STANTON MOORE
III

Telarc

Somewhere out there, there is an alternate reality where there are strip joints and fast food malls where the music played here by Stanton Moore and his fellow musicians plays on an endless loop. That’s not a putdown, because the music contained on Stanton Moore III is raw and funky, visceral and gritty as cigarette smoke in the face or flesh covered with tattoos. Musically, it’s intelligent work, but there’s none of the overly-cerebral qualities that, for some, marred the later work of Medeski, Martin, and Wood. And that’s the instrumentation that Moore is working with here, as drummer Will Bernard and B3 organist Robert Walter join him. There are certainly healthy contributions from tenor saxophonist Skerik and trombonist Mark Mullins, but at heart this is a funky organ trio that never feels far from the maddening crowd. The sound and feel of this group is awash in alcohol, sweat, flesh, dim lighting, and overall gritty clubiness. Not until the final three tracks do Moore and company dig still deeper, revealing a deep-seated spirituality, the roots of the blues, and, finally, the heights of religious ecstasy.

But there’s no getting there without plodding through the pleasures and trials of this world. The first seven tracks fiercely mine the groove, and Moore’s groove is deeply funky. “Poison Pushy” mines a James Brown groove, with Walter taking the lead on B3, offering not only gospel-laden melodic lines, but also wicked bass pedal work. Bernard’s guitar work sounds just like some of Steve Cropper’s work with Booker T and the MG’s, and Moore dances in and around the beat solidly. “Licorice” mines similar territory, but is a bit heavier and features the horn section. It’s not hard to imagine some college-girl-by-day-stripper-by-night doing her pole-dancing thing to these grooves, though that is perhaps wishful thinking given the musical tastefulness of these tracks. “Big Uns Get the Ball Rolling” is a much faster workout that recalls Jimmy Smith in his prime. The horn section figures prominently on the stomper “Chilcok” with both Skerik and Mullins playing raunchy solos that raise the bar a few notches. “Don’t Be Comin’ With No Weak Sauce” is a real Crescent City workout, and perhaps some of this CDs grittiness should be attributed to the fact that it was recorded at New Orleans’ Preservation Hall. “I wanted to do something in the hall because of the sound in the room and the amazing vibe there,” Moore says. “After Katrina, they weren’t having music and were waiting to reopen, so I saw that as an awesome and rare opportunity to spend a few days in there with a remote recording setup and make a record.”

That venue’s storied history may also explain the sudden turn of events in the CDs closing sections. After two more barn-burning funk grooves, “Dunkin’ In the Deep” and “Maple Plank” the group turns its attention more inward and away from this fleshly world. Their interpretation of Abdullah Ibrahim’s composition “Water From An Ancient Well” is gorgeous and rings with a simple spiritual quality that is truly incredible. Ibrahim’s compositions can provide inspired performers with an incredible springboard, as was demonstrated by Charlie Hunter’s rendition of “Soweto’s Where It’s At” on his Friends Seen and Unseen CD. This performance also rings with the air of truth. Moore’s drum work is especially great here, emphasizing the melodic ring of floor toms over any overt keeping of time. Skerik blows some great choruses as well that recall truly soulful tenor greats like Gene Ammons and Illinois Jacquet. Next comes a version of Led Zepplin’s “When the Levee Breaks” that is stunning in its ability to connect the British supergroup’s music with its swampy blues roots. This performance takes us deep into the Mississipi mud, suggesting that the roots of the funk Moore and his group have been playing earlier goes much deeper and deals with much more universal themes than many listeners would realize. The concluding spiritual “I Shall Not Be Moved” is like a New Orleans funeral, with Moore providing distant drum rolls to accompany Bernard’s slide guitar work and Walter’s gospel organ chords.

Stanton Moore III is an instant classic of its genre, and while Moore presented a compelling vision on his previous two recordings as a leader, this Telarc debut represents the work of an artist who is more polished and mature, yet who can still summon the gritty reality of the world even as he fixes his sights on the heavens.