UNC Jazz Press

Tall & Lanky. arr. Bret Zvacek. A traditional blues form with a couple of odd time bars thrown in for good measure. This tune has a New Orleans "Second Line" groove and can feature any amount of soloists in the band. This is a great chart to open or close your performance with and has been a big hit with students and audiences alike. Tall & Lanky can be heard in small group form on Jeff Coffin's "Go Round" CD on Compass Records.

View all charts by Bret Zvacek

JEFF COFFIN, well-traveled saxophonist, composer, and member of the Grammy-winning Bela Fleck & the Flecktones, rejects all labels and categories other than 'music' and 'musician.' In the face of his epic new album Bloom, even those once-broad tags fall short of defining the close coiling of sound, philosophy, and humanity that is the core of his art. Since 1997, Coffin has traveled the world with the Flecktones, performing with musicians of all walks. Those with whom he has shared the stage and the recording studio include such diverse artists as The Dave Matthews Band, Branford Marsalis, Garth Brooks, Van Morrison, and the Wailers. Along the way, Coffin has absorbed an astounding range of influences. "Whether it be New Orleans 'Second Line', African music, Indian Ragas, folk songs, Alan Lomax field recordings, Jazz, or funk," he says, "the spirit and breath of the music is what I take away from listening. It's what decides for me whether I like it or not."