Alan Goldberg – ‘CreateBecome’ [Album Review]

Austin-based progressive rock and jazz fusion composer Alan Goldberg recently released his fifth long player, CreateBecome, a musical, philosophical contemplation of living in the moment.

Goldberg explains, “CreateBecome is a forty-year-old mantra I use, and the title of my fifth album. Repeating CreateBecome over and over is a focus that I use to be purely in the moment. It’s also a perfect title for the eleven songs on this album. The songs are linked together by what I’ve learned in my life, through paying attention, making choices, and changing, hopefully growing.”

He goes on, “These eleven songs are a reflection of that cycle—creation, change, growth. Each track is a step forward, a moment of awareness, a choice made in sound. Woven together, they form a journey—one that unfolds through melody, movement, and emotion.”

Mixed and mastered by François Michaud, with final mastering by Elliot James Hulhern, CreateBecome features Goldberg (keyboards), Jake Naugle (drums), Marcus Goldberg (guitar), Mark Morgan (trumpet), Sebastián Greschuk (trumpet), Jeff Miguel, Jerry Branting, and Jack Parry on saxophone, and Tito Plana (trombone).

CreateBecome begins with “Unbroken Chain,” a gorgeously warm and elevating tune traveling on complex, interweaving harmonic layers. A lightly sparkling piano-laced bridge provides a softer, reflective interlude. After a second bridge, the melody takes on a bluesy Celtic flavor full of more intense energy.

Other highlights include “Createbecome (I. Receive II. Infuse III. Release),” a personal favorite because of its delicious blend of jazz and blues, and multiple hues of various brass colors – saxophones, trumpets, and trombone – combining to form lush sonic textures.

Alan Goldberg, photo courtesy of Alan Goldberg

The brief but beautiful “Through It All (Reprise)” features the twinkling charm of Goldberg’s piano, shaping a gentle, evocative lullaby-like tune. Whereas the swaying surfaces of “Wave Function Collapse” offer an ebbing and rising melody tinged with coruscating accents and flowing passages.

“I Don’t Know Why” closes the album with the feeling of searching expectancy and Goldberg’s exquisite gift on the piano, merging emotions with a palette of vibrant tones.

There’s a subtle grace, an indefinable elegance to CreateBecome, akin to a delicate reminder to cherish the magic of life.

CreateBecome Track Listing:

1. Unbroken Chain
2. Essential Innocence
3. Createbecome (I. Receive II. Infuse III. Release)
4. Chance Choice Change
5. Questions Like Blue Sky
6. Foolish Heart
7. On The Trail
8. Through It All (Reprise)
9. Grow Entangled
10. Wave Function Collapse
11. I Don’t Know Why

Run Time: 50:20
Release Date: March 10, 2025
Record Label: Independent