Robinson Ottoobre

For the most part, another easy-going trip to the mellower side of contemporary blues, Robinson's jazzy tone and buttery vocals applied to a couple of his '50s-era numbers ("Crazy Crazy Lovin'" and "Schoolboy") along with some intriguing new iteams and Lowell Fulson's mournful "Sinner's Prayer." Tasty backing helps too. His Japanese fans reverently dubbed Fenton Robinson "the mellow blues genius" because of his ultra-smooth vocals and jazz-inflected guitar work. But beneath the obvious subtlety resides a spark of constant regeneration – Robinson tirelessly strives to invent something fresh and vital whenever he's near a bandstand.

It's an irresistible budget-priced summary of their prime Motown recordings. There may be a couple of noteworthy songs missing, but many of their best-known songs are here, including "The Tracks of My Tears," "Ooo Baby Baby," "The Tears of a Clown" and "I Second That Emotion." Serious fans will want something more extensive, but this is an excellent introduction for neophytes and a great sampler for casual fans, considering its length and price. That doesn't erase the ridiculousness of the series title, but the silliness is excusable when the music and the collections are good.

Jason Robinson - The Two Faces Of Janus (2010) {Cuneiform Records RUNE311 rec 2009}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 470 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 182 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 12 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2010 Cuneiform Records / Jason Robinson | RUNE 311
Jazz / Experimental Jazz / Modern Jazz / Saxophone

Currently serving as Assistant Professor of Music at Amherst College in Massachusetts, multi-reedist Jason Robinson originally obtained his Ph.D. in music from the University of California. A promising new arrival to the East Coast scene, Robinson's academic background imbues his episodic writing with an organically cohesive sensibility, while his years spent co-leading the longstanding bicoastal ensembles Cosmologic and the Cross Border Trio lend his focused improvisations a warm, economical lyricism.