The complete set

On this CD the two 10-inch EPs released last year by Grotto are combined, and two new songs are also included.  (See the review of the first one here.)

The players in Jukka Eskola’s trio are Mikko Helevä, Hammond organ, and Teppo Mäkynen, drums. Swedish flutist Magnus Lindgren, tenor man Timo Lassy, and bassist Ville Herrala are featured as guests.

The music is straightforward, stylish and groovy Soul Jazz, almost directly from the 60s. However, the discerning listener will find details with a more recent time stamp.

The tunes – seven written by Eskola & Mäkynen, and three old ones – are catchy and offer nice chances for solos.

The two new songs are Introducing The Soul Trio and Sweet Honey Bee, by Duke Pearson. The first one is a short and bright gogo-ish blues with biting organ. Pearson’s originally laid back but groovy toe-tapper from 1966 (which Eminem once damaged slightly by talking) gets a vitamin injection. More, the theme from the 1962 movie Mondo Cane, swings nicely in a continental way.

“New Jazz From Finland” weekend brings Jukka Eskola Soul Trio and Gourmet to Budapest’s Opus Jazz Club on 1 & 2 December 2017.