And& Denmark Vinyl & CDs

Review: South London's Randy Valentine links with Walshy Fire and CHLLNGR - aka Copenhagen's Steven Jess Borth II - on Be The Good People, a seven-track patchwork of roots wisdom, warm-blooded instrumentation and cosmopolitan intent. Pulled together across three continents, the record stirs in horns, tape fuzz and soul harmonies, with a rotating crew including Morten McCoy, Jonathan Bremer, Rumpistol, Mikkel Hess and others from Denmark's deep jazz bench. Valentine, raised in Clarendon and known for sharp lyrical clarity and rich phrasing, stretches out here, less frontman than co-conspirator. Borth and Fire steer things loosely, with the mood swinging from meditative to open-armed. "Be the good people," as Valentine puts it, "before you be the great."