Sound Signature Sounds (feat. Jerrald James)

The Japanese edition of Theo Parrish's Sound Signature Sounds compilation differs significantly from its stateside counterpart, replacing "Shadow Dancing," "Dance of the Drunken Drums," and "Lost Keys" with "Overyohead," "African Roots," and "Carpet People." Unfortunately, the three tracks on this version are just tacked onto the end of the sequence, disregarding any sense of flow. Since Parrish's lengthy discography is the antithesis of samey (particularly the stretch anthologized here), this switcheroo of tracks makes for two different feels between the versions, despite the fact that they share seven tracks. Taking the overall quality into consideration, it's a deadlock between the two editions. The crisp drum programming and piano vamps of "Lost Keys" are sorely missing here, though that absence is evened out by the inclusion of "Overyohead," one of Parrish's most stimulating, sparsely constructed tracks. As crazy as it sounds, obtaining copies of both versions is called for, especially if you can't get your hands on all of these tracks in their original vinyl incarnations.