Greg Adams is a contemporary jazz survivor. He spent 25 years with Tower of Power creating those legendary horn arrangements and performing with some of the biggest names in popular music from the Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, and Elton John to Phish, Smash Mouth, and Everclear. When he stepped into his solo career in 1995 with Hidden Agenda, it was an immediate success. There was a catch though. The record company was about to bail out on their jazz department. It took seven years for the follow-up to be released, but Midnight Morning was worth the wait. It was another diverse package of captivating songs that included the horn-driven hit, "Roadhouse." Firefly followed on yet another label and showcased some of the finest instrumental songwriting out there, but due to lack of publicity and promotion it didn't reach the audience to the extent that it should have. With that in mind, Adams made a resolution on New Years Day 2006. His next CD would come out on his own label, giving it a support system of people who were passionate about the music that was on it. That CD, Cool To The Touch, was just released and there is a lot in these grooves to be passionate about.

Thematically, the vibe is retro and the cover emulates the black and blue toned austerity of those classic mid-20th century jazz albums. While the titles are in the same vein, the music is anything but retro. There are some tones and shadings from other eras, but these songs are state-of-the-art contemporary jazz. Cool To The Touch features guest shots from some smooth jazz heavy hitters - Mindi Abair, Richard Elliot, Eric Marienthal, Boney James, Tom Scott, and Paul Jackson Jr. - as well as band mate/long time collaborator, James Wirrick, and TOP alumni Nick Milo and Carmen Grillo. Adams' songwriting gives them a framework to really show their stuff.

The first notes of "Felix The Cat" set the stage. It's horn section heaven with Abair, Elliot, Marienthal, James, and Johnnie Bamont working a funk infused Adams composition.  By the middle of the song, five sax players are trading solos then kicking back into the intro riff that weaves around Adams' muted trumpet. "One Night In Rio" has ambient/mystical shadings that recall "Burma Road," one of Hidden Agenda's most popular songs. "Life in the Key of Blue" is the showpiece of the album. It's one of the most ambitious, edgy and progressive songs to surface on a genre CD in years. An intensely rhythmic Miles-influenced bluesy fusion romp that has Adams and Tom Scott playing wild and loose with Jackson Jr. throwing in some tasty guitar and a raunchy horn section blaring in the background. Hearing it will remind you of what a big empty space was left when funk, fusion and contemporary flavors were phased out of the genre. It just feels good! The title track is dense, melodic and horn-drenched. "Hi-Fi" is as cool and subdued as the title suggests. "Bongo Baby" is pure fun with its intentional tip of the hat to those early Herb Alpert/Tijuana Brass songs and bongo-bass breakdowns. As he did on Firefly, Adams wraps up the set with an elegant, lushly orchestrated  ballad, "When The Party's Over." This is music for a slow dance and the prefect ending for this joyride through funk, fusion, jazzed up, smooth, ambient and the ultra-cool that is Cool To The Touch.

- Shannon West