Moonshine
Self-Released, 2024
9/10
The guitarist Marc Ciprut has enjoyed a lengthy career, and here along with some excellent players he fleshes out 8 fusion filled tracks.
The bouncy and upbeat title track starts with Ciprut’s warm guitar alongside Jimmy Haslip’s fluid bass playing for the rock’n’roll climate, and “No Compromise” follows with Tommi Rautianen’s hard hitting drums that suit the dense guitar licks.
“Cutie” and “Who Got Next?” land in the middle, where the former welcomes Etienne Lytle’s playful organ and Wurlitzer to the grooves, while the latter bops and shakes with an infectious energy via Tobias Ralph’s lively drums and plenty of funk fun.
Arriving near the end, “Slippery Slope” places Charles Ruggiero on drums and Jeremy Manasia on Wurlitzer, which helps illuminate Ciprut’s animated guitar, and “Funk You” exits with indeed plenty of funk thanks to James Genus’ skilled bass and Daniel Sadownick’s impressive percussion.
Ciprut is nothing if not versatile, and these songs mix jazz, rock and blues in a way that brings to mind Jimi Hendrix, Grant Green and Wes Montgomery, which I doubt anyone is going to have a problem with.
Travels well with: Omer Leshem- Play Space; Wayne Alpern- Gotham