By Jennifer Odell | Published June 2018
After more than 20 years of sharing the intimate setting afforded by their trio, organist Larry Goldings, guitarist Peter Bernstein and drummer Bill Stewart seem to operate with a shared internal dialogue. When they play together, it sounds less like they’re reading one another’s thoughts and more like they’re having simultaneous ideas.
That’s not a new vibe for these three, but they seem to be having more fun with it than ever. Their hushed and lovely 12th album sees Goldings building luminous harmonies with relaxed economy, leaving space for his bandmates’ individual light to shine through and for his own delicate organ work to breathe, unhurried.
While some of the most memorable moments on this diverse mix hew more to the atmospheric and introspective—particularly Goldings’ “Fagen” and Stewart’s softly cymbal-centric “Calm”—a hint of playfulness gets scattered throughout the record as well. “Don’t Ever Call Me Again” opens with a gently funky drum solo and a teasing, yet insistent, organ pattern whose unanswered ringing threatens to topple Stewart’s groove, setting up a not-so-romantic storyline for the rest of the song. When Bernstein picks up the melody, he plays with a kind of insistence, only this time it’s welcome.
In a way, it’s not the title track, but rather the trio’s take on Carla Bley’s “And Now The Queen” that ties the album together; its mix of spacey quirk, pastoral melodicism and perfectly balanced musical responsibility serve up a subtle dose of whimsy, courtesy of the uncommon brand of teamwork the group’s become known for.
Toy Tunes: Fagen; Don’t Call Me Again; Lullaby For B; I’m In The Mood For Love; And Now The Queen; Toy Tune; Calm; Maybe. (47:24).
Personnel: Larry Goldings, Hammond B-3 organ; Peter Bernstein, guitar; Bill Stewart, drums.
