Tex-Jap Jazz

Then again, Bouldin, despite his highly diversified background, never imagined that he'd discover a home base in a Japanese restaurant. But he's happy to have it. After all, it's a stable gig that allows him to experiment with new ideas or revert to proven favorites, depending on his mood -- all the while cultivating his evolving appreciation for sushi.

"I know there's nothing new under the sun," Bouldin says. "I'm basically trying to express myself through jazz, but my roots are really deep in R&B, funk and blues. So that's the way I approach everything I do. I really try to concentrate on interesting arrangements of original material that is accessible to regular people."

Wide Open Spaces, his second CD, is a fine document of that philosophy. Consisting of ten new Bouldin compositions (plus one cover), the album showcases his evolving power as a composer of both instrumentals and lyric-based songs, most of which radiate an urban sound that blurs the line between smooth jazz and contemporary R&B.

The disc is also inspired by the interplay of two themes, one connected to basic psychology and the other to African history. The former notion is best exemplified in the title track as well as in "Emptiness Is Sometimes a Good Thing," both of which evoke a need for distance in order to improve perspective.

On the other hand, "Washing the Spears," "A Good Day to Die (Dawn Interlude)" and "We Like to Run (The Battle of Isandhlwana)" are products of what Bouldin calls his "Afro-fusion thing," inspired by his fascination with military history in general and with the 19th-century triumphs and defeats of the Zulus in particular. "The African stuff just came from the beat that I started with," he says. "I had studied about Shaka Zulu, so when I found this beat, it all came together. I didn't really plan. The beat just took me there."

The album also features guest appearances by some heavy hitters, including trumpeter Barrie Lee Hall (formerly of the Duke Ellington Orchestra), trombonist Frank Lacy Jr., saxophonist Eric Demmer, guitarists Joe Carmouche and I.J. Gosey, and vocalist Monae, among others. Bouldin himself delivers impeccable keyboard work that ranges from electric piano to acoustic piano to organ to synthesizer. He also -- for the first time on record -- sings lead vocals on two tracks.

"I love everything about music -- the business, the performance -- but the creativity, making my own original compositions and developing, that's really what it's all about to me," Bouldin says. Satisfied since striking out on his own, he concludes, "I'm in a groove now, and I'm not worried about my ultimate destination in music. I'm just enjoying the trip."