JAZZBO NOTES ESSENTIAL RECORDING
Rating: 
Freefall wasn’t actually the first Dixie Dregs release. That was The Great Spectacular, but bandleader Steve Morse was unhappy with the results, which were recorded as a class project at the University of Miami School of Music, and most of the tunes on that album were re-recorded for Freefall. Freefall has the boundless enthusiasm and energy of a young band with something to prove. It’s the highest energy studio release of all of the Dixie Dregs albums and their best, with the possible exception of Night Of The Living Dregs.
Every track is a winner. The style is an impossible combination of rock, R&B, Mahavishnu Orchestra guitar and violin freakouts, country, and guitarist Steve Morse’s involved arrangements.
There is no way Morse could have pulled off this challenging music without the very best instrumentalists, and he got ‘em. Rod Morgenstein on drums, Andy West on bass, Steve Davidowski on keys, and Allen Sloan on violin all kick the proverbial keister.
But don’t just take my word for it. Listen to the samples.