Although it was their sixth album overall,
Tribal Tech's 1993 release,
Face First, was only the second to feature the still-existing lineup of guitarist
Scott Henderson, bassist
Gary Willis, keyboardist
Scott Kinsey, and drummer
Kirk Covington. Previously,
Henderson and
Willis had juggled lineups and eased further away from traditional jazz toward improvisational fusion through the 1985-1991 albums Spears,
Dr. Hee, Nomad, and Tribal Tech. But the quartet of musical leftists gelled on
Face First, improving on its promising 1992 debut,
Illicit.
Henderson's solo on the opening title track -- over a percolating
Willis bassline -- shows the guitarist's range of influences from
Jeff Beck and
Jimi Hendrix to
Albert King and
Stevie Ray Vaughan. Funk pieces like "Canine" and "Uh...Yeah OK" show glimpses of the group's future, all-improvised CDs; hummingbird-quick drummer
Covington's lead vocal on the cover-band farce "Boat Gig" set the stage for
Henderson"'s solo blues debut the next year. In between, synth-master
Kinsey's jazzy "After Hours" and
Henderson's New Orleans-tinged "Revenge Stew" provide thought-provoking rest areas -- necessary because of breathtaking ten-minute thrill rides like the blues, bop, and beyond of "Salt Lick."
Willis'
Weather Report-like "The Precipice" and "Wounded" ease you to the finish of
Face First, the album that made a statement that
Henderson,
Willis, and company have not yet begun to finish. ~ Bill Meredith