Doug Munro

Scufflin' Records 8481 During these summer months, tribute albums are like mosquitoes -- you can't walk five feet without getting bitten by a bloodthirsty one of them. Just like mosquitoes, tribute albums seem to serve little purpose except to drain the life from otherwise vital music. When I learned of a Boogaloo tribute to Beck, I had to ask 'why?' Beck's music already cuts across so many genres; why pigeonhole it into one musical category? Well, if you can turn Beck's music into a personal playground for a jazz legend, that's a good enough excuse for me.
Surprisingly, Beck's dense songs benefit from being stripped down into little more than their melodic essence. Of course, it helps when you have giants such as Lonnie Smith, David "Fathead" Newman, and Doug Munro experimenting with the tunes. But these songs work incredibly well in the boogaloo format and provide a nice launching pad for the improvisational talents of these fine musicians.
Dr. Lonnie Smith has certainly aged well. Utilizing his Hammond organ, he pulls out all of his tricks in a variety of ways. On the opening "Paper Tiger," Smith sets the tone of the album by dropping in a slow, slinking groove and building tension during his long, sustained solos. "Where It's At" finds him perfectly at home in the land of '70s funk, while "He's a Mighty Good Leader" effortlessly fits Smith into a gospel feel, and he preaches with fire and brimstone. However, the most underrated aspect of Smith's playing is his ability to comp and shift the groove underneath of solos. His interplay with guitarist Munro serves as the catalyst for the many climaxes on this record.
Tenor saxophonist David "Fathead" Newman has been blessed with a silky smooth tone. Without a vocalist, this unit often relies upon Newman's ability to deliver the vocal line through his buttery instrument. On both "Sexx Laws" and "Jack-Ass," Newman's tone adds a nice counterpoint to the staccato employed by the rest of the band, and he consistently takes soulful solos that are just too cool to reach the point of wailing.
Young drummer Lafrae Sci holds her own in a room of jazz titans. Instead of being awed by the masters surrounding her, she propels them to loftier heights by both pushing and easing off tempos. Her tight and clipped beats give the album its percolating feel, but her wide range of dynamics really move the record to interesting places.
Finally, the unsung hero of this entourage is guitarist/arranger/producer Doug Munro. For some reason, Munro is not even listed on the album cover, and that's a crime because this album belongs to him. His arrangements are clever and fit perfectly within the boogaloo genre. Key decisions, such as slowing down "Loser" or pushing "Jack-Ass" into an uptempo hip-pocket of funk, play perfectly to the talents of this band. As a guitarist, his work provides some of the most interesting textures on the disc. His rhythms are the glue that hold everything together, and his backup lines and improvisations frequently give Smith a nice springboard for big explosions. Munro's soloing always maintains a sense of effortlessness, whether he's busy quoting "Soulfinger" or "Chameleon" or if he's employing a chunky wah-wah on "Where It's At."
Boogaloo To Beck is one of those rare examples of a successful tribute album. By stripping away the clutter of Beck's music and reducing it to little more than melody, the listener discovers that Beck has actually written some fine melodies. Setting those melodies in a boogaloo context feels natural and results in album that is both incredibly smooth and undeniably cool.
- Jambands.com

After a string of gritty organ group dates, guitarist Doug Munro hit on an appealing concept with 2004’s Big Boss Bossa Nova, which blended originals and jazz standards performed on nylon-string acoustic guitar and reconfigured through a Brazilian sensibility. On this follow-up, which continues that winning formula, Munro again summons up warm, alluring tones on nylon-string acoustic. With spare accompaniment from bassist Michael Goetz alongside either Jason Anderson or Jason Devlin splitting the drum chair, Munro runs through an exhilarating program that includes a faithful rendition of Chick Corea’s “Spain” as well as bossa-nova takes on Sonny Rollin’s “Blue Seven”, Freddie Hubbard’s “Little Sunflower” and Wayne Shorter’s “Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum.” He switches to steel string guitar for a unique bossa-nova interpretation of Thelonious Monk’s “Bemsha Swing.”

Munro’s originals here include the rhythmically charged “Something I Heard,” in which he navigates a challenging head with demanding intervallic leaps on steel string acoustic, the jaunty “A Day At The Races” (his take on Dizzy Gillespie’s Afro-Cuban classic “A Night In Tunisia”) and the hymn-like closer “Prayer” (reminiscent of Eric Clapton’s “Tears In Heaven”). Guitar aficionados and bossa-nova-philles will be delighted.

Bill Milkowski
- Jazztimes

Recorded in the solitude of upstate New York during a period of deep spiritual reflection, this reveling solo project features veteran guitarist Doug Munro improvising on 7 originals while re-inventing two classic spirituals ("Amazing Grace, "Down By The Riverside"). Using a loop station to create multiple parts in real time, Munro creates a latticework of percussive effects on "Static In The Attic" by taping on the body of his Godin Guitar. Other highlights include the poignant Americana of Worship", the giddy funk of "The Journey" and a finger-style reading of Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready".

Bill Milkowski - Jazztimes