FERTILE GROUND
SPIRITUAL WAR
Blackout Studios/24-7, 1999/2000
1) Libations 2) Spiritual War 3)
Broken Branches 4) Be Natural 5) Natural Reggae
6) Holyman 7) Peace & Love 8) Misguided
Warriors 9) Groove 10) Let the Wind Blow 11)
Colors of the Night 12) Runaway Slave 13) Homage
(Yesterday) 14) Brazil 15) My Friend the Moon 16)
New Born Grass 17) June 18) Dark Rain
Produced by James Collins Fertile Ground, a soul-jazz
group from Baltimore, is definitely one of the
most fascinating, not to mention impressive
surprises of the year 2000. The quartet was
virtually unknown outside the East Coast of the
U.S. until 24-7 Records boss Brian Hurst
discovered them in the States and released the Spiritual
War album in England last spring.
The quartet consists of James Collins (piano,
keyboards trumpet) who has produced and written
the majority of the album, Marcus Asante
(drums), Ekendra Das
(percussion) and Navasha Daya
(lead vocals). The rich instrumental backdrop
provided by the foursome is further strengthened
on most tracks by visiting hornmen.
The style of Fertile Ground is definitely rooted
in 70s soul/jazz, with the emphasis on the latter
word, right up to the mystically flavoured photo
on the CD cover. As points of comparison, Norman
Connors and the jazzier efforts of Phyllis
Hyman and Jean Carne
spring to mind, but Fertile Ground's ambitious
viewpoint to music has an individual core to it.
This is no wonder, considering that the group has
created their local fame and honed their musical
skills by performing in Baltimore area clubs and
are not looking to score big bucks with a major
label record deal; they view the records
secondary to the live experience. This is
actually their second CD; hopefully the debut set
Field Songs becomes available, as well.
Navasha Daya's voice is not emotive or raunchy in
the traditional R&B sort of way, rather it
leans towards jazzier territory. The more I
listen to her clear, warm and expressive
interpretation the more I like it.
The two tracks featured in the Quality Time
column of our previous
issue are good representatives of the
spectacular quality of this album. Broken
Branches is a simply brilliant, majestic
soul-jazz mid-floater, and at the jazzier end of
the spectrum the sombre 11-minute-long My
Friend the Moon with its celestial mood,
Navasha's terrific singing and instrumental solos
(trumpet, piano) is probably the most profound
piece of music I've heard so far this year.
Similarly, the rest of the albums offers varying
moods from uplifting joyous jazz-soul gliders (Peace
& Love) to more straightforward uptempo
plodders (Misguided Warriors), mellow
and smooth jazz floaters (tColors of the Night)
or even rather pure jazz like the deliciously
swinging Homage or the ballad New
Born Grass. And these are just examples, I
could have given special mention to some of the
other tracks just as well.
It should be mentioned that Fertile Ground's
jazzy and artistically ambitious approach
probably won't please all R&B fans. Incognito
have been mentioned as a point of
comparison, but their style (which I enjoy very
much) is much more accessible to the general
record-buying public. I'd say Spiritual War
is best suited to black music fans on whose
shelves one finds jazz, soul as well as fusion
records in peaceful co-existence.
Along with Ledisi,
the most exciting new artist of the year 2000. (9)
- PR
