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Urban Vacation
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Barnes and Noble
Urban Vacation
Current price: $15.99
Barnes and Noble
Urban Vacation
Current price: $15.99
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is a 1970's throwback saxophonist, with one foot in the New York City, R&B-influenced jazz of the
, and the other stretching to the slick west coast, Los Angeles-based studio sound of
and the
. A very reliable and lyrical woodwind player,
somewhat expands the contemporary jazz music of the pre-disco era with spirit and drive, if not a great deal of derivation. Carefully chosen as sidemen and producers, keyboardist
and bassist
are the principals in helping to revive this get-down funky jazz, a music more produced than created. It's actually a pretty good revisionist attempt, with expanded horn charts (arranged by
) a la the
when
was with them, crossed with
's
-type of soul-derived music that had fusion audiences compelled to enjoy to an uncomplicated type of electro-acoustic sound. With the more current-day title
and his band jump into a typical N.Y.C. skunk funk with
s vocal scatting infused with
's Fender Rhodes electric piano.
is even more funky with a full horn section including saxophonist
and trumpeter
, while
brings out the
influence in
's tenor. Throughout the disc, a flute is heard even though it is unattributed to either
or
, but perhaps it is
's keyboard assimilation. No matter the source, it fashionably enhances the music, adding a sweetness and light to the danceable beats. There's more unison playing on
in a simplified, repeat melody, and where
typically lives up to the title in an overt commercial vein, the bass lines of
anchor a heavier song with the thankfully natural horn complement. The ballad
is the slickest track on the date;
more overtly crosses into late-night, sugar-coated
territory, and a tambourine shake shades the busy, dense beat of
does one cover, the
dance song
with a vocal chorus that is more disco-oriented than the other cuts, and features guitarist
. While not artistic in the purist jazz sense,
s soprano, alto, and tenor sax are not so much exploited as they are integrated, making for a solid group sound that would have been well-represented were it released on
,
, or
records back in the day/ ~ Michael G. Nastos