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. ~ Jonathan Widran