Chase - Ennea/Pure Music (1972/1974)

Chase was an early '70s trumpet-based band that fit right in with other jazz-rock outfits of the time (Chicago, Blood Sweat & Tears, etc.). Led by trumpeter/composer Bill Chase, the group's first album had a top 40 hit (Get It On, 1971, #22) and, as sometimes happens, the debut album was the biggest and best of the group's discography. This two-fer CD includes two of the band's subsequent albums that were recorded before the unfortunate demise of Bill Chase and three other band members in a 1974 plane crash. The playing is high, tight and enjoyable while giving me a full-on bell bottom flashback. The material isn't consistently strong, but the songs that are good are excellent. Chops for days.

Other than Bill Chase, the personnel on these two albums are completely different lineups. As a result, they sound slightly different, but that's due more to the writing than the playing. Overall, I prefer the Pure Music album to the Ennea album.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Ennea #71, Pure Music #155

Tracks: Of the Ennea tracks, I'm a fan of So Many People, I Can Feel It. I'm not a fan of the Greek Mythology prog-rock suite that made up side two of the LP (tracks 7 - 12 on this disc). Of the Pure Music half, my top picks are Run Back To Mama, Love Is On The Way, and Close Up Tight, but, with the exception of Twinkles, the whole album is high energy, in your face intensity. There's some "electric trumpet" on the Pure Music album, which is a fun, if dated, sound.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD:  I learned of Chase in college when I played an arrangement of Run Back To Mama (which was a blast to perform). I'm not much of a trumpet player anymore, but it's still fun to hear top-notch players screaming in the upper register of the instrument and this disc suits that purpose quite nicely.