dreadpirateroberts Right on the heels of the brilliant ‘First Light’ comes Hubbard’s ‘Sky Dive’ which is a less consistent but still worthwhile addition to his canon, perhaps for the title track and the funk-influenced opener alone. While on the surface it doesn’t stray far from the approach taken on the previous album; Sebesky conducting strings and a horn section, Hubbard both fiery and lyrical and supported by a fine group of CTI regulars like Carter, Benson, Laws, Airto and Cobham, the balance of the songs don’t play together as well this time around.

Of course there’s nothing wrong with the performances (except that I’d liked to have heard more of Jarrett) but the ballad seems to play without aching and the other two cover versions, In a Mist and the theme from The Godfather, suffer a little from what seem to be scattered arrangements, even if the latter has a fantastic ending.

For me most of the joy in this album comes from the title track and Povo – each allow the band to get stuck into the rhythm and provide ample solo space for everyone – Hubbard sounds confident and Carter holds everything together with his bass line as band jam it out. Benson is great as ever and the really the piece’s only weakness might be a vague sense of sameness when compared to the song First Light on Hubbard’s previous release. Sky Dive is another cracker which gives a slight Latin feel to its laid back approach and ends the album very pleasantly.

I hesitate to say for fans only, as this is still great fusion and Hubbard is always a pretty commanding soloist, but for my money ‘First Light’ is the superior example of the fusion he was producing for CTI in the early ‘70s. Still, ‘Sky Dive’ does boast a couple of classics so if a reissue appears, it might be worth collecting anyway.