Aretha Franklin "Ain't No Way"

From her 1968 record "Lady Soul", here is Aretha Franklin performing the song "Ain't No Way".

Skip's Spotify Sunday 8-30-20

Steve Grossman "Quartet" (with Michael Petrucciani)

 

(feat. Michael Petrucciani: piano)

 

1. Ebb Tide

2. Inner Circle

3. Parisian Welcome

4. Song For My Mother

5. You Go To My Head (Billie Holiday jazz standard cover)

6. Body And Soul (Johnny Green & Edward Heyman jazz standard cover)

7. Why Don't I

8. Don't Blame Me

9. Theme For Ernie

10. In A Sentimental Mood (Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, & Manny Kurtz jazz standard cover)

 

Steve Grossman "3 Original Album Classics"

 

1. Cherokee (Ray Noble jazz standard cover)

2. Let's Call This

3. I'll Keep Loving You

4. Let's Monk

5. The More I See You

6. Oblivion

7. Dance of the Infidels

8. Soultrane

9. Chi Chi

10. Why Don't I (feat. The Cedar Walton Trio)

11. Body and Soul (feat. The Cedar Walton Trio)

12. There's A Small Hotel (feat. The Cedar Walton Trio)

13. Let's Cool One

14. Ceora

15. Someday My Prince Will Come (Miles Davis cover) (Cedar Walton Trio)

16. Blues For Francis (Cedar Walton Trio)

17. Nicoletta (Cedar Walton Trio)

18. Lady Bird (Cedar Walton Trio)

19. Monk's Mood (Cedar Walton Trio)

20. Ebb Tide

21. Inner Circle

22. Song for My Mother

23. Parisian Welcome

24. You Go To My Head

25. Body & Soul

26. Why Don't I

27. Don't Blame Me

28. Theme For Ernie

29. In A Sentimental Mood (Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, & Manny Kurtz jazz standard cover)

 

Martin Sasse & Steve Grossman "Take the "D" Train"

 

(feat. Martin Sasse: piano, & Steve Grossman: tenor saxophone)

 

1. Angelica

2. In A Sentimental Mood (Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, & Manny Kurtz jazz standard cover)

3. Like Someone in Love (Johnny Burke & Jimmy van Heusen jazz standard cover)

4. New Moon

5. Nicolette

6. Stable Mates

7. Take the Coltrane

8. Take the "D" Train

9. Wabash

Steve Grossman "Terra Firma"

 

1. Katonah

2. In It

3. 37 Willoughby Place

4. Enya

5. Inmate Man

6. Relentless Lady

7. This Way Out

Steve Grossman "Some Shapes To Come"

1. WBAI

2. Haresah

3. Zulu Stomp

4. Extemporaneous Combustion

5. Alodian Mode

6. Pressure Point

7. The Sixth Sense

Record Collection Revisited: Joe Beck & David Sanborn

Passion, is the word that can be used to describe the music of jazz/jazz fusion guitarist, Joe Beck, and this passion is put right out, poured out in his 1975 record "Beck", a few of the tracks which have already been shared in audio/video form here on the blog.  This particular record has been revised in it's title, to include the credits of alto saxophone legend, David Sanborn, who's equally intense playing style is showcased along with Beck on the recording, taking his sax playing to the soaring heights of the pop jazz success he'd have in the 1980s and '90s, and showing it in a major way, after an earlier effort in which he played in the horn section for the Paul Butterfield Blues Band at their performance at the Woodstock Festival in 1969.  

Six years later, he would collaborate with Joe Beck, a man who had tried his hand at playing alongside other artists, and for whatever reason, it just didn't quite work out for him, being a sideman to other jazz stars, most notably, Miles Davis.  Of these dates, and the music business, he was quoted as saying, "the gigs I played with Miles, were awful.  Just the worst.  I absolutely hated them."  Beck had worked in New York in the music business between 1963 and 1970, doing a lot of jingles for TV commercials, and at some point he just got so frustrated and wasn't going anywhere, he said, "forget it.  I quit."  Of this time period away from the music biz, he said, "I just went away for about three years, going to milk cows for a living."

By 1975, he came back, with a renewed vigor, and recorded this masterful record, "Beck" then of course, renamed "Beck & Sanborn" to note David's brilliant alto sax contribution.  The rest of the band on this record, and the production/engineering staff, are stellar industry veterans as well.  Creed Taylor, founder and producer at CTI Records, produced the album.  Rudy Van Gelder recorded and engineered the record at his namesake studio in New York City.  A number of band members contributed compositions to the record.  Most notably, Joe Beck himself, keyboardist Don Grolnick, and Gene Dinwiddle, a composer and tenor saxophonist who, though he did not play on the record, still had writing credits.

