Scott Grooves’ long affinity for jazz comes through loud and clear on his debut album for Soma. Featuring an update of Wes Montgomery’s “Bumpin’ on Sunset” (here titled “Bumpin’ on the Underground”) and a soaring version of Lonnie Liston Smith’s classic “Expansions” (recorded with Roy Ayers on vibes), Pieces of a Dream incorporates soul, disco, funk and house into a primal brew of jazz-fusion. “The Mothership Re-Connection” incorporates a live Parliament gig — with the permission of George Clinton himself, and recorded at his own Detroit Disc Studios — while the single “A New Day” translates an epic piano riff into a European dancefloor hit. All told, Pieces of a Dream is a soulful epic, just as noteworthy coming from Detroit as anywhere else. – John Bush
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