Sai Ghose Trio: Fingers and Toes

The Boston-based Sai Ghose Trio’s second recording, Fingers and Toes (Summit), contains the best cover photograph of any of these, a touching picture of the foot of a baby cradled between the thumb and forefinger of an adult. The titles of the seven original tunes by Ghose on the record are all related to the recent birth of Ghose’s son. The first tune, “The Changing Table,” is the best on the recording, primarily due to a fascinating vamp in odd meter that the tune goes in and out of. The group also executes segues in and out of typical meter well on “Fingers and Toes,” the other standout original here. The remaining originals are pleasant and well-performed, especially with regard to rhythmic arrangement and with a good group feel, but without the virtuosity found on other recordings in this batch. The aural representation of the instruments reinforces this: There is not as much separation between the instruments, and the resulting image is of Ghose in the forefront and drummer Mike Connors and bassist Jerry Wilfong together in the background.

There are two standards included on Fingers and Toes, “You Don’t Know What Love Is” and “Green Dolphin Street,” but neither is as interesting as the group’s performances on the originals.

Originally Published January 1, 2003