Freedom in the Groove
The titleFreedom in the Grooveexpresses the challenge saxophonist Joshua Redman has set for himself: is it possible to practice true jazz improvisation within the soul, funk, and hip-hop rhythms of the past 30 years? Redman takes a different approach than most fusion experiments; instead of plugging in, he has retained his acoustic pianist Peter Martin and his acoustic bassist Christopher Thomas, and has added only electric guitarist Peter Bernstein, who plays more in the hollow-body style of Kenny Burrell than the solid-body style of Mike Stern. Redman responds to this stimulus with sax solos that more than ever resemble gospel-soul singer vocals--at once boldly assertive, yet confessionally open.--Geoffrey Himes