Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Paul Hardcastle: X (The Eclipse)

8

Paul Hardcastle: X (The Eclipse)

British composer, writer, and multi instrumentalist Paul Hardcastle is smoother than ever after four decades with his tenth studio album Hardcastle X (The Eclipse). Known for his successes with the 1984 instrumental dance track "Rainforest" and his work with the "Jazzmasters" series. Hardcastle X features collaborations with both his daughter, international DJ/singer/producer Maxine Hardcastle, and son Paul Hardcastle Jr., who has built a reputation as a world class and much sought after saxophonist, percussionist and DJ.

"Wavelength" is a beautifully- crafted track with Hardcastle's signature cosmic sounds and trumpet samples. It sets the pace for a quiet oasis reminiscent of peaceful moments at sea, on a beach or sitting alone. "Coastline Crusader" is a fast pace groove featuring long time collaborator Rock Hendricks blowing with smooth saxophone riffs and improvisations leading Hardcastle's light touches of keyboard sounds. "Smile" is an undeniably classic melody originally composed by Charlie Chaplin and recorded by Nat King Cole. Paul Hardcastle, Jr. plays a smooth rendition. On "Why Do We Dream" Hardcastle delivers with his moody synthesized sounds while soft, dreamy, chanted voices ring out asking the questions "why do we dream" and "am I really dreaming?" "Flight of the Phoenix" is sexy and smooth. Hardcastle creates magic instrumentally with saxophone melodies and samples with a soft touch of piano riffs. "Soaring Like an Eagle" is beautifully uplifting, with a soft saxophone swaying back and forth on a groove that fades out quietly. "The Eclipse" features the sound of a smooth saxophone, angelic keyboards aligned with amazing energy.

Track Listing

Wavelength; Come to Me; Coastline Crusader; Why Do We Dream; Skylight; Flight of the Phoenix; Angelic Chimes; Smile; The Slow Jam; Eyes Closed; Soaring Like an Eagle; The Eclipse.

Personnel

Album information

Title: X (The Eclipse) | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Trippin n Rhythm Records


About Paul Hardcastle

Tags


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Become a Sustaining Member

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter

Since 1995, All About Jazz has championed jazz as an art form and supported the musicians who create it. Over three decades, it has grown into one of the world's leading jazz resources, serving hundreds of thousands of readers, musicians, presenters and industry professionals each month.

Help Build the Future of All About Jazz

Your support helps us continue building All About Jazz for the next generation—expanding our editorial coverage, preserving jazz history, developing new community features and creating better ways to discover the music and the people behind it.

Become a sustaining member for as little as $20 per year and you'll immediately enjoy an ad-free experience along with access to subscriber features and future articles for a full year.

Together, we're not simply sustaining All About Jazz—we're building its future. Thank you for being part of the journey.

More

A Distant Land
Rich Halley 4
Renovation
Benny Green
Kevin Sun, I.
Kevin Sun

Popular

Desolation Row
David Maranha / Rodrigo Amado
2014 NYC
King Crimson
Beneath Lifted Skies
Linda May Han Oh & Melissa Aldana
Talamanti
Patricia Brennan and Sylvie Courvoisier

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletters highlight our top stories, top album reviews, website news, free songs, radio & podcast shows, news, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.