On his 23rd album as a leader, renowned pianist, composer and arranger Geoffrey Keezer continues to augment and refine his distinctive style. He presents a dazzling amalgamation of genres with Playdate, due out August 12 on his own record label, MarKeez. The album’s lighthearted namesake is an homage to the concept of planning a playdate for a group of kids. Rallying a group of distinguished collaborators, Keezer calls this virtuosic cast “Geoffrey Keezer and Friends.” On Playdate, an idiomatic mastery of funk, hard bop, gospel, heavenly strings and the blues is externalized by an all-star musical roster, including collaborators Shedrick Mitchell on organ, Ron Blake on tenor and soprano saxophone, Richie Goods on acoustic and electric bass, and Kendrick Scott on drums. This new offering also features special guest guitarists Aayushi Karnik and Nir Felder, as well as percussionist Munyungo Jackson.