The man who brought all of this together, was producer for CTI Records, his namesake jazz label, Creed Taylor.  Other artists on his label at the time, are legends in their own right, who recorded with Taylor at the helm.  Artists such as George Benson, Stanley Turrentine, Hank Crawford, Hubert Laws, Freddie Hubbard, Johnny Hammond, Ron Carter, and a duo record featuring the talents of both Chet Baker and Gerry Mulligan, from a concert at Carnegie Hall.

Back to the Beck/Sanborn project.  A whole bunch of great musicians are in the backing band here, that Taylor as the producer, surely had in mind.  There's a whole string section of violins and cellos, and there names will come at the credits towards the end of the review.  The main band centers around Joe Beck on lead guitar, Steve Khan on rhythm guitar, David Sanborn on alto sax, Don Grolnick on keyboards (predominantly, beautifully played parts on a Rhodes electric piano with a phaser pedal), Will Lee on bass, and on drums and percussion, Chris Parker and Ray Mantilla respectively.  

Ray Mantilla, of course, would go on to have the band Space Station, featuring another sax legend, the late, great, Steve Grossman on tenor.  But, you've seen that if you've checked out the most recent Spotify Sunday listing.  The Beck & Sanborn record is so well recorded.  Taylor and van Gelder along with the musicians on the sessions knew what they wanted to do.  This reissue recording also includes two unreleased tracks that didn't make the cut for the original 1975 recording, as this reissue was released for the CTI on CD series.

Of course, the 1975 original would have been on LP record, and on two sides.  All of the tunes stand out, but the CD reissue includes two cuts that weren't on the original LP, the funky, "Ain't It Good" and and uptempo, "Spoon's Theme".  The highlights on the record as it was originally are track two, "Cactus" later covered by funk/jazz guitar standout, Hiram Bullock, with his own great rendition in the '80s, the bluesy lament "Texas Ann", and "Red Eye".  "Red Eye" is a personal favorite track on the recording, with equal parts laid back, chill out mellowness, and a joyfully ascending chorus.  Beck's guitar, Sanborn's sax, and Grolnick's Rhodes meld together to tell a story or paint a vivid musical portrait.

That said, there are no real central focal points for tracks on this recording.  It is one of those where you turn it on and just immerse yourself in it.  It's what an album should be, no matter the kind of music.  Every track is a jewel, with something to offer.  A great intro as well, for those who have yet to hear of David Sanborn's work, even though his career has lasted now for well over five decades.  Joe Beck died in 2008 of lung cancer, and he made sporadic recordings after this one, including a live 1980 record with Red Mitchell, "Empathy" that was listed in the Spotify Sunday catalog dedicated to his music.

But, it is "Beck & Sanborn" that is his defining work, that has stood the test of time, for 45 years.  

The track listing:

1. Star Fire

2. Cactus

3. Texas Ann

4. Red Eye

5. Cafe Black Rose

6. Brothers And Others

7. Ain't It Good*

8. Spoon's Theme*

 

*Bonus Tracks on CD reissue not on the original 1975 LP.

 

Album Credits:

 

Producer: Creed Taylor

Engineer: Rudy van Gelder

String Arrangements: Don Sebesky

Reissue Producer: Didier C. Deutsch

Reissue Engineer: Tim Geelan

 

Produced & Engineered (reissue) at CBS Studios, New York

 

Band lineup:

 

Joe Beck: lead guitar

Steve Khan: rhythm guitar

David Sanborn: alto saxophone

Don Grolnick: keyboards (Rhodes piano, piano)

Will Lee: bass

Chris Parker: drums

Ray Mantilla: percussion

 

String section;

 

Violins: Fredrick Buldrini, Harry Cykman, Peter Dimitriades, Max Ellen, Harold Kohon, Charles Libove, Harry Lookofsky, Joe Malin, & David Nadien

 

Cellos: 

Jesse Levy, Charles McCracken, & George Ricci

Katsumi Horii “The Way I Feel” (1989)

Another recording from the Katsumi Horii Project for Full Album Friday.  This is their 1989 record "The Way I Feel".  

The production credits and band lineup are as follows.

