Sexual Astrology - Music : Above the Clouds

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Rating: - raccommended
Optime record, all tracks good, modern piano player, smooth music, high quality of music, raccommendable for a lot of people young and not.

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Rating: - A great follow-up to his last one
Brian Simpson's last CD was in heavy rotation for me for a long time after I bought it. This CD is what one can expect given his prior CD - a nice listen all the way through, songs that have a nice feel to them. He picks up the pace nicely on a few songs and slows it down with the same skill.

I expect that this CD will be like the last one, in that I'll keep it in heavy rotation for a while. There isn't really a song on here that stands out more than the others, but that's because they're all so good. The last CD was like that to a lesser extend, although the title track was a favorite from it.

His last two CDs have me hoping he continues to put out CDs more regularly. He's shined in the background for a long time and as Dave Koz's musical director, but now we're getting to see just how good he is.

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Rating: - Good, But Not Great!
First, I didn't know that the cover track, Above The Clouds was a collaboration with George Duke, who is one of my favorite jazz musicians and a pioneer in this genre. This song was the primary reason I purchased this album.

That having been said. I think that Brian Simpson's album is a smooth, cool, in-pocket, no frills compilation. It has all the riffs, structure, "hip" sound, and mellow groove that define the Smooth Jazz genre today. His songs are very soft and melodic. The chord arrangements in each chorus and bridge are harmonically rich and satisfying. A good album to play for you wine and cheese party, when your guests hear something in the background that is catchy and foot-tapping. Definitely, something I will put in my rotation for a while.

However, as a jazz enthusiast, the same problem I have with the album is (in my opinion) the same fundamental problem with the Smooth Jazz genre. It seems that the industry discourages any innovation or creative expansion of the music. The structure of each song appears overly scripted. Artists do not allocate enough creative space for improvisation and expression, and when applied, is easily anticipated and tends to lack enthusiasm. Tunes have a tendency to sound similar and overlap, whether up-tempo or down-tempo. The fusion with R&B and Pop formats make the music bland and generic, although more listener friendly and easily digestible.

To me, this is unfortunate, because I think artists are stifled for the sake of record sales and popularity. Artist that truly want to expand horizons in jazz tend to be grossly overlooked, and in some cases, pushed to some other obscure bucket (like Modern, Acid, or FreeJazz); genres that never gets real publicity.

For those that read this, please understand that I don't want to be overly critical of this album. Its by no means a "bad" album. In fact, its pretty good! I just wish that Smooth Jazz artists had a little more freedom of expression for the sake of the music, and not just for popularity. Brian Simpson is a fine pianist, and Above The Clouds is a consistently smooth listen. If all you listen to is Smooth Jazz, then this is a great pick. I bet this album would sound even better when performed live. If you listen to a variety of jazz and you are looking for something creative and special, there isn't much "bang for the buck" here.

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Rating: - all day music
I first heard of brian simpsom two years ago. Since that point it's about a 95% chance that you will find one of his three CD's in my changer at any time of the day. His piano work is never clouded by the background and the background is always complimentary of Brian's piano. This is some of the smoothest, most creative smooth jazz i have ever listened to. This is from a fan who started to listen in 1972. In 36 year he is in my top ten of all smooth jazz keyboard artist.

M. Eddings Colorado Springs. CO

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Rating: - Its Still All Good!
I have been riding around listening to this CD for quite some time trying to determinine my opinion of it. Brian Simpson's last CD was entitled, "Its all good," and I gave it a 5 stars rating. Well, this is still mostly all good, and while I did not like maybe one or two of the compositions on this release, the remaining were as good or better than the compositions from Brian's last effort. This artist is a force to be reckoned with in the smooth jazz genre, and what sets him apart from many other artist of this genre is his originality. These compositions are quite creative and very pleasant as well as calming. Purchase this release at all cost as this is some of the best sound your money can buy.