The extraordinary music of Barry Coates & the Hats is rooted in the jazz style of improvisation, with the unique characteristic of beautiful melodies, haunting harmonies and groove oriented rhythms that appeal to a wide range of music enthusiasts.

8 MP3 Songs
JAZZ: Smooth Jazz, NEW AGE: Ambient



Details:
Move Like a Dancer is a flattering portrait of guitarist Barry Coates' work. Coates moves between variants in the soft jazz realm with a natural versatility. A studio player who works out, jazz-wise, at night, Coates has proven his worth as a composer/arranger in assorted commercial projects. His band, The Hats - on this album featuring percussionists Luis Conte and Brad Dutz - find a fruitful compromise between what sells and what sails. Coates' penchant for guitar synthesizer is expressed most freely on the atypically weird and tough-minded "Roger Wilco", on which Coates' oscillating synth tones supply the framework for some nice Breckerish touches by saxist Bob Sheppard.
The conscientiously balanced set ends on an acoustic note, "Solar Winds," sounding like an unlikely cross between new age and Miles Davis' "Solar," which isn't such a bad place to be.

review from JAZZIZ magazine/ by Joseph Woodard