DEEP/THE BARITONE SESSIONS VOL 2

Description

Well known for his tight, aggressive rhythmic playing, whether in the service of Grammy-winning Snarky Puppy, the Fearless Flyers, or on his six solo albums, guitarist Mark Lettieri has found the perfect algorithm for funk. Fusing the influences of '70s and '80s rhythm guitar icons like Prince and Nile Rodgers, with inspirations from James Brown, George Clinton and P-Funk, Stevie Wonder, the Brothers Johnson, Rufus & Chaka Khan and others, the Fort Worth, Texas resident has been insinuating his razor-sharp chops into the consciousness of funkateers since joining Snarky Puppy in 2008. After a string of successful solo albums – Know (2011), Futurefun (2013) and Spark and Echo (2016) – Lettieri began to show an affinity for the dark depths of the baritone guitar in his popular social media video series, “Baritone Funk Thursday.” That online series led to his 2019 manifesto, Deep: The Baritone Sessions, a seven-track EP that featured contributions from Snarky Puppy members Bobby Sparks and Justin Stanton on keyboards and Jason “JT” Thomas on drums, as well as Funky Knuckles bassist Wes Stephenson and former Prince trumpeter Philip Lassiter. That same team is back, joined by French harmonica player Frédéric Yonnet, for Deep: The Baritone Sessions, Vol. 2, a full-length album that showcases the breadth and depth of Lettieri’s funk.