Reviewed by John Daniels

An album of eight tracks which describe themselves accurately as “a unique blend of classical and jazz piano”. ‘Eternal Devotion’ features arrangements of hymn and chorus tunes improvised on the piano during a recording session at ICC’s Eastbourne studios last year. The album acts as a showpiece for the performing and writing talents of Robert Baker, a language teacher and would-be session musician who’s a member of Ampthill Baptist Church. He’s at his best when at the classical end of his chosen spectrum, and when he avoids being too Claydermanesque, which he only just manages to avoid in the opening track “Crown Him”. “Jazz Medley” is fun with a touch of beer and skittles about it, but the discordant counterpoint of “African Medley” didn’t work for me, I lost the thread and ended up playing a mental game of “name that chorus”. The strengths of this collection are in the quieter and more meditative tracks like “Via Dolorosa” and the beautiful “In The Still Of This Hour”. Perhaps it’s because I had no preconceptions about them, but it’s Baker’s own compositions that stand out for me – the full-blooded “More Than Conquerors” and the more reflective title track “Eternal Devotion”.

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