STEVE CROPPER & FELIX CAVALIERE

Midnight Flyer

[Stax]

One of the challenges in convening a superstar summit is reconciling results with expectations. So if the sophomore collaboration from these two legendary names doesn’t achieve all that this pairing might promise, that doesn’t diminish their individual strengths. Rascals veteran Felix Cavaliere’s vocals have stood up well to the passage of time, as earnest and expressive as ever. Likewise, guitarist Steve Cropper’s fretwork still displays the taste and finesse that won him renown in the service of Otis Redding, Booker T and the M.G.s, and the Blues Brothers. The two men mesh well even if prowess and promise aren’t always compatible. Cropper’s subtle “Soul Man” licks on “Midnight Flyer” and Cavaliere’s organ flourishes on “I Can’t Stand It” are admirable attempts to retrace former glories, but neither these nor any of the album’s other entries are in the league with their past classics.

–LZ