New Zealand native Matt Penman has been an essential voice in the musical landscape of New York since his arrival in 1995. For much of the past decade, he’s devoted himself to developing music for the illustrious SFJazz Collective and the fantastic James Farm (with saxophonist Joshua Redman, pianist Aaron Parks, and drummer Eric Harland). These pursuits left a gap between solo recordings that now is filled by the release of Good Question (Sunnyside), a new collection of original pieces – “Mr. Right,” “Small Famous,” “Fifth and Bayou” – meant to challenge, engage and entertain both its listeners and the musicians in­volved in its creation. The exceptional studio ensemble features some of the top musicians in today’s jazz (guitarist Nir Felder, soprano saxophonist Will Vinson) alongside such frequent Penman collaborators as Aaron Parks and drummer Obed Calvaire. “Overall, you could say that the album represents a general delight, bemusement, indictment and celebration of the American experiment through the eyes of a for­eigner who has now lived more than half his life in the States.” (Matt Penman) Matt Penman - bass Mark Turner - tenor sax Will Vinson - guest alto sax and keyboards Aaron Goldberg - piano Obed Calvaire - drums