Though convenient to run down the list of genres-- funk, jazz, latin, r&b and so forth, rad.’s music is always a sophisticated mix of styles with that rad. specific sound. The petite dynamo keyboardist-vocalist, unveils a new work with eleven tracks to be stoked about. Co-produced by her and long time collaborator Michael Kirsch, this fourth album will remind fans of her energetically funkified earlier albums.

The opener, Old Worn Shoes, is a nouveau Crusader-esque track featuring London saxophonist Jacko Peake that zaps you back in time. But don’t be fooled into thinking this is a retro record. Tracks like Cocoon with it’s film noir strings and pulsating rhythms or Fela, the electronic afro-salsa homage to Fela Kuti, boldly go where no rad. has gone before. The obligatory funky cha-cha, Long Journey Home, boasts a guest performance of former Santana timbalero and original Fania All-Star Orestes Vilató. Rad. is at her best on airtight funk rippers Make Every Second Count and Mean & Lean. Drummer David Garibaldi, (Tower of Power, rad.) contributes his tower of groove and saxophonist Norbert Stachel (Tower of Power, Diana Ross, Tony Toni Toné) blows a smokestorm of a solo. As Simply Forgot, a lush ballad with big beats and the brasileiro How Many Times featuring Percussion heavyweight Michael Spiro go into depth, rad. humors us singing en français on Soucis en Grêve (Worries on Strike). Finally, San Pablo Ave., named after the long avenue that stretches along the San Francisco East Bay, transmits the feeling of cruising down that gritty East Bay strip in a California Sunset. The Bass was laid down by rad. Bass-Player Marc van Wageningen, whose “other” gig is Sheila E. and the guitar is strummed and plucked as usual by Mr. Ray Obiedo (formerly with Herbie Hancock and George Duke).

One can easily tell from the big orange clock ticking away on the cover of “Make Every Second Count”, that TIME is the quintessential factor of this record. The educated ear can detect rad.’s interesting use of unusual time signatures like 3/4 for funk tunes (Soucis en Grêve, Mean & Lean) or 4/4 patterns over a 7/8 groove (Cocoon). “Make Every Second Count” is a musical gem you don’t want to miss.