Eddie Harris - Bad Luck Is All I Have (1975)

Eddie Harris had nearly as many voices as sax timbres -- ranging from nasal, sly asides to electronically strangled yowls and even falsetto. But none of these Eddie Harrises, nor the spirited percussive help of Willie Bobo, could save the humdrum, mostly R&B-based material that he created for this album. Even the long list of woes on the title track gets a bit tedious (besides, Loudon Wainwright III did the same thing with a more wry twist). His acoustic piano skills seems to have slipped, too, on the haphazard "Obnoxious," and the lengthy experimental piece at the LP's close, "Abstractions" is hopelessly diffuse. Pass this one right by. © Richard S. Ginell /TiVo