Stump Juice reunites
Jimmy McGriff with producer
Sonny Lester, who earlier helmed the organist's classic
The Worm. Picking up right where their previous collaboration left off, this Groove Merchant date boasts all the hallmarks of
McGriff's most potent work, serving up a series of lean, mean solos delivered via Hammond B-3 and keyboards. Unlike the majority of Groove Merchant dates from the mid-'70s,
Stump Juice forgoes warhorse pop and soul covers in favor of original tunes -- these tabulas rasa are the ideal canvas for
Lester's bare-essentials production and
McGriff's sinuous grooves, eschewing fusion and disco influences in favor of raw, unadulterated jazz-funk.