SO FREE- NEAMEN LYLES
When I first e-chatted with Neamen Lyles earlier this year, the first question I had for the Tuscon, Arizona based saxophonist was how to properly pronounce his first name. It wasn't just out of common courtesy, but also because I knew his name was one that we needed to get acquainted with now, and for years to come. So Free is the debut album from Neamen Lyles, although listening to this album several times from start to finish, one would guess he was a smooth groove/jazz veteran with many albums, appearances, and throng of fans behind him. Yet Lyles is one of the newest and refreshing talents in the genre, easily taking a place next to other established stars such as Eric Darius and Jackiem Joyner. No talent was spared in this making of So Free, which is produced by brilliant guitarist Jay Soto, and includes the recruitment of established and greatly admired musicians like keyboardists Jeff Lorber and Brian Simpson, as well as Canadian-born mega saxman and producer Darren Rahn.
So Free has an electrifying kick-off with the first tune and single 'Candy' with an incredible never-ending tempo, as neither Lyles' alto sax, Simpson's piano nor Soto's keyboards every slow down to take a breather. However, he does just that on its album's second track, 'Let's Chill', a smooth melody-filled groove that has Lyles' soprano sax and Soto's stylish guitar trading leads. ‘Who Dat’ is another red-hot smoker, that bursts from your speakers with no hesitation and relentlessly unleashes the perfect sax combo between Lyle's and Rahn.
The temperature definitely cools down throughout the album, but in a cool relaxing way with the gentle RnB retro sounding 'Don't Say Goodbye' and 'Feels Like Heaven', showing that Lyles' talent is not limited to high energy saxophone sounds only, but it's how we discover his penchant for ‘souljazz’, with very positive and uplifting melodies and solos. And Lyle's also presents a neo-fusion jewel on 'Cooling The Plasma', a fast paced track highlighted by the magnificent keyboarding of Jeff Lorber, whose roots in fusion date back to the 1970s. One tune that can't go unmentioned is Lyle's take on Michael Jackson's 20 year old hit 'Remember The Time'. Here, he has the tune perfected note-by-note, accented by the great soulful and interspersed vocals of David Lancette and Jodi Light.
Nowhere on So Free does Lyle's give any indication that he is simply a newcomer on the smooth music scene, as he writes and performers with several of the biggest talents in the industry. As for the pronunciation on his first name, he kindly explained it as 'nee-AY-men', with the emphasis on the 'A'.
That’s an interesting explanation, because if So Free was to be graded like a mid-term exam, it would score a solid ‘A’ from beginning to end.
Reviewed by Stu Berketo
