In his forward to this
album George Duke says he combines Jazz,
Funk, Latin, Dance, Fusion & Rock
and Roll. As a jazz reviewer therefore
I was not expecting to like it more than
20%! There is nothing wrong with this
as superior pop and disco music, it is
much more inventive and better played
than anything I have heard in recent times
from either of those genre. I would contend
however, that for the jazz listener, there
is not much more than an occasional jazz
feel. There are some short solos on the
tracks from the Brazilian Love Affair
and to me these are the most appealing.
The huge success of George
Duke would probably not occurred had he
pursued his original career in the straight
ahead jazz rhythm sections of Dizzy Gillespie,
Dexter Gordon and Kenny Dorham. The mere
fact that he could hold those jobs down
confirms what I suspected by listening
to the album, that musically he is of
the best. He has also appeared with Sonny
Rollins, Frank Zappa and Cannonball Adderley,
but his interest in fusion has seemed
to move his work away from jazz. I am
sure he is much richer financially for
that and he obviously enjoys what he does.
For those that are into
fusion, I am sure this could be the release
of the year, but for a straight-ahead
jazz reviewer like me, it is just not
my bag.
Don Mather
CD Reviews
EPIC/Legacy 516191 2
