It’s not every day you get a CD of hard-bop accordion. Except for that instrument’s presence, Bedouin would be a straightforward organ-trio date, fun and foot-tapping but without much to set it apart from the ruck of mainstream discs. But it’s unusual and really quite charming to hear Pino Di Modugno squeeze his way through tunes by Bud Powell, Duke Pearson, Milt Jackson and Nat Adderley; he has no trouble getting good jazz out of his instrument, even on a punishingly fast reading of Powell’s “Down With It.” His son Vito does him proud at the organ and Fender Rhodes, and also overdubs acoustic and electric bass on occasion. Aside from the instrumentation, there’s nothing especially remarkable about Bedouin, but it’s still a very playable and enjoyable disc, though way too long at 75 minutes. Call me sentimental, but my favorites here are the two ballads, “Here’s That Rainy Day” and “Deep Purple.”

Nate Dorward

Cadence, April 2005