Harold Mabern Trio - Don't Know Why (2003) [Japan 2018] SACD ISO + DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC

It's difficult not to break into a smile when hearing Harold Mabern play piano, as the hard bop stylist has a knack for giving his all as if he were entertaining an audience, even during a studio date. This trio meeting with bassist Nat Reeves and drummer Joe Farnsworth finds Mabern covering a lot of styles, including a few surprising choices. He takes Peter Brown's disco hit "Dance with Me" into new ground with a brisk arrangement incorporating funk, Latin, and driving post-bop. Jesse Harris' soft ballad "Don't Know Why" was a huge hit for singer/pianist Norah Jones on her platinum-selling CD Come Away with Me, though Mabern infuses it with a brighter tempo and a bit of country flavor, plus just a hint of gospel. For most jazz musicians, it's hard to avoid a modal approach to "My Favorite Things" since John Coltrane reworked it into that setting; Mabern follows that path but does his best to avoid outright cloning of McCoy Tyner's technique in Coltrane's historic recording, though total avoidance is impossible. The pianist's potent originals include the hard-driving, gospel-flavored "Edward Lee" and the tense, infectious "Nightlife in Tokyo." Reeves and Farnsworth excel in their support of Mabern, though the hard-charging pianist is practically a one-man band with his boundless energy.