ALPHONSO JOHNSON

A1. "Love's The Way I Feel 'Bout Cha" (4:43) jazz pop from Philip Bailey with wonderful vocals from Diane Reeves. Nice bass play as well. A rather powerful song that should have charted as a single on the R&B or Dance charts. (9/10)

A2. "As Little As You" (3:23) a funky instrumental (8.75/10)

A3. "Scapegoat" (5:10) an upbeat disco-funky instrumental over which lyrical saxes perform. We're definitely in the world of Smooth Jazz now. Great funk bass, sax play (from both Grover Washington, Jr. and Ernie Watts), and use of brass section for accents. A top three for me despite the fact that it never really realizes its tremendous potential. (8.875/10)

A4. "Show Us The Way" (4:55) beautiful gentle electric guitar arpeggi provide all the support necessary to buoy the gorgeous deep vocals of jazz singer Jon Lucien. A top three song. (9/10)

B1. "Balls To The Wall" (5:00) opens for 30-seconds like a heavy metal/power rock song with Ray Gomez's electric guitar and Alphonso's power chords and Chester Thompson's racing drum play before turning Mahavishnu funk. From here out everyone is so tight keeping up with Chester and Alphonso. Another top three song for me. (8.875/10)

B2. "Tales Of Barcelona" (2:16) interesting Mahavishnu-like power prayer. (4.5/5)

B3. "Flight To Hampstead Heath" (5:55) opens with a very proggy harpsichord-like arpeggi track over which Alphonso solos with a fretless electric bass. Ruth Underwood's work is so perfect! As is the amazing chemistry between Alphonso and Chester Thompson. My favorite song on the album despite it being far more prog-rock than j-r fusion-- more like something from a NOVA or STEVE HACKETT album. (9.25/10)

B4. "One To One" (3:53) another funk track that feels like something between Jan Hammer and Weather Report. Lots of spice and hot sauce coming from all directions--especially the horn section but also from Alphonso, the guitar, keys, and percussion. Nice Fender Rhodes solo in the second minute. Ray Gomez gets the next solo and it's good though far more rock-oriented than prog or j-r fuse; he's definitely a master of sound clarity. Alphonse's Jaco-like interplay with the horn section in the final minute is cool. Solid. (9/10)

Total Time 35:14

B+/4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of eclectic jazz-infused music, pop to funk to j-r fuse to prog: it's all here!

The Vocals On This Album Fit Very Well For Theme For This Album & It Takes You On A Journey With These Awesome Tracks. What Also Surprised Me Was The Album Was Very Proggy With The Intro & The Final Composition Being How The Album Begins & Ends The Same.

Some Brilliant Musicianship On Here With The Lead Guitar Solos & Johnson's Medlodic Jazzy Bass Playing. Also, This Album Was Produced Very Well. It's A Shame That Most Fusion Fans Ignore Alphonso Johnson's Solo Albums, Especially This One As It Shows His Experimental Elements With Bringing in Some Progressive Rock Instead Of Keeping It To The Jazz Funk As His Two Previous Albums.

Overall, This As Alphonso Johnson's Best Album In My Own Opinion With His Debut Just Behind.

Third and last album (for the 70's anyway) from the ex-Weather report bassist Alphonso Johnson, this time helped out by from what it looks like a set-group (this might have been a regular band, maybe they even toured) and in the reduced guest list, only Pat Thrall (future Pat Travers Band and Glen Hughes) rings a bell to yours truly. A rather boring photo, but showing the Chapman graces the album's cover.

If Johnson appears with that now-famous Chapman stickon the cover, the least we can say is that it is all over this album as well >> it can even serve as a demo for the instrument makers.. The first half has three sung tunes, which is generally not good news in jazz-rock, but then again, most of the tracks on that album don't really qualify as such (funky jazz-funk at most ;o))). Nothing really transcendental or even remotely interesting on this side. Musically, this album is all over the map, a bit like the other two, but again there are four sung tracks, even if the sidelong suite Earthtales only gets a couple lines, twice. Don't get your hopes up to high about it though?. The first half is downright boring (nothing exciting happening), but around the 2/3 mark, it does get more exciting as they all crank up the volume and passed on the third gear? there are good moments in there, but unfortunately a bit tempered by disputable synth sounds of the late-70's. Just like his other two 70's albums, this is hardly essential (except for the Chapman stick), and if you want to discover his works, I suggest you start with Yesterday's Dream.

