Olu Dara: Neighborhoods

From the early '70s to the late '90s, Olu Dara established a reputation as one of New York City's premier jazz cornetists, playing with everyone from Henry Threadgill to Cassandra Wilson. But it took him until 1998 to release a solo album, In The World: From Natchez To New York, which charted a compelling path through American roots music. Dwelling primarily on blues, country, folk, and soul, the album was revelatory and timeless, finding room for both a folksy ode to okra and a performance by Dara's rapper son Nas. The new Neighborhoods throws in another handful of ringers, including Dr. John's organ on "Red Ant (Nature)" and a Wilson vocal on "Used To Be," but the album lacks the depth and breadth of its predecessor. "Bell & Ponce (At The Movie Show)" is indicative of Neighborhoods' amiable aimlessness, consisting primarily of a list of entertainers Dara enjoys seeing at the movies. Like the opening track "Massamba" and others, it's an agreeable trifle, with no narrative momentum and only the most tenuous unifying thread—the latter a notable shortcoming in light of Dara's mesmerizingly cohesive debut. In The World was strong enough to earn Dara a certain amount of slack, but Neighborhoods suggests that he spent decades preparing for that album, using up virtually everything he had to say in the process.