While the likes of Gil Scott-Heron and Lonnie Liston Smith have been pushed as flagship artists in Ace’s excellent curation of the legendary Flying Dutchman label there is also a lot to be said for vocalist Thomas, he of the deeply bluesy baritone and the unique yodel-stamped scat. Recorded just a few years after his debut for the label this session marks a significant change stylistically. In a nutshell the stirring spiritual inclinations of the previous work, moulded so decisively by his embrace of Trane-Pharoah modalism, are less to the fore while the influence of soul, then hitting a peak as Donny, Marvin and Stevie produced masterworks, is discernible in terms of the songwriting, arranging and instrumentation, above all the use of a string orchestra. Thomas’ performance is as stately and authoritative as ever and as far as his collaborators go special props to the outstanding drummer Bernard Purdie and pianist Neal Creque whose compositions, ‘It’s My Life I’m Fighting For’ and ‘Balance Of Life’ are wistfully beautiful. There’s also a nice reprise of ‘Just In Time To See The Sun’, an anthem by Thomas’ other noted former boss, Carlos Santana.