Oklahoma-born guitarist Tuck Andress built his superb jazz technique pretty much on his own and got what he calls a graduate degree in soul music during a stint with the Gap Band. When he met Bay Area vocalist and songwriter Patti Cathcart at a 1978 audition, both knew within a few seconds that they had met their musical soulmates. Three years later they became marital soulmates too. Tuck & Patti released their first album on the crossover jazz label Windham Hill in 1988, and their dozen recordings since then have built an international following. Their music is a wonderful example of unity in diversity, with Patti's warm, folk-flavored love songs complemented by Tuck's incredible guitar work. "Patti writes and arranges; I am just the orchestra," Tuck says modestly. This duo, whose music hovers in spaces between jazz, R&B, and folk, draws you into their universe like few others.