Return of the Guitar Man - The New York City Jazz Record

Keep The Faith
Mike LeDonne/The Groover Quartet (Savant)
by Alex Henderson
In the liner notes he wrote for organist Mike LeDonne’s
Keep the Faith, jazz critic Owen Cordle points out that
the late organist Charles Earland liked to say that he
played jazz for people “in the ghetto”, seeking a
healthy balance of intellect and accessibility. That type
of quest is very much at work on this soul jazz/
hardbop recording, which thrives on groove-oriented
funkiness. The title song, in fact, is an Earland piece
and LeDonne’s “Burner’s Idea” was written with
Earland in mind (his nickname was The Mighty
Burner). An Earland-like mindset is as evident on
LeDonne’s own compositions as it is on interpretations
of Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel”,
Horace Silver’s “Sweet Sweetie Dee”, Donny
Hathaway’s “Someday, We’ll All Be Free” and the
O’Jays’ 1972 hit “Back Stabbers”. Even when LeDonne
plays songs associated with the King of Pop or the
O’Jays, he interprets them seriously, finds their jazz
possibilities and improvises without hesitation.
LeDonne leads a cohesive quartet of tenor
saxophonist Eric Alexander, guitarist Peter Bernstein
and drummer Joe Farnsworth, perfect sidemen for this
type of jazz. Bernstein is a long-time admirer of Grant
20 October 2011 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD
Green (who was an important contributor to soul jazz
in the ‘70s) and the expressive, big-toned Alexander
played on some of Earland’s albums in the early ‘90s.
Keep the Faith is totally derivative, but it’s derivative in
a consistently enjoyable way - well worth hearing if
one fancies groove-oriented organ jazz played “for the
people” but always with a brain.
For more information, visit jazzdepot.com. LeDonne is at
Smoke Oct. 1st with a Wes Montgomery Tribute. See Calendar.
Live at Ravenna Jazz ‘87 (with Steve Lacy)
Buell Neidlinger Quartet (K2B2)
by Robert Iannapollo
Bassist Buell Neidlinger and saxophonist Marty
Krystall have been tending the post-Coltrane jazz
flame in the Los Angeles area since the ‘70s. Their
releases on the K2B2 label always delivered harddriving
freebop that seemed to be flying by the seat of
its pants. Occasionally there’d be a dip into Neidlinger’s
archives and a track from the early ‘60s, when he was
still a resident of New York playing with Cecil Taylor,
Archie Shepp and Steve Lacy, would be released.
This time Neidlinger has brought to light a session
of more recent vintage. Flash forward to 1987 and Lacy
reunited with Neidlinger (and his quartet) for a set of
Thelonious Monk performed at Ravenna Jazz in Italy.
Monk, of course, is the perfect ground on which to
meet Lacy, considering his lifelong preoccupation with
the master’s music. But Neidlinger and Krystall have
also spent a long time studying that music and have
led groups devoted to the pianist’s inscrutable
enigmas. Billy Osborne has frequently been the
drummer for these projects and while rambunctious,
he’s in the pocket on these tunes. Pianist Brenton Banks
is an oddity. He’s also a violinist who’s played in
Neidlinger’s String Jazz group and also, surprisingly,
is a veteran of the Nashville studio scene in the ‘60s-
70s. He isn’t the most Monk-ian of piano players yet he
gives the music a unique flavor with his full (yet still
dissonant) chords. Lacy seems to enjoy his comping as
his romping solo on “Little Rootie Tootie” attests.
Whereas earlier Neidlinger Monk albums (1986’s
Thelonious and 1987’s Locomotive) have tended toward
succinct versions of the songs, here, perhaps to
accommodate guest Lacy, the tunes are in the 7-10
minute range. Everyone stretches out and Krystall’s
boisterous tenor contrasts nicely with Lacy’s buoyant
soprano. As for the negatives, the set is only 40 minutes
long and one wishes for more. And the recording
quality isn’t particularly stellar: a hollow late ‘80s
‘outdoor live’ sound marked by overamplified bass.
If the listener’s ears bleed from the harshness of
non-digital recordings, pass this one up. But those who
don’t mind rough edges around their live recordings,
and also relish the idea of hearing vintage ‘80s Lacy
performing Monk with some old friends, will find
plenty to enjoy.
For more information, visit k2b2.com. Steve Lacy tributes
are at Cornelia Street Café Oct. 1st and Douglass Street
Music Collective Oct. 11th. See Calendar.