Duane Allen

Duane Allen: Yin-Yang

by Dan McClenaghan
August 21, 2004

Guitarist Duane Allen opens Yin-Yang with that time-tested standard, Cole Porter's “Night and Day," sounding very traditional in the beginning, with a nice Wes Montgomery-like sting on his notes. Nice enough, and it had me fooled for a minute, thinking we were going into ho-hum territory; but things really get interesting when the band veers away from the straight melody with an inventive and extended variation-on-the-theme interlude. Spirited playing, aided by bassist John Crooks and drummer Joe Schleicter. Allen's approach ...