DON’T BOTHER
Rating: 
As much as I would like to, I can’t entirely dismiss Bireli Lagrene’s Standards.
First of all, there is the sheer virtuosity involved. Lagrene can play guitar very well, and of course Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen is one of the greats on the upright bass. Andre Ceccarelli is less impressive on drums, but does nothing to embarrass himself.
But here’s the thing. Lagrene consistently plays past his limits. He’s sloppy. He thinks faster than he can play and is only too happy to try to catch up. He’ll attempt octave runs that he can’t handle, slipping and sliding all over the place. Sometimes, he’ll want to play a run and simply approximate it. Sorry, Lagrene, that doesn’t cut it. Look at the slop he dishes out on Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise. In contrast, Niels Henning Orsted Pedersen hits every note he aims for. He’s the real star here.
It’s too bad because Bireli Lagrene does have a nice sense of swing and some of his lines are tasty.
And, speaking of taste, Lagrene’s is wildly inconsistent. For every Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise that is cunningly arranged, there is a Days Of Wine And Roses, which Lagrene completely destroys by turning it into a swing tune.
On the other hand, Smile, never one of my favorite tunes, is awash in saccharine sentimentality. I also hated his “hip” phrasing on Jobim’s How Insensitive, especially his plummy vibrato and bends. Yecch.
True, there are bright spots, like the way Lagrene handles the head of Autumn Leaves, but that doesn’t make up for his overreaching on tunes like Donna Lee, which is almost unlistenable thanks to Lagrene’s tendency to want to overplay.
It’s too bad. Bireli Lagrene would be a perfectly good guitarist if he would just stick with what he can do. And it would probably help if someone else arranged the tunes.