David Lahm: More Jazz Takes on Joni Mitchell

More Jazz Takes on Joni Mitchell signifies pianist/composer David Lahm’s follow up effort to Jazz Takes on Joni Mitchell. Once again, Lahm integrates a portion of the folk-rock singer’s body of work into the jazz genre while receiving sturdy and sympathetic support from saxophonists Roger Rosenberg and Vincent Herring along with the estimable trumpeter, Randy Brecker.

With this release, Lahm continues to delve into Ms. Mitchell’s recorded legacy while contributing three of his own compositions to this hearty mix. Herring and Rosenberg blow soulful, impassioned lines on Mitchell’s classic, “Woodstock”, whereas the band intertwines a mid-tempo swing vamp with wistful lyricism on Lahm’s “San Diego Holiday”. However, Rosenberg’s steely edged baritone sax lines detract or perhaps offset the pianist’s implied sentiment and virtuous passages exhibited on “Off Night Back Street”.

Lahm’s stirring and altogether inspiring solo piano rendition of “Ladies of the Canyon” prevails as one of the highlights of this recording as the artist executes delicately balanced harmonic intervals and richly textured chordal patterns. Through it all, the band swings, the outlook is sunny and Lahm once again digs deep from within, as he effectively reshapes Joni Mitchell’s songbook into prismatic mosaics of jazz-based themes and memorably melodic arrangements.

Arkadia Records