Jarreau. Al Jarreau. -

If you only own one Al album, then this should probably be it. ’Breakin’ Away’ is undeniably superb too, but THIS album simply has no low points at all.
There cannot be a finer way to kick off an album than with ’Mornin’ - play it in the car on the way to work every morning and your day will be that much better - it’s just so uplifting. From there, ’Step by Step’ and ’Save Me’ are just typical brilliant Jarreau - the tempos vary but Al’s voice just dances across the top of the melody and weaves vocal patterns that have to be heard to be believed.
This truly is the album where Jay Graydon’s production (which is always described in reviews as ’sympathetic’) really complements Al’s voice to the full - there are no deep bass or drum sounds, just shallower percussion and light electric pianos to allow Al’s voice to create the depth itself. ’Black and Blues’ and ’Trouble in Paradise’ are the sort of singalong catchy stuff that win Al so many R’n’B awards, but the outstanding moment for me is ’Not Like This’ - barely more than 2 minutes long, the emotional depths Al reaches in this song are breathtaking.