A pretty brave batch of covers from Macy Gray – one that covers an entire album from beginning-to-end – and not just any album, either: Steve Wonder's immortal Talking Book! It actually works really well. No one up to and including Macy Gray herself would try to tell you that Talking Book needed to be updated – and to the well-earned credit of Macy, producer Hal Wilner and producer/keyboard wiz Zoux,, they manage to freshly adapt each cut in a respectful way – while tailoring each one nicely to Macy's distinct voice and style. It rolls from spacey, keyboards and bass flavored backdrops, to some with acoustic strings and percussion – and track-by-track, it works really well! Talking Book from start-to-finish: "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life", "Mayben Your Baby", "You And I (We Can Conquer The World)", "Tuesday Heartbreak", "You've Got It Bad Girl", "Superstition", "Big Brother", "Blame It On The Sun", "Lookin' For Another Pure Love" and "I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever)". ~ Dusty Groove
Amazing work from trumpeter Avishai Cohen – working here with his Triveni trio, and sounding even more powerful than on the first release from that group! The combo features incredible bass from Omer Avital – a player we've really come to love in recent years – and rocketing drums from Nasheet Waits – working with Cohen's trumpet in this power-trio mode that's usually reserved for tenorists in this type of setting – but which really helps open up Avishai's music in a wonderful way! The quick-time improvisation of the trio is brilliant – proof that these guys really feel each other strongly – and things are free, yet never too outside – a beautiful balance from all players. Titles include "BR Story", "Safety Land", "Get Blue", "Portrait", "Art Deco", "Music News", and "Nov 30th". ~ Dusty Groove
No anarchy here – as the groove is bold and tight, and right on the money – making for maybe the greatest album so far from the legendary Bukky Leo! The reedman's been working in London for decades, yet has only gotten his due in recent years – turning out a pan-global blend of spiritual jazz, Afro Funk, and possibly a bit of Caribbean groove too – all wrapped together in a style that really shows off Bukky's long legacy in music! The overall production and execution of this album is even greater than previous recent releases – helping give Bukky that tight focus we first heard many years back – and which really helps keep a strong spark to the groove throughout this entire album. Bukky wrote and arranged the entire set – and titles include "Afrobeat Jam", "Hard Times", "Fella Fella", "Rhythemic", "Mansa Dialema", "Jahfrobeat", "Skeleton", "Time Scale", and "Anarchy". CD also features bonus saxophone versions of "Hard Times" and "Time Scale" – plus "Skeleton (Gilles Peterson beach mix)" and "Skeleton (Gilles Peterson winter dub)". ~ Dusty Groove