MARC CARY
Rhodes Ahead, Volume 1
Jazzateria
JZZ20303-2

I came out of the closet as a Fender Rhodes nut many years ago. I just love the sound of the thing, and it's cool electric sound was one of the reasons why I was attracted to jazz as a high school kid in the early- to mid-1970s. Today, my acoustic jazz / improv purist friends think I'm nuts, but then again these are the same guys who don't think baseball is an exciting sport, so I figure it's useless to argue. Obviously, pianist Marc Cary feels the same way I do, and Rhodes Ahead, Volume 1 is his way of acknowledging the impact that both Harold B. Rhodes and his invention have had on his life and music. Unfortunately, though Cary's clearly a talented and hard-working fellow whose heart is in the right place, this CD is rather short on musical substance.

Rhodes Ahead starts off a bit long on the smooth jazz tip. Despite the fact that the disc is a tribute to the Rhodes piano, "Saturn Return" is a showcase for Cary's analogue synth work. To his credit, Cary does a fine job with the Moog, but I could have done without the electric drums. Terreon Cully is a pretty impressive drummer, but here he sounds like he is playing a toy kit. The lengthy, loose and jamming "Transient Treasure" (Parts 1 and 2) contains pretty much all of the CD's musical high points. Cary's keyboard work and Tarus Mateen's warm electric bass took me back to those wonderful LPs George Duke recorded with Al Johnson and Ndugu back when I was a kid. Again, Cully should have used a real kit, but here it seems less toy-like.

For me, the rest of the CD contained little in the way of jazz-based improvisation, let along interesting music (though "Mean Mateen" is kinda neat if you're not looking for jazz). "Inside Yourself" is pure dancefloor disco dreck. "Making Love, Making Music," "Take Me Higher," "Turning," and the Native American pastiche "The Call" straddle the line between smooth jazz, new age, and electronica. After listening to these cuts, I was happy to see Rhodes Ahead in my rearview mirror.

Dave Wayne

Track Listing: 1. Rhodes Ahead (Intro); 2. Saturn's Return; 3. Transient Treasure Part 1; 4. Transient Treasure Part 2; 5. Inside Yourself; 6. Turning 2000; 7. Home Comin'; 8. Making Love, Making Music; 9. Take Me Higher; 10. The Call; 11. Mean Mateen; 12. Turning

Personnel: Marc Cary, keyboards (Rhodes piano, Roque Moog, Mini-Moog) on all tracks, drums, programming (tracks 2, 5, 9 10, 12); Tarus Mateen, electric bass (all tracks), vocals and drum programming (track 5 only); Terreon Cully, electric drums (tracks 3, 4, 7); Yarborough Charles Laws, flute (track 9), drum programming (track 11); Shariff Simmons, vocals (track 8); Penny Williams, vocals (track 10); Dana Murray, drum programming (track 8); Roy Hargrove, background vocals (track 5)