John Patitucci has quickly developed into one of the world's great bassists, both on acoustic and electric. He is not on the same level as a composer, but is steadily improving, as witnessed by the music on this fine release. There are many bass solos as one would expect (
Patitucci's high-note flights often sound like a guitar), but he does leave space for his sidemen, most notably keyboardist
John Beasley (who has two numbers without the bassist), trumpeter
Jeff Beal, and one selection apiece for the steel drums of
Andy Narell and
Mike Brecker's tenor. A few tracks are throwaway funk, but there are enough surprise twists and unusual improvisations to make this a recommended disc even for adventurous listeners. ~ Scott Yanow