Glasper has been living a double life. Simultaneously he’s one of jazz’s great young pianists, echoing Blue Note-era Herbie Hancock in inventing new wheels for familiar carts, while also furthering Herbie’s Headhunters and George Duke’s fusion of jazz and R&B. Glasper’s last album tipped its hat to this schizophrenia, with the first half embracing a totally different sound from the second. Black Radio fully embraces the soulful side, and if it doesn’t quite live up to the “Experiment” his band name evokes, it’s still a solid listen. Guests are plenty — Erykah Badu, Bilal, Mos Def and Lupe Fiasco. If the songs are fairly inconsequential, at least it’s a smooth ride. Two barnburners, from the album’s biggest voices, Ledisi and Mint Condition’s Stokley, are the highest points, as well as the second cover in a year of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”.
Sign up. We hope you like us, but if you don't, you can unsubscribe by following the links in the email, or by dropping us a note at leo@leoweekly.com.
Signup
By clicking “subscribe” above, you consent to allow us to contact you via email, and store your information using our third-party Service Provider. To see more information about how your information is stored and privacy protected, visit our policies page.
Subscribe to LEO Weekly Newsletters
Sign up. We hope you like us, but if you don't, you can unsubscribe by following the links in the email, or by dropping us a note at leo@leoweekly.com.
To sign up now, enter your email address in the field below and click the Subscribe button.
By clicking “Subscribe” above, you consent to allow us to contact you via email, and store your information using our third-party Service Provider. To see more information about how your information is stored and privacy protected, visit our policies page.
