After a long hiatus from the record shelves, the turbaned Dr. Lonnie Smith -- along with guitarist John Abercrombie and drummer Marvin "Smitty" Smith -- sets his sights upon John Coltrane, turning in five 'Trane tunes plus Mongo Santamaria's "Afro-Blue" and a grooving Smith tribute, "Traces of Trane." The propulsive title track is mostly dominated by Abercrombie, while "Impressions" continues the driving pace as Lonnie sprays Hammond B-3 organ notes all over the place with constant brief call-and-response dialogues with himself. Another highlight is one of the two breathers, the aptly named "Lonnie's Lament," which has a nice haunting lilt. Carelessly left off the label and booklet copy -- but embedded in your CD anyway -- is any mention of a 12-minute workout on "Greensleeves" in the push-pull, modal Coltrane manner, with a strong hint of Jimmy Smith. Abercrombie usually plays in his veiled, out-of-tempo manner, while "Smitty" is a volatile, hyperkinetic workhorse most of the time, offering a complex individualistic challenge to the Elvin Jones standard.~Richard S. Ginell
Tracks
1 Afro Blue (Trad)
2 Impressions (J. Coltrane)
3 Naima (J. Coltrane)
4. Green Sleevs (Trad)
5. Bessie's Blues (J. Coltrane)
6. Lonnie's Lament (J. Coltrane)
DR. LONNIE SMITH organ
JOHN ABERCROMBIE electric guitar
MARVIN "SMITTY" SMITH drums
Recorded June 17, 1993 at Sound Designer Studio in New York
Venus Records - VHCD-78133