Portraits of Cuba, Chesky Records Performance Quality = 7 Sound Quality = 9.5 Add Portraits of Cuba to your reference collection next to JVC's Bill Holman records for best big band recordings. This record is musically spicy and recorded about as good as it gets. It is warm, resolute and present. The songs are jazzy and spicy. The songs are strong from start to finish.

Flagman Ahead, Virgin Records | Performance 6.5 | Sound 8 | This 1995 release by Tab Two is the first I have heard from this German band. Their music crosses the bridge between jazz and R&B, leaning more towards R&B with it’s heavy use of synthesizers and dance oriented rhythms. The lyrics, while sounding slick, are difficult to understand due to the thick accents. The combination of the synthesizers and the accents makes this album a bit less engaging than it would otherwise be.