NEW RELEASES

Once artists have firmly established a style, they often have difficulty going beyond it into fresh turf. Horace Silver and David Sanborn are two such musicians but, as shown by the albums that kick off this set of new releases, they keep making solid recordings.

DAVID SANBORN; “Hearsay”; Elektra ; * * *

Jazz fans have all but gotten on their knees and begged Sanborn--never less than a compelling and sassy blues-R&B; soloist since his arrival with Paul Butterfield’s band in the late ‘60s--to stretch and take on more challenging material.

Here, he does it--sort of. “Savanna” is a back-beat cousin of Miles Davis’ “So What” and Sanborn glides, his trademark sound--a squished, compressed tone that comes across both agonized and exhilarated--stating chattering, muscular lines, and full, brazen sweeps. Then there’s “Jaws,” which has the same sharp bite that marked many of the trumpeter’s latter-day funk stuff, and “The Long Goodbye,” which sways between a heartfelt ballad and a searing-toned barn burner.

Other tunes, such as Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up,” don’t quite have that head-turner snap to make them memorable. Throughout, though, bassist Marcus Miller, Sanborn’s producer for years, provides the saxophonist with an ocean of supporting sounds, from Rickey Peterson’s oozing organ whammy and Don Alias’ simmering conga slaps to Miller’s own powerful, surging bass lines.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good, recommended), four stars (excellent).