Spirojazz's City of Dreams is not music to sleep on; after all, it reflects a city that doesn't sleep, so tough that one of its great men brushes snow days off. Here the dream is not just audacious but realized in all tracks. A strong Motown feeling is evoked by the rhythmic music, making a danceable disco-like offering that has both a heavy African beat overlaid with electronica, wind and strings in a blend that mixes Manu Dibango with Nana Mouskouri. A powerful Mediterranean and European/African mix that incorporates blues, soul, funk, and more.
Background voices add much to this instrumental work. “South Side Girls" is beautifully colorful. “We Three Kings" is another favorite as it sounds nothing like the original Gospel rendering at the beginning yet does better at the conversation with delicate flute seeking the way and following a steady walk. The obtrusive pharaoh trumpet could have dominated the engagement but the steady progress is unfettered. It is delightfully haunting to a point of covering electronic keyboards with actual instruments so one cannot tell what is played. Another of my favorites with memories of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
“Santino’s Groove" is so rhythmic it reminds one of Moulin Rouge and dancing exotic beauties. The cha-cha feel is heightened by the drums that sound to have their own thing going on as the keyboard does another yet in synchronized tempo. Delightful.
The best track is the title cut. The background voices come to the foreground; none is weak or seeking sympathy. The persistent beat and high-toned keyboard are power packed, while reminding one of the never-give-up Chicagoan, Malcolm X, and persistent struggles, one that creates a jubilant crowd at the Lincoln Memorial for a city that changes reality and gives birth to dreams.
Background voices add much to this instrumental work. “South Side Girls" is beautifully colorful. “We Three Kings" is another favorite as it sounds nothing like the original Gospel rendering at the beginning yet does better at the conversation with delicate flute seeking the way and following a steady walk. The obtrusive pharaoh trumpet could have dominated the engagement but the steady progress is unfettered. It is delightfully haunting to a point of covering electronic keyboards with actual instruments so one cannot tell what is played. Another of my favorites with memories of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
“Santino’s Groove" is so rhythmic it reminds one of Moulin Rouge and dancing exotic beauties. The cha-cha feel is heightened by the drums that sound to have their own thing going on as the keyboard does another yet in synchronized tempo. Delightful.
The best track is the title cut. The background voices come to the foreground; none is weak or seeking sympathy. The persistent beat and high-toned keyboard are power packed, while reminding one of the never-give-up Chicagoan, Malcolm X, and persistent struggles, one that creates a jubilant crowd at the Lincoln Memorial for a city that changes reality and gives birth to dreams.
