Heirloom

Evans spends his liner notes talking about some of his musical experiences but doesn't list any other musicians; he shows various pictures of him with a guitar, keyboard, and sax, so it's safe to assume he's a one-man smooth jazz band. This is the kind of material that's certainly likeable, very in the pocket, but really doesn't add much to a genre crowded with sax-driven tunes. The opening track, "In Your Name," sums up the basic approach — a few moments of unique improvisational invention following a catchy but ultimately repetitive melody over a machine generated groove. "Golden Moments" is a nice romantic ballad but runs a bit lengthy at seven minutes; in contrast, "Rainy Afternoon" features interesting ominous keyboard tones and soundscaping but wraps up after just two minutes. It's more a mood piece than a song. Evans has some good melodic ideas and is on the right track; he just needs to spend more on production and on developing a sax voice that might stand out from the pack.