One Giant Leap
Big Round, 2025
9/10
An assembly of 6 saxophones, The Moanin’ Frogs bring their distinct chamber presence to 16 really unique tunes here.
“Slava!” opens with Lucas Hopkins’ bass saxophone making an impression in the animated and rich opener, and “Maple Leaf Rag” follows with a bouncy spirit thanks to Jeff Siegfried’s well timed tenor sax prowess.
“Danny Boy” lands in the middle and makes great use of Jeffrey Leung’s cautious baritone sax via the intimate landscape, while “Queen of The Night’s Aria from The Magic Flute” offers a cinematic moment thanks to the meticulous interaction between the winds.
Arriving closer to the end, “My Heart Will Go On” enlists Edward Goodman’s soprano saxophone and Gabriel Piqué’s alto saxophone for a song we’ll all immediately remember, which is executed with just as much emotion here, and the finisher, “Johnny B. Goode”, will get your body moving to the rock’n’roll classic that puts Jonathan Hulting-Cohen’s tenor and sopranino saxophones to good use.
A really fun listen that puts a fresh coat of paint on some old tunes, The Moanin’ Frogs includes 5 selections from the Voyager Golden Records (The 1977 Voyager I and II spacecraft contained 2 records for deep space) alongside other works they believe deserve a place in the cosmos. If they enter your orbit, consider yourself lucky.
Travels well with: Mika Stoltzman- Memories Of Tomorrow; David Harris- You Loved Me Then