Mike LeDonne, who is better known as a pianist, is also a talented organist in the Jimmy Smith/Charles Earland/Don Patterson tradition. His quartet set is straight-ahead hard bop rather than soul-jazz, with excellent solos from LeDonne, tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander, and guitarist Peter Bernstein (who is particularly strong on "Delilah") and fine support from drummer Joe Farnsworth. Most memorable are a pair of medium-tempo blues ("You'll See" and "Pisces Soul"), "Silverdust" (which is based partly on the chord changes of "King Porter Stomp"), and a cooking version of "Close to You." Although nothing innovative or overly surprising occurs, the music is well played and Alexander in particular has plenty of spirited solos.
The Groover Quartet / Mike LeDonne
Smokin' Out Loud
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AllMusic Review by Scott Yanow
Track Listing
Sample | Title/Composer | Performer | Time | Stream | |||
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1 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 07:55 | Amazon | ||||
2 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 06:46 | Amazon | ||||
3 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 06:48 | Amazon | ||||
4 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 04:57 | Amazon | ||||
5 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 05:44 | Amazon | ||||
6 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 07:23 | Amazon | ||||
7 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 09:12 | Amazon | ||||
8 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 07:02 | Amazon | ||||
9 | Mike LeDonne / The Groover Quartet | 07:26 | Amazon |