Bey's career has included an inspired Fifties-pop vocal group (Andy and the Bey Sisters) and stints with excellent contemporary jazz ensembles (Gary Bartz NTU Troop, Mtume Umoja Ensemble) and very little recognition outside New York. His voice is warm, enormously rich and enveloping; his techniques are unpretentiously virtuosic and imaginative. With the right backing and the right material he could do wonders, but only occasionally does Experience And Judgment do justice to his talents. Bey's own compositions are geared lyrically toward the sort of cosmic sloganeering Pharoah Sanders and Leon Thomas have popularized, and the other originals — by producer William S. Fischer and Pat Evans — range from offensively banal ("You Should've Seen the Way") to lackluster. The band Fischer has assembled provides loosejointed electric backup that is sometimes effective ("Judgment") but more often simply treads water. Nevertheless, Bey saves most of the tracks with his passionate singing, which is captured very well, and several of the performances — particularly "Being Uptight" and "Hibiscus"—are strong and affecting in toto. If Bey finds the right songs and the right musicians he could become the jazz voice, and with the right production he could conquer the popular charts as well. For now, he is worth watching and Experience And Judgment is worth listening to. (RS 171)

BOB PALMER