Theo Croker

Theo Croker is an artist steeped in jazz tradition, heavily influenced by the legendary trumpeters Doc Cheatham and Donald Byrd. Well versed in the swing, bop, and modal styles of acoustic jazz, Croker's own music reveals a love of organic funk, soul, and groove-oriented hip-hop. It's a vital amalgam that would have pleased the forward-thinking Byrd, whose own '70s funk-jazz albums are an obvious touchstone for Croker on his hypnotically enlightened 2016 effort, Escape Velocity. He championed this sound on his 2014 Dee Dee Bridgewater collaboration, Afro Physicist, and he pushes it to the limits on this follow-up. Taking the production reins from Bridgewater, who also appears here on the euphoric "Love from the Sun," Croker has crafted a set of compositions that find him bringing his funky world view into focus.