His CD Displaced was received with warm reviews. Debut of the year", according to music magazine Mojo. And The Times thought: "an adventurous eclecticism…, resonant tunes, some rock dynamics and... a fine sense of swing mark this debut out as special." The media did wonder who this unknown jazz talent exactly was though… Neil Cowley and his energetic trio seemed to have materialized as if by magic. As so many pianists, Cowley was first exposed to classical music, before, as a teenager, making the switch to popular musical genres like rock and pop. For years he played keyboards in the best soul, dance and funk bands like The Brand New Heavies, Gabrielle and Zero 7. In 2002 he formed the chill-out formation Fragile State. With his jazz trio he's taken an entirely different course: gorgeously recalcitrant, adventurous and melodic jazz.
