Citrus Sun - Another Time Another Space (2001)

Following Maysa and Inner Shade, Citrus Sun is the third spin-off group from the 1970s-inspired British jazz-funk mob Incognito. While not nearly as creative as Inner Shade, and without Maysa singing a note, Another Time, Another Space is much truer to the sound of Incognito than either of the other spin-offs. Citrus Sun wring the '70s instrumental ingredients out of the Incognito sound and heat it up with a modern smooth-jazz flavor. Sax man Ed Jones, also an Inner Shade cat, gives topnotch performances on the melodic "Budapest," the ballad "Blue Orchid," the upbeat title track, and others here. Trumpeter-arranger Dominic Glover, who salutes Donald Byrd on "What It Is," and guitarist Jim Mullen, who gives a nice nod to Earth Wind & Fire's Al McKay on "Full Circle," also are standouts. You might easily mistake Another Time, Another Space as the very first Incognito instrumental album. -- Mark Ruffin