The dreamily contemplative American saxophonist Charles Lloyd formed the superb quartet that has partnered him through his creative 70s a decade ago. This album revisits several of their studio landmarks as live takes from touring in 2016.
Pianist Jason Moran, bassist Reuben Rogers and drummer Eric Harland shadow and shepherd their boss with genre-spanning alertness. Dream Weaver, which Lloyd originally recorded in the 1960s, opens here on a thunderous summons of mallet rolls and piano trills, turning to imploring Coltrane-esque tenor invocations and then the gently rolling groove that bears the folksy theme.
Lloyd improvises with a space-stretching flexibility closer to Ornette Coleman than Coltrane on Ruminations; Nu Blues is infectious, loosely sketched bebop; Tagore on the Delta is a pressing groover for the leader’s eerily murmuring flute; and the flouncily dancing title track shows how playful the group can be. There’s a vivid live atmosphere, and this set will stir plenty of memories of Lloyd gigs for his many admirers.
