Edgar Winter Entrance

Entrance (1970). Edgar Winter came out of the chute kicking with this remarkable record filled with jazz, blues, and a little old-fashioned rock & roll. The record follows an established theme throughout its first side, stringing the songs together without breaks, highlighted by dreamy keyboard and sax work, plus Winter's smooth vocalizations. But jazz isn't the only thing Winter brings to the party. His first recorded version of the old J.D. Loudermilk tune "Tobacco Road" throws a few nice punches (although the live version with White Trash a few years later would prove the definitive one). "Jimmy's Gospel" plays on his early church influences, while "Jump Right Out" is the predecessor of half-a-dozen "jump up and dance" numbers Winter would pepper his records with in the years to come…

This set of Edgar Winter's jazzy remakes of older tunes and some new ones is all over the place. With a cast that includes guitarists Robben Ford and Hiram Bullock, Steve Lukather, and Michael Hakes, and bassists like Will Lee, Mark Meadows, and Tom Lilly, as well as trumpeter Lee Thornburg, one gets exactly what one expects: a slick, groove-infested ride through Winter's past and present.