Touch

From Jazziz
Mixing laid-back melodies with go-for-broke jams among some of the greatest names in modern instrumental music, saxophonist Bill Evans finds a middle ground between smooth jazz and more traditional fusion. On his Zebra Records debut, Touch, the distinctions are based on each song's sense of adventure. "In Your Heart," for instance, is the kind of sweet, little slice of passion that radio drools over, made unique by Evans' switches from soprano to tenor. The cool, urban-flavored "Remember," featuring subtle vocal chants floating off in the distance, should also score well at radio. But then the edgier side of Evans emerges, as he intertwines his soprano-sax lines with Lew Soloff's staccato trumpet work on the brisk blues of "Dixie Hop," and as he kicks up all sorts of funky dust on the last two tunes, "Back to the Walls" and the 10-minute "Country Mile." "Back to the Walls" blends both of Evans' saxes (overdubbed) with an African vocal chant, the insistent wah-wah guitar of Adam Rogers, and a jamming, Memphis-soul-inspired horn section featuring Soloff and trombonist Conrad Herwig, dubbed the Voodoo Horns. Sure enough, he conjures a magic that defies easy categories.

Touch,Bill Evans,Zebra Records (Wea),Crossover Jazz,Jazz,Jazz Music,Pop,Post-Bop

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