Phil Palombi delivers a sonic tribute to legendary bassist Scott LaFaro, a man who revolutionized the upright during and after his stint with Bill Evans 50+ years ago. He plays LaFaro’s Prescott bass, and along with Matthew Fries/key, Keith Hall/dr-perc, Tony Romano/g, George Walker Petit/perc and Kat gang/voc delivers an album that is a wide panorama of pastoral colors and moods.
Romano’s classical and flamenco guitar work here is an integral part of the palate, with some lovely string work and keyboards working with Palombi’s flexible bass on “Beyond the Wall” while “The Phoenix” includes an exotic pulse with Fries’ piano. Palombi’s bass work, both acoustically and electrically is marvelously tasty, as he bows the strings on the elegant “Stay The Same” and gets funky with the backbeat on the title track while creating sonic cirrus clouds on the dreamy “Sarah’s Theme.” Gang’s voice adds ethereal atmosphere’s throughout , with Hall and Petit teaming up for some simpatico grooves. Wonderful outing and a fitting tip of the hat.