David Richards, a young Wynton Marsallis look-a-like, made a precocious start to his career as a headliner and producer in the live context. His recent production
Bass'd on Drums; Love & Music showcased his arranging, composing and performing skills to maximum effect and proved to this jaded reviewer that he is also a fine entertainer. I had
written an earlier appreciation on David, specifically on his arranging skills, so to repeat that he is a skilled arranger would be superfluous, but it needs to be said, that we are at a point in the musical history of instrumental music in Trinidad, where young players are stepping up to the proverbial podium and taking the mantle of leadership from a weakened New School generation that all but squandered the goodwill at a time when their prolific output should have made a name for itself. David, who almost quit the music business last year, walked proudly among giants. This was, in effect, a coming of age debut by a young lion; an imperfect production, but a musical masterpiece...
