It's hard to find music so full of joy, so bright, and guileless as this. Drawing on many musical styles and nuances, this always stays light and bouyant, like a carefree summer on a Carribean island. The pieces have strong melodic structure and are full with complex arrangements. Electric guitar and drums sometimes take the sound into a heavier rock beat, and many cuts touch on a free flowing jazz style.
    The first piece, Kids, a song bursting with humor, invites movement with a pattering beat and a light teasing interplay between the flute, percussion, and guitar. Then Sunrise explores a more sensual space with mellow flute and an exotic rhythm that makes you want to slither across the dance floor. But the album also has another, more sedate side, as in Allesandra Marie, in which a slow picked guitar and piccolo weave a classical mode.
    I find myself putting this on repeatedly for a spicy yet happy background for working, exercising, and driving - perfect for the fun feeling of a party. My guess is these musicians know how to play in more ways than one, and they understand childlike delight very well.

TECH NOTES: Great sound, Prof. Pkg. Other instruments - electric bass, vibes, acoustic guitar, 51 mins. 1989 CASS. CD

OTHER TITLES: Blue Pearl, Radiance, Steeplechase, Early Morning Samba, The Chestnut Strut, Song for Sarah, Suite Fraser, Lullaby for Marie Andre.