This nine piece, horn based, funk and R & B band travels the same path as Tower of Power, James Brown and Sly and the Family Stone. About half of the 10 cuts found on this release feature a frantic pace and lots of horn breaks while the balance work real hard at jumping into a low down, bass heavy groove. Charles Walker is a soulful singer who rides above the hard grooves with an ease that reflects his earlier stints fronting bands at New York’s storied Apollo Theatre. Stand out tracks include the sinewy "Slinky", the big Otis Redding style ballad, "Dig Deeper", and the rip-roaring "Own Thing". If you dig old school funk there is something here for you. Smitty
CASSANDRA WILSON
Loverly
AZAR LAWRENCE
Prayer For My Ancestors
JAKE SHIMABUKURO
Dragon
ANGELO MICHAJLOV (Performed by Petra Cernocka and The Karl Vlach Orchestra)
Saxana
JAMBALAYA BRASS BAND
IT'S A JUNGLE OUT THERE
VARIOUS
Rumble In the Great Lakes (Best of the Detroit Jazz Fest 2007)
The opinions expressed in these reviews are those of the individual volunteers that submitted the article and do not necessarily reflect the views of WYCE or GRCMC; nor its staff, donors, or affiliates.