An Attitude for Gratitude

Veteran drummer and composer Matt Wilson has played with Joe Lovano, Herbie Hancock, and Lee Konitz, among others, and he’s a fine bandleader, too. On An Attitude for Gratitude, a 2012 release with his quartet Arts & Crafts, Wilson makes unpretentious music that joyfully explores jazz’s many facets. The album can be old-fashioned or a little avant, reflective or funny, lean toward pop or work right in the center of the jazz tradition. The band’s sole horn player is trumpeter Terell Stafford; keyboardist Gary Versace changes things up as he moves from piano to organ to accordion. (Bassist Martin Wind rounds out the group.) Throughout, Wilson’s drumming impresses, regularly introducing surprises that enliven the sound. There are five originals by Wilson and his bandmates and a half-dozen covers. One of the most striking tracks is the longest: a version of Nat Adderley’s “Little Boy with the Sad Eyes,” where Stafford and Versace (on organ) toss the main theme back and forth. A spare, sensitive version of Paul Simon’s “Bridge over Troubled Water” closes.