A writer for a popular radio trade publication used to talk about his “goosebump meter” when he heard a song that blew him away. In the corporate era his magazine and most of the others have been silenced as budgets got cut and they had to close down. As passive research and passive listening have become dominant and created whole genres of passive music it seems like our expectations have lowered and our own goosebump meters have shut down. Then you hear something that singlehandedly pops all the wires back into place. MSM Schmidt's Transit will remind you of what has been missing since the smooth segment of contemporary jazz transitioned from random tracks on any given CD to a genre that eclipsed the other facets of the music.

Michael Schmidt is a German musician and composer who mostly works with keyboards and synthesizers. His primary influences were the same as a lot of us who grew up with contemporary jazz - Weather Report, Chick Corea and the musicians he worked with in Return to Forever and other aggregations, The Yellowjackets, Herbie Hancock, John McLaughlin and, further along, the bands who are keeping the edge alive like Metro and Tribal Tech. What he has done on this CD is assembled an impressive group of contributors that includes pretty much the whole who's who from the last three decades. Some are session guys that are all over the liner notes in a smooth jazz fan's CD collection. Some may be from territory that is familiar but less explored, like members of he Yellowjackets and Spyro Gyra who opted to not jump on the radio bandwagon. The list, with superficial identifiers that don't do justice to their credentials, includes Jimmy Haslip (Yellowjackets), Rick Braun, Ernie Watts, David Garfield (George Benson's musical director), Vinnie Colaiuta (session drummer supreme), Brandon Fields (original Rippingtons), Joel Rosenblatt (Spyro Gyra), Scott Henderson and Scott Kinsey (Tribal Tech), Mike Miller (Chick Corea) Mitchel Forman (Metro) and about 12 others. This CD was not created to be a commercial success or garner airplay so they could just bring what they had to the music and they are all in peak form.

The  point of familiarity for smooth jazz fans will be Rick Braun's stunning solo work on "Song For Michael." There are recognizable nuances here but with more space and less pressure you hear him as you would if you saw him live. It's a song so beautiful you can just sink into it. "Journey to Fukuoka" is typical of the way the high energy tracks shift from searing solos to lyrical passages. Miller and Fields' dizzyingly gritty guitar and sax sandwich an elegant and atmospheric piano solo from Forman. There is a lot of diversity within these 11 tracks. "Rizma" and "Falling Down" are powerful and propulsive, “Sphere” reminds me of middle period Yellowjackets. "Country X" has an easygoing acoustic lilt. "Caroline" delivers an Asian influenced romantic vibe and Ernie Watts' sax on "Slow Moves" has a moody film noir feel.  Guitarist Mike Miller can be subtle and lyrical on acoustic or fire out some electric solos that will leave you on stun. Given the fact that Van Halen's tour seems to be awakening a lot of people's rock guitar inclinations Miller's work here is justification for a resurgence of jazz-rock guitar. Forman and Garfield prove that there is much more to contemporary jazz piano than just "tickling the ivories." They can play hard or soft but they never play Lite.  If I were to elaborate on each jaw-dropping solo or captivating nuance within this music this review would probably be 10 pages long. Schmidt plays synths throughout and the consistent thread that runs through all these songs is textural melodicism. That's what makes it so accessible. When it gets soft the foundation is beautiful melody lines, when it gets wild and raucous those themes are still in the undercurrents. That is what makes Transit a perfect starting point for an audience that is coming out of complacency and wants something that has some substance but is still enjoyable.

The fascinating back story is that music is obviously Schmidt's passion and the place where his gifts reside but he still has a "daytime job" in the insurance field. He cut back on his work schedule to record Transit.

In his bio he refers to himself as “an amateur musician who in a fit of megalomania scraped the money together" to make this CD.  At a time when a lot of people in creative fields are finding their vocation turning into their avocation as they have to do other things for their main paycheck  this is one inspiring story. The guy is an accomplished  musician and composer and he's still putting on a suit and going to work on weekdays.

A musician I interviewed started talking about how we used to really immerse ourselves in music, just turning it up and letting it take you away. Was being affected this way a thing of the past?  CDs like this prove that it isn't. We hear a lot about albums that make you want to sit back and relax. Transit will make you want to jump in and become fully engaged.

Transit is available from CDBaby.com, iTunes, and the artist's website: www.msm-schmidt.com

- Shannon West