No blues here, but a hell of a great soul jazz set from Norman Simmons – the pianist who was a big part of the early 60s scene in Chicago, and who never really recorded that many albums as a leader! The record's got a super-hip lineup – with Clifford Jordan on tenor, Jimmy Owens on trumpet, Vernel Fournier on drums, and Lisle Atkinson on bass – and the tracks are straight ahead soul jazz, sort of in the Jordan mode of the late 70s, and with a good underground groove that's a nice antidote to some of the slicker recordings of the early 80s. Simmons has a harder left hand style on the piano than usual, which makes for some nice gritty grooves – and titles include "Juicy Lucy", "Good Humors", "I'm The Blues (parts 1 & 2)", "Why Try To Change Me Now", and "Los Milagros Pequenos". CD

Plenty of juice from this mighty sweet combo – a great quartet that once again adds the guitar of John Scofield to the mix of grooves from Medeski, Martin, & Wood! Together, all players seem to step back to a previous generation of soul jazz styles – those best 60s moments of freewheeling Hammond and guitar groovers – yet the music is also inflected with all the more creative, more contemporary touches that each player has brought to their music over the years – in ways that really keep things fresh, and which make the record far more than just another Hammond retro rework. The set features key covers of "Sham Time", "Light My Fire", and "Sunshine Of Your Love" – plus even better instrumentals that include "North London", "Juicy Lucy", "I Know You", "Helium", and "Stovetop". CD