The band on
Morton's Foot is a truly international ensemble. Composer and master oud player
Rabih Abou-Khalil has assembled a cast that includes accordionist
Luciano Biondini and clarinetist
Gabriele Mirabassi along with
Michel Godard on tuba, Jarrod Cagwin on trap and frame drums, and exotic Italian vocalist
Gavino Murgia.
Abou-Khalil composed all the tracks here. He shares the front line with
Biondini and
Mirabassi as
Godard adds a serious bottom-end punch to the rhythm section. Certainly there are precedents for a group like this:
Richard Galliano's 1980s bands as well as
Chris Speed and
Brad Shepik's
Pachora, for example.
Abou-Khalil's compositions here, as on his other recordings, involve detailed, complex, and labyrinthine melodic structures, though rhythmic invention and harmonic counterpoint add balance and offer tight turns of phrase and dynamic shifts. The title track, "Lobotomie Mi Baba Lu," and "Hopping Jack" are standout tracks, yet it is the sum of everything here that makes this one of
Abou-Khalil's very best outings. ~ Thom Jurek