Common Ground

Gary Burton loves pairing vibraphone with guitar. The New Gary Burton Quartet includes the up-and-comer Julian Lage, who favors acoustic guitar on 2011’s *Common Ground*. (Bassist Scott Colley and drummer Antonio Sanchez round out the group.) All of the band members contribute compositions; two pieces by ex-Burton band member Vadim Neselovskyi, a piece Keith Jarrett wrote for Burton in 1970, and “My Funny Valentine” are also included. The band generally has a very even-tempered sound but occasionally the fine Mexican drummer ruffles things nicely. The album kicks off with Neselovskyi’s “Late Night Sunrise,” a cool mid-tempo cruiser with some artfully off-kilter passages. The band swings on Sanchez’s “Did You Get It?,” a speedy, slightly tweaked blues that features sweet soloing by the drummer. “My Funny Valentine” starts off with an extended classically flavored acoustic guitar statement before it moves into a sensitive rendition of the classic. An appealing version of Keith Jarrett’s Americana-laced “In Your Quiet Place” brings the album to a quiet close.