Sepiatone

They Say...

Review by Jana Pendragon, All Music Guide

A member of the "Hollywood & Western" country swing band the Lucky Stars, Anderson is an American artist whose passions go way beyond the Western swing music he makes with that band. This release is a solo, all-instrumental effort that spans the width and depth of human experience. It is also not a country music release. But it is something of glowing substance that details the significance of the idea that all good music is somehow connected. Anderson is evidence of that theory. A multi-instrumentalist, Anderson is best known for his work on the ivories and his ability to squeeze the box. Still, he is quite good when he plays guitar, vibraphone or percussion. Moreover, he is a songwriter who uses music as a painter would his palette. Rolling in with an uptempo ragtime piano number, "The Old Piano Rag," Sepiatone begins on a high note. Just as good is Anderson's Herb Alpert-esque piece "The I-5 Cha-Cha," which pays homage to the rigors of driving a certain L.A. freeway. On the other hand, Anderson is capable of culling the emotional depths of despair and loss, as he does on "A Certain Someone" and "For Absent Friends." In between the highs and lows, he takes a side trip to the circus on "Looking for Fellini" and hits the bottle on "Tequila at Low Tide." Smooth and cool too, Anderson shines on the painfully real "One More Time Around." Displaying an understanding of American music of all kinds as well as classical music, Anderson swings through 13 cuts with all the character of Mancini, Basie or Ellington. While this will not appeal to those with lesser tastes, it does generate interest and awe in those who understand just how potent the power of music is.