DOUG MacDONALD, Live at the Rancho Mirage Library

Over the course of nine reviews I have written about guitarist Doug MacDonald and his various lineups (trio, quartet, big band, etc.) since 2019, I’ve extolled the virtues not only of his string fluidity and intricacy, prolificness and versatility, but also his service as a hipster musical tour guide. While the Philly, Hawaii bred multi-talent reflected on his roots on Live in Hawaii (2021), his recent array of albums feature titles spotlighting numerous areas of his longtime home of SoCal – including The Coachella Valley Trio, Toluca Lake Jazz, Serenade to Highland Park, Edwin Alley (a historic hotspot in Pasadena) and Santa Monica Sessions.

MacDonald’s vibrantly performed, groove intensive collection Live at the Rancho Mirage Library takes us to the heart of the Coachella Valley (where he’s lived for years) for a spirited trio date with longtime collaborators Larry Holloway (bass) and Tim Pleasant (drums), with special guest Big Black adding extra percussive excitement (and surreal rhythmic interactions/conversations with Pleasant) on djembe.

Though any of the hard-poppin’, stylistically all over the map and dynamically performed ten tracks would serve as excellent entry points to the show, perhaps the tune that captures the festive, freewheeling spirit of the gig is “Triste,” which turns a usually smooth, breezy Jobim chestnut about sorrow into a bright, highly improvised jam spotlighting the punchy duality of Holloway’s bass and the percussion team, with MacDonald strumming coolly in the distance.

They take the same approach on “Lady Bird,” which breaks for an extended bass/drum duet between MacDonald’s peppy passages. Having shed any traces of melancholy, the trio also burns on a celebratory romp through “Fascinating Rhythm” and “Dearly Beloved.” Another highlight is their snappy, funked out blues treatment of Kenny Burrell’s whimsical “Chitlins Con Carne.” Both musically and geographically, the burning question at the end of all this cool divine madness is, where will MacDonald take us next?