Customer Reviews

Trust

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As far as this big Boney James fan is concerned, this is the best of his albums to date. Each piece is fresh and the album flows so well. If you want to try out the Boney James style, this is the album to start with. It will give you a great big luscious taste of his smooth music.

This CD defines what Smooth Jazz is all about. Just listen to "Another Place Another Time" and "Metropolis" and you will know why. This is a must have-- in any Smooth Jazz music collection. Boney James cannot be matched on the Sax. Sincerely, Suzette

Popular music can be a fickle thing. Take for example, the genre known as "Smooth Jazz." Some supposed jazz "purists" insist that it's a stagnant genre, filled with clichés and rudimentary musicianship and absent of innovation. Others champion the style, saying that the opposite is true. Smooth jazz fosters creativity and brings the music to a whole new audience.

Both sides would find plenty of things to justify their position listening to "Trust" by Boney James. This album was released in 1992, and Boney James was on the forefront of the R&B-laced saxophone jazz that would typify the decade. Assisted by the relatively unknown (at the time) producer Paul Brown and studio legends Paul Jackson, Jr, and Lenny Castro, among others, James crafted a fine album of crossover jazz, replete with high-tech synthesizers, soft percussion, R&B backbeats and enough jazzy chord changes to fill two albums. It stuck quite a pose at the time with most of its contemporaries falling into the "elevator music' category.

Some highlights of "Trust" include the prototype Boney James song "Metropolis," vaguely Asian-feeling "Kyoto," and fine smooth jams "Lilly" and "Roadrunner." Each provides a beautiful stage for James' alto, tenor and soprano saxophone stylings and paints lush, memorable pictures in the minds of listeners.

Naysayers will be glad to know that the other half of "Trust" is filled with an undefined blandness; even at album release (at the start of James' search for a signature sound) it was "could be anybody" music. Even the cover of Stevie Wonder's classic "Creepin'" is boring. These dull tracks sound even more anonymous now, after a decade or so, when nearly every saxophonist with a backbeat and a recording contract copped the style laid out by first-wave artists like James and Art Porter.

If you're a naysayer like I've described, you'll have ammunition with "Trust." If you're a Boney James fan, add to your collection with this release. If you're on the fence, start with James' "Sweet Thing" or more contemporary releases. They more accurately show what Boney James is capable of creating.

With "Trust" the world was introduced to the best contemporary jazz saxophonist of our time. There is no beginners jitters here, only solid, smooth and sexy sax playing. Boney perfected his talent by playing with the likes of The Isley Brothers, Teena Marie, Vesta, Cherrelle and Ray Parker Jr. and all that talent comes through on every track here. My favorite is the song dedicated to his wife, "Lily". The emotion for his wife is brilliantly projected through his sax and would make any woman melt. The rest of the album defines what Smooth Jazz is all about. No collection would be complete without "Trust".

Boney James is one of my all-time favorite saxophonists, and this album itself is bathed in the great jazz flavors of the early 90s. Album takeaways, for me, are "Another Place, Another Time" and "Metropolis" - but this album also contains one of my very favorite songs ever written: "Lily." I can be having the worst of days, but when I listen to this song, I am immediately so relaxed, and it never fails to do this. Highly recommended piece of hallmark jazz.

Last 15 yrs had the outdated Cassette.I've been looking for this Cd thought it was out of print.

Great, original sound of Boney reminds me of early sound that was "The Wave" out here in L.A.

You'll be pleased......

love boney this cd is one of my favorits reminds me of the beach would recommend to anyone.

As a long time contemporary jazz and especially BJ fan, I think his debut-album 'Trust' has one of his finest works yet and maybe a little underrated album compared to the masterpieces 'Sweet Thing'/'Body Language'.

The album consists a wide range of jazz type tracks. 'It's a beautiful thing' is a catchy track to start and takes the listener to a 45 minutes Jazz-journey. 'Another place, Another Time', 'Personal Touch' and the very personal track 'Lily' (for his wife, ER-star, Lily Mariye) are a spread of his talents on all types of saxes, from Soprano to Alt to his benchmark, the Tenorsax.

The Stevie Wonder-cover 'Creepin' is wonderfully performed on the Soprano and the album title track 'Trust' is another great Altsax track.

My all time favorite tracks are the orientally track 'Kyoto'. Close your eyes and take a 5 minute-trip through Asia. Then the second best track will be 'Metropolis' which is a really great cartrack when driving on a urban highway with a million so called Natrium-Lights sweeping along your car....

The best track of all his work to date is the up-tempo ballad, a little story-telling track 'Roadrunner'. This is truly a masterpiece with his Altsax, especially when the staccato comes up at the end of the track.

It's a little disappointing to see Boney taking a little different way with his music today. There is too much R&B (no offense), but the roots where he started began to fade away with the album 'Ride' in 2002 when he broke the collaborance with master-producer Paul Brown.

I do really hope that his new album, coming on Feb. 3rd 2009 will return to his contemporary jazz background, it's hopeful since the album will consist only one vocal track :-D.

Althought the album is 17 years old now,'Trust' is truly a treasure because it's timeless...

I have followed smooth jazz since it's conception and can tell that a lot can be said about this genre of music both pro and con. But when you get pass the opinions one thing remains and that is good music is just plan good music and who cares how you label it, and thats what Boney James gives use on this project. I liked this CD so much that I purchased it twice because my first copy had been stolen, so dont get rapped up in what some people have to say about different types of music use your own judgement because if you dont you will miss the chance to here some great stuff like this Trust selection.

Boney James (born James Oppenheim on 9-1-61) has spent the last decade and a half becoming one of the most respected saxophonists in the ever-healthy and prosperous genre of smooth jazz. A guy who really knows how to work with all of the elements necessary to create dreamy, atmospheric, smooth jazz, his career really got off to a good running start with this album. On this album is the sizzling, soulful instrumental "Metropolis" which I still think is the greatest song he ever made.