If soulful jazz with a loose necked backbeat is your thing, then all that was missing from Marcus Miller’s show with his air tight band this October evening was Eddie Murphy “getting’ in the hot tub,” as every other aspect of funkified improvisation was on display on the 1 ½ hour set of Miller Time. Emphasizing music from his soulful latest release Renaissance, Bass Meister Marcus Miller fronted a team of Alex Han/as-ss, Lee Hogans/tp, Adam Agati/g, Louis Cato/dr and Kris Bowers/ky that made you remember why you got into jazz in the first place: infectious grooves, hot soloing and an attitude of everyone thoroughly enjoying showing off their chops.
With a style on the bass that is as sleek as a prancing gazelle, Miller took a jazz showcase like “Mr. Clean” and, as he says, “flipped it a bit” by giving it a Famous Flames series of hooks and grooves, while his own “Detroit” snapped like snow peas as Han’s alto seared through the crowd like a fireball. The rhythm team skipped like a stone on Lake Superior on the slick “Redemption,” showing that jazz that is smooth does not necessarily mean “smooth jazz.” The mood changes on “Jekyll & Hyde” went from hip and high stepping to manic thunder while Agati’s guitar brought the house down with incessant riffs that rivaled anything Metallica could conjure up.
Switching to bass clarinet, Miller delivered a haunting aria on “Goree” that evoked haunting images of the infamous island, with a rich melody that gave glimpses of hope. Closing with a cruising down Sepulveda Blvd worthy take of “Slippin’ into Darkness,” Miller lead his band, and played his four string bass as if he invented the style. Hey, wait a minute…HE DID!!!!