The Randy Johnston Trio - Riding The Curve

This soul jazz organ trio album with Randy Johnston and organ virtuoso Joey DeFrancesco is highly recommended.

Tracklist:
01. The Song Is Ended (But The Melody Lingers On) (6:16)
02. All Through The Night (8:30)
03. I Get Along Without You Very Well (6:15)
04. High-Heel Sneakers (8:26)
05. You've Never Been There! (10:04)
06. The Park (5:12)
07. Wives And Lovers (8:09)
08. For Thomas (5:19)

Total Time: 58:19


Personnel:
- Randy Johnston, guitar
- Joey DeFrancesco, organ
- Idris Muhammad, drums
- Johnny Griffin, tenor sax, track 2 and 5


Recording Date: April 30, 1998
Recording Location: Nola Recording Studio
Release Date: September 22, 1998
Label: J Curve Records


Format: MP3 320 kbit/s. All songs are tagged by the book.


Review by Michael G. Nastos
Further asserting himself as a premier jazz guitarist, Johnston presents his fifth recording as leader, the second with organist Joey DeFrancesco (the first was In-A-Chord). 
Idris Muhammad plays the drums with usual aplomb, and tenor saxophone legend Johnny Griffin shows up on two cuts. 
Johnston does a little bit of everything on this one. There's the midtempo swing of "The Song Is Ended," the funky R&B of "High-Heel Sneakers" (which recalls Jimmy Smith), and the waltzing "Wives and Lovers." On a dangerously slow version of "I Get Along Without You Very Well," Johnston adds some quicker lines. "All Through the Night," featuring Griffin on tenor, is smooth and swift. 
There are two Johnston originals — "The Park" is an easy, no-frills bossa, while "For Thomas" (dedicated to Johnston's old college roommate, the late Thomas Chapin) is a swinging remembrance of more innocent days. The longest cut is another piece reminiscent of Jimmy Smith, Griffin's ten-minute-plus "You've Never Been There!" It features a blues groove with tenor sax/guitar unison, an element that Johnston is well-known for. 
Johnston is an accessible musician whose lyricism is ever-present but rarely flashy. Following in the tradition of legends like Grant Green, Wes Montgomery, and Pat Martino, he proves himself immensely capable on this fine CD, as he continues to grow and mature into one of the best in the business.

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L Hammond, The Pirate Bay, where you'll find more jazz organ