Joe Lovano and Us Five

Folk Art

Blue Note

Rating: 4/5

Saxophonist Joe Lovano has amassed ample laurels if he ever wished to rest on them but to his credit, he follows his own restless muse wherever it leads him. For his 21st album for Blue Note, he's assembled an unusual line-up: pianist James Weidman, bassist Esperanza Spalding and two drummers, New Yorker Otis Brown and Cuban percussionist Francisco Mela. As Lovano points out, the band's line-up can be subdivided into four quartets, ten trios, nine duets and five unaccompanied voices. The results are fresh and unusual but earthy enough to draw in even the most unadventurous ear.