Chris Kelsey - Bookendless (2022) Hi Res

This album’s title might also have been The Good Parts, but then I’d have to explain in some depth what it meant if I didn’t want to sound stuck up. Unlike the olden days, when I spewed hundreds of words explaining my music, nowadays I keep my writing and music separate. All you need to know is Bookendless refers to a lack of the “head-solos-head” format that’s been a part of small-group jazz since Armstrong. I’ve recorded dozens of my own tunes over the past 30 years. In most cases, I’d have been just as happy if we’d simply cut to the chase the chase being: The Improvised Parts. That’s what we did here. Thanks to Jack, Dmitry, and Tom. It’s their album at least as much as it is mine. – Chris Kelsey