Rick Frank: Yellow Mountain

"Yellow Mountain" effectively commemorates drummer Rick Frank's trip to China. A picture of what appears to be a temple atop Huang Shan, which translates to Yellow Mountain, imposingly decorates the album cover. The song with its "carpet of sound" by pianist Brad Hatfield is a tip to that style's master, McCoy Tyner. It forays into a rhythmically driven extended piece of improvisational jazz with some nice soprano work by Bruce Abbott. With Frank and Synder effectively laying down the tempo off which the others feed, this is a nicely crafted piece with Eastern undertones. Jim Robitaille's Metheny-like guitar work in the final solo adds another element of texture to this piece that sets it apart from its predecessors.