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You could call ‘Live at the Lighthouse’ a soul jazz record, but it’s a lot more energetic than your typical laid back back-yard BBQ affair. Recoded live in the early 70s when so many jazz musicians were influenced by a certain African flavored psychedelic soul trip vibe, this album has a killer conga driven groove plus a lot of energetic solos that never allow for a dull moment. Earland’s B3 playing is solid throughout and would certainly appeal to fans of rockin jazzy Hammond players from Jack McDuff to Jon Lord.
Although Earland has released his share of commercial pop albums, the pop tunes on this album are merely launching pads for more hot groove based soloing. Sly Stone’s ‘Smiling’ in particular is transformed into a high energy rocker that amplifies the original version’s bright chord progressions. Another plus to the sound of this album is the three piece horn section which gives the band a mini-big band effect. This horn driven ensemble sound is used to great effect on their swingin version of ‘We’ve Only Just Begun’.
This album isn’t exactly high art, the formula is simple, great 70s styled grooves topped with loose high energy solos. Fans of similar conga-meets-B3 groove bands such as Santana, Jack McDuff, Brian Auger or Jimmy Smith’s ‘Root Down’ album will find a lot to like here.