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‘Wade in the Water’ was the third installment in a trio of very lucrative popular soul jazz party records by virtuoso gospel flavored jazz pianist Ramsey Lewis and his trio. By the time we get to this third record the formula has been set for most of the tunes; a recent popular melody played with a pronounced back beat that features tambourine, and possibly hand claps from a live audience, followed by a middle section with a two-chord jam session in which Lewis plays the crowd pleasing gospel flavored blues piano licks, and then a return to the main theme but with more piano fills.
Although this record was commercial for its time, I think this has aged very nicely. In short, this is really fun groovy music that doesn’t demand too much from you and still delivers much more than just a pop song. If you like 60s instrumental jazz/RnB records, this one is a classic.