Ace straight-ahead jazz guitar player Eric DiVito didn’t make a record until his 30s but he seems intent on catching up. The descriptively titled The Second Time Around follows barely thirteen months after his solid Breaking The Ice debut, a mostly-trio date featuring Corcoran Holt on acoustic bass and Alyssa Falk Verheyn on drums.
This time around, so to speak, DiVito dives deeper into the interpretive acumen hinted at on the debut, with seven of the ten tracks being well-chosen covers from some of jazz’s best composers. “Windows,” a favorite early Chick Corea composition of mine, employs the same waltzing cadence as original, and DiVito explores the rich long form melody with fluent, mostly single note lines. Wayne Shorter’s “Iris” gets funkified, led by Holt’s in the pocket bass and Divito’s richly toned guitar. More risk-taking is found on “Inner Urge” — one of Joe Henderson’s prime tunes — beginning with a tight union between DiVito and Holt on the slippery theme and then the theme played without tonal help by Verheyn’s drums!
Alto saxophonist Steve Wilson makes it quartet for three cuts, notably the multi-motifed DiVito original “2nd Story,” where a groovy little riff benefits from the layered syncopation from all four performers, and “Sun Script,” where Wilson delivers a soaring sax solo.
Mavis Swan Poole lends her velvet vocal to a couple of sturdy standards. Hoagy Carmichael’s “Skylark” is an opportunity for DiVito to show off his comping abilities in isolation, as it’s only him and Poole performing. A smooth, reserved rhythm section complements Poole on “The Second Time Around,” and DiVito plucks simple, appropriate lines.
Eric DiVito reveals a little bit more of what he’s capable of on The Second Time Around after a strong introduction. One gets the feeling he’s got even more up his sleeve for us.
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The Second Time Around went on sale November 17, courtesy of the Pioneer Jazz Collective. Visit Eric DiVito’s website for more info.
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