Shamie Royston plays wondrous piano this strong and soulful collection of originals plus one. She teams with a hard bopping band of Josh Evans/tp, Jaleel Shaw/as-ss, Yasushi Nakamura/b and hubby Rudy Royston/dr with some snappy pulses for the horns on “Sunday Nostalgia” and the bright “Push.” Ms. Royston’s chords are strong and modal as they reflect a McCoy Tyner passion as she does a three legged race with her husband while Shaw blows out passion on “Circulo Vicioso” while lyrical passion is on display on the title track.
Fun and funky moods are created by the married couple while sparks fly on Bill Withers’ “Lovely Day” and the hips get shaking on the groover “A Tangle Web We Weave.” A pair of reads of her “Precious Lullaby” have the pianist in a genteel setting with Evans and Kakamura while a take that closes out the album flexes a bit more biceps. Impressive on a musical and marital level!