David Leonhardt's energy and elegance quickly mark him as a New Yorker. Over the years he has played behind Jon Hendricks and David "Fathead" Newman and written for the likes of Benny Carter, Stanely Turrentine and Michelle Hendricks. On his first recording as a leader he proves a fine composer capable of swinging waltzes and sambas as well as sturdy dramatic ballads like "Off Nite in Brooklyn" and shimering hard bop lines like "Do It!". He's got solid company in Eddie Henderson, Robin Eubanks, and Smitty Smith to bring body to his work, but Leonhardt also holds his own as a musician. He has a sensitivity and ease with both rich balladry and spry uptempo playing that puts him in the same country as masters such as Kenny Barron and Roland Hanna. His lustrous drifiting through "Out of Nowhere" and dreamy moods on "How Insensitive" are signs of a major player. He even plays cute games with "Me and My Shadow" with Brubeck-style block chording.