Essentially the brainchild of
Kip Hanrahan, the loose-knit group known as
Conjure brings to bear all the elements that he had fused so successfully in the various projects released under his own name: avant-garde jazz, Latin (especially Afro-Cuban) rhythms, and a deep, funky blues sensibility. Here, using texts from the contemporary author
Ishmael Reed, he distributes the composing duties to everyone from
Lester Bowie to
Taj Mahal to
Allen Toussaint, mixes a heady instrumental gumbo, and allows things to percolate to a fine boil. The cast of musicians is certainly of all-star quality, but special mention should be made of trumpeter
Olu Dara for some heart-rendingly beautiful playing,
Taj Mahal for his wonderful, raspy vocal delivery, and the entire cast of percussionists, astounding in their diversity of attacks. The pieces tend toward relaxed pop forms with vocals and approachable structures but always sporting a sharply honed edge, both in their musical form and in the pointed lyrical observations that are philosophical while retaining street-level grit. As on other
Hanrahan productions, there are several pieces (like
Bowie's "Fool-Ology") which might be popular hits in a more benevolent universe. Highly recommended for all listeners. ~ Brian Olewnick