John Scofield has continued to grow and evolve year by year. This 1995 set is quite blues-oriented, sometimes boppish and fairly laid-back, almost sounding like a
Jimmy Smith or
Groove Holmes date from the 1960s.
Larry Goldings (who doubles occasionally on piano) is almost as significant in the ensembles as the leader/guitarist, and has become the most important arrival on organ since
Joey DeFrancesco and
Barbara Dennerlein. Many of the tunes (all
Scofield originals) use parade-like rhythms propelled by
Idris Muhammad and
Dennis Irwin (particularly the eccentric "Peculiar" and "Groove Elation"), and the interplay between the two lead voices is quite appealing.
Scofield is quite unselfish as far as taking solo space goes (he clearly enjoys the light funky grooves set by
Goldings), and the results are quite appealing. ~ Scott Yanow