While the drum set is my main instrument, I also play a little guitar, bass, and piano. When I say “a little,” I really mean just barely above the threshold for knowing how to make half-decent sounds come out of them. I’ve done some songwriting too, but every time I try to bring some of my songs to band practice, I usually wish I hadn’t. My songwriting skills are considerably lower than my ability to play drums, so I’m better off leaving it to someone else in the band more often than not.

It’s not easy to play multiple instruments, but it’s exponentially harder to play multiple instruments at a similar high skill level. For example, Paul McCartney is one of the greatest musicians of the last century, and he can play almost any instrument he picks up, but when he records, he still has his full band in the studio. Does he need anyone else to play guitar on his records? No! He was a multi-instrumentalist in the most legendary band in rock history, but he brings in Brian Ray to play guitar in the studio anyway.

All of this is to underscore how impressive it is that Lenny Kravitz plays nearly every instrument on “5,” and he’s mastered every one of them. It’s reminiscent of Stevie Wonder, who is clearly one of his primary influences, along with Sly Stone, Prince, and James Brown. Usually, when a solo artist puts out an album, I wonder how much of it was their own work and how much was created by a producer or an uncredited backing band. On “5,” there’s no doubt, and even though Kravitz is known as a guitarist, it’s his work on bass that really shines on the funk rock tracks.

As is often the case, one of my least favorite songs on the album is the massive hit. “Fly Away” is an enduring classic that could be the background to commercials for gigantic SUVs irreverently plowing through mud puddles, but I was never moved by it, even before I had heard it 10,000 times. It’s the reason why “5” sold millions of copies, but the best songs on the album are the funk and soul-influenced “Live,” “Supersoulfighter,” “If You Can’t Say No,” and “Straight Cold Player.”

This is only the second issue of JCJ, but “5” validated my personal goal for the project. I probably would never have listened to the album ever again if I didn't give myself a reason, but I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Even if I wasn't writing a newsletter about it, that makes it all worthwhile. This is the first of countless more CDs that will surpass my expectations and have me bopping my head.

This album sold well and got plenty of airplay everywhere, but especially in Central Europe and Scandinavia. It reached #1 on the charts in Austria and #3 in Sweden and Switzerland. This month, he’s playing shows in Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Germany, and Slovakia. I’ve never seen him live, but I’m sure he has a backing band. While he can play any instrument, playing them all at the same time would really be something special.