Let me properly set your expectations for “It’s a New Day”, the fourth collection from gifted musician, composer and producer Peter DuVal Lee “A Tour de Force”!!! Peter starts us off on “It’s a New Day” with “Crossroads”, setting the perfect mood with his signature multi-layered synthesizer and adding acoustic guitar work that combines a smooth, simple and clean approach with an intellectually complex melody that serves its purpose well as the introductory track for this collection. On “Listen”, Peter’s opening guitar work evokes feelings that are hard to put into words, but it moves us from its melancholy initiation to an “even” groove that serves its title and intent exceptionally well. For the title track, Peter lays bare for us a true and honest measure of his musical sensibilities, quietly driving us forward to the ultimate “space” he wants us to inhabit, as we contemplate both the beauty and promise of a new day. In accomplishing this musical feat, Peter uses his unique blend of bold, yet quiet, synthesizer work wrapped around an impressive mixture of acoustic lead and rhythm guitar playing that truly speaks to his desire that, “in the coming of a new day, there is hope and a belief that things will get better.” People may try to label Peter’s sound as “smooth jazz” or “alternative”, but I believe more than just a “genre or label” is needed to convey and ultimately appreciate the artistry, passion, genuine musicianship and intellectual honesty of the “aural journey” Peter wants us to take with him. From beginning to end, “It’s a New Day” accomplishes what I look for in great art, which was so eloquently characterized by Stanley Crouch as, “a refined and impassioned depiction of the presence and the power and the possibilities of the human spirit.” From beginning to end, “It’s a New Day” is the perfect elixir that can help you better understand what Stanley meant when you’re ready to kick back and relax at the end of a day, when you’re tired or blue, when you need an easy companion on a road trip, when you need that alone time with yourself, your spouse or your lover. When the sun is coming up over the horizon and you need to set your mood (figuratively and literally), just turn on “It’s a New Day” and you too will understand what both Stanley and Peter are trying to say “It’s a New Day”. Enjoy, Thomas Darden October 2006