Soulful trumpet and flugelhorn player Michael C. Lewis is a seasoned performer who is nothing if not diverse. His gifts as a musician are mirrored by those as an actor and educator whilst his many stage appearances include portrayals of jazz trumpet legends Miles Davis and Clifford Brown. Now, as a recording artist, he has recently released the excellent CD ‘Reflection’. This cool collection of smooth contemporary grooves finds him spanning the spectrum of jazz, soul and funk to spectacular effect. Not only that, the title cut has already been selected for the film “The Journey” which features author and personal development guru Brian Tracy.
In fact it is this reflective title tune (sub-titled ‘Sunrise’) that gets the show on the road and which sets the mood for much of what is to follow. Later, when Lewis closes things out with a ‘Sunset’ mix of the same number the results are just as good and although ‘Miles To Go’ tips a hat to the master, the edgy streetwise attitude of ‘Kid Time’ proves, if indeed proof were needed, how powerfully the past can provides a rich platform for everything that follows.
Elsewhere, the sultry ‘I Dedicate My Heart’ affords Lewis the opportunity to exercise his soulful singing voice and he is again on vocal duty for the breezy ‘In The Night Time’. Both provide pleasant diversions from the main attraction of Lewis’s great playing which, for ‘I Need Your Love’, is at its sublime best. Mellow and hypnotic with a languid vibe, it is in the fine company of the equally chilled ‘Night Fall’.
With all but one of the tracks written by Lewis or his collaborator Wendell Brooks, the single exception is a terrific cover of the Carpenters ‘We’ve Only Just Begun’. It is right up there with the album’s best yet just as good is ‘Cloud Parade’ where the relaxed playing of Lewis is in delightful contrast to the urgent beat that underpins it. However, a clear Smooth Jazz Therapy favorite is ‘Gulf Breeze’. Evocative of sun soaked beaches and with a wonderful mid tempo swagger, this one is a real gem.
‘Reflection’ is out on Lewis’s own Cybervision Entertainment label and is well worth a closer look.