Jazz Prospecting is slowly returning to normal in what should be the middle of the cycle. Slowly is the operative word. I've finally unpacked and catalogued all the mail from my trip period, and the pending list has mushroomed to 222 records. While working on that, I've been unpacking the travel cases and processing those records for the notes below. So I have a few things to show for the week, but can't say as I'm feeling much progress. The good news is that I have so much of next column already written that all I need now are a couple of pick hits and a couple of duds. The pending file is so huge at this point it should be able to fill those needs.

Stebmo (2008, Mount Analog): Stebmo is Steve Moore, b. 1976, Seattle pianist/trombonist. The name more/less follows the pattern of bluesman Kevin Moore, aka Keb' Mo'. Album is produced by Tucker Martine, and many of Martine's regular clients make a showing: Matt Chamberlain (drums, loops), Todd Sickafoose (bass), Eyvind Kang (viola), Doug Wieselman (clarinets, guitar, banjo), Martine himself (percussion). Martine's circle, sometimes together as Mount Analog, offer an appealing take on fusion, and this is no exception. B+(*)

Fernando Huergo: Provinciano (2006 [2008], Sunnyside): Argentine bassist, from Cordoba, graduated from Berklee in 1992, teaches there and at Tufts. Website claims over 100 albums, 9 as leader -- most of the latter are in groups, like the Jinga Trio or Quintet, the Jazz Argentino Band, the Toucan Trio. Credits include multiple albums with Guillermo Klein and Nando Michelin. This strikes me as a cross-cultural mixed bag, the distinctively Argentinian twist on Latin jazz presumably extending beyond the occasional spots where tango threatens to break out. Otherwise, it rises and sinks on the strength of Andrew Rathbun's tenor sax and the weakness of Yulia Musayelyan's flute. Mike Pohjola has good stretches on piano. May be a sleeper. [B]

The Stein Brothers Quintet: Quixotic (2007 [2008], Jazzed Media): Two saxophonists, Asher Stein on alto, Alex Stein on tenor, with Mferghu on piano, Doug Largent on bass, and Joe Blaxx on drums, and a couple of guests adding trumpet/trombone on 3-4 cuts. Based in New Jersey. Both Steins studied at University of North Carolina. First album. Cite Barry Harris as an influence. Conventionally boppish, sounding most like those cool jazz groups trying to harmonize a pair of saxes. Not something I find very interesting, but well done. B+(*)

Robert Walter: Cure All (2007 [2008], Palmetto): Don't have recording date, but website has a 2007-10-03 news item saying: "Robert has just completed recording his next record it is scheduled to come out early next year." I figure that is this. Walter plays soul jazz/funk licks, mostly on Hammond B-3. He cut a record a couple years back called Super Heavy Organ which pretty much lived up to its title. For this trio, the organ isn't so heavy, and he switches to piano on occasion -- its percussive sound sharpens up those funk licks. Seventh album, first with a name label. B+(*) [advance: June 15]

Bobby Previte & the New Bump: Set the Alarm for Monday (2007 [2008], Palmetto): Drummer/composer, has 30 or so albums since 1985, recently including fusion experiments with Charlie Hunter as Groundtruther and Coalition of the Willing. New Bump's name may refer back to his 1985 album Bump the Renaissance, although the lineup isn't very similar. Original group: tenor sax, french horn, piano, bass, drums; new group: tenor sax (Ellery Eskelin), vibes (Bill Ware), bass (Brad Jones), drums (Previte), with guests on trumpet (Steve Bernstein) and percussion (Jim Pugliese). Piero Scaruffi describes Bump the Renaissance as "a bizarre compromise between ECM's baroque jazz and Frank Zappa's nonsensical rock." This sounds like anything but. Most pieces are notable for their flow, with the vibes and drums leaping over one another. Eskelin is an inspired choice, especially when unleashed to find his own path over the rhythm. [A-] [advance]

Arturo O'Farrill and the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra: Song for Chico (2006 [2008], Zoho): Chico, of course, is Chico O'Farrill, the pianist-leader's late father, an important big band arranger from the 1950s until his death in 2001. The son has never made much of an impression on me, and it doesn't help that family franchises are justly held in such low esteem these days. However, starting with "Caravan" (an easy mark) this goes through the paces and does everything it needs to do: the horns blare, the rhythm percolates; nothing new, but it's loud, fast, full of marvels. B+(**)

Enrico Pieranunzi: As Never Before (2004 [2008], CAM Jazz): Featuring Kenny Wheeler on trumpet, stealing the focus away from the all-star piano trio with Marc Johnson on bass and Joey Baron on drums. The pianist is more into lush fills than in setting the pace. Wheeler's trumpet is elegiac, but a bit dull. The rhythm section never gets a chance to break into a run. If I sound disappointed, it's because I expect a lot from players who have done so much in the past. B+(**)