Production credits:

Executive Producer: Hirotomi Yamaguchi

Producer, Arranger, Composer: Katsumi Horii

Design: Masayuki Yano

 

Musicians:

 

Drums: Atsumo Okamoto, Masaharu Ishikawa, Tohru "Rika" Suzuki

Percussion: Masato Kawase

Bass: Yosihiro Naruse

Guitar: Hirokuni Korekata

Keyboards & synthesizers: Hiroyuki Namba, Minoru Mukaiya, Nobuo Karata, Soichi Noriki, Yuzo Hayashi, Hideyuki Hayashi, Keichi Gotoh, & Yasushi Morimoto

Strings: Masatsugu Shinozaki & Stephany Angel

Saxiophone: Hidefumi Toki & Toshiyuki Honda

Trumpet:  Shin Kazuhara

 

The track listing:

 

1. Candlelight After The Silence

2. Elisa Street

3. Avenue

4. Alone At Last, And Then

5. Eternal Moment

6. Warm Day, Isn't It?

7. Met's Motel

8. Alone, At Last

9. Break Water

10. Boston House

 

Jeff Beck (feat. Eric Clapton) “Little Brown Bird”

From his 2009 CD and DVD “Performing This Week... Live at Ronnie Scott’s jazz club in London, here’s Jeff Beck, with special guest, Eric Clapton, playing Muddy Waters’ “Little Brown Bird”.

Take 5 With Lonnie Johnson Parts 1 & 2

From Ron Weinstock's blog In A Blue Mood, a look at some great recordings from blues man Lonnie Johnson. Part one of this series looks at Johnson's own recordings.

 

http://inabluemood.blogspot.com/2020/08/take-5-with-lonnie-johnson.html

 

Part two of the series, delves into recordings that Johnson playing as a sideman to other musicians, including blues and jazz players.  Louis Armstrong, Eddie Lang, Clara Smith, Victoria Spivey, and Texas Alexander.

http://inabluemood.blogspot.com/2020/08/take-5-with-lonnie-johnson_21.html

Wayne Shorter "Footprints"

Happy Birthday, Wayne Shorter!  From Wayne's 1967 record "Adam's Apple", here is the tune "Footprints".  The band lineup for this particular piece features:

Wayne Shorter: tenor saxophone

Herbie Hancock: piano

Reggie Workman: bass

Joe Chambers: drums 

Gov’t Mule “I’ll Be The One”

Gov't Mule playing their song "I'll Be The One" with subtle reference to "Blue Sky" from The Allman Brothers Band's "Eat A Peach" record all over it, performed at Sloss Furnace in Birmingham, Alabama, on July 22nd, 2010.

Skip's Spotify Sunday 8-23-20

Steve Grossman "My Second Prime"

1. Extemporeaneous

2. Gipsy

3. New York Bossa

4. Christmas Song

5. Disconnection

6. C.T.A.

 

Steve Grossman "Live at Cafe Praga"

 

1. Blues Walk (Clifford Brown cover)

2. Ruby, My Dear (Thelonius Monk cover)

3. Time Was 

4. When I Fall In Love (Edward Heyman & Victor Young standard originally performed by Nat King Cole)

5. Ray's Idea (Ray Brown & Dizzy Gillespie cover)

 

Steve Grossman (feat. McCoy Tyner, Avery Sharp, & Art Taylor) "In New York"

 

Steve Grossman: tenor saxophone, McCoy Tyner: piano, Avery Sharp: bass, & Art Taylor: drums

1. Speak Low (Ogden Nash & Kurt Weill standard)

2. My Ship (George Gershwin & Kurt Weill standard)

3. Softly As In A Morning Sunrise (Oscar Hammerstein & Sigmund Romberg song)

4. Impressions (John Coltrane cover)

5. Over The Rainbow (Harold Arlen & Edgar Harburg standard)

6. Love For Sale

7. Good Bait (Count Basie & Tad Dameron cover)

Steve Grossman (feat. Barry Harris, Arthur Taylor, & Reggie Johnson) "Do It"

Steve Grossman: tenor saxophone, Barry Harris: piano, Reggie Johnson: double bass, & Arthur Taylor: drums

1. Cherokee (Ray Noble jazz standard)

2. Let's Call This

3. I'll Keep Loving You

4. Let's Monk

5. The More I See You

6. Oblivion

7. Dance of The Infidels

8. Soultrane

9. Chi Chi

Steve Grossman "Way Out East Vol. 1"

 

Steve Grossman: tenor saxophone, Junie Booth: double bass, & Joe Chambers: drums

1. Bye Bye Blackbird (Mort Dixon & Ray Henderson jazz standard)

2. On Green Dolphin Street (Bronislaw Kaper & Ned Washington jazz standard)

3. I'll Remember April (Gene DePaul, Patricia Johnston, & Don Raye jazz standard)

4. Taurus People

5. Star Eyes (Gene DePaul & Don Raye jazz standard)

6. There'll Never Be Another You (Mack Gordon & Harry Warren jazz standard)

7. This Time The Dream's On Me (Harold Arlen & Johnny Mercer composition)

8. Four (Miles Davis cover)

Steve Grossman "Way Out East Vol. 2"

