Since earning his spurs playing with
Jack McDuff during the 1980s, guitarist
Dave Stryker has recorded frequently and effectively as a leader in the decades that followed.
Keystone is a solid session with tenor saxophonist
Stephen Riley, drummer
Quincy Davis, plus up-and-coming organist
Jared Gold.
Stryker touches many familiar bases, including a driving, funky setting of
the Beatles'
"Can't Buy Me Love" and a lush ballad setting of
"Lady Sings the Blues" (penned by the neglected pianist
Herbie Nichols with lyric by
Billie Holiday), the latter showcasing
Riley's whispering vibrato-laden sax. The standard
"Tenderly" has long been a favorite of jazz musicians. This easygoing midtempo rendition features
Riley with a breezy background, though it changes to a strutting flavor once
Stryker steps into the spotlight. The guitarist has his band stretch out in their performance of
"Watch What Happens," giving everyone a taste in a snappy arrangement that never loses steam. The leader's originals also command attention.
"Keystone" evolves from a simple riff into a breezy, infectious blues.
"The Rose," written for a friend who died far too young, gently sways with tenor and guitar in unison, followed by
Stryker's introspective solo. This is yet another outstanding CD in
Dave Stryker's vast discography. ~ Ken Dryden
![Live [2002]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0014381177527_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "Live [2002]")
