Following in the grand tradition of sociopolitical topical songs, the Dennis Angel Band’s new single (available as a download), “The Wall Street Recession Time Blues,” is sure to strike a chord with many listeners touched – in one way or another, by the economic realities reflected in daily headlines across the country. In detailing the ongoing financial meltdown & its aftermath, trumpeter Dennis Angel’s jazz ensemble have fashioned a big band-style blues tribute that’s both ironic & funny, but no less direct & caustic. Crooner, DeForest Raphael’s straightforward reading is classic vocal jazz &, given the subject matter, worthy of the Frazier Crane-like pomp with which he so appropriately informs his delivery. The arrangement is equally classic: the rhythm section of David Shaich (bass) & Mike Campenni (drums) sync expertly with the jazz chords of pianist Joel Mofsenson, as Angel & Gottfried Stoger (sax & flute) provide the kind of harmonic flourishes that make for great jazz. A triumph of composition & execution and timely as hell, “The Wall Street Recession Time Blues” by Dennis Angel Band is a terrific slice of vocal jazz.