LEON
SPENCER – LOUISIANA SLIM
Sublime
Hammond from the amazing Leon Spencer – heard here at the height of his younger
years, when he was cooking up as much magic in the studio as Johnny Hammond or
Charles Earland – and really stretching things out, in ways that take the jazz
organ format much farther than the giants of a decade before! The date's an
all-out great one in the Prestige funky jazz mode – with Spencer on organ,
Melvin Sparks on guitar, Grover Washington Jr on tenor, and Idris Muhammad on
drums – a bit more subtle than before, but still plenty darn funky! Tracks are
nice and long – and the record includes the originals "Louisiana
Slim", "Our Love Will Never Die", "The Trouble With
Love", and a cover of "Mercy Mercy Me". ~ Dusty Groove
SADAO
WATANABE - PASTORAL
A record
as evocative as its title – part of a great flowering of talent from Japanese
reedman Sadao Watanabe at the end of the 60s! Sadao started his career out as a
hell of a bopper, then moved into some sweet Brazilian modes in the 60s – but
by the time of this record, he was really emerging with a great vision of his
own – a way of opening up in these longer, more lyrical ways on alto, soprano
sax, and flute – with styles that were very different than any American or
European players of the time! There's less of the echoes of the Japanese folk
roots that Watanabe tried out a few years before – as his tone and timing is
much more sophisticated, with a really tremendous sense of melody – and a way
of bringing in rich feelings without ever getting too sentimental – almost at
the best sort of soundtrack scoring level. All of the players here are equally
sensitive to his needs – and include Hiroshi Matsumoto on vibes, Yoshiaki Masuo
on guitar, and Kazuo Yashiro on Fender Rhodes – on titles that include
"Gary Outro Samba", "Tokyo Suite", "Bridge",
"Fandango", and "Ritmo Sabroso". ~ Dusty Groove
LOUIS MOHOLO-MOHOLO QUARTET - 4 BLOKES
Not just
four blokes, but a killer quartet led by legendary drummer Louis Moholo – one
that works at the same searing intensity as his Blue Notes group in the 70s!
The combo is especially adept at quick-paced, fast-thinking creativity – and
really leap forward with a great sense of cohesion on some of the album's most
emotive tracks – but they also know how to balance things out with some more
contemplative and soulful passages, too – showing the rich sensitivity to sound
that Moholo has developed over the years. Louis plays only a drum kit – but
with a depth of sound that makes you feel as if he's got other percussion
instruments in the mix – and the group also features Jason Yarde on saxes, John
Edwards on bass, and Alexander Hawkins – and titles include "For The Blue
Notes", "Yes Baby No Baby", "Angel Nomali",
"Tears For Steve Biko", and "Khwalo". ~ Dusty Groove
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