The Eastman School of Music's guitarist extraordinaire Bob Sneider has been a busy man lately, co-headlining two new albums this month.

Sneider and vibraphone giant Joe Locke share top billing on their wonderful new album conjuring the moods of film noir, but every member of the band gets time in the footlights. Sneider's slinky guitar lines, wrapping themselves around tunes like "Les Modernes" and "Promenade Sentimentale," are beautifully complemented by Locke's gorgeous cascades on "Katya" and his own "Fallen Angel." But it's trumpeter John Sneider who plays the wrenching solo on the brilliant theme from Chinatown. And saxophonist Grant Stewart joins him in igniting "Body Heat." Pianist Paul Hofmann, bassist Phil Flanigan, and drummer Mike Melito contribute masterfully throughout.

Sneider and Hofmann have played together enough to reach a level of musical symbiosis recalling the classic duo of Bill Evans and Jim Hall. On Escapade they cover a range of compositions from Hofmann's five-part tone-poem-like "Touching the Sky" to Sneider's wild ride on "Roller Coaster." Both contribute excellent compositions, but they also shine on a Nat King Cole Trio medley and Rodgers and Hart's "My Funny Valentine." Their most ecstatic performance is on "Mañana Time," a Calypso gem by the late bassist Bob Stata. (Both albums are dedicated to Stata).

— Ed Trefzger
© Rochester City, March 2006