Jazz is dead 2 : Roy Ayers

"Jazz and soul legend Ayers is credited as co-writer of all eight cuts here, but this is more a continuation of Younge and Muhammad's profuse tandem work than a proper entry in the discography of the vibraphonist, who last recorded as a leader in 2004. Then again, this is at least a harmonious convergence, given that the spirit of Ayers' Atlantic and Polydor recordings through roughly 1977 can be felt in Younge and Muhammad's output dating back to the latter's debut with A Tribe Called Quest. Rather confoundingly, Ayers only accentuates these rolling grooves with his lithe vibes and takes no solos. He's present more commonly as a vocalist, guiding or enhancing group lines (...) that evoke conspiratorial intimacy like the quieter moments of his most treasured sides ... [The music is] predominantly mellow if hot-blooded with Tribe label titans Phil Ranelin and Wendell Harrison adding some intensity with spirited blowing. Even Younge's closing monologue seems apt, reaffirming the mother continent's standing as the center of the world. It's all fit for coasting into an August sunset".

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"Ayers himself, in his 80th year when this was recorded in February 2019, takes a back seat, happy to provide colour and texture. On "Solace", one of the faster grooves, based around a single chord groove and an urgent punk-funk bassline, Ayers' vibes have a calming quality, as if altering the boundaries of time and space. It's the sound of soul music melting under a hot summer sun - an eternal quality of his best music".

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"To yngre musikere er lykkedes med at hive den aldrende Roy Ayers i studiet. Ja, han lever endnu. Det samme gør jazzen på fremragende indspilning ... Den legendariske vibrafonist, sanger, komponist og kapelmester kunne fint trække stikket, lægge køllerne og nyde sit otium, han har trods alt bidraget sit til den amerikanske musikalske kanon. Men han spiller stadig. Både på turné og nu også på et nyt studiealbum med originale kompositioner. Det første i 18 år ... Pladen lyder simpelthen så ualmindeligt godt, den er decideret mesterligt indspillet, mixet og masteret".

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