The Philadelphia Experiment
In the '40s, a time-travel experiment allegedly occurred in a Philadelphia naval yard. This fantastic combo of Philly musicians--pianist/keyboardistUri Caine, bassistChristian McBride, and drummer Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson of the rap combothe Roots--takes its name from that fictional event, and combines fusion, mainstream jazz, and R&B; styles from the '70s to today. Augmented by guitar-legendPat Martinoand trumpeterJohn Swana, Thompson lays down some tricky jungle beats on the title track, while the threesome venture into the avant-garde on "(Re)moved" and into Latin on "IIe Ife." The group reincarnates Sun Ra's "Call for All Demons" as a funky instrumental, and they brilliantly revisit Marvin Gaye's "Trouble Man," while Elton John's "Philadelphia Freedom" is redone as a classical-style McBride/Caine duet. The late saxophonist Grover Washington Jr. was Philly's patron jazz saint, as evidenced by Caine's reverent solo piano rendition of Washington's hit "Mr. Magic" and McBride's funky, overdubbed one-man electric bass version of "Just the Two of Us." This threesome reminds us that the City of Brotherly Love still swings.--Eugene Holley Jr.