Razor & Tie

Jazz-funk saxophonist and long-time James Brown sideman Maceo Parker reconnected with Germany’s acclaimed WDR Big Band last year to perform and record live versions of soul favorites by Brown and others. Parker, additionally joined by bass great Christian McBride and drummer Cora Coleman-Dunham, takes some well-traveled roads here. But it’s easy to be charmed by Parker’s shiny, bright, probing alto sax work and the impressive arrangements, starting with his rambunctious vocals and playing on "Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag " and a jam-heavy version of “Soul Power” (both by his old boss). Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish” benefits from cross-firing, start-and-stop horn lines, and the leader does a bit of call-and-response with the brass on “Rock Steady,” toasting Aretha Franklin. File under: funkified jazz.