Bobby Hutcherson - Linger Lane (2014) [Hi-Res]

A beautiful later Blue Note album from vibist Bobby Hutcherson – a set recorded after his famous association with Harold Land, but with a groove that's wonderfully soulful in a whole different way! Bobby plays marimbas instead of vibes this time around, and he's working with his own arrangements for a slightly larger group – one that has some sweet fusion overtones, and these wonderful mellow funk inflections – so that even the mellow cuts have this warmly glowing, ultra-soulful sound that's mighty nice – a bit like some of the work from Gene Harris around the same time. Other players include Jerry Peters on Fender Rhodes, who also helped out with the arrangements – plus Harvey Mason on drums and Ernie Watts on reeds – and a few tracks feature sweet backing vocals from The Waters. The highlight here is a nice moody extended version of 'People Make The World Go Round', but all cuts are great, and titles include 'Silver Rondo', 'Manzanita', 'NTU', and his dark cover of 'Theme From MASH“.

Bobby Hutcherson, marimba
Ernie Watts, reeds
Jerry Peters, piano
John Rowinm, guitar
Chuck Rainey, bass
Harvey Mason, drums
Bobbye Porter Hall, percussion
Julia Waters, background vocals
Luther Waters, background vocals
Maxine Waters, background vocals
Oren Waters, background vocals

Recorded January 16, 1975 in Idylwild, CA

Digitally remastered