A bit like the previous album, the musical direction point to every corner of the map, and of course this is not to please demanding progheads. There are some soul-funk tracks (the opening The Way I Feel and Show Us The Way) and generally these are the ones I really tend to skip to avoid self-aggravation. Don't get me wrong, they're probably just fine for the listener Alphonso was aiming at, but I have dumb love songs and commercial attempts (successful or not) There are some technical/complex and generally instrumental funk tracks with jazz overtones (As Little As You, Scapegoat, Balls To The Wall) that are actually fairly impressive (and generally better appreciated by yours truly), but I find that Chic did those a whole lot better, but there is again some cool developments in these, especially from Grover Washington's sax.

Alphonso's ultra-funky bass of course dictates the style of music, to the point that those non-funk ones lose a little credibility: the love-dripping Show Us The Way with its Barry White-like baritone vocals), even if it could find its place as a prog interlude on a Camel album, but without the vocals. Balls To The Wall is probably the album's most "most" moment of the album (no surprises if you look at the best possible combination from the invited participants), sounding close to a good Return To Forever. Tales Of Barcelona has a slightly proggy Santana sound (circa Illuminations or Borboletta)and serves of an intro to Flight To Hampstead, which is also in a jazz-rock template, gradually growing to Zappa-like music towards its end, courtesy of a Underwood-iam xylophone. The closing funk-jazz One To One is worthy of a mention as well.

A bit better than Moonshadows, but certainly not more essential (unless you're a funk addict) and certainly hundred of albums are better suited to fill a proghead's shelves. Good musicianship and professional recording & production make this a good album, especially the B-side), but not much more. I'm glad I have my library system to listen to such albums, should I ever feel like re-listening to them. Actually by taking all three of his 70's albums, you could probably cook up a solid compilation.

Despite the many Latin-American players, this album is not as ethnic as you'd fear it to be, especially knowing that Johnson was still in WR's Black Market. You can't really label this album as jazz-funk either. It's probably best to describe it as fusion or jazz-fusion and in that regards, it's fairly typical of mid-70's album of that microcosm. Starting on a typical jazz-funk of Stump, the album moves quickly to a slow-starting Involuntarily Bliss and the music gradually picks up, only to return to the smooth gliding layers of the start of the track with Flora Purim's aerial scats. Not fascinating, but soothing. Cosmoba Place starts on a descending guitar riff, but it soon dissolves to make space for a piano ostinato, before the guitar returns in rock-fashion histrionics with excellent drumming (Walden I gather) before moving on to other delightful passages. Excellent stuff. Maupin's typical bass clarinet opens Pandora's Box over cymbal scratches, but there is little happening, besides a slow pedestrian bass.

Another funk-jazz track, Up From The Cellar, opens the flipside (which unlike the other is not all Johnson-penned) and you'd believe you're on a Mysterious Traveller album, if it wasn't for Purim's soft singing, Alphonso's ultra funk and technical bass being the centre of attention. Certainly the weak track on this album, IMHO. Amarteifio is a quiet and slow soft jazz that oozes boredom over sea waves. On The Case is the more essential track on this side, with a strong rock-like guitar over a Rhodes-led funk-rock with lots of bravura. The closing track is an ambitious (but flawed) uptempo jazz-rock piece that moves into different passages (some convincing, others less), but the pompous vocals ruin it partially.

An interesting album that shows Alphonso's greatest strengths AND weaknesses at the same time and has certainly not revolutionize the JR/F genre, but to those interested in WR? related works, Alphonso's first solo album is certainly worth putting an ear on it and even own it if he wants to consolidate his JR/F. Not essential or groundbreaking, but good enough to draw your attention, despite a few flaws, but personally I'll pass on it.

No, it is not pure Latin jazz, or even Latin fusion, but it is quite warm, soft light and relaxed jazz fusion with some pop-jazz or even disco elements. Johnson gave some funky groove to this music, but in fact bass is far from being important instrument there. Music is well balanced and comfortable jazzy mix, with some soul vocals and pop-moments. Happily, listener still can find few more serious and interesting moments here and there.

I believe this album could be good addition to jazz-funk fusion lover, but don't you try to find something experimental, new or just serious in this album. More music for your heart and feet, than for your head.