Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Pat Martino: Live At Yoshi's

Pat Martino: Live At Yoshi's

By Jim Santella
August 1, 2001
View read count

Recorded late last year at a highly regarded Oakland, California nightclub, Pat Martino's trio session smokes from start to finish. Yoshi's features an impressive lineup all year round. The audience reaction on this, Martino's twentieth album, is merely an outward expression of what we feel as we listen. Guitarist, organist and drummer romp through straight-ahead classics deliberately, setting aside plenty of time for stretching out. Over ten minutes in several cases, the pieces offered provide fine examples of solo mastery on their respective instruments. A transcription of Martino's solo on "Oleo" is available from his web site . The guitarist, who will turn 57 later this month, was forced to relearn his instrument after suffering a brain aneurysm in 1980. He returned to the stage in 1984. Martino's guitar wizardry has returned full bore, even though itwasa difficult hill to climb.

"El Hombre" was the title track from his first public recording on Prestige Records in 1967. Martino's tune selection reveals a fondness for "old friends." These songs are tried and true. While the trio's instrumentation invites a comparison to the years Martino worked with Groove Holmes, Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff and Don Patterson, this session proves fresh and contemporary. As with most live recordings, the artists are inspired. Martino's "Recollection" and "Catch" drive forcefully with a hot hand, while "Welcome to a Prayer" slows down with powerful emotion. Life has its ups and downs. It sure is great to hear that survivor Pat Martino has it all together.

Track Listing

Oleo, All Blues, Mac Tough, Welcome to a Prayer, El Hombre, Recollection, Blue in Green, Catch

Personnel

Pat Martino

guitar

Pat Martino (guitar), Joey DeFrancesco (organ), Billy Hart (drums)

Album information

Title: Live at Yoshi's | Year Released: 2001 | Record Label: Blue Note Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Global Unity
< Previous

Meet Duane Eubanks
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.