Wonderful! by Mike LeDonne
The musical conversation between jazz and soul gospel has seldom involved a choir. Keyboardist Mike LeDonne sought to do something about it. He recorded Wonderful! on Hammond B-3 organ, his frequent accompanists in the Groover Quartet and an assemblage of 11 churchy singers coordinated by Carolyn Leonhart. The album also celebrates his multiply handicapped daughter, his inspiration to organize New York City's Disability Pride Parade in 2015.
The set holds together fine without the touching back story, making good on capturing the emotional gamut of choral gospel, soul jazz and bop arrangements. If anything, LeDonne could have utilized those voices even further, as the choir only appears on half of Wonderful!'s eight selections. Nonetheless, the pathfinding LeDonne undertakes is a fresh sort of fusion that’s easy to appreciate. LeDonne shows ingenuity in approaching songs by Simon and Garfunkel and Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. Two instrumentals extend Wonderful!’s palette—a John Coltrane lamentation and a hard driving original to close out the collection, giving ample room to showcase tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander, guitarist Peter Bernstein and drummer Joe Farnsworth in blazing interplay. One hopes LeDonne goes further in integrating jazz and gospel in the future, but for the present, Wonderful! offers plenty of inspiration for pathfinding in both genres.
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