Maxed Out

For a guy named Max Groove, the keyboardist sure plays it mid-tempo to pure mellow. But once you get over the deceptive lure of the title Maxed Out, slickly produced, near picture perfect piano and sax melodies come to the rescue. Groove does his best, well, groovin', on easy funk, loping horn section gems like the title cut and "Cozumel," and smartly infuses moody jazz touches like muted trumpet and other oddities like the harp and baritone sax. Likewise, he gives even the more conventional fare like a simplistic arrangement of "My Girl" a boost with the help of Gerald Albright's always welcome alto. Throughout the busy trappings, however, Groove keeps his Bobby Lyle-like soulful ivory style at the forefront. His only true miss is not listening to his own titular advice that "The Party's Over" and ending with a long-winded, seven minute new age snoozer which proves that even a groover can get "Maxed Out."