Bobby Watson - Urban Renewal (1995)

Tracklist

01 - Lou B
02 - Agaya
03 - Hi-Tech Trap
04 - If
05 - Love/Hate
06 - Beattitudes
07 - Here's To You Babe
08 - Back In The Day
09 - P.D. On Great Jones Street
10 - Reachin' and Searchin'
11 - Welcome To My World

personnel :

Bobby Watson - flute, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone
Victor Lewis - vocals, drums
Dejah - vocals
Greg Skaff - electric guitar
Rachel Z - piano, keyboards
Mark Soskin - piano
Gregory Jones - electric bass
Sammy Figueroa - congas, percussion

Having recently broken up his longtime modern hard bop quintet Horizon, Watson went funky on Urban Renewal but without much originality or purpose. His music has danceable rhythms that avoid being stimulating, forgettable melodies filled with R&B cliches, a pair of dull spoken word sections, and solos that sound as if the musicians are purposely simplifying their playing. Watson, who up to now has had a perfect record of performing adventurous jazz from hard bop to free form, has made his first misstep, but hopefully it is only a temporary departure. He should leave the funk to other players (such as Grover Washington, Jr. and David Sanborn) who really feel the music.~ Scott Yanow