George Freeman - Man & Woman
One of the more laidback albums from George Freeman's early
70s run – but still a great little set that shows the mellower side of his
talents! Despite the sexy style of the cover, the sound here is relatively
straight soul jazz – small combo work with Harold Mabern on acoustic piano,
Kenny Barron on electric piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and Buddy Williams on
drums – all in support of Freeman's snakey guitar lines over the gentle rhythms
and slinky grooves. George's sound is slightly less tripped-out than on other
records, but still has that undeniable Freeman tone – a raspy edge that's quite
different than most of his contemporaries! Titles include "I Ain't Got
Nobody", "You've Changed", "Groovy Lady",
"Squeeze Me", and "Till There Was You". (Part of the Groove
Merchant Mo' Groovy Collection!) ~ Dusty Groove
Neneh Cherry - Broken Politics
One of the greatest things about Neneh Cherry in recent
years is the way she's developed a strong sense of creative collaboration –
which she definitely continues here, on a record done with great help from
Keiran Hebden! Hebden produced, mixed, and co-wrote much of the set – and most
of the music feels as if he's making contributions as well, although at a level
that's quite different than most of his own music – almost as if the strong
vocals and lyrics from Neneh helped unlock this really great corner of his
talents, which get refocused on the record to also help bring a strong sense of
vibrancy to Cherry's music as well – and almost have us rediscovering her all
over again. Cherry and Hebden have worked together in the past, but there's
really something different – and more soulful – going on here. Titles include
"Shot Gun Shack", "Deep Vein Thrombosis", "Fallen
Leaves"," Kong", "Faster Than The Truth", "Black
Monday", and "Natural Skin Deep". © 1996-2018, Dusty Groove, Inc.
Jacques Lesure - For The Love Of You
Guitarist Jacques Lesure has a nice round tone – a strong
single-note line that reminds us a bit of Bobby Broom at times, but which is
also set up here with superb accompaniment from Eric Reed on piano, Tony Dumas
on bass, and Willie Jones III on drums! Lesure's no-nonsense right from the
start – with often more of a sharp focus than Reed's piano, which makes for a
nice mix of modes – and really emphasizes the clarity of his tone when his
solos take off! Tunes include a long take on the Cedar Walton classic
"Holy Land", a sweet version of the Marvin Gaye classic "I Want
You", and versions of "The Lamp Is Low", "For the Love Of
You", and "That's The Way Of The World". ~ Dusty Groove
No comments:
Post a Comment