Larry Goldings Trio: Sweet Science

With his trio's fifth release, Hammond B-3 ace Larry Goldings supplies further evidence that this band is among the finest working units in jazz! The musicians perform with the exactitude of a highly focused chamber outfit, amid the loose grooves of an excitable organ combo. There's a distinct synergy in the air when this band struts its stuff! For example, listen to how Goldings parallels guitarist Peter Bernstein's elegant lines with lower register tonalities and his rhythmic tapping on the organ pedals. Meanwhile, drummer Bill Stewart handles the pulse with the free-flowing aplomb of what one might hear in a Texas roadhouse band. Nuance, restraint, and meaningful employment of dynamics substantiate the trio's sense of swing and personality. They render a supple and lightly swing rendition of the Bachrach/David hit "This Guy's In Love With You," while Goldings' modified C2 Hammond organ features immaculate sonic characteristics throughout. Especially, during his upper register lines on the wittily constructed, "Gnomesville." On this piece, Goldings augments his flute like sounds with a left hand ostinato and discordant choruses. In addition, the band mixes it up with spots of free-jazz and airy EFX treatments, although the coda is reminiscent of something out of the "Emerson, Lake & Palmer" songbook. All in good fun, we may add! Feverishly recommended.