The music of West Virginia pianist Bob Thompson, active as a leader or sideman since the 1970s, ranges from electric and acoustic in a mostly dance-funk style to excellent modal jazz à la McCoy Tyner. In the late '80s Thompson also became house pianist for the Mountain Stage radio program, produced by West Virginia Public Broadcasting and widely distributed by National Public Radio. He recorded a number of albums for the Atlanta-based Ichiban label during the 1990s and into the 2000s while also establishing his own Colortones.com label for such releases as the 1998 holiday outing Joy to the World and the Bob Thompson Unit's Caught in the Act (1999), Homeland (2002), and Hit from the Git (2006). More Joy to the World and Bob Thompson "Live" on Mountain Stage followed on Colortones in 2007. ~ Michael G. Nastos