2004 was a good year for adult contemporary pianist William Woods. His second CD, ‘Cobalt Blue’, was released to critical acclaim and picked up a Smoothie Award along the way. In addition, the first track lifted for radio play, ‘Blue Me Down’, was included by WJZW DJ Al Santos in his 2004 Top 50 Year End Countdown. Now Woods is back with his latest release ‘Every Part Of Me’. It is his first on the Whaling City Sound label and is already being embraced by all who hear it. Given that he is the son of professional violinist Lee Kanter, it’s not surprising that Woods, who was born in Englewood, New Jersey, started out on strings. However at the age of nine he discovered a much greater affinity for piano and developed a passion for both improvisation and composition. A tragic side note to his musical development was written when, as a student of New York City composer and musicologist, Ernest Lubin, he arrived one day for class to find that his instructor had been murdered. He was able to move on from this horror and pursued his studies at Juilliard where he first performed some of his original works. Woods graduated from Princeton and from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. He works as a radiation oncologist treating cancer patients and, over the years, has found a satisfying balance between the rigorous schedule of a physician and the process of jazz composition and recording. His music has been likened to ‘an edgy brand of adult contemporary jazz that exists somewhere between a hip Boney James and a cerebral David Benoit’ but, for me, this summation completely misses the point of where Williams Woods is at. Certainly there is some Benoit in there and at times a little Culbertson too but what Woods brings to the party is smooth jazz for grown ups and as such is far closer to Bob James or, with the backing musicians he has assembled for ‘Every Part Of Me’, the sound of Fourplay. In fact that should be ‘Fourplay plus one’ as Woods, together with Denny Jiosa on guitar, Chris Kent on bass and Raymond Massey on drums is joined by Glen Caruba on percussion for this tight and sophisticated collection of smooth jazz that contains more than a few highlights. Whether it’s the slightly funky ‘Under The Radar’ or ‘Quicksand’, where Woods flip flops between Latin rhythms and west coast grooving all in the space of a single track, the enjoyment value remains consistently high. Woods has a mellow and melodic touch that permeates the entire album and this is best demonstrated on tunes such as ‘The Fire Within’, ‘Every Part Of Me’, ‘Stir The Ashes’ and the ultra sophisticated ‘Shadow Boxing’. ‘Destroying Angel’ is a good track with a driving beat that provides a distinctive back drop to Woods cool playing whereas his compelling keys are very much in evidence on the uplifting ‘Out Of The Woodwork’. A contender for best track on the album is another mellow offering, ‘As I Breathe You’. This one is all about Woods melodic playing while equally strong is ‘Whadja Expect’. It has a loping beat, a simple yet funky melody ala Brian Culbertson and a kind of Steely Dan thing going on somewhere in the background. Possibly the most commercial tune is the mid tempo ‘Alive, Living In Jersey’ where rhythm and melody from Woods plays well with a big and edgy bass line. ‘Every Part Of Me’ is produced by legendary jazzmen Michael Moryc and Denny Jiosa who has played with both Kirk Whalum and Slim Man. With all eleven tracks written by William Woods this is, in every respect, just what the doctor ordered and, if that wasn’t enough, Woods donates 50% of the proceeds from his CD’s to the American Cancer Society. -from smoothjazztherapy.com For more on William Woods go to www.williamwoods.net
