Funny
thing, life, you never know where it can take you. One minute
you are in Luton, England the next in the middle of the
Californian desert being hailed as the new smooth jazz
sensation. Having achieved success as the lead soloist for
groove pioneers, Down To The Bone Paul Wiemer AKA Shilts
(Don't ask, its to do with the English passion for football!!)
left the not so sunny climes of North London for those of
California. It proved to be a shrewd career move for the
vibrant saxophonist whose upbeat personality naturally extends
itself to the way that he plays his beloved instrument.
This is his second album and
though it has lost some of the raw edge of the first his
playing still has the unmistakable hallmarks of the funky
retro flavours of soul-funk from the 70's and 80's mixed
with the best contemporary sound of today. Hardly surprising
really when you consider that Shilts spent 8 years with the
Brand New Heavies and was a sideman to The Temptations etal.
The album features 10 mostly funky tracks with 'Got Love'
being the only partially vocalised number which links Shilts
via the vocalist Siedah Garrett to his BNH days. What puts
this album ahead of the field is the way that he treats the
saxophone as the lead instrument and writes for it in the way
that one would expect from a vocalist. Thus without exception
ALL of the tracks have a very strong melody line so much so
that it is hard to tell which one is actually penned by Stevie
Wonder! It is by the way the little known 'Tuesday
Heartbreak'.
Jeff Lorber adds his mark to
the sweetly soulful 'Good Evans' and influences range from
Grover through to the mighty Tower of Power. However, there is
no doubt that Shilts has found a style which is distinctively
his own and will cross the boundaries of soul,funk,jazz and
yes probably at some stage into pop. Like his stable mate,
Rick Braun this album is a very good introduction into the
world of soulful fusion. With the quality of tunes and
the relentless groove Shilts could very well take over the
mantle in smooth jazz circles. Not bad for someone born in
Luton!
