Peter White is one of those rare artists whose unique sound and natural, unpretentious musical vision encapsulate all the charm, appeal, and excitement of his genre. However one chooses to label that style – new adult contemporary, contemporary jazz, pop instrumental – the English-born acoustic guitarist has struck rare chords, artistically, commercially, and emotionally, in becoming a melodic mainstay at the top of every radio airplay and sales chart known to soulful, smooth jazz since launching his solo career in 1990 with reveillez-vous. White's similarly warmhearted, instantly infectious Columbia debut Caravan of Dreams continues in the R&B vein of his previous two discs (1993's Promenade and 1994's Reflections), focusing on his trademark breezes while texturing street-smart synth grooves with a free-spirited all-star ensemble to create a whimsical musical travelog.

For his tenth full-length album, Playin' Favourites, British smooth jazz giant Peter White decided to, as the title suggests, turn to some of his favorite tracks from the '60s, '70s, and '80s, giving each of them his own interpretation (he did a similar thing in 1994's Reflections). Working with longtime producer Paul Brown, as well as musicians Boney James, Rick Braun, and Dave Camp, among others, White successfully turns the 11 songs on Playin' Favourites into instant crossover jazz hits. Mainly this means adding horns and keyboards to the background while the guitarist lithely moves around from the melody into lush improvisationally based solos, rendering them much slicker and smoother than they were before (although granted, he didn't have to do much to turn Bacharach's James Bond classic "The Look of Love" into something so adult contemporary).