Incognito.london

After over 15 years hiatus comes the second release from Bluey’s smooth jazz band, Citrus Sun! SO, people of today . . . get ready to dig into People of Tomorrow!

 

The first Citrus Sun album, Another Time, Another Place (released in Japan in the late ’90s and then globally in 2000) featured the Incognito rhythm section and UK virtuoso’s Jim Mullen on guitar and Dominic Glover on trumpet. This new album is a renewal of that relationship.

 

The album begins with a Latin-Jazz vibe inspired by Herbie Mann’s Latin Mann (Afro to Bossa to Blues) album, which a friend of Bluey’s gave him as he was preparing for this record. “Mais Uma Vez (One More Time)” and “Tonight We Dance” are flavorful songs that evoke the feeling of swaying to the groove while enveloped by a warm, beachy breeze.

 

The version of “What’s Going On?” here came out of a side-project for the Red Bull Music Academy/RAI Radio jam session. Bluey collaborated with young lions Thundercat on bass, Nate Smith on drums, and Jason Lindner on Fender Rhodes to lay down a new music bed over the original vocals of Marvin Gaye (watch/listen to that here: http://youtu.be/Fx0kpMR20nY). After experiencing that adventure, Bluey decided to do a fully instrumental version with Citrus Sun!

 

Another previous collaboration that lead to a tune on this album is from Bluey’s work with the late singer-songwriter Terry Callier, when he produced several tracks on Terry’s Speak Your Peace album in 2002. He felt very fortunate to have met and worked with Terry, so Bluey and the band chose to pay tribute to Terry by covering his timeless ballad “What Color Is Love?” featuring Valerie Etienne’s rich, heartfelt vocals.

 

There are some tracks on this album that are more connected with the Incognito sound. “You’re So Far Away” and “Cooking with Walter” (a title inspired by the powerful TV series Breaking Bad) began as jams with the Incognito rhythm sections, and the title track of the album was co-written with Incognito bassist Francis Hylton.

 

“People of Tomorrow” is a groovy tune that carries a positive message about the future, with the chorus bearing out this prescient and vital call-to-action: “Children are the future, plant the seeds of greatness. Love must be a river through their wilderness. Fill their minds with wonder, a love so true and fearless. People of tomorrow, we owe them nothing less!”

 

The Citrus Sun is rising . . . come catch some rays of sunshine!