James Carter, Cyrus Chestnut, Ali Jackson, and Reginald Veal: Gold Soundz (RSD 2026 release)

Gold Soundz (originally released as Gold Sounds) is a jazz album reimaging songs by the indie rock band Pavement. It features saxophonist James Carter, keyboardist Cyrus Chestnut, drummer Ali Jackson, and bassist Reginald Veal (I will refer to this group as the Gold Soundz band in this post). It came out on CD in 2005, and the timing was perfect for me back then. I had recently gotten into Pavement – I somehow missed the band in its 90s heyday. My late-to-the-party introduction to the band was getting hooked on band leader Stephen Malkmus’ solo debut and purchasing the deluxe reissues of their first two albums on CD from Matador Records in the early 00s. I was a jazz fan and a James Carter fan in particular, and so I was particularly ripe for jazz versions of Pavement tunes.

I like jazz generally, but really like it when I am familiar with the tune. I love it when jazz players deconstruct a familiar tune. What the Gold Soundz band did was highlight the gorgeous melodies often buried in Pavement’s slacker/punk approach to rock. Once the melody was highlighted, the band riffed on it, sometimes from a soul-jazz perspective and sometimes from an avant-garde one. Carter’s sax squawk is the perfect soloist take on this material. Chestnut, whether on piano, Rhodes electric piano, or organ, is a tender counterpoint to Carter. The combination of this jazz band and Pavement material is inspired and has been one of my favorite jazz albums.

I was delighted to see this vinyl reissue on the Record Store Day 2026 list. Even better was that it was more than just a vinyl reissue – it doubled in size with bonus material. The reissue is also on streaming services (CD quality). The reissue includes excellent liner notes by Jim Allen. I did not know the background of this album, and Allen tells a great story about it. The vinyl (gold wax) is an excellent-sounding pressing, and the packaging is high-quality.

I did not know the backstory of this recording, but I assumed that, given the excellence of the performance, the jazz band members were fans of Pavement. It turns out that the jazzers had very little familiarity with Pavement, and it was the producer’s idea for the band to interpret the material as more of a reaction than as a study. It worked perfectly – the jazz guys had a natural affinity for the source material.

Tracklist (* indicates it was on the original 2005 CD)

Side A

“Summer Babe*” (Spring Version) is a soul jazz take on the Slanted and Enchanted song. The original focused on noisy, distorted guitars, but the Gold Soundz band extracts the melody and makes it funky.

“Trigger Cut*” is another Slanted and Enchanted song covered by Chesnut solo, and is almost a stride piano.

On “5-4=Unity,” Carter takes the lead, squacking on contrabass sarrusophone, sounding like a very hip bull frog. Ironically, the Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain original is pretty jazzy.

The original version of “Here” from Slanted and Enchanted embraced the Pavement slacker vibe. The Gold Soundz band turns it into a gorgeous ballad.

Side B

“Stereo*” is one of Pavement’s most famous songs (from Brighten the Corners) and was originally performed with a humorous Lou Reed vibe. The Gold Soundz band turns it into a funk, soul, and jazz workout.

“Cut Your Hair*” (from Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain) may be Pavement’s most famous song and was originally performed as a lazy punk song. The Gold Soundz band turns it into a slow soul jazz grind – something that would not sound out of place from the SNL band during a commercial break.

“My First Mine*” from Slanted and Enchanted was originally a punk rock song. In the Gold Soundz band’s hands, it sounds like a jazz standard performed by a jazz avant-garde band – or as the album’s hype sticker proclaims, “Malkmus meets Coltrane?”

Side C

Terror Twilight’s “Folk Jam” always had a Beatlesque vibe to me. The Gold Soundz band turns into a soul jazz jam session where Carter goes full Coltrane over Chesnut’s Rhodes electric piano (The Electric Lady Studio house electric – used by Stevie Wonder on his 70s classics)

“Blue Hawaiian*” (from Brighten the Corners)- is a mellow jam with Door’s vibe. The Gold Soundz band opens with a vibe that is pretty true to the original, with Carter’s sax “singing” the Malkmus part. Eventually, Carter lets his freak flag fly, mimicking Malkmus guitar, over Chesnut’s Rhodes electric piano.

“Platform Blues*” (from Terror Twilight) is one of the more blues-rock-sounding Pavement songs. Gold Soundz takes a jazz blues approach, and Carter absolutely wails and whips out the contrabass sarrusophone to both wail and drone.

“Puzzle For You” is an unknown song to me, not on any streaming service, and I couldn’t find it on Google. It is a short interlude with Chestnut on the Rhodes and the rhythm section.

Side D – is alternative takes from the original Gold Soundz sessions. They are different enough to be essential.

“Summer Babe (Fall Version)” is a looser version than the original Gold Sounds – neither better nor worse than the original on the 2005 Gold Sounds album – just different in a good way. It opens with a galloping base, and then the Rhodes comes in. At about 45 seconds, Carter states the theme, pauses, and then explores it. Veal shows his prowess on the bass.

“Stereo (Balladic Reprise)” is mellower than the original on the Gold Sounds album and actually closer to the Pavement original.

“Trigger Cut (Reprise)” is a funkier take on the Gold Sounds original, with an amazing Chestnut acoustic piano solo in which he dissects the melody.

On “Cut Your Hair (Conclusion),” the band slows things down for a late-night, end-of-the-party vibe. The version on the CD is similarly slow, but it opens with a hot sax solo and includes some vocals. This version is nice and sleepy, although Carter does let it loose occasionally on his extended solo. The song ends with a vocal fade. A great ending to a great album.

Overall, Carter wails on this album. Chestnut on a Fender Rhodes electric and organ piano is a treat, as he is known as an acoustic piano guy. This is my favorite RSD 2026 release. It would have been great as a vinyl reissue, but it is such a bonus that the tracks are doubled with extra material. This is why I am a sucker for RSD!