CORDON BLEU

This album by Dutch band SOLUTION is an enigma in many ways. The style of the band seems to occupy the grey area that exists between full on fusion and romantic R&B. That is to say, it takes elements from WEATHER REPORT style jazz fusion, and marries them to occasional moments of blue eyed soul a la HALL & OATES or TODD RUNDGREN. The result is a marvelous blending of the two, jazzy enough to give the musicians a chance to shine (check out the smoking opener Chappaqua), but R&B enough in moments (as exemplified in Third Line Part 2) that certain songs wouldn't sound out of place on AOR radio. The saxes and keys are wonderfully played, and the rhythm section is spot on. The occasional vocals are well done, and slightly reminiscient of the aforementioned RUNDGREN. Don't misunderstand, this is not "smooth jazz" (which is evil), but great fusion jazz that is smooth. If you don't mind a bit of romanticism in your fusion, this is certainly one to check out.