A Note on "Almost Off the Dial": Pop Music With Free Will The great drummer, Shelly Manne, talking about a session with the even greater pianist, Bill Evans, said of jazz musicians that they "should not play anything just for effect, but search for good sound, beauty, taste and an honest overall musical approach, using technique for musical ends alone, always thinking of the group sound and playing naturally. And, of course, in jazz the swing must be there." And our fine contemporary pianist, Bill Charlap, has said that one of the many things he learned from Tony Bennett was to heed the lyric of a song, even if the performance were without a vocalist, and to play the passion and the feel of the lyric in the music. We hope that this record sounds like we took both admonitions to heart. We do know that the David Walters Trio is made up of musicians who search for good sound, beauty, taste and honesty in their musical approach. We can hope that the vocal and lyrical content of this recording does justice to the Trio's playing. We have absolutely no doubt that these sessions swing. Some may call us presumptuous or out of our depth to have tried our hands at jazz. Still, at its heart, jazz, at least the jazz of standards, is pop music brought into new light and attitude, with its original form loosened or shaken up to see where it might go if it were possessed of something like free will and the uprushing joy of seemingly infinite choice. We can claim, we think, to understand a little about pop music. We have to hope that we've been honest, musically and lyrically, about this project. And we have absolutely no doubt that these sessions swing. And that, in the end, gives us the heady nerve to let you hear it. We think you're gonna dig it. Kathy and David Tugman Kathy Tugman and the David Walters Trio With her new album, "Almost Off the Dial," Kathy Tugman adds the laurel of "jazz singer" to her other achievements. As a pop artist, she has performed, and released two albums, with her group, DaHouse Band. With the Band and others, she has made an album of Christmas music ("The Garland and the Silver Star"), which has become a seasonal tradition in itself. On her own, Kathy has recorded a record of lullabies ("And Then I Dreamt..."), which is establishing a tradition of its own. Kathy has sung choral music and plays guitar and keyboards, but on "Almost Off the Dial," which is her seventh release, she has the luxury of concentrating on her singing and leaving the playing to a group of fine musicians. That group is led by David Walters, a pianist as adept at classical music as he is at jazz. David is a professor of both forms at Cadek Conservatory and at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. He performs classical recitals and, in addition to solo and duo jazz work, has led the Trio for many years. As a jazz player, his touch is lyrical and perceptive. The rhythm section of the Trio is all that fans of the great piano trios could want. Gordy Nichol, on bass, is also an accomplished pedal steel player and has played both instruments widely in many genres, including the "Always Patsy Cline" show. Jo Whitaker, on drums, has served as tub doctor with the progressive rock band, Somnambulist (which has received world-wide praise for its initial release), with R & B bands and with Kathy's DaHouse Band.