**Rob and the Soul Brother - "Show Some Luv"
(Smokey + Slave + Victor Wooten)
This two CD set contains what is probably the best Jazz CD I have heard so
far this year. The only problem is that it's hidden away and you have to dig
it out. On their website it says "Rob & Tha Soul Brother is ON A MISSION.
That mission is to bring back REAL MUSIC, in a modern form for people to
enjoy and to bring back the fun that goes along with it-the party sounding
music, the slow-jams-in-the-basement vibe, the block party sound, concerts!"
And they aren't kidding either. Disc 1 of the two CD set sounds like an "old
school house party in a box". Complete with foundation shaking funk jams in
the mode of Slave/P-Funk/Brick/Graham Central Station, etc. and basement
sweatbox style slow jams in the mode of the Miracles, just roll out Disc #1
and you have an instant party. Disc #2 is an exercise in the construction
and deconstruction of jazz designed for the people (not critics). For
example Disc #2 contains tributes to BOTH Victor Wooten "Loose Strings" and
Jaco Pastorius "JP". And dammit if Sandy Anderson (The Soul Brother") doesn't
sound EXACTLY LIKE VICTOR WOOTEN AND JACO PASTORIUS!!!!! It's also got a few
mellow cuts a' la George Benson. Disc 2 also includes some stank funky cuts
worthy of a "CTI fast song collection" (if such a thing ever were to exist).
Take the song "Cosmic Soul" for example, it sounds like a SUPER HOTT JAZZ
BAND playing FUNK at a house party in Harlem at midnight with the windows
open and the cops kept at bay? In effect Disc #1 of "Show Some Luv" is
"WWRL" and Disc #2 is "WRVR" (sorry for the NYC references..lol). So what's
the problem with this album? You can't tell what it is when you look at it.
When you look at the title and the album cover the first thing that comes to
mind is hip hop. But perhaps in the end that will be more of an opportunity
than a problem? Because maybe the way to get younger people to check out
music that is this good is to put it into a package that they will be
attracted to? I dunno, but if there is only one album that you are gonna buy
in 2006, MAKE THIS THE ONE YOU BUY (nuff said). Order it online at the
following websites:
http://www.robandthasoulbrother.com
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/ratsb
and if you don't like the CD, I'll buy it back from you.(sike)
**Christian Scott - Rewind That
(Jazz)
This is an outstanding album. It's a near perfect mixture of straight ahead
and fusion. I've been listening to and reviewing a whole bunch of Jazz over
the course of the last two months. This album is almost the best jazz album
I've heard in 2006. Christian Scott is a great trumpet player who sounds
like what Wynton Marsailis might have sounded like, had he not hated Miles
Davis so much. You wanna know how badd Christian Scott is? After you get the
CD in your hands, go immediately to track #4 and listen to his Funked up
version of "So What" and you will hear what I'm talking about. No he's not
trying to cover Miles Davis, instead he takes "So What" into a slightly
different direction. So in effect he's giving props to the master not by
challenging him, but instead trying to build on the foundation that the
master gave to him (there is a difference Mr. Marsallis!!). Now that you
have that little piece of work out of the way, put the CD player back to the
first track and listen all the way through. Listening from the beginning it
he reminds one of Weather Report with the title track, a monster jam
appropriately called "Rewind That", a groove which continues on the second
song called "Say It". Next up is a ballad called "Like This", which segues
nicely into "So What". So now you have heard "So What" twice and it's time
to open up the liner notes where it says: "he is an innovator of the highest
order, one whose innovation comes as a result of understanding the music's
past, present and future"." (Does this music sound like it belongs on
Soul-Patol or what???). I won't go on to describe each track but
fundamentally what Christian Scott does is take us back and forth between
the mad science of trumpet ballads and excursions to the ninth period of
FunkSchool. And yes, I do believe that "Miles is Smiling".
**Lenny Welch - It's All About Love
(Romantic Pop)
This is a great CD. You should simply buy it on my say so. It's the type of
album that doesn't get made anymore, because there aren't any radio outlets
for it anymore. Now let me correct what a few of you might already be
thinking and let you know that despite the fact that we are dealing with the
legendary singer Mr. Lenny Welch, this ain't no "oldies album" or a "trip
down memory lane. "It's All About Love" is an album of brand new pop music
that 20 years ago would have been found easily on an "adult contemporary
station" or perhaps even on a "quiet storm" radio format. It's not quite
jazz, quite R&B thus rendering such labels irrelevant. It is however "grown
folks music" and if you happen to be a "grown folk" who just wants to hear
some nice romantic ballads, sung by one of the most legendary voices of his
generation with some nice instrumental music playing in the background, then
this album is your ticket. Don't worry about what station on the radio you
are going to hear it on, I'm sure that the "experts" can't figure it out.
And somewhere I suspect that Mr. Lenny Welch is grinning from ear to ear,
because while the experts are busy trying to figure out what radio format to
place this album into, lovers around the corner and around the world won't
have a bit of trouble figuring out what to do with "It's All About Love".
