On this unusual set, organist
Dr. Lonnie Smith, with guitarist
Doug Munro, and (on five of the 11 selections) tenor-saxophonist
David "Fathead" Newman do the improbable. On
Boogaloo to Beck: A Tribute,
Smith takes a full set of songs by rock performer
Beck and turns them into funky soul-jazz. In fact, the results often sound like a late-1960s Blue Note album. The individual selections are not all that memorable or inspiring (it is doubtful that any of these
Beck tunes will catch on in jazz), but
Smith and his bandmates play quite well and deserve credit for trying to come up with fresh material for their grooves. ~ Scott Yanow