This album began with a fun little reggae tune song Joss Jaffe and I wrote in the spring of 2017. I penned some lyrics and Joss shaped arranged the reggae groove. I realized we needed an album to go with the song! It just so happens that I had a band for twenty years called Dreamtime Continuum in Santa Barbara and a trove of unrecorded material, especially from late night sets. Twelve songs later Shape Shifting Jaguar was born! It really is a journey that begins ecstatically for an extended run of songs. The first eight songs have a kind of upbeat solar arc.

The album opens with the optimistic anthem of our "unconditional" heart "Somebody Needs Love". It segues into the energetic 6/8 African high life piece "Aiko and Beyond" featuring the indigenous vocals of Ali Baba from Mali, and the soaring silver fluted jazz of Rebecca Kleinmann. Philippo Franchini's high life electric guitar playing is authentic and lyrical.

"Just Being Me", track three, follows with its sitar inflected joy and enlightening directives! "Sea Change", track four, is an urgent anthem of consciousness for the planet's condition.

"Buddha's Bliss", track five, is the closest thing to kirtan on the album with its "Om Mani Padme Hum" chant chorus, but with a psychedelic funk groove! "Bonobos", track six, is a smooth jazz jungle piece that has you skimming across treetops with a Caribbean/Latin feel!

After Bonobos, the acoustic 12-string guitar piece entitled "Bardo" begins the more introspective arc of the CD. "Buddha's Blues" is a kind of ode to our pain body and the prevalence of suffering!

"Samadhi", track nine, is a meditation poem I wrote featuring the home made electric "trode" of Montino Bourbon and Joss Jaffe's tabla playing.

While track ten "The Phi of I" is an all vocal anthem of cosmic inquiry, the title cut track eleven, "Shape Shifting Jaguar" is a kind of radio-telescope download answer from the galaxy. You'll hear what I mean! The finale, track twelve, "Purrfection" is my cat Nun's prodigious purring in the key of Bb put to sensitive music! A first perhaps! We have also made a separate CD, a 44 minute version, recorded in real time, also called "Purrfection"!

For more about Sudama’s Healing Work: www.sudama.com