ROBERTO VALLY, "Hang Loose"

One of contemporary jazz and R&B’s most prolific and celebrated sidemen, bass virtuoso Roberto Vally has kept the grooves in both genre’s hoppin’ for the past few decades, serving as musical director for Diane Schuur, touring with David Benoit and recording and/or touring with everyone from George Benson and Boney James to Norman Brown, Boz Scaggs and Jeffrey Osborne. Since the early 2020s, he’s expanded the scope of his solo artistry with a flurry of popular, acclaimed singles that have not only moved the goal posts of sonic and rhythmic possibilities of smooth jazz, but have also collectively created something of a personal cinematic travelogue.

In a genre where song titles are often just pretty afterthoughts, Vally has taken his fans on a wildly hip adventure to the many special places in his heart. “Woody’s Gap,” for instance, was inspired by a unique sign he saw hiking the Appalachian trail, while “Last Flight Home” reflected his reality as a musician constantly on the road. Painting two very different musical portraits around his 2024 single “Kool Like That,” Vally reminisced about his childhood in Brooklyn via “D Train Express” (the train he always took) and, vibing with Benoit, explored a more lively, energetic aesthetic via his unique vision of one of the country’s most peaceful, spiritual cities on “Sedona Sunrise.”  

True to its title, Vally sees his latest seductive, easy flowing – and infectiously horn-fired urban jazz adventure - “Hang Loose” as a feel-good song that “makes you feel one with the universe…hopefully!” Its lighthearted laid-back grooves and breezy trumpet-bass dual lead melody artfully embody the popular slang expression, which means to relax, take it easy or not get stressed – all things smooth jazz is, by definition, designed to do.

Always creating magic with the genre’s most dynamic artists and musicians, Vally (who produced the track) hangs loose this time with Jeff Carruthers (keyboards, guitars), Andrew Neu (saxophones, horn arrangement), Mike Stever (flugelhorn), Luis Eric Gonzalez and (muted trumpet). “Hang Loose” was mixed by Paul Brown, one of contemporary urban jazz’s top guitarists and megaproducers who is a longtime Vally collaborator.

The single’s artwork, of a musician chilling in a hammock, his upright bass leaning on a palm tree while he looks out on surfers doing their magic, extends Vally’s tradition of paying homage special geographic locations. It hints at the origin of the “hang loose,” or shaka sign, which originates from Hawaii. It stems from a popular story about Hamana Kalili, a sugar mill worker who lost his middle fingers in an accident and used his thumb and pinky to signal in his new job as a train guard. The gesture was imitated by children and later the surfing community – which extended beyond the islands to the relaxed hang loose lifestyle of surfers everywhere.

“Hang Loose” begins with the mesmerizing combo of Vally’s low key bubbling bass and percussion before the groove picks up and joins with a brief taste of Neu’s colorful, snazzy horn arrangement. Over the jangle of Carruthers’ guitar, Vally is joined on the first verse by  Gonzalez’s mesmerizing muted trumpet, which then soars with the smooth backing of the horns. Then the hook pops in, showcasing the dynamic Vally-Gonzalez duality enhanced with brief, punchy horn accents.

I love how Vally creates sonic diversity by starting the verses solo before Gonzalez joins in, continuing to roll out the melody, creating fresh conversations with the horn harmonies. While it’s Vally’s song, as the track rolls on, it becomes clear that the production is a fanciful three- dimensional showcase for his bass, Gonzalez’s trumpet and the excitement of Neu’s horns, which have a tasty, classic Chicago-like flair. A few minutes in, Vally takes a several bar bass solo, then chimes in with a super-chill but highly inventive scat that intertwines perfectly with the other sparkling elements. Towards the end, Michael Stever also chimes in with a lush flugelhorn solo that’s ultimately wrapped in more scat and horn magic.

Roberto Vally’s “Hang Loose” is the perfect soundtrack to starting 2026 with an optimistic mindset – and a resource for chilling out if the going starts to get tough!