by Alex HendersonFor George Howard, Midnight Mood is business as usual, and not in a good sense. This predictable CD found the saxophonist (who's heard mostly on soprano) once again resorting to the worn-out pop\u002Furban contemporary\u002Fjazz formula that had grown incredibly tiresome by 1985 and wasn't sounding any better in 1998. From the vacuous, knee-jerk elevator music of Still In Love and Within Your Eyes to a robotic cover of D'Angelo's R&B hit Smooth, Howard sees to it that every note is in place and is careful to avoid any type of spontaneity. The album does contain a few decent cuts, including the haunting Africa and the sexy Find Your Way (which features R&B singer Marva King). But on the whole, Midnight Mood is the work of someone much more interested in selling CDs than saying anything meaningful on his horn.