_{By McKinsleigh Smith}

With so much music in the Provo music scene, it’s easy to get sucked in and start listening to music in a bubble. It’s always great to see what awaits you in the broader world of sonic textures, and to find new recommendations that can inspire you to make music differently than you did before.

Today, we want to highlight “Country Stroll” by South African-born, American-raised guitarist Ari Joshua. Joshua is an accomplished instrumentalist and music educator. As the founder of The Music Factory, an online and brick and mortar school, he’s taught over 40,000 lessons in his career.

Anyone who lives in Provo, Utah knows that there’s a thriving R&B/Neo Soul scene here. BYU students are well aware of BYU’s accomplished jazz groups like Synthesis and Jazz Legacy. Anyone running in these circles is bound to appreciate Ari Joshua’s work, especially “Country Stroll.”

Featuring the talents of Billy Martin on drums and John Medeski on Electric Organ, “Country Stroll” is a breezy little number. It clocks in at three minutes and thirty seconds, and features a laid back groove, melodic chord changes – complete with some smart and SMOOTH modulations – and wonderful solos from each member of the group.

The tones are on point as well, infusing the piece with folksy, down-home whimsy. Will it revolutionize jazz as we know it? Not at all. But in a genre that is full of purists who are mired in tradition, with music that is becoming increasingly academic and inaccessible, this is a bright, chipper, and inoffensive tune that nearly anyone can enjoy.

If you like what you hear, follow Ari Joshua on Instagram. You can hear “Country Stroll” below.