**Eugene IV - "Starving Artist"
(Conscious Hip-Hop-Soul)
I wish that the media moguls who control the modern day rap music industry
would stop and take a few moments out of their busy day of de-constructing
the minds of our children and take a listen to the album "Starving Artist"
by Eugene IV. Maybe, just maybe if they would do that they would see the
error of their ways and start taking corrective action to make Amerikkka a
better place? As unlikely as that scenario is that is the world that you
should be prepared to enter when listening to this album. "Starving Artist"
is an album that belongs in another time and place. As you can tell from
song titles such as: "Declaration", "Bloodshed", "Changes", "Voices", "Mama
was a Freedom Rider", "Write On" this album is on a serious tip, far removed
from the world of bling, drive by shootings, drug dealing, etc. Eugene
doesn't avoid these issues, instead he discusses the need to move beyond
them and he does so in an articulate fashion. And unlike many other so
called "conscious rappers" manages to not utter a single profanity during
the entire 45 min of this album. Should you buy this album? Of course you
should. In fact buy two copies and give the second copy to a younger person
whose future you care about!
**Janis Siegel - "A Thousand Beautiful Things"
(Jazz-Pop-Latin)
This is a very good album from 1/4 of the enormously popular vocal group
formerly known as Manhattan Transfer. However I do think that someone was
looking closely at Bettye LaVette's CD when selecting the songs. The songs
on this album are written by folks like Suzanne Vega, Nellie McKay, Stevie
Wonder, Annie Lennox, Paul Simon, Bjork, Lizz Wright/Danilo Perez and Fred
Hersch/Norma Winstone. How about that for a "crack songwriting team"? Heck,
our good friend Marlon Saunders even shows up on background vocals. This
proves to be a winning strategy and it's all good for Janis Siegel, it's
good for Jazz and it's certainly good for Telarc Records. In that respect it's
kinda like Herbie Hancock's "Possibilities" as well. Yet with all of that
being said.
**Gwen McCrae - "Gwen McCrae Sings TK"
(Southern Soul-Funk-Disco-Jazz-Slow Jams-Kitchen Sink)
First things first, let me give you the track listing on this one.
Rockin Chair (w/Latimore)
Rock Your Baby
What You Won't Do For Love
Jazz Freak
Please Don't Go
Let's Straighten It Out
Keep It Comin Love (w/ KC)
Why Can't We Live Together (w/Timmy Thomas)
90% Of Me Is You
Clean Up Woman
Party Down
Misty Blue
Honey Honey (w/David Houston)
You Gotta Love Me, Like I Love Me (w/KC)
Rockin Chair
Now let me tell you what you are getting:
You are getting essentially the greatest hits of the legendary Southern
Soul-Funk-Disco-Jazz-Kitchen Sink label called "TK RECORDS" as interpreted
by the GREAT vocal stylings of the legendary Gwen McCrae, with equally
legendary former TK artists as "special guests" like KC, Timmy Thomas,
Latimore, Little Beaver and more. All under the direction of the legendary
former owner of the TK label, Mr. Henry Stone. I actually shouldn't have to
write anymore about this CD (however you know that I am going to..lol). This
CD is a must have for lovers of Classic Soul!! In some ways it's kinda like
a "manual version of the Motown Remixed CD" from last year. It's always a
risk when you mess around with classic songs, but this is a case where it
all works. These remakes by Gwen McCrae are especially tasty, because she is
accompanied by the original artists. For example take a listen to
"Straighten it Out", Gwen is singing her be-hind off and then suddenly out
of nowhere about midway thru the song, LATIMORE'S booming voice joins her
and it turns into a duet of cosmic proportions that almost makes you forget
about the original. Even you disco haters out there will dig Gwen's remake
of KC & the Sunshine Band's "Keep It Comin Love". The song is slowed down
just a tad, but with the same basic beat and horns, throw KC's voice in
there to lend some respect to the original and you end up with a smoking
funk jam. And then the song ends and you hear that super stank nasty
haunting organ that instantly signals the beginning of "Why Cant We Live
Together", realize that it's actually Timmy Thomas playing and singing
along with Gwen. I know everyone remembers and loves Sade's remake of "Why
Can't We Live Together", right? Well Gwen McCrae's version makes Sade's
version sound like it was sung by a little girl (Joss Stone Go Home).
"Party Down" (which is one of my all time favorite songs) starts off with a
spoken word intro by Gwen McCrae and then she gets into it (I'm assuming
with Little Beaver himself on Guitar coming in with that fantastic riff that
George Benson uses all of the time, but he doesn't do that "humming and
strumming part"...lol). You Gotta Love Me, Like I Love Me is a MONSTER slow
jam w/ KC and so on and so forth. So what more can I say, but "TAKE A TRIP,
YA BETTA GET HIP." (and buy this motha of an album whenever it becomes
available!!!)
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Bob Davis
earthjuice_at_prodigy.net
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Received on 2006-05-05 05:45:51