 

Steve Grossman: tenor saxophone, Junie Booth: double bass, & Joe Chambers: drums

 

1. Out of Nowhere (Johnny Green & Edward Heyman composition)

2. Body and Soul (Coleman Hawkins jazz standard cover)

3. Trane's Slow Blues

4. Soultrane (Tadd Dameron cover)

5. Like Someone In Love (Johnny Burke & James Van Heusen cover)

6. Mr. Sandman (Pat Ballard cover)

 

Steve Grossman & The Cedar Walton Trio "A Small Hotel"

 

Steve Grossman: tenor saxophone, Cedar Walton: piano, David Williams: bass, & Billy Higgins: drums

1. Why Don't I

2. Body and Soul

3. There's A Small Hotel

4. Let's Cool One

5. Ceora

6. Someday My Prince Will Come

7. Blues For Francis

8. Nicoletta

9. Lady Bird

10. Monk's Mood

Ray Mantilla Space Station (feat. Steve Grossman) "Synergy"

1. Caminos De Macchu Picchu

2. Paisaje

3. Star Eyes (Gene De Paul and Don Raye jazz standard cover)

4. Synergy

5. Brother Ray

6. Eronel

7. Laye

Steve Grossman "Time To Smile"

(feat. Elvin Jones, Tom Harrell, Willy Pickens, & Cecil McBee)

Steve Grossman: tenor saxophone, Tom Harrell: trumpet & flugelhorn, Cecil McBee: bass, & Elvin Jones: drums

 

Recorded in New York City on February 12th, 1993.

1. 415 Central Park West

2. Circus

3. I'm Confessin'

4. Extemporaneous

5. This Time The Dream's On Me

6. Time To Smile

7. Till There Was You

8. E.J.'s Blues

Steve Grossman "Love Is The Thing"

Steve Grossman: tenor saxophone, Cedar Walton: piano, David Williams: bass, Billy Higgins: drums

1. Naima (John Coltrane jazz standard cover)

2. Easy To Love (Cole Porter jazz standard cover)

3. My Old Flame (Sam Coslow & Arthur Johnston jazz standard cover)

4. Easy Leaving

5. I Didn't Know What Time It Was (Lorenz Hart & Richard Rodgers standard cover)

6. 415 Central Park West

7. What's New (Johnny Burke & Bob Haggart jazz standard cover)

 

 

 

 

Ray Mantilla Space Station (feat. Steve Grossman) "Synergy"

The title track from their 1994 record of the same name, recently featured in a Spotify Sunday to honor the legacy and memory of Steve Grossman on tenor saxophone, after his passing.  Here's Ray Mantilla's Space Station with the fourth cut on the record.  This is the title tune composed by Ray Mantilla, and it's "Synergy".  This one mainly features Ray Mantilla on percussion.  A few more tracks from this album will be posted, so stay tuned for that.

 

 

Katsumi Horii Project "Ocean Drive" (1988)

Another Full Album Friday, and another recording from the Katsumi Horii Project.  This one, with Katsumi Horii as producer, is from 1988 and is called "Ocean Drive".  The band lineup is:

Katsumi Horii: Producer/Arranger/Composer 

Masahiro Ohji: Co-Producer

Hirotomi Yamaguchi: Executive Producer

Keyboards & Synthesizers: Hiroyuki Namba, Minoru Mukaiya, Nobuo Kurata, Soichi, Noriki, Yuzo Hayashi, Hideyuki Hayashi, Keichi Gotoh, & Yasushi Morimoto

Guitar: Hirokuni Korekata

Strings: Matsatsugu Shinazaki, Stephany Angel

Harp: Nobuo Yagi

Drums: Atsuo Okamoto, Masaharu Ishikawa, Tohru "Rika", Suzuki

Percussion: Eiji Narushima, Masato Kawase

Saxophone: Hidefumi Toki, Masahiro Fujioka, Toshiyuki Honda

Trumpet: Shin Kazuhara

 

The track listing is:

1. Cruising Boy

2. Elisa Street

3. Go Away Anywhere

4. Hot Corner

5. House of Peninsula

6. Breakwater

7. Through The Sky

8. Jungle of Heaven

9. Alone at Last, And Then