''The year of the vibes'' might be another shorthand way of looking at 2024 so far with so many quality releases featuring the instrument - including Joel Ross' Nublues, Live Edge and Steve Nelson's Closing Time, Cloudmakers Trio with Leo Genovese's A Drop of Hope in the Cloud of Uncertainty and more. And now another master Stefon Harris enters the fray with a recording every bit as good as all of the above delivered in its own sweet way.

The first Sonic Creed volume had vocals from Jean Baylor. Six years on from that first instalment that saw the Bobby Hutcherson mentored US vibist Harris, now 51 - a former member of the SF Jazz Collective whose own records go back to his Blue Note debut A Cloud of Red Dust in the late-1990s - with players like Terreon Gully and Casey Benjamin both on this new recording. Saxist Benjamin sadly died earlier this year aged just 45. Also back are the Methenyian James Francies and Terence Blanchard bassist Joshua Crumbly. The earlier album was more soul-jazz flavoured with tips of the hat to Bobby Timmons and Horace Silver key.

This time around this latest on Motéma - the Jana Herzen founded Harlem indie jazz label who first broke the phenomenon that is Gregory Porter - Harris' vibes & marimba tender tour de force arrangement of Stevie Wonder's T.O.N.T.O. synth flavoured 'You and I (We Can Conquer the World)' from 1972's Talking Book covered in recent years to Grammy winning acclaim by Jacob Collier is a big draw.

And Harris original 'I Know Love' among the tunes also resonates with us. Featured players include swinging violin icon Regina Carter, guitarist Mike Moreno and the defining jazz flautist of her generation - Elena Pinderhughes. There's an appealingly ''woody'' flavour to opener 'Life Signs' while 'Flood of Truth' flavoured by Carter is more open ended and texturally very different. And there's so much optimism in beautifully arranged 'The Devil in the Details' that has Moreno on it. Heartfelt and at times romantic best tracks are the languorously measured cover of the Stevie classic and the wraparound warmth you gain from 'I Know Love' would light up a very large town.