David Ornette Cherry: Organic Groove

Recorded in 2000, Organic Groove features a too brief taste of David Ornette Cherry's writing and playing with a Los Angeles dream band, including Bobby Bradford, Roberto Miranda, and Ralph Jones, to name a few. Cherry possesses a broad musical attention span, making a program of his work a musical travelogue. But no dilettante is he, holding legitimate lineage in several musical traditions. A generous leader, he usually limits his contributions to skillfully framing his ace soloists.

"Mano opens with Cherry, double-tracked on melodica and piano, dancing with a playful Miranda through the theme, his propulsive funk bass line filling in the serene spaciousness of Cherry's piano. Latin jazz star Justo Almario's tenor circles Bobby Bradford's tart cornet, falling into a horn riff backing Cherry's melodica shred. The off-balance tempo changes of "Inside Out give it a mid-'60s feel. The woefully under-recorded Bradford makes good use of his time, burning with Don Littleton's jet fuel cocktail beat maker and Cherry's unique piano ornamentation. Littleton's swelling cymbals wash over "Love Ballad and Almario's humid flute. Cherry's lush orchestral accompaniment on piano contrasts with the aching austere muted cornet.

Something, possibly a keyboard programmed to sound like a baritone marimba, creates the exotica for Almario's atmospheric flute flutter answered by Bradford's brisk, bent blue notes on "Morning Song. Cherry deepens the arrangement with keyboard-generated harp tones and voices. A catchy muscular piano riff supports Almario's meaty tenor and Bradford's brass whirlwind on "Melodica. "First Time Out confidently swings in with Rahmlee Michael Davies cooking on trumpet. Cherry plays an understated piano solo, then switches to electric to back Almario's beautifully lyrical tenor solo. "Moroccan Garage (remix) ends the set with an elephant groove that has Ralph Jones on Turkish horns sounding like the Jajouka pipers.

On Organic Groove David Ornette Cherry throws a party for seven of his compositions, with a guest list guaranteed to give that music the time of its life.