Rejected Scripts is an album filled with imaginative tales: Every song is a compact story, with subject matters ranging from gleefully crafted nightmarish scenarios to playful commentaries on contemporary literature (and sometimes both!). The music is built upon funky rhythms, unexpected melodies, rich harmonies and playful arrangements. A sophisticated mixture of pop, jazz, blues and funk influences...

M.A. Bakker's Rejected Scripts is like a breath of fresh air in a genre that generally takes itself way too seriously. This is a funky Jazz collection of songs with a very healthy side order of humour.

Warren Byrd lends his vocals to the album, which explores such issues as holiday resorts in countries with dodgy regimes ('Ming Zhao Paradise'); finding a battered, old hat in the street ('This Amazing Hat'); the uprising of a plague of demonic monsters ('Fright Night') and even the joys of how breasts act in zero gravity ('The Sirens of Titan').

It's an album that can be appreciated on its musical merits alone (just ignore the lyrics for a minute). And then, on another level, you have to marvel at how masterful Bakker is at delivering humour through his writing.

Probably the most obviously comical song is 'Ming Zhao Paradise' which, tongue in cheek, tackles what appears to be a holiday in a country where the locals are not treated too well.

'Fright Night' also stood out to me, as it had elements of Stevie Wonder's work on Innervisions (1973) as well as ring of Level 42 about it.

The album contains 10 tracks (43 min, 26 sec) and is a fine balance between Bakker's work as a master storyteller and the gravitas that Byrd's incredible voice brings to the project. I've been listening to the album non-stop for over a fortnight and I can't get enough of it.

Those that are looking for a beautiful Jazz/Funk album that has a large injection of humour... your quest ends here.

10

Nick Smithson