Drummer Brian Hudson leads a soul-jazz team that hearkens to vintage CTI sounds of bands like The Crusaders and Weather Report. With a core team of Randy Hoexter/key, Joe Reda/b and Trey Wright/g, he gets fun and funky on uptempo and upbeat tunes such as “Silver Line,” the hip “Jumpy Nylons” and melodious “Playing With Gravity,” all including rich guitar work by Wright sliding through the textures. Sam Skelton adds tenor and soprano sax as Hudson snaps everyone to attention with his sticks on the Joe Zawinul-inspired “Mr. Peabody” with Skelton’s soprano searing through the ricochets on “Ybor City.” Melvin Jones’ trumpet makes it a tenacious sextet, with the horns punching through Wright’s wacka wooka guitar on the feisty “Metro” and the soulful strut of “NYC.” Optimistic, and a fresh breath of air from a genre sadly overlooked these days.