American guitarist Joe Taylor divides his time between New York City and South Carolina, more specifically in the Lowcountry. There he wrote most of the material for this new album, his sixth by the way, in which he returns to contemporary jazz. The rest is influenced by NYC. Taylor is accompanied by jazz pianist Jeff Franzel, bassists Woody Lingle and Brian Stanley (Bryan Adams), drummer Steve Holley (Paul McCartney & Wings), percussionist Blair Shotts, and flautist John Ragusa. The beautiful and relaxing title track opens and is based on an evening walk from Broadway to the Westside of NYC, where Joe felt the cold wind over the Hudson River and saw the street lights in the snow. In 'Jaco's Court' he reminisces about a performance by bassist Jaco Pastorius in NYC. He then honors another icon, Glen Campbell on 'Mr. Campbell', and the 'Menemsha Fog' is performed as a trio with Holley and Stanley. Menemsha refers to the harbor, where the fog rolls in, making everything spooky. Singer Jordan Trotter makes her appearance on the ballad 'Twenty-Two Rivers', and this song is about a girl in NYC who was abused and escaped. 'She's the Moon' is dedicated to Taylor's wife Stacey, after which 'Available Light' quietly passes by. 'The Cooper and the Thief' opens with an intro reminiscent of Earth, Wind & Fire's 'Shining Star', followed by 'The Cut', which he wrote in response to a wild bobcat he observed from his boat. The bluesy closing track 'The Waterman' is dedicated to his friend Captain Baldwin. It has been since 2007 that Joe has performed contemporary jazz, but in the meantime he has played rock, pop, blues, country, classical and Celtic music in various settings. And I must admit that I really like his new album!
		Tracks: Westside Chill Jaco’s Court Mr. Campbell Menemsha Fog Twenty-Two Rivers She’s The Moon Available Light The Cooper and the Thief The Cut The Waterman Joe Taylor