Stefon Harris & Blackout: Evolution

It's encouraging to see that people have not forgotten the late pianist/composer/producer Don Grolnick; Harris opens up the program with Grolnick's "Nothing Personal," which first appeared on Michael Brecker's 1986 eponymous release. In Harris' hands the tune becomes a fiery, lightening fast funk number that quickly establishes what this group is all about; memorable melodies, placed in the context of more complicated harmonic invention, all underpinned with a rhythmic approach that incorporates popular influences without actually adopting them.

What is remarkable about the rhythm section, consisting of bassist Darryl Hall and drummer Terreon Gully, is how they navigate difficult passages with multiple time signatures and polyrhythmic depth with confidence and ease. The up-tempo "Red-Bone, Netti-Bone" incorporates Afro-Cuban rhythms in a way that, if analyzed, is highly complex; still, they manage to create a groove that cleverly allows one to forget about such heady things, going straight for the gut. In fact Gully, who has emerged in the last couple of years on recordings by Jacky Terrasson, Lizz Wright and Christian McBride, is a real find: a drummer who is steeped in both the tradition and the not-so-traditional, with a flair for finding and holding the centre of a tune while still being loose enough to be playful.

Harris takes a well-worn standard in "Summertime," reharmonizing and reinventing; it has always been a tune filled with emotion but never has it been so soulful. Throughout the rest of the program of original material, Harris, saxophonist Casey Benjamin and keyboardist Marc Cary stretch out and solo with commitment and intensity. The title track is a combination of mind-numbing ensemble passages and heart-stopping solos; Harris' marimba solo is stunning in its sense of composition.

Like Dave Douglas' The Infinite , Harris manages to create a sound that is contemporary and has cross-over appeal while, at the same time, maintaining a sense of adventure that demands it be taken seriously. There is nothing lightweight about Evolution , although it has a catchiness that sometimes belies its deeper truth. Thought-provoking and moving, it is completely successful in bridging the gap between the head and heart.