Jessica Williams: Songs for a New Century (2008, Origin): Pianist, b. 1948 Baltimore, moved to San Francisco 1977, currently resides somewhere in Washington. I count 36 albums. No idea how many are solo piano like this one, but it's more than a few, maybe as many as a dozen. I've heard 7: my favorites are Jessica's Blues and In the Key of Monk, but that just be because they're the easiest to follow. I've never been disappointed, and regard her as one of the major mainstream jazz pianists of the last 30 years. If this one falls short in my pecking order, it's for lack of propulsion -- she's working in colors here, drawing out moods. From the booklet: "There is no doubt that, existentially at least, 9-11 was an orange, D minor event. It looked that way to me. It sounded that way to me. Its place in my heart is coded in that color. I had never before thought that orange could be a color of unimaginable sadness and grief. But it stayed that way for me until quite recently. I suppose I was grieving,and just just for the victims and heroes of 9-11. I was grieving for America, for the very idea of America." This album represents an optimistic turn for her. I can almost hear it. B+(**)

Liz McComb: The Spirit of New Orleans (2001 [2008], GVE/Sunnyside): Gospel singer, grew up in Cleveland, spent much of her early career in Europe, returning to the US in 2001. Her New Olreans album picks up some horns and fancy rhythm, not deploying them consistently. Helps when it's there, but doesn't matter much when it isn't: she powers her way through every song -- four she wrote, the rest as trad as "Old Man River" and "Just a Closer Walk With Thee" and "Happy Working for the Lord." Christian music's gotten so lame and dumb lately I've been avoiding it. I'd like to say this is the old time religion, but it's just the old time gospel music -- plus occasional horns and fancy rhythm. A-

Armen Donelian Trio: Oasis (2007 [2008], Sunnyside): Pianist. Born in Queens, of Armenian descent, father from Turkey, mother born in US with roots in Syria; graduated from Columbia in 1972. Has a dozen albums going back to 1980. This is a trio, with David Clark on bass, George Schuller on drums. Six originals, two covers -- "Sunrise, Sunset" appeals to me most because the regular up-and-down lines frame so much variation. Rest needs more time. [B+(**)]

Alon Yavnai: Travel Notes (2008, ObliqSound): Pianist, b. 1969 Israel, moved to Costa Rica in 1990, on to US in 1993, studying at Berklee and winding up in New York. Works in a duo with Paquito D'Rivera, as well as in this trio with Omer Avital (bass, oud) and Jamey Haddad (drums). Thoughtful, with a nice dynamic rhythm, the sort of thing that may grow on me. [B+(**)] [advance]

The Bennie Maupin Quartet: Early Reflections (2007 [2008], Cryptogramophone): Maupin plays bass clarinet, tenor sax, soprano sax, alto flute. Born 1940, made his mark with Miles Davis on Bitches Brew and in Herbie Hancock's 1970s fusion bands. Has a relatively short list of records under his own name, starting with 1974's ECM entry, The Jewel in the Lotus -- touted by many, but I'm not a big fan. He cut this one in Poland, presumably last year, with a local group I don't recognize. It's all over the place, with fractal spots intriguing in their minimalism, sometimes stretching out and soaring away, other times awash in schmaltz. Pianist Michal Tokaj is worth singling out. But two cuts with vocalist Hania Chowaniec-Rybka spoil it for me, but much else is of interest. B

Bill Dixon: 17 Musicians in Search of a Sound: Darfur (2007 [2008], AUM Fidelity): Recorded in concert at Vision Festival XII. No idea what Darfur has to do with it. Nor any idea what the big band was searching for, given that their sound is no surprise: an elaboration and variation on a dozen other notorious free jazz phalanxes. Seven brass (including tuba), six reeds (including bassoon, counted once), bass, cello, drums, vibes (or sometimes more drums). The slow stuff wavers menacingly; the ensemble work is unruly, with one piece ("Sinopia") hitting gale force. Impressive on its own non-negotiable terms. B+(***)

Duke Robillard: A Swingin' Session With Duke Robillard (2008, Stony Plain): Blues guitarist-singer, founder of Roomful of Blues, sustainer of the Fabulous Thunderbirds, has a couple dozen albums on his own. I've never figured him for anything more than a good natured journeyman, and ultimately I doubt this record breaks the mold. On the other hand, it hits my predisposed pleasure points so consistently I don't care how short the artistic stretch is. The bluesiest song ("Them That Got") is swung and sung with a wide grin and a light touch, while the more upbeat songs from "Deed I Do" to "Just Because" to "They Raided the Joint" dance on jazz springs with horns that give the whole room a richly burnished lustre. Will probably get slotted at a high HM to leave more space for the serious jazz -- this is just fun. A-

