Thursday 3 September 2009

Mr.Richard Arnold Jackson (Richard ”Groove” Holmes) ”Broadway”

Mr.Richard Arnold Jackson
(Richard ”Groove” Holmes)

Broadway
( LP Muse Records, 1980 )
Catalog # MR 5239

Tracklisting:
Broadway
Everything Must Change
Ode to Larry Young
Moon River
Katherine
Plenty, Plenty Blues

Personnel & Credits
Houston Person (Sax Tenor,Producer)
Joel Dorn (Series Producer)
Ralph Dorsey (Percussion,Conga)
Rudy Van Gelder (Engineer)
Michael Joyce (Liner Notes)
Richard “Groove” Holmes (Organ,Main Performer)
Gene Paul (Digital Mastering)
Bob Porter (Liner Notes)
Gerard Smith (Guitar)
Bob Ward (Drums)
Mike Joyce (Liner Notes)
Bobby Ward (Drums)
W. Dale Cramer (Design)
Bob Shamis (Photography)
Gerald Smith (Guitar)
Becky Wisdom (Production Coordination)

Reviews:
By Jim Santella:
Orginally released by Muse in 1980, this reissue features organist Groove Holmes, saxophonist Houston Person, guitarist Gerald Smith, percussionist Ralph Dorsey, and drummer Bobby Ward. No bassist is required because the leader provides stellar bass lines himself from the organ.
The title track, “Broadway,” starts off this album with a blazing tempo and a natural flair for the melody. Person’s tenor saxophone tone is light and airy, and his technique is tempered with a sense of confidence that seems to come naturally from his 20 years of experience (at that time) with blues and jazz. Bobby Ward’s brushes provide the lush background texture needed for Benard Ighner’s ballad “Everything Must Change.” Person’s lead voice on saxophone is rich and sentimental. Smith’s electric guitar pops through “Ode to Larry Young,” providing a syncopated funk beat to match Holmes’ bass line. The organ feature is a fine tribute, and it’s complemented by a lyrical saxophone melody along with Ward’s crisp drum set shuffle. “Moon River” gets a strutting rhythmic treatment from cowbell, drum sticks, and organ while Houston Person supplies the familiar melody. Holmes stretches out over the tune’s harmonic framework, supplying a personal statement through his solo spot. The leader’s composition “Katherine” features lyrical ballad “singing” from organ and tenor, while the final track, “Plenty, Plenty Blues” opens up the tempo and adds Ralph Dorsey’s congas. Person, Holmes, and Smith make their individual statements, and then saxophone & organ trade fours. Like the title track, their closing number includes a lightning-fast walking bass line from the leader and equal parts from each of the others. Recommended.
(All About Jazz)

By Stephen Cook:
By 1980, when Broadway was recorded, organist Richard “Groove” Holmes had already splashed onto the scene as an expansive adherent of Jimmy Smith’s soul-jazz gospel, been a player in the music’s modern boogaloo-acid jazz phase of the late ’60s, and survived disco by dropping synthesizers into the mix. Finally arriving at the Muse label by the late ’70s, Holmes settled into a loose amalgam of past proclivities, never forsaking his high musical standards and groove aesthetic. For this, his third Muse release, Holmes enlists fellow organ combo veteran Houston Person to produce and ostensibly co-lead on tenor saxophone; for his part, Holmes sublimely comps behind the soloists, electrifying the session with his fluidly nasty runs and sanctified musings on the B3. He presents a typically varied program of pop (”Moon River”), old standards (”Broadway”), and self-penned ballads and blues (”Katherine” and “Plenty, Plenty Blues”); the program’s brevity is mirrored not only in the band’s equal panache with both up-tempo and slow groove numbers, but also in the attractively cheesy line they ply with the occasional wind chime flourish, synth line, and disco guitar riffing. Holmes even notches up a little avant-garde cachet with an homage to progressive, Coltrane-inspired organist Larry Young. Throughout this cooking and stylish set, Holmes and Person are expertly supported by guitarist Gerald Smith, drummer Bobby Ward, and percussionist Ralph Dorsey. A great buy for soul-friendly jazz fans.
(All Music Guide)

By Pier

2 comments:

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musician3 said...

Superb Album.....Thank You

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