The Best Of Grover Washington, Jr

This set is divided in a sense by two periods, the Motown years and then the Kudu ones, and all the major and some minor cuts are here. For evidence of this, check his soprano medley of Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine" and J.J. Johnson's "Theme from Man and Boy," as well as Withers' "Lean on Me" a little later on disc one. The medley, with great charts by James, is still remarkable for its ability to meld deep soul, lithe funk, progressive big band charts, and pop. The second disc focuses more deeply on the Kudu years and kicks off with "Reed Seed," a composition by Washington when he was already pushing past his own boundaries as he had on Feels So Good and Mister Magic,not only are both tunes here, but the best tracks from both those and the Reed Seed album are as well. The breezy hand percussion, the violin solo, the electric piano, and of course Washington's own solo make it an irresistible opener. "Black Frost," co-written with James, is a solid example of the deep-groove funk Washington was pioneering at the time; while his tenor had an edge, his delivery and the other instrumentation were smooth, and the combination is still ahead of its time. As for those who questioned Washington's pure jazz chops, there is a revolutionary version of Rahsaan Roland Kirk's "Bright Moments" here, radically reinterpreted in its harmonic sequence and rhythmic complexity. When the tender reading of Herbie Hancock's "Dolphin Dance" found here can be said to be the "weakest" link in the bunch,and it's far from weak,then the listener is getting something special indeed. This is the one to start with until early Motown albums are re-released in America on CD, and it is the one that compiles all the great stuff from Kudu. For any serious fan of soul-jazz and melodic jazz-funk, or even smooth jazz, all of these records are essential purchases, but this is a fantastic beginning. It is easily the best compilation of Grover Washington, Jr. material anywhere.