Imptomp2: You're Gonna Love It

This is an album of funky grooves and soulful ballads with jazz undercurrents, sort of Babyface or R Kelly meets George Duke or Quincy Jones. Impromp2 is comprised of keyboardist and trumpeter virtuoso Johnny Britt and guitarist / vocalist Sean E. Mac; You're gonna love it was produced by stixman Steve Harvey.

The opening three cuts ("Enjoy Yourself," "We Got It Goin' On" and "Lovin' You") are all fresh jazzy dancefloor fillers, predominantly heavy beats with Sean scatting and rapping à la R Kelly. I'm not a rap fan at all but this style is so laid back and easy on the ears, and reminds you of the seventies rap of Isaac Hayes.

Music to 'melt down to' comes from the next two gems, "Get Me Off" and the show stopping "Summer Nights," a mid tempo 'open air cruiser' definitely for the tape deck on a summer's evening driving down a coastal highway with the wind in your hair. There are few cuts nowadays that will stop me dead in my tracks but this smooth guitar lead groove left me gasping. Outstanding!

The ration of passion continues with another Babayface type melter called "My All," where the Isaac Hayes rap with meshes with Johnny's Herp Alpert type muted trumpet salvos.

The album's title track is a George Duke type affair with that awesome muted trumpet complimenting a Curtis Mayfield ( Superfly ) meets Mavis Staples groove.

This is ammunition for the dance floor in the first degree. The album's only downers are "Get Down Mama" and "Pass It On," which unfortunately divorce the jazz roots and cross over too much to the rap scene.

Overall this is a refreshing, wonderful debut from two very talented musicians. This is an album that will not dissappoint jazz fusion fans, but if you are into purely contemporary jazz you should have a listen first in the local music store before deciding. If you like the Babyface and R Kelly sound with a lotta jazz, get it on board that CD deck soon.

Comments