Turn Your Lights Down Low

On this song, my goal was to try to capture the intensity of passionate intimacy. Bob Marley’s direct lyrical poetry just drips with it. The track was gorgeously orchestrated by Cliff Almond; his drums are beat perfect, the acoustic guitar is insistent and throbbing, and Dave Curtis’ bass is simple and locked in the pocket. I asked tenor saxophone master Hollis Gentry to make his solos match this gentle push intensity. It was the last solo he recorded, before an automobile accident a few weeks later robbed him of his ability to play. His solos are exquisite. It is almost like he knew his time was short. He laid all of his emotions out there, reminding us that right now – this very moment – is all we really have. (Life goes by way too fast . . . rest in peace, my dear friend.) When the strings come in, right before his second solo, it’s like standing in a warm summer rain shower. This is a track for making love. It says what needs to be said. Listen to it loud and let it wash over you.