With four releases for his own, Maryland-based Positive Music under his guitar strap, guitarist Ken Navarro was ready to take his new project, Pride & Joy a step up the contemporary jazz ladder by spending more time on his compositions.

"I was really determined to make a big step forward," Navarro says of his latest effort "not only with the way the album represented my playing but also in the essence of the writing itself."

His previous albums The River Flows, After Dark, The Labor of Love, and last year's I Can't Complain all sold well for him, but it's Pride & Joy on which the music veteran, who was a studio musician for years (having backed up the likes of singer-actress Nell Carter. Doc Severinsen, and Dave Koz), has found his artistic bliss.

From the title track to such lighthearted, tender tunes as "Here for You" "Imperfect Things", "A Friend of Mine" and "Nothing Stays the Same," Navarro's compositions are easy going, heartfelt, and unpretentious. "This time I wrote about 20 pieces of music" he says sounding as if he can't believe he wrote so much "and then trimmed them down to what I thought were about 10 or 11 of the strongest things."

It took him 12 weeks to record and mix the record-not too long by his personal standards. "Spending a lot of time on a record can be both good and bad. But no matter what you do you're never really satisfied," he laughs. "But now that I've had a chance to pull away and hear the music I realize that it was worth it to spend the time that I spent with it.

Joining Navarro on Pride & Joy are his bandmates of five years: Mike Aubin, drums; Steve Zerlin acoustic bass; Gary Grainger, electric bass; Mike Tomaro, saxophones; Dan Reynolds, keyboards: and Jeff Hall, lead vocalist on the optimistic, anthem-like "Children Need a World."

Never one to be shy about injecting the r&b groove element into his music, Navarro displayed; his upbeat, in-the-pocket strengths on "lt's Cold Out There," a tune that reminds you of Larry Carlton (one of Navarro's influences) because of its bluesy, rock-laden feeling.

Then on "Stand Your Ground", a multi-layered track that starts off very quietly before building to a frenetic, intense ending, he shows his knack for fusing different elements into a song without being repetitive or monotonous.

His penchant for storytelling explains what he refers to as a "linear"' approach to composition. "From the composing standpoint, I really wanted to write songs that still had a song form to them," he says. "But they really had a sense of starting in one place and never returning there, as opposed to more of a circular way of writing that you would maybe compare more to pop songs." Navarro credits his love for the song form to listening to Jimi Hendrix. Eric Clapton, the Beatles, Crosby Stills & Nash, and Pat Metheny. These artists and their great arrangements really captivated him.

Confident and positive, like the name of his company, Navarro has a strong sense musical identity and is comfortable with the niche he has found in the mercurial music industry. "I feel like musically I've naturally arrived at a place where the timing is just right for what this (contemporary jazz) format of radio does," he points out. "I am not trying to be a contemporary jazz artist. I think that's what I am. No matter what other people are doing, I really believe that you still have to have the ability to close your eyes, jump in, and take chances." he says, sounding like a musical rebel.

"That's why I labored so hard on this album, because I wanted to know that at the very least I could say I did the best I could for where I am in my career in 1994," he summarizes. "No matter what happens I know I did that." After listening to Pride & Joy, you can't argue with Navarro's logic.

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