Ronnie Laws - Solid Ground (1981)

Once upon a time in the early 80's there was no such thing as smooth jazz. When light-hearted fusion was made, it tended to have a far more diverse range of colors. Ronnie Laws comes from that older school of lite jazz-funk musicians who enjoyed a healthy R&B flavor in their music as well. "Solid Ground" is as much a Jazz/Funk R&B album then anything from the "smooth jazz" genre, but you can hear traces of the smooth genre here and there. It has those nice 80's keyboards on the title track and on the cut, "Your Stuff" Mr.Laws is at least an adequate if not a damn good singer. He may not be in the same category as George Benson but certainly no slouch either. This might be a vintage album, but it plays surprisingly well with todays' jazz standards. Well produced and upbeat, it also includes siblings Debra and Eloise Laws doing the background vocals and Hubert Laws on the flute. If you like the early 80's work of Jeff Lorber or George Duke you will likely find music to your liking here.


~ TRACKLISTING ~

1. Heavy on Easy
2. Segue/There's a Way
3. Stay Awake
4. Solid Ground
5. Your Stuff
6. Just as You Are
7. Summer Fool
8. Good Feelings