Jazz Articles about Larry McDonough

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Larry McDonough Quartet: Simple Gifts

by Hrayr Attarian
August 4, 2009

Never look a gift horse in the mouth the old saying goes, but pianist Larry McDonough's Simple Gifts is a record that needs careful deconstructing and critiquing.

The CD starts off with a smart arrangement of Beethoven's “Ode to Joy," where Richard Terrill's soprano saxophone states the theme before the musicians take solo turns. They don't wander far from the melody, but they do go enough of a distance out to give the music a satisfyingly pleasant spin.

The recording ...