 In
recent years, many smooth jazz fans have come to take notice
of bass player, David Hughes, seen mostly during his current
touring gigs with David Benoit and the Jazz Crusaders. Or
you may have even heard his first solo release, Swoosh,
back in 2003. Well, David Hughes is back with his second
release, Foreign Shores. And
if I had to reveal my top ten list for 2007 so far, this
would be on it!
Where Swoosh was a predominantly
bass CD, after all, David is a bass player; Foreign
Shores reaches well beyond just the bass and
opens wide. Not only does this album contain ten original
compositions and only one cover, but also includes some of
today’s heavy hitters in smooth jazz and pop. Adding
their contributions to this CD are Eric Marienthal, Gregg
Karukas, Katisse Buckingham, Andy Suzuki, Jamey Tate, and
on vocals, Justin Guarini (yes, the Justin Guarini).
The CD contains two vocals. The first is the opening
track, “Brazil,” which gives the expected Spanish
flavor. The bass provides the bottom groove while the
piano (Michael Bluestein), flute (Katisse Buckingham), and
trumpets (Larry Williams and Mindy Cabral) take over the
melody. The flute solo by Katisse is truly flawless
and David’s own bass solo makes you wonder how the
heck he can play like that! Justin Guarini provides
scatting that perfectly mimics the melody. The second
vocal, “I Wish,” is the album’s only cover
tune. Justin Guarini again provides the vocals on this
updated version of the classic Stevie Wonder song. His
voice and David’s arrangements give this a new flavor
to enjoy.
The rest of the CD is nothing but original instrumentals
that really keep your attention. “Foreign Shores” is
mostly a piano/flute piece with Michael Bluestein playing
the ivories alongside Andy Suzuki on flute. This is
so reminiscent of old David Benoit music with its slight
Asian sound. One of my favorites is “Beautiful
Downtown Burbank,” a fun, up-tempo piece that makes
you feel like taking a brisk walk in the sunshine. Jamey
Tate gives us the beat while Michael Bluestein is on piano
paired with the Hammond B3 from Nate Tschetter. “Love” is
a very strong, dynamic song featuring Gregg Karukas on piano
and Eric Marienthal on sax. Both instruments trade
off on lead taking you on a terrific musical journey.
Andy Suzuki comes back on the flute on the track “Romantico,” which
also gives David Hughes some spotlight time of his own on
both acoustic (upright) bass and bass guitar. It is
a peaceful song with a catchy tune and wonderful bass solo
by David. Towards the end, Michael Bluestein just lets
loose on piano. Gregg Karukas and Eric Marienthal
team up with David again on “Your Sweet Voice.” This
time David plays bass, Rhodes, and keyboard. It is
definitely a romantic song, invoking a gentle feel. From
day one of listening to this CD, “London” has
been a favorite. With Jamey Tate banging out the beat,
David’s bass leads the whole way through, but is surrounded
by rich piano and horns. It’s fun, fast paced
and exciting. “Snowflakes” is also bass
driven, but has more of an improvisational feel. The
piano and bass just flow together painting a beautiful picture. “Grace
Peace Earth” is nothing but David Hughes. It
is quite introspective, like the musician himself, and played
with deep feelings and finesse. Closing out the CD
is “Kathmandu.” It starts out feeling almost
classical in nature. Andy Suzuki on sax helps the song
build into the featured piano serenade as the song again
brings an Asian flavor to the foreground, giving way to another
great bass solo.
David Hughes has really soared with this CD and shown not
only his musical ability in playing, but his incredible writing,
arranging and producing talent. Foreign Shores will
take you on a journey that you are certain to enjoy. Check
out David’s website (www.swedebass.com)
for more information.
- Bonnie Schendell
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