THE STEVE LUCIANO QUARTET

UNDER THE COVERS

Independent Release

Steve Luciano, guitar; Mike Avila, piano; Charlie Siva, bass; Walt Hubbard, drums; Dan Jordan, Saxophone/flute.

The Steve Luciano Quartet opens with the very familiar Duke Pearson tune, “Chant.”  There’s a note on the CD cover that says this tune was inspired by a performance of the Ed Cherry Trio at Smalls Club in NYC, a show that Steve Luciano witnessed.

“The ‘cover songs’ represented in this album are all compositions that have meant a great deal to me.  Some of these songs I’ve played for over fifteen years.  Others, I’ve just recently started playing, but all have inspired me by their beauty, groove, melody, and harmony,” Luciano writes in his liner notes.

You will probably recognize all these standard songs that Luciano’s quartet plays.  They swing “I’ll Take Romance” by Oscar Hammerstein and Luciano takes a riveting guitar solo. On Jimmy Van Heusen’s “Like Someone in Love” tune, Luciano steps into the spotlight a’ Capella and he’s captivating. His guitar is a voice that beckons, first playing the tune down as a ballad, then doubling the time. When the rest of the musicians join him, they slow-shuffle their way across my listening room.

Steve Luciano is a fabulous guitarist and has surrounded himself with players who are equally gifted.  Dan Jordan on flute and saxophone adds spunk and fire to the project.  I enjoyed the quartet’s arrangement of the Wayne Shorter tune “Hammer Head” and they were spectacular on their interpretation of “The Bad & the Beautiful.”

Steve Luciano brags on his CD cover that he and his quartet players have been friends for at least thirty years. So, you will hear a close, comfortable collaborative effort.  Every tune is beautifully improvised and well-played, with Luciano’s sensuous guitar leading the way.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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