But I was disappointed, too, because I can't say I found much "new" in New Texas Swing. The music was not far from what I would have heard at one of Coke's or Marsh's avant-garde gigs twenty-plus years ago — usually a driving rhythm and bare-bones bop-style melody and chord progression carried by the bass and drums, over which the winds and voice explored increasingly "outside" harmonic and tonal techniques. The emphasis on humor and swing I was hoping Coke might have picked up from his Dutch experience was nowhere in evidence. The "Texas" in New Texas Swing appeared to consist of an interest in the songs of Huddie Ledbetter (better known as Leadbelly), but with their earthy side removed so they sounded like spirituals.

Of course I shouldn't fault Coke for not fulfilling an agenda I imposed on him. Coke and Marsh are superb musicians dedicated to their craft. If I've become a bit of a philistine when it comes to the tradition of free improvisation, that's probably my loss. But I still wonder: where are the musicians who could fulfill the promise of that name "New Texas Swing"? It seems to me that a fusion of Wills and Monk is still out there in the ether, waiting for someone to turn it into sound.

(P.S. The New Texas Swing CD is unknown to Amazon or B&N. You can find ordering info or local Austin stores that carry it at Alex Coke's site and listen to samples at the CO2 site. And if you want to listen to that Fresh Air interview with Kevin Whitehead, it starts about 37:30 into the clip.)

[More Prentiss Riddle: Music]