Victor Fields: Victor

There’s always room for talented R&B vocalists happy to smooth out your workday or precious weekends, and Victor Fields is as good as they come these days. He’s not on the radar like Will Downing and Freddie Jackson, but he’s respected enough to have been able to call on stars like Chris Botti and Jeff Lorber in the past. On his new CD, produced by guitarist Chris Camozzi and mixed by the Braxton Brothers’ Nelson Braxton, Fields kicks things off with a soothing tune written by Chuck Loeb called “This Could Be Paradise.” On that song and others like “Love Will Save the Day,” Fields’ soothing chops are perfect accompaniment to the positive-vibe lyrics.

Like any vocalist on the rise, Fields sprays his songs to all fields. Half the game is choosing what’s appropriate, of course, and he makes spot-on choices with Stevie Wonder’s “Golden Lady” and his husky version of falsetto country singer Vince Gill’s “Colder Than Winter.” For jazz fans, he wraps his chops around well-worn standards “Lush Life” and “Night and Day,” with strings sweetening the overall effect.

Originally Published April 1, 2006