REVIEW: SKINNY HIGHTOWER'S "BLUE MOON"
Keyboardist (really, multi-instrumentalist) Skinny Hightower instantly became one of my favorite artists from the moment I first heard track one of his 2017 release ๐๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด. ๐๐ถ๐ค๐ฉ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ด๐ต๐บ๐ญ๐ฆ. His intuitive approach to compositions was instantly impressive to say the least. His subsequent releases haven't proven me wrong in my initial assessment one bit. Here with his double CD release called ๐๐ญ๐ถ๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฏ, this mega-talented artist again pours it on as thick as maple syrup with more plenty of funk and ๐ด๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฉ. Taking a brief hiatus from the biz to engage in a bit of introspection and to reset his internal GPS (something all serious musicians should do, in my opinion), he steps out here with fresh, creative grooves and melodies that keep you engaged from track one, disc one through track 12, disc 2. Iโm not even going to entertain the idea of choosing a fave on this album as I found myself in that head-boppinโ, toe-tappinโ, finger-snappinโ mode throughout. Someโand I stress someโof the catchy tracks include the high-steppinโ โBlue Moon,โ โSpanish Harlem,โ the blues-tapped โSky Bluesโ featuring guitarist Christone Kingfish Ingram, funky jams like โBoogiemanโ and โMr. Sims,โ and much more ear candy. Except for help on a couple of tracks by guitarists Brett โAlmonโ Johnson and the previously mentioned Ingram, trumpeter Simon Beddoe, saxophonists Gene Shill and Rob Mitchell, percussionist โBongoโ Bobby Thomas, and an appearance by British keyboardist Oli Silk, Hightower handles/arranges everything you hear on this well-produced project. Give it a listen, and fall in love again with ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ข๐ญ c-jazz.
Ronald Jackson's The Smooth Jazz Ride's Music Reviews
