Review: Contemporary jazz heroes Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad have impressive pulling power. Since inaugurating the Jazz Is Dead series, the multi-instrumentalists-turned-producers have been able to entice a string of jazz, soul and jazz-funk greats into their Los Angeles studio, including Roy Ayers, Azymuth, Jean Carn, Marcus Valle and Phil Ranelin. They've done it again on volume 17, with all-round legend Lonnie Liston-Smith bringing his spiritually-enriching, sun-soaked jazz-funk sound to the table. His soulful, life-affirming voice soars above bustling jazz breaks, twinkling piano parts, smooth bass, flanged funk guitars, spacey synths, hazy horns and sonic translations of the Californian coastline at dusk. As brilliant as you'd expect it to be, all told.
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