Dr. Lonnie Smith: Breathe

For the perfect combination of sheer soul and swing with the dualism of grease and mysticism, you can’t beat Dr. Lonnie Smith, who debuted as a leader Blue Note in 1968, eventually returning to the label nearly half a century later with 2016’s Evolution. A bona fide burner, incomparable soloist, ethereal vocalist, and genuine man of mystery, the 78-year-old B-3 master is still playing with the energy and drive of a man half his age. But did we really need to hear him backing the godfather of punk, Iggy Pop, on Timmy Thomas’ 1973 hippie anthem “Why Can’t We Live Together” and Donovan’s 1966 hit “Sunshine Superman”? Feels a bit kitschy. Elsewhere, Smith wails in signature stratospheric fashion on the shuffling “Too Damn Hot” and on an off-kilter funk version of Monk’s “Epistrophy.” He gets knee-deep in the molasses-slow funk of “Track 9,” which turns into a romping feature for his four-piece horn section, then plumbs the depths of darkness on his funereal dirge “World Weeps” and goes to church on the uplifting “Pilgrimage,” featuring a star turn from regal mezzo-soprano vocalist Alicia Olatuja. That’s where this doctor really operates.