Talk To Me

In the tradition of Dave Valentin and Herbie Mann, Nestor Torres makes an impressive bid for Latin jazz stardom on Talk To Me, which blends his spirited, peppery and melodic runs with the veteran production expertise of Andre Fischer. As impressive as Torres is throughout, however, too many of the arrangements are straight out of Fischer's lush but softhearted Unforgettable phase, leading to some very quiet moments in between the much more interesting flashes of genuine energy. Too many ballads, including tender but staid covers of Elton John and David Gates classics, take away from Torres' ability to truly challenge all rhythmic possibilities of his distinctive windstyle. Program the disc through the orchestral sheen, and you come up with the essence of Nestor's soul, which lies in the fast paced worlds of "Forest Rain" (featuring Steve Reid like soundscaping) and the tasty, rhythmic "Sabroso!" An attractive listen overall, just a bit tame too often in the face of the much more impressive dynamics.