Album Notes

The Rob Thorsen CD "Moon Ray" really hits home with a eclectic collection of funky groove jazz, some great odd meter latin and straight ahead bebop. There is even a chinese folk song arranged for bass and drums! Compositions include Monks "Bye Ya", Thorsen's original "Mud Puppies", Artie Shaw's "Moon Ray" done as a latin-(check it out!), a solo bass version of "Stardust", "Bohemia afetr Dark" and many more.
The band features Thorsen on the upright bass, Portland pianist Randy Porter (plays with Charles McPherson, Diane Schuur, David Friesen), drummer Duncan Moore and rising star Gilbert Castellanos on trumpet. The playing is great and the whole CD has an excellent cohesiveness that shows the time these musicians have spent playing and performing together. The group has a very organic sound and you can really feel the warmth of the instruments on this recording.
Give it a listen, you will come away smiling and boppin' your head- or else you must be dead- Check it out!