'“The Joint” is a raunchy, bluesy number that is meant to recall the gritty joints musicians play when they are coming up. This joint isn’t quite that grungy, but there’s little doubt that this number will be a strong one on Abair’s upcoming tour...'

Mindi Abair is a pop saxophonist who has a good sound on her instrument (alto sax and a little soprano sax) and good instincts when it comes to the groove. She and collaborator/producer Matthew Hager continue to refine a carefully crafted sound that seamlessly integrates home recorded sessions by Abair and Hager with a core group that includes Abair, Hager, Ricky Peterson, and Michael Landau and guest contributions by the likes of Paulinha Da Costa, Keb’ Mo’, Larry Klein, and Jamey Tate. While this is certainly still the radio-friendly instrumental pop that Abair has been offering on her previous two CDs, there is increased emotional depth on Life Less Ordinary that makes it a fine listen. As pop music, it’s well produced, and well performed by a sensitive group of musicians.

As with any popular music album, programming of tracks is very important, and Abair and Hager are aware of this, programming the songs on Life Less Ordinary to maximum effect. “Do You Miss Me?” certainly gets things started lightly enough, with its vocal loop by Abair weaving its way in and out of her sharp, focused alto sax playing. It’s a very seductive sound and it gets the listener in the door. “Long Ride Home” locks into a more rock-oriented groove, and the only complaint here is that I wanted the song structure to open up a bit to allow Abair to really take off on some solo flights, but that never quite happens. Abair’s rendition of Rickie Lee Jones’ “It Must Be Love” isn’t bad, but Abair’s vocal doesn’t add anything to the familiar phrasing of the melody, and the song isn’t well served by the annoying drum programming.

That misstep is soon forgotten, however, as Abair gets to the meat of her program. “The Joint” is a raunchy, bluesy number that is meant to recall the gritty joints musicians play when they are coming up. This joint isn’t quite that grungy, but there’s little doubt that this number will be a strong one on Abair’s upcoming tour. The next track, “Rain” is a very pretty tune. Abair is proud of her ballad compositions, feeling they offer her an opportunity to express herself more deeply than the funkier, fun numbers. Next up is “True Blue,” a slightly formulaic smooth jazz tune, and again the drum programming was a bit uninteresting. The tune “Slinky” is a dance-oriented number that is again likely to be a popular live number. Abair plays soprano sax on this one, and she sounds pretty good, her tone full bodied and sounding like a saxophone rather than some ornamental thing.

“Ordinary Love” is a pop music concoction with a Latin beat and Abair doing a full-fledged vocal. Her voice is a little thin here, and the song nothing special. Abair closes with two very nice tracks that leave a good impression in the listener’s mind. “Bloom” is a lyrical statement with a programmed pop beat, but one that fits well with the song’s overall sound. If this were a vocal track by the pop diva of the moment, it would surely be a hit. But Abair’s soaring sax work easily takes the place of most of what pass for vocalists in the pop world today. Many decry contemporary jazz on the basis that it demeans the label jazz, but they ignore the fact that it is essentially popular music that happens to be instrumental. On that basis, Mindi Abair is a great success, and has yet to fall prey to sloppiness or excess that many in the genre do.