Stanley Baird

Stanley Turrentine and Grover Washington, Jr. are among Stanley Baird's main influences on this little-known jazz/urban contemporary CD, which showed that he could be a decent soloist and composer occasionally, but is forgettable on the whole. The big-toned alto, tenor and soprano saxman is at his best on the dusky "Red Bossa" and a likable interpretation of Freddie Hubbard's "Little Sunshower," and he's at his worst on cliché-ridden urban contemporary numbers like "Time Is Right" and "Don't Make Me Wait." The disc's worst offering of all is a faceless cover of the Bobby Brown hit and Babyface composition "Rock Witcha"; without bringing anything personal to the tune, Baird takes a Najee-meets-George Howard approach with tired, knee-jerk results. One got the impression that with the right guidance, Baird could have delivered a meaningful album. But more often than not, this is a disc that's anything but meaningful.