Charles Neville - Charles Neville & Diversity (1990)

Charles Neville is of course famous as one of the Neville Brothers and, prior to that group's official formation in 1977, he gained extensive experience as a freelancer in R&B setings. That fact makes this jazz CD a very pleasant surprise. Using an unusual instrumentation (consisting of tenor, trumpet, harp, violin, cello, guitar, bass, drums and an occasional vocalist), Neville sounds quite original on alto and soprano, playing high-quality bop-based jazz that contains more than its share of surprises. Just getting to hear the melody of Charlie Parker's "Diverse" played by harp and having Neville's alto backed by violin, harp and cello make the set worth acquiring. Despite Jamielah Mikal's annoying vocals on "God Bless the Child" and "A Woman's Place" (the date's only weak spots), this is a highly recommended disc.