Jared Gold is a young organist with a fondness for old soul; in addition to five originals, a Hank Mobley tune (“An Aperitif”) and a Hoagy Carmichael number to close (“Skylark”), this disc includes versions of Stevie Wonder‘s “You Haven’t Done Nothin'” and the Delfonics‘ “La-La (Means I Love You).” What this means in practice is that the tracks occasionally lean heavily on their main melodies. Given the choice between this option and the other one normally exercised by organ-jazz groups—tracks where the songs are barely sketches, nothing but blues riffs on which endless honk-and-blare choruses can be blown/pumped out—I’ll take it. He’s backed by a capable guitarist (Dave Stryker) and drummer (Mark Ferber), and saxophonist Chris Cheek makes the most of his solo slots, as should be expected. Posi-Tone is probably my favorite straightahead jazz label right now, and this is a solid addition to their catalog. Check it out; it’ll make an early autumn afternoon very enjoyable indeed. (I liked Gold’s 2009 album Supersonic, too, and I enjoyed his playing and Ferber’s on Dan Pratt‘s Toe the Line, which I reviewed here back in May.)

—Phil Freeman