Back in 2005, Duke Robillard conceived a maximalist studio album based on jump, Chicago blues, and NOLA-styled R&B. Given commitments to appear alongside Ronnie Earl on The Duke Meets the Earl and to participate in the New Guitar Summit sessions with J. Geils and Gerry Beaudoin, he abandoned work on the date, but never forgot about the album. Robillard's Roll with Me is his 37th album and his final one on Canada's Stony Plain. His rhythm section includes pianist Matt McCabe, bassists Marty Ballou and Brad Hallen (the latter appears on two tracks), and drummer Mark Teixeira. The horn section includes baritone and tenor saxophonist Doug James and Rich Lataille on alto and tenor; Doug Woolverton plays trumpet, Al Basile plays cornet, and Pam Murray and Carl Querfurth play trombones. Guests include harmonicist Sugar Ray Norcia on a track and vocalist Chris Cote on two.

“Back in the early 2000’s I was given the OK to start a new blues album for Stony Plain. Somehow after recording nine hot blues tracks, I got another album concept so we started another album session. I said we’d get back to the blues album soon after finishing the new project. As things sometimes go, we got busy with gigging, touring and life. That early blues album we cut kept getting put aside and we kept coming up with new album concepts within months of release of the last one.