PAPATAMUS REDUX

CELLAR MUSIC 032323  (RECORDED MARCH 2023)

Max Roach did it in 1962 with “It’s Time.”  Donald Byrd did it in 1964 with “A New Perspective.” Andrew Hill did it in 1969 with “Life Every Voice and Sing.” Now Mike LeDonne does it with “Wonderful” —blending jazz with a gospel choir. According to LeDonne, “putting a gospel choir and a jazz organist together seemed natural — but unbelievably, it had never been done before!”  Without the angelic voices of the gospel choir, this would merely be another in a string of soul-jazz releases from LeDonne and his Groover Quartet (Eric Alexander on tenor, Peter Bernstein on guitar, Joe Farnsworth on drums with the addition of Daniel Sadownick on percussion). That is most evident on two instrumental tunes — Coltrane’s “Lonnie’s Lament” and Ledonne’s “Genesis.”  Although other tracks such as “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and “Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing” may seem mundane, the use of the choir on these and other tunes adds another voice(s) to the ensemble, providing a cushion for the many soulful solos from quartet members. Special kudos to vocalist Carol Leonhart who assisted LeDonne in weaving it all together.

BOTTOM LINE: Although the choir/jazz experiments of Roach, Hill, Byrd and others may offer more challenging listening, “Wonderful” lives up to its title.