It’s really good to see LA cats who have been doing their thing for years in the underground get some shine off of Kendrick Lamar’s opus To Pimp A Butterfly. Having grown up submerged in the underground LA beat scene, which is oft dismissed as overrated, I had been hearing the contributors on TPAB for years. That isn’t to say how cool or forward-thinking I am or whatever, but it’s interesting to see what can make artists and producers who have been doing ingenious things for several years finally bubble up from the dermis of coverage-worthy music in any region.

Anyway, Terrace Martin was one of those producers on TPAB. He’s been doing dope shit since graduating from LA’s Locke High. First leaning more old-school boom-bap with sample driven production, he incorporated his expertise on the sax and never looked back, offering a slew of excellent mixtapes and albums since around 2004. As a sign of his versatility, he’s now producing albums for YG and Herbie Hancock at the same time.

Martin’s latest offering is the peanut-butter smooth jazz joint “Think Of You” taken from his upcoming album Velvet Portraits. He’s recruited fellow LA sax gawd Kamasi Washington and the soulful Rosegold for a meeting of the LA avant-garde. The dual saxes, Chris Cadenhead’s Fender Rhodes, intricate drum work, and other elements of the seven-piece arrangement combine exquisitely to recall the range of emotions that can be evoked simply by thinking of someone. This track is so effortlessly slick. Check it out.

Velvet Portraits is out 4/1 via Sounds of Crenshaw/Ropeadope. Pre-order is available here.