Tim Bowman: This Is What I Hear

The tracks on guitarist Tim Bowman’s This Is What I Hear… (Liquid 8) straddle two worlds: smooth-jazz and gospel. For the most part, this is a strong smooth-jazz album filled with melodic compositions that spotlight Bowman’s dexterity and versatility. “Summer Groove” is a breezy, uptempo number, and “Acoustic Rain” is a graceful ballad wherein Bowman’s guitar is accompanied by wordless vocals. Bowman swings along briskly on the funky “Candy’s Groove,” a tune written by his daughter, and turns sly and bluesy on “225.”

Bowman started his career in gospel music, and while most of the music leans more towards smooth-jazz, the lyrics of tunes like “Angels” and “This Song’s for You” reflect the guitarist’s gospel background. The album includes one gospel number, the rousing “My Praise,” featuring gospel stars Vickie Winans (Bowman’s sister) and Rance Allen. Bowman’s guitar tends to disappear into the background during the vocal tracks, but he includes brief reprises of “Angels” and “My Praise” which demonstrate how skillfully he can accompany a singer.

Originally Published December 1, 2004