An all star-group such as this comes with a certain amount of expectation, which was not duly fulfilled on stage at the recent St. Lucia jazz festival. This studio set is much better, though. Eleven tracks show that the ensemble can do radio-friendly brevity as well as more epic tapestry, and a very up-to-date fusion sound, with the base elements that have informed the work of all the bandmembers in their careers to date – think Herbie Hancock, Headhunters, Eddie Henderson and Roy Hargrove – is discernible. That said, the flashes of imagination are not without interest. Tyson's drumming has all the flair, as well as drive, needed to make the rhythm section come alive on the faster numbers, while the spooky synthscapes provided by McFerrin are wonderfully understated at times. The music largely strikes a balance between a bass-heavy contemporary soul akin to Badu, Scott et al, and an improviser's aesthetic that allows musicians to stretch out and present something with more guile than Glasper and Hodge's last studio set, the very disappointing Art Science. At worst, R+R=Now slides into a comfort zone now and again. At best, the ensemble has the spark to lift the music beyond any average fare. There is more of the latter than of the former.