Home on Richmond

Personnel: Pat Mallinger, alto, tenor, soprano saxophones; Bill Carrothers, piano; George Fludas, drums; Dennis Carroll, bass. Downbeat Magazine: Pat Mallinger Quartet Home On Richmond PJM JAZZ ???? Saxophonist Pat Mallinger grew up in West St. Paul, Minn., while pianist Bill Carrothers is a native of the greater Minneapolis area. Having met in the McDonald's All Star High School Jazz Ensemble, the pair have played together throughout the years and reunited for this live date at Chicago's Green Mill. As co-leader of Sabertooth, Mallinger has held down a Saturday night slot at the legend- ary club since 1992. So there's definitely a home-field advantage at play in terms of com- fort level. A take on Charles Lloyd's quot;Third Floor Richardquot; opens the album. The band is immediately both locked in and loose, as the bandleader's spry tenor tone sets the bar for a high-energy set. An uptempo take on Charlie Chaplin's quot;Smilequot; follows, highlighted by an explorative Carrothers solo that fluidly unfolds over four and half-plus minutes. One of two Mallinger originals, the title track glides atop George Fludas' elegant brush- work, while the four carry the spirit of late- era Coltrane while playing his quot;Living Space.quot; The deep loveliness of quot;Snowboundquot; confirms Mallingers' strength as both a composer and a ballad player, with Carrothers' quiet quoting of quot;White Christmasquot; perfectly punctuating it at the end. With the tracks from nine to just under 14 minutes, the group stretches out on each of the half-dozen numbers-a well-balanced live program that translates nicely as a recorded document. -Yoshi Kato/Downbeat St Paul native, Chicago-based saxophonist Pat Mallinger already has a handful of acclaimed recordings to his credit, both as leader of small ensembles and co-leader of Sabertooth, the resident organ band at Chicago's Green Mill. But his new Home on Richmond (Pat's Chicago address) boasts a special ingredient in addition to Mallinger's very fine horn playing and the exemplary support team of bassist Dennis Carroll and drummer George Fludas-the addition of internationally acclaimed pianist Bill Carrothers. The result is an accessible, creative, always satisfying journey, recorded live at the Green Mill. Although Home on Richmond is the first recording pairing Mallinger and Carrothers, the two have been making music together over the years since meeting as Twin Cities' high school students in the McDonald's All Star High School Jazz Ensemble. While Pat has been building his reputation stateside, Bill has attained a far greater following in Europe as both performing and recording artist, garnering the 2000 French Diapason d'Or de l'Année, the 2004 Grand Prix de l'Academie Charles Cros, and numerous Top 10 of the Year lists in France. Yet he still calls the Midwest home, and regularly appears at the Green Mill in Chicago and Artists Quarter and Dakota in the Twin Cities. Jazz Police Tuesday, 22 November 2011 The recording shows off live music to full advantage, particularly adventurous post bop where the musicians have a chance to establish a foundation from which to build individual and collaborative structures through inventive soloing and sympathetic collaboration; the six tracks here stretch from 9 to nearly 14 minutes each without ever getting bogged down in excessive introspection. While the music is by no means predictable, the listener is never left wondering where it's all going. It makes sense; it feels complete; and it's constantly engagi