Chroma
Music On The Edge

Chroma was an ensemble that aimed to revive the glories of fusion at a time (late eighties) when the genre wasn't enjoying much success and it was said to have run its course. Listening to this CD, it seems quite the opposite. It is the live recording of a memorable concert held in Tokyo in 1990, with a lineup that is a parade of the genre's "sacred monsters":

Randy Brecker - trumpet

Bob Berg - tenor and soprano sax

Jim Beard - piano, keyboards, synthesizers

Jon Herington - guitar (left channel)

Mike Stern - guitar (right channel)

Mark Egan - bass

Dennis Chambers - drums

Mino Cinelu - percussion, vocals

Mark Ledford - percussion, vocals

With such a group of hyper-virtuoso musicians, none of whom need an introduction, the risk is turning the happening into a showcase of instrumental acrobatics for their own sake. Fortunately, the musical direction of the project is firmly in the hands of Jim Beard who, while giving due space to everyone's amazing technical abilities, keeps a steady hand on the helm and on good taste. Beard is a keyboard wizard, drawing ethno-futuristic landscapes alongside the great Mino Cinelu ("Glazed"), building walls of sound with sampled voices, never forgetting his classical background by citing Aaron Copland in the ineffable concert overture.

After such an appetizer, the main course of the banquet, "Lessons" will make you jump in your seat: it’s a guitar duel between Stern and Herington, propelled by the rhythm of that funk bullet named Dennis Chambers.

"True Confessions" by Egan is a pleasant fusion track, enriched by the brass virtuosity of the renowned Brecker-Berg duo. An inspired piano solo introduces "Pwotege Nou", a delightful track with Caribbean flavors sung in Creole by Mino Cinelu. There’s also room for the seventies funk of the Brecker Brothers with "Squids", where the late Bob Berg ensures we don't miss his brother Michael (alas, also departed).

A reinterpretation of the immortal "Concierto de Aranjuez" introduces perhaps the concert’s most successful piece. The novice (at the time) Jon Herington appears not only as an excellent guitarist but also as a refined composer, signing the compelling "Afterwords" which opens in a mysterious atmosphere before exploding with the power of the guitarist's solo.

The grand finale with the celebrated "Upside Downside" by Mike Stern, in a particularly funky version entrusted to Brecker’s muted trumpet, and with Stern’s unmistakable heavy-hued solo.

How to define this music? Jim Beard says: "it’s just music". Randy Brecker has no problem calling it "fusion". Creed Taylor, the legendary producer of the album calls it: "Music On The Edge".

In my opinion, this album establishes the state of the art of fusion music between the late eighties and early nineties. Listen to believe. The purchase of the CD is recommended also for its extraordinary audio quality: detail and dynamics at crazy levels, perfect for testing Hi-Fi systems.

Rating: 4.5