Seriously Deep

Dusty Grooves has issued a nice edition of David Axelrod's 1975 fusion effort Seriously Deep.

"One of the rarest albums ever from funky maestro David Axelrod - and quite different than his earlier work for Reprise and Capitol Records. This time around, Axe is working in a jazz funk mode - in a setting that's heavy on the keyboards from Joe Sample, and also features reeds and vibes, plus a nice undercurrent of strings. There's a subtle dose of fusion in the mix, but one that's never too jamming - and Axelrod always maintains his trademark sense of space and timing - turning the simplest musical measure into the kind of groove that holds up well into the 21st Century!" [from the liner notes].

I found the album much more approachable than his somewhat ponderous antebellum concept album The Auction [1972] which was the last one I bought. Seriously Deep lacks the grand concepts of his earlier LPs, but in many ways is stronger for it as the listener can just focus on the music alone. And the focus is rewarded with the surprises that I expect from Axelrod such as the cello solo on "1000 Rads". Cool.