Andreas Varady's eponymous 2014 Verve debut artfully celebrates the Hungarian jazz guitarist's prodigious skill. A prodigy,
Varady has been playing guitar since childhood. Only 17 at the time of this release, he has a fluid, technically proficient style that reveals a love of jazz tradition, both old and new. However, rather than simply delivering a collection of well-worn standards, a task
Varady is clearly capable of, here he delves into a batch of modern pop hits and original songs in a contemporary jazz style. Executive produced by
Varady's manager, the legendary
Quincy Jones, along with
David Paich and
Jay Oliver, the album fits more into the instrumental smooth jazz vein of artists like
George Benson and
Lee Ritenour than it does the straight-ahead style of
Wes Montgomery, although
Varady dips his toe in that tradition here too. There are also fewer
Django Reinhardt-influenced Gypsy jazz cuts than one might expect, given
Varady's obvious talent for the genre; he certainly nails
Reinhardt's "Nuages" and "Swing 42." Primarily,
Jones has
Varady apply his lithe fretboard chops and deft harmonic ear to songs that will fit nicely on both smooth jazz and instrumental R&B radio formats. To these ends, we get a very
Montgomery-influenced take on
Steely Dan's "Do It Again," a faithful rendition of
Michael Jackson's "Human Nature," and a light Latin-tinged reimagining of
the Mamas & the Papas' "California Dreamin'." Elsewhere,
Varady is joined by a few special guests including trumpeter
Roy Hargrove, who digs into the sultry
Jones composition "Secret Garden," and vocalist
Gregory Porter, who brings his warm baritone to the old
Louis Jordan number "Let the Good Times Roll." ~ Matt Collar