Lorrie Ruiz, Chewy
And speaking of fusion, Lorrie Ruiz's good-natured jazz fusion disc might be just the thing to convince your grouchy friends that fusion isn't always as cold, virtuosic, and inaccessible as its reputation would have it. Taking some Stevie Wonder funk, adding some Steely Dan archness and George Benson smoothness, crafting some pretty good pop hooks to hang it all on, singer Ruiz and keyboardist Joe Doria have come up with a batch of fun, toe-tapping, and friendly songs. The weakness is Ruiz's hummy, uninflected vocals, which just make you think what someone like Stevie Wonder, or even Mariah Carey - or any number of great young neo-soul singers I can think of - would have been able to do with material like this. Fortunately the other elements are more important here. The playing - by Doria, guitarist Chris Spencer, bassist Dayna Smith, and drummer Larry Bichler - gives this disc its soul, and good songwriting gives it heart. Nicely done.

Red Plastic Buddha, Sunflower Sessions

I love to get back to psychedelia sometimes. But the same old late-sixties, early-seventies music gets tired after awhile. Fortunately there are bands like Red Plastic Buddha keeping the swoony, shimmery tradition alive. Like a Peter Max painting come to life, Red Plastic Buddha comes in colors - all over the floor. With semi-spastic guitar solos that bring to mind early Jefferson Airplane, keyboard parts that very vaguely suggest Ray Manzarek and the Doors, and vocals that range from an intense scream to a distant call, they've really got the flavors down. Many of the six songs deserve their psychedelic-music bloat ("Forget Me Not," "Clouds"), while a couple are a little too underwritten to merit it ("Rollercoaster," "Over And Over"), but overall it's a pretty sweet 33 minutes of dark, retrograde flower power. If they sharpened up their songwriting a bit, they'd get a leg up on the other bands (and there are some) that are also keeping the groovy flame burning. Hear three tracks at their Myspace page.

Brett Dennen, So Much More

Brett Dennen is a young folk artist with a deft touch on the guitar. His singing is plaintive yet assured, and he writes in a mature, socially involved, and sharp-eyed style. I don't love his reedy voice, although it's starting to grow on me a little. But I am very impressed with this disc - the scope of his songwriting and the delicate emotion of his delivery make Dennen a potentially major talent. (He's touring this summer with John Mayer.) Listen to a few tracks and see if you don't agree.