Home »
Jazz Articles » Album Review » The Skip Heller Quartet: Homegoing
The Skip Heller Quartet: Homegoing
Skip Heller's organ combo brightens the day with its saucy freshness and pert attitude. Eclectic in nature, the group interprets blues, pop soundtracks and mainstream jazz classics. It's timeless music with a timeless flavor. Heller emerged in Philadelphia in the mid-eighties, but his music, much of it original, comes from an earlier era. Shirley Scott, Groove Holmes, Jimmy Smith, Jimmy McGriff, and Don Patterson showed the world how much fun small group jazz could be. Jazz has evolved, but the magic organ combo sound never left. Folks like Skip Heller help keep it alive. His guitar sets the mood, and his arrangements prove themselves edge-of-your-seat-curious exciting. A heartfelt tribute to guitarist Emily Remler, a swinging, tango take on a Mahler piece, and some down-and-dirty roadhouse blues make his album a keeper. The deep, baritone voice of Dave Alvin adds a homegrown flavor, while Lee Toft and Robert Drasnin provide a stellar partnership for the guitarist.
While
Homegoing runs a mere 34:41, it's an enjoyable listen intended for a broad audience.
Visit
Skip Heller on the web for audio samples and more.
Track Listing
From the Night Before; Maydele; Time After Time; Nika's Dowry; Emily
Remler; Funeral March from Mahler, Symphony #5; The 'Intensive' Girl; I
Just Keep Lovin' Her; Thinking Of You.
Personnel
Skip Heller: guitar; Robert Drasnin: clarinet, alto saxophone; Mike Bolger:
organ; Howard Greene: drums; Lee Toft: trumpet (1,6); Dave Alvin:
vocals (3,9).
Album information
Title: Homegoing
| Year Released: 2002
| Record Label: Innova Recordings
PREVIOUS / NEXT
Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.
Go Ad Free!
To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to
future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by
making a donation today.