Year: 2007
Record Label: Tone Center
Style: Progressive
Review: Guitar great Steve Khan’s latest offering is a Latin-jazz centric extension of his previous effort, The Green Field. Percussionist Manolo Badrena; bassist John Patitucci and drummer Jack DeJohnette are reenlisted here. However, Khan beefs up the ensemble on various pieces, where saxophonist Bob Mintzer, trumpeter Randy Brecker and additional percussionists help cast a wider sound spectrum.
Khan’s trademark use of space and lucidly-designed lyricism shines glowingly. No doubt, he’s a storyteller who sports an animated line of attack while making every note count. And with a heavyweight lineup, the artist’s clean licks and sinuously executed phrasings are intact on the medium-tempo samba vamp titled “Face Value,” and the harmonically resplendent Afro-Cuban piece titled “El Faquir.” On the latter, Khan dances and darts on his fret board via a suspenseful gait while eventually zooming in for the kill, nicely counterbalancing Mintzer’s buoyant bass clarinet lines.
The band renders a frothy swing groove during McCoy Tyner’s composition “Blues for Ball,” where Patitucci flexes some muscle atop DeJohnette’s complex beats. But they temper the flow, highlighted by Gabriela Anders’ steamy vocals on the breezy ballad titled “Luna Y Arena.” It’s largely about superior execution and the artists’ singular musical personas that yield the fruitful rewards throughout this very listenable album, structured upon solid material. Sure enough, Khan has produced yet another golden nugget…
Artist's Website: http://www.stevekhan.com
Reviewed by:
Glenn Astarita
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