Explorations: The Columbia Recordings
Is Lonnie Liston Smith a visionary? Here's a reissue that will interest fans of three different subgenres of jazz, two of which didn't even exist when these recordings were cut between 1978-80. Probably the single biggest reason Columbia released this two-CD compilation of the original four albums is the almost mythical status attained by the song "Quiet Moments" in the smooth-jazz world. Although the albumExotic Mysterieshad been long out of print, that song became a staple on radio in the late '80s and early '90s. That mostly forgettable album also produced the semi-disco hit, "Space Princess." Smith, however, hit a home run with the albumLoveland, represented here by tracks 9 through 16 of the first disc. With his smooth-as-silk brother Donald singing, and Smith's keyboards heavy on the nature and ethereal space sounds, he's in full effect with the R&B-tinged; jazz style that had him regularly selling in the six-figure range before signing with Columbia. "Loveland" makes this disc a must for any serious collector of '70s jazz-funk. Lovers of the European mix of jazz and dance music will be surprised at how the last disc is right in that acid-jazz pocket, even though it was recorded a good decade before that movement gathered any steam.--Mark Ruffin