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Mike LeDonne: It's All Your Fault
ByThe full band rocks and roars on the opening three numbers, echoing a bygone era when Jimmy Smith, Richard "Groove" Holmes, Jack McDuff and other maestros of the Hammond played and recorded with large ensembles (a tradition upheld today by LeDonne and Joey DeFrancesco, among others). LeDonne's voice on organ is strong yet not overwhelming, deftly shouldering the melodies while allowing the band to assert its interactive point of view, which it does with alacrity. Despite the presence in the ensemble of several world-class soloists (Steve Wilson, Jim Snidero, Scott Robinson, Jon Faddis and Joe Magnarelli spring to mind), every solo on the album is entrusted to a member of the Groover Quartet. Is that a problem? Not when LeDonne, Bernstein, Farnsworth or Alexander is out front, as all are proven masters of their craft. Alexander is always a pleasure to hear, and any enterprise in which he takes part rises above and beyond special. His solos, which reach at times beyond post-bop to a freer, more inclusive realm, are as sharp and nimble as they are persuasiveas indeed are those by LeDonne and Bernstein.
Relishing the skirmish, LeDonne leaves no doubt that this is his gig, taking charge from the outset on the groovy "It's All Your Fault," sculpting a pair of stalwart solos around similar pronouncements by Alexander and Bernstein. "The Matador" encompasses more of the same albeit with a disparate solo order (Alexander, Bernstein, LeDonne, Farnsworth), while "Rock with You" swings as hard as its precursors, with Alexander in exemplary form and Bernstein and LeDonne as ardent and impressive as ever. The quartet takes center stage on Lionel Richie's easygoing "Still," as it does on "Biggest Part of Me" and LeDonne's bright and breezy closer, "Blues for Jed." LeDonne wrote "It's All Your Fault" and the irrepressible "Bags and Brown" for the big band, which also performs Lee Morgan's shuffling "Party Time." With a band of this caliber, soloists as keen and masterful as these, and lively charts that invariably ensnare the ear, It's All Your Fault is an album that fairly screams "encore!" Let's hope the interlude between this masterwork and its successor is brief.
Track Listing
It’s All Your Fault; Matador; Rock with You; Still; Party Time; Bags and Brown; Biggest Part of Me; Blues for Jed.
Personnel
Mike LeDonne
organ, Hammond B3Jon Faddis
trumpetFrank Greene
trumpetJoe Magnarelli
trumpetJoshua Bruneau
trumpetSteve Wilson
saxophone, altoJim Snidero
saxophone, altoEric Alexander
saxophone, tenorScott Robinson
saxophone, tenorMark Patterson
tromboneSteve Davis
tromboneDion Tucker
tromboneDoug Purviance
trombonePeter Bernstein
guitarJohn Webber
bass, acousticJoe Farnsworth
drumsAlbum information
Title: It's All Your Fault | Year Released: 2021 | Record Label: Savant Records
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About Mike LeDonne
Instrument: Organ, Hammond B3
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