This is the follow-up to 1981's much loved
Rockin' You Eternally. While that effort had
Ware engaged and willing to do rich and melodic work with no commercial consideration,
Leon Ware more often than not seems to be overly concerned with making a big hit.
Leon Ware was co-produced by
Ware and the legendary
Marty Paich. Although Paich had everyone from young
Ella Fitzgerald to
Boz Scaggs on his resumé, there wasn't much he could do with
Ware. Paich also arranged the rhythm here, which is undoubtedly
Ware's forte. That's not to say
Leon Ware is a dismal failure -- far from it. The first track "Slippin' Away" is
Ware's best track here but it's reminiscent of a so-so track from
Earth, Wind & Fire's Faces. In fact,
Leon Ware employs some of the same players and writers from that effort. The oddly peppy "Lost in Love With You" was no doubt aiming for the charts but it possesses little or nothing of what makes
Ware musically special. The track that comes closest to
Ware's style is "Deeper Than Love" despite its smoldering sax solos from
Gato Barbieri; the song is a little overdone. Perhaps the most telling is the duet with
Flora Purim, "Somewhere." The track's promise seems to evaporate with the intro. If Purim wasn't going to light a fire under the proceedings, no one could. Throughout this effort,
Ware's sounds wan and hemmed in. Given the fact that this didn't include many great songs,
Leon Ware isn't the best way to get acquainted with the artist. ~ Jason Elias