LARRY DOUGLAS, Music Speaks for Me (Deluxe)

While the covers of all three editions of multi-instrumentalist Larry Douglas’ extraordinary, wildly eclectic EP Music Speaks for Me shows the veteran San Francisco based artist sitting at a grand piano, it’s delightful to realize as the intoxicating hip hop-jazz fusion tunes unfold that while he has some incredible pianists working with him (most notably, Clifford Lamb on the gorgeous piano trumpet ballad “They Call Me Zadie Mae”), Douglas is constantly surprising us with an array of lead “voices” on flute, trumpet and vibes.

Originally released in March 2024 as a four-track EP (with a secondary “clean” version), Music Speaks For Me showcases a joyfully restless talent whose creativity, collaborative curiosity and sense of soul-jazz driven adventure knows no bounds. Opening with some hipster studio chatter that sets an intoxicating immediacy and and brings listeners into the moment with Douglas and guest vocalist Gregory Cone, the title track is pure thumping jazz-soul-hip hop magic fused with exciting gospel choir magic, centered around the Cone’s spirited “Let the music speak for me” mantra in lively conversation with Douglas’ spirited flute flutter.

“Return of the Mack” finds Douglas re-imagining a true New Jack Swing classic in Mark Morrison’s 1996 Top Ten hit “Return of the Mack,” wildly re-imaging it by vibin’ with a hypnotic vibes melody surrounded by an intense, funky groove and snazzy DJ scratches. It’s an instrumental jazz/hip hop masterpiece in the making for a little more than half the track, when it suddenly turns into a fresh high energy and super-playful rap romp featuring summery imagery by Amen Kush and Fiyaman which gives way to a dynamic Latin percussion solo by longtime Douglas collaborator Jorge Pineda.

By now, listeners will realize that while Douglas – whose eclectic resume includes Chuck Berry and Sun Ra - is grounded in a jazzy hip-hop flow, he’s always going to throw in some surprises – like the synth orch and graceful trumpet opening strains of “Me and My Cohiba,” a heavily urban narrative (N word and all on the non-clean version) blending Douglas’ dreamy muted horn and the infectious freewheeling rap of Rem Dog. The title of the final track of the original EP “Outstanding” is a self-fulfilling prophecy, a delightful blend of Douglas’ shimmering vibes  excitement, trumpet accents (and later monstrous solo) and the breezy, freeflowing vocals of Atozzio, all over a groove that evokes the Quincy Jones line “sharp enough to shave with.”

In August 2025, Douglas released the Deluxe Edition that included “They Call Her Zadie Mae,” the aforementioned soulful, dreamy trumpet duet with pianist Clifford Lamb, and a hipster, easy grooving trumpet-driven spin on Al Jarreau and George Benson’s seductive ballad “All I Am,” which sheds new emotional light on a deep cut from the legendary duo’s 2006 Grammy winning album Givin’ It Up.