Although Home on Richmond is the first recording pairing Mallinger and Carrothers, the two have been making music together over the years since meeting as Twin Cities’ high school students in the McDonald’s All Star High School Jazz Ensemble. While Pat has been building his reputation stateside, Bill has attained a far greater following in Europe as both performing and recording artist, garnering the 2000 French Diapason d'Or de l'Année, the 2004 Grand Prix de l'Academie Charles Cros, and numerous Top 10 of the Year lists in France. Yet he still calls the Midwest home, and regularly appears at the Green Mill in Chicago and Artists Quarter and Dakota in the Twin Cities.  

The recording shows off live music to full advantage, particularly adventurous post bop where the musicians have a chance to establish a foundation from which to build individual and collaborative structures through inventive soloing and sympathetic collaboration; the six tracks here stretch from 9 to nearly 14 minutes each without ever getting bogged down in excessive introspection. While the music is by no means predictable,  the listener is never left wondering where it’s all going. It makes sense; it feels complete; and it’s constantly engaging. And it’s a treat to hear Mallinger on three horns (tenor, alto and soprano). Two compositions come from the band—Mallinger’s title track and Carrothers’ “Snowbound,” while interpretations of Charles Lloyd, Charlie Chaplin, John Coltrane and Harry Warren fill out the disc.  

The set opens with Charles Lloyd’s “Third Floor Richard,” Mallinger’s tenor introducing the wandering melody. Carroll and Fludas provide a swing undertow, while Carrothers adds obtuse jabs and phrases. Hints of Parker as well as Coltrane abound as Mallinger circles around the theme with alterations in mood and tempo with each orbit. Carrothers’ first solo of the night is filled with thick, dissonant harmonies and Monkish rhythms, all tied together with oddly melodic knots; Fludas signals his intent to keep the pulse crackling. That crackling percussion carries into his nearly one-minute solo intro to Charlie Chaplin’s “Smile,” and Pat (on alto) gives the first chorus a familiar, slightly edgy whirl. Bill’s solo, buoyed by some tasty basslines from Carroll, initially suggests a big band dance, but quickly devolves into a trademark Carrothers abstraction where whiffs of melody rise occasionally above the surface playground. Bass and drums admirably keep pace with the pianist’s ever-shifting soundscape, always managing to swing. Mallinger sits out a good five minutes, leaving the piano trio space to explore, before returning with his own Parker-laced spin. Like a good talkie, you only need one sensory input to get the story and feel the sympathetic exchanges. Pat’s fluttering cadenza floats down like a twisting playbill in the breeze. 

The leader’s title track is a light-hearted, midtempo, waltzing tune, Pat’s homage to home and family. Bill takes a single note and weaves it into sparkling fabric like a 21st century Bill Evans offspring, while Pat returns with one of the most gorgeous interludes of the set. It’s homey but not complacent, sporting another finale of graceful invention. John Coltrane’s too-rarely heard “Living Space” (from his Tyner/Garrison/Jones era) begins as an incantation of soprano sax and drums. While Coltrane recorded it on soprano with tenor overdubs, Mallinger makes it work in his own way, doing justice to original, giving the single horn its own “living space” to breathe, expand and contract. Carrothers delivers a Tyner-worthy solo in power and density, but it’s definitely his own interpretation. With Fludas’ drumroll, Pat comes back to the opening prayer. 

“Snowbound” is Bill Carrothers’ hymn, suggesting an improvisation over “I’ll Be Around.” After three minutes of piano trio glory, Mallinger enters on tenor, regal basslines and subtle percussion putting the focus on piano and sax. Bill and Pat build the level of abstraction until they return to the initial theme. If you are snowbound, you’d be reassured by the tranquility of this music. The Tin Pan Alley hit “Nagasaki” (Dixon/Warren) provides a boppish closing with Pat on alto. Carrothers cuts loose. Ripping through the tune with characteristic hesitations, layers of chords alternating with sinewy single lines. Fludas trades breaks with Pat and Bill but ultimately it’s Pat who dazzles in a sprint to the finish. 

It’s 70 minutes of searing teamwork and artful soloing, an often-explosive exhibition of instrumental versatility from one of the finest saxophonists in modern postbop, one of the most inventive pianists on today’s scene (on either side of the Atlantic), and Chicago’s best pulse-setting duo. And that adds up to one exhilarating quartet, Mallinger’s best ensemble recording to date.