Nicholas Payton Quintet; Cyrus Chestnut Trio

By RICHARD S. GINELL

Nicholas Payton Quintet; Cyrus Chestnut Trio (Jazz Bakery; 177 seats; $ 20 top)
 
Bands: (NP) Payton, Jesse Davis, Anthony Wonsey, Reuben Rogers, Adonis Rose; (CC) Chestnut, Steve Kirby, Alvester Garnett. Opened ,
 

TX:Presented inhouse. reviewed May 15, 1996; closed May 19. With a little synergy from the Robert Altman film "Kansas City," the Jazz Bakery presented a solid double act of two rising young leaders -- one (trumpeter Nicholas Payton) conservative to a fault, the other (pianist Cyrus Chestnut) bursting with ideas. Payton, who appears on the Verve "Kansas City" soundtrack CD, performed the formula-bound post-bop that has become PC for many young players.

Though much of his set followed the New Orleans standards path of his current Verve album "Gumbo Nouveau," his band merely translated the tunes into professional and fit bopspeak.

By contrast, Chestnut was on fire. An ebullient pianist not tied to any camp, he shoots twirling single-note lines out of his stubby fingers. He's not afraid to use endless tremolos or hammer repetitive notes and chords to build excitement and swing. He's a good composer, with command over a wide range of emotions.