Joel Frahm & Bruce Katz
Project A
Anzic Records
www.anzicrecords.com
By George W. Harris

Project A stands for Aretha. Franklin, that is. She started out as a
gospel singing, and has never given up those roots, and for that
reason, the A could also stand for “Amen” as there are some cooking
tunes from the Sunday side of life.

Tenorist Joel Frahm and B3/pianist Bruce Katz have successfully
captured the feel of Ms. Franklin’s career in this group of songs that
are identified with Lady Soul. Along with Marty Ballou-Jerry Jemmott/b,
Lorne Entress-Ralph Rosen/dr and Chris Vitarello/g, they mix hits like
“The House That Jack Built” and “Rock Steady” with testifyin’ stompers
like a cajunized “What A Friend We Have In Jesus” and “Spirit In The
Dark.” Frahm, who’s put out a few other good releases, hits the jackpot
on this one. His solos are solid, concise and searing, while Katz hits
the B3 like it’s BBQ night at the local juke joint. A few songs have
some trumpet and bari support that gives a bit of a dash, but the focus
here is on struttin, either down the street or the aisle, and coming
back home a little better for it.