The second album from
Joshua Redman's reunited '90s quartet, 2022's
LongGone is another warmly relaxed affair showcasing the group's seasoned sophistication. When they first debuted on 1994's
Moodswing, they were a cadre of up-and-coming young lions. Almost 30 years later, the lineup of saxophonist
Redman, pianist
Brad Mehldau, bassist
Christian McBride, and drummer
Brian Blade is essentially a supergroup of four of the most acclaimed and recognizable jazz musicians of their generation. It's not just that each of them are uber-talented improvisers, which is certainly true. It's that they've grown into four solo artists, primarily for their work as leaders, each with a distinctive and influential style of their own. All of which makes their decision to reunite (as they first did on 2020's
RoundAgain) such a delightfully democratic surprise. As with
RoundAgain, there's a sense of jovial familiarity about
LongGone, as if the quartet just picked up where they left off with
MoodSwing. It's a vibe that's particularly apparent on "Kite Song," a rambling composition with a spindly
Paul Desmond-esque melody that nicely evokes the title as
Redman and
Mehldau tumble as if through clouds, dipping into jaunty swing, folky asides, flourishes of atonal classicism. Also engaging, the opening title track is a tough midtempo swinger in which
Redman dances with lithe athleticism over
McBride and
Blade's fat trampoline groove. We also get "Disco Ears," a wicked modal swinger in the late-'60s hard bop style, while the classical-inflected ballad "Statuesque" moves with spare, stentorian reverence as if the band are playing to a black-and-white slideshow of images from their past. Most of
LongGone feels deeply organic, with
Redman and his bandmates feeding off each other and working to build something cohesive and bigger than their individual contributions. ~ Matt Collar