Composite photograph of Eddie Bayard, Robert Mason, Kevin Turner, and James Gaiters (courtesy of Jazz Promo Services)
A few months ago drummer James Gaiters self-released his latest album entitled Understanding Reimagined. The title refers to a pioneering organ trio album that Blue Note released in 1968 entitled Understanding. Organist John Patton led the trio, whose other members were Harold Alexander, alternating between tenor saxophone and flute, and Hugh Walker on drums. The album had only five tracks; and only the first of them, “Congo Chant,” was composed by Patton. The other tracks were “Alfie’s Theme” (Sonny Rollins), “Soul Man” (Isaac Hayes and David Porter), “Understanding” (Sam Gary and Mark Nash), and “Chitlins con Carne” (Kenny Burrell).
Understanding Reimagined is performed by the James Gaiters Soul Revival. This is a quartet, whose other members are saxophonist Eddie Bayard, guitarist Kevin Turner, and organist Robert Mason. All five Understanding tracks are included, along with “Ding Dong,” an original composition by Alexander.
I must confess that I have a soft spot for organ trios. In this case I enjoyed the trio expanding to a quartet. Since I never added Understanding to my album collection, I am not in a position to compare Mason with Patton. Nevertheless, I am perfectly satisfied with Mason’s work, both when he takes the lead and when he backs up solo improvisations by Bayard and Turner, a few of which turn into duo improvisations. These days I find that reflections on what Blue Note was matter more to me than most of the label’s current projects.
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