Personnel:
Ryan Meagher (g), Bill McHenry (ts), George Colligan (p, Hammond organ, Wurlitzer, Fender Rhodes), Chris Higgins (b), Mark Ferber (d)
Reference: FSNT-545
Bar code: 8427328435451
"Meagher’s the most interesting new guitarist on the scene since Pat Metheny. Any resemblance tends to be fleeting. The north-westerner uses more blues and fewer country-rock inflections than Pat, but brings the same depth of detail and the same ability to spin out single-note lines with unflagging imagination and originality. Heart-Whole is the freshest and most sheerly exhilarating thing you’ll hear this season, but the clue to Meagher’s art is probably the self-titled last track, right before an unexpected, twangy reprise of the Rio-tinged opener. It might seem odd to name a tune after yourself, but it was originally written and named for saxophonist and Berklee teacher Max Otto, who took a look at it, nipped out its more pretentious elements and sent it back. Its Inner Urge lineage is immediately evident, but it’s a perfect example of how lyrically Meagher writes, even in odd-numbered time-signatures.
Meagher likes to model himself on Peter Bernstein rather than Metheny, and there is something of the New Yorker’s Criss Cross masterpiece Heart’s Content about Lost Days. Bernstein had Brad Mehldau on the strength; Meacher has George Colligan, who’s absolutely no slouch, either. Writing and playing are alike skilful, complex in tone and (thanks to Otto) unfussy. The bouzouki drone on Lost Days was added in post-production and offers solid proof that this is a guy who now knows exactly how to get and sustain his intended sound. McHenry, Higgins and Ferber offer unfailing support."
Brian Morton
Jazz Journal (April, 2017)