Amos Garrett: Get Way Back: A Tribute to Percy Mayfield (2008, Stony Plain): Blues guitarist-singer, born 1941 in US but moved to Canada at age 4, currently based in Alberta. Has a dozen or so albums since 1980, many side credits where he's valued for subtle, elegant guitar solos. Voice is deep and starchy white, not an obvious fit for a batch of Percy Mayfield songs. But the horn charts help, the guitar sly and subtle, and gradually the songs carry the singer along. B+(*)

Fieldwork: Door (2007 [2008], Pi): Trio, superstars in my book: Vijay Iyer on piano, Steve Lehman on alto sax, Tyshawn Sorey on drums. All write, with the prolific Sorey owning slightly over half. Each piece is then collaboratively developed. Most threaten to fly apart but somehow cohere -- the closer, "Rai," is one where every stray impulse reinforces the structure. The others, well, I'm having a tough time following them all. Group's previous record was a Pick Hit. I'm pretty sure this isn't, but not sure by how much it misses, or why (other than what they're doing is very difficult). [B+(***)]

Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog: Party Intellectuals (2008, Pi): Guitarist, has many projects including the Albert Ayler tribute band Spiritual Unity and the Cubanos Postizos (Prosthetic Cubans). This group, named for a French expression ("chien di faïence") for "frozen with emotion" ("like bristling dogs the moment before they fight, or lovers immobilized in one another's gaze"), is a postpunk power trio, with Shahzad Ismaily on bass and synths, Ches Smith on drums, with all vocals. Music is fierce enough. Not sure how well the songs hold up, or whether it matters. [B+(**)] [advance: June 24]

Public Record (2006-08 [2008], High Two): Group from Philadelphia, lists six members, including two guitarists (Gareth Duffield, Greg Pavlovcak), two drummers (Ted Johnson, Matthew Lyons), bass (Brent Bohan), and alto sax (Hilary Baker). Can't really classify them: the beat is rockish and they like dance tempos, but they're not that danceable nor do they push many pop buttons. Their Myspace page has a mosaic of influences which shows they're astute record collectors -- some covers that jump out at me: Aztec Camera, Lee Morgan, Talking Heads, Velvet Underground, Big Youth, Bohannon, James Brown, Au Pairs, Can, Clash, EPMD, Impressions, Bob Marley, Go-Betweens, Stereolab, Faces, Al Green, Slits, Fairport Convention, Fela, Public Enemy, Alton Ellis, Joy division, Otis Redding, Getachew Mekurya. My eyes aren't good enough to be sure of some others, and a couple don't ring any bells at all. List is notably short on jazz for a sax-led instrumental group. Also too electic to synthesize into a coherent artistic focus. B

Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra: Harriet Tubman (2007 [2008], Noir, 2CD): Bassist, b. 1966 Alabama, currently based in San Francisco. Sixth album since 1997, mostly with his MSJO big band. This one takes its inspiration from Harriet Tubman (1820-1913), a Maryland slave who escaped to Philadelphia in 1849. She worked guiding slaves north to freedom, served with the Union army as an armed scout and spy (liberating 700 slaves in one operation), and was later a women's suffrage activist. The music swings, the horns bright and rowdy, as impressive as any big band work I've heard in several years. I'm less sure of the words, which break the flow but advance the story. Need to focus more on them. [B+(***)]

And these are final grades/notes on records I put back for further listening the first time around.

Scott Fields Freetet: Bitter Love Songs (2007 [2008], Clean Feed): I've played this record a lot on the road the last month, and it's never let me down. The avant-guitarist has a tendency elsewhere to diddle in abstractions, but he plays with remarkable logic here -- bitterness must focus the mind. The Freetet adds bass and drums, bulking up the sound and punctuating the emotions. A-

The Michael Pedicin Quintet: Everything Starts Now . . . Scantly-recorded tenor saxophonist from Philadelphia, his father a Bill Haley-like rocker during the 1950s. Mainstream sax group, backed solidly and sumptuously by Johnnie Valentino on guitar, Mick Rossi on piano, Chris Colangelo on bass, and Michael Sarin on drums -- all players I recognize. A throwback to the sort of things Coleman Hawkins and Ben Webster used to knock off in the 1950s. B+(***)

The Gust Spenos Quartet: Swing Theory (2007 [2008], Swing Theory): The Indianapolis neurologist has work up some math formulae I don't fathom, but his band, augmented with guest stars like Wycliffe Gordon, Eric Schneider, and vocalist Everett Greene 2 songs; Gordon takes 1) understand him perfectly. Note the cover, although it's more likely that the faces in the classroom taught the teacher -- even the one that looks like Einstein. A-