Last night, Marco Benevento continued his weekly residency in support of his first solo studio CD, Invisible Baby, at New Yorks Sullivan Hall. Each night of the keyboardists Thursday run has featured a different mix of musicians and, last night, Benevento primarily performed alongside Duo partner Joe Russo and Slip guitarist Brad Barr. The three musicians offered an extended, two-set performance that stretched until nearly 2 AM and mixed Beneventos jazz background with the more rock-centric sounds characteristic of the Duo and the Slips recent recordings. Though the evening primarily featured freeform improvisation, set against a projector which colored the venues new white walls, the trio did offer what Benevento describes as a more soundtrack sounding, piano version of the Duos Sunny’s Song during their first set.

Throughout most of their second set, Benevento, Barr and Russo were joined onstage by saxophonist John Ellis for a series of more psychedelic jams that lasted until nearly 1:30 AM. At the end of the night, Slip drummer Andrew Barr, who spent the early part of the evening backing Natalie Merchant a bit further uptown, took the stage, sharing the kit with Russo before taking over on drums completely. Singer/Songwriter Sonya Kitchell also joined in, scatting on a freeform jam that eventually unfolded into Janes Addictions ‘Summertime Rolls.’

Invisible Baby is currently available on iTunes and will hit stores February 12. Beneventos weekly residency will continue at Sullivan Hall next Thursday with special guests Stanton Moore (Galactic) and Marc Friedman (The Slip). The keyboardist will officially unveil the material included on Invisible Baby at Sullivan Hall on January 31 with the help of Reed Mathis and Andrew Barr, both of whom appear on the recording.