Bob Baldwin - It's Okay to Dream

Styles: Smooth Jazz
Size: 154,2 MB
Time: 66:44
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2024
Art: Front

1. Cape Town At Night (7:33)
2. Turn Up the Positive (5:30)
3. That One (6:48)
4. My Will (4:44)
5. Malema, Pt. 1 (6:56)
6. Malema, Pt. 2 (2:31)
7. Dreamin the Dream (6:13)
8. I'm Good (Thanks for Asking) (5:39)
9. Get the Love (5:46)
10. Complicit (5:53)
11. It's Okay to Dream (5:17)
12. 'Til We Meet Again (3:51)

The second album that jazz keyboard player Bob Baldwin released on June 28 is a contemporary album. Baldwin describes “It’s Okay to Dream” as “a contemporary playlist of thoughts and dreams.”

Crafted from a toolbox of R&B, soul, funk, jazz, house music, Latin American and South African rhythms and melodies, the album was previewed earlier this year with the invigorating single 'I'm Good (Thanks for Asking)'.

The second single, 'Turn Up The Positive', followed on June 17, collecting playlist additions. Baldwin wrote the entire album, revisiting one of his 1980s songs, ‘Get the Love’, and finding inspiration from his wife (‘That One’) and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ('Dreamin' the Dream'). He offers authentic South African culture on 'Malema' and 'Cape Town at Night', which were co-written by Mozambican artist Jimmy Dludlu and performed by Dludlu's band members.

“Some of the music for the album was written in a dream. I hope the playlist takes you to a peaceful place where you can hear your beautiful voice, beyond the busy hustle and bustle of your own existence. This music is exactly what you need at the perfect time,” said Baldwin who just completed a concert tour of Johannesburg, South Africa. 'Til We Meet Again' appears in instrumental and vocal versions on 'Songs My Father Would Dig' and instrumentally on this album. The song was written for Baldwin's late brother William, who tragically died in a car accident in 1991 at the age of nineteen.

“It's a constant reminder, even 33 years later, that you never forget that day, the moment the phone rings and you hear the pain coming over the phone from my sister, who was visited by a local police officer who delivered that horrific news. I had just seen William twelve hours earlier at a family event. That day my heart was torn to shreds. I will never forget him and his spirit. This song is a repeat of a great man. We always ask, “What if…what if he was alive today?” Baldwin said.

Baldwin's contemporary jazz is very beautiful and highly recommended!http://www.smooth-jazz.de/Patrick/Baldwin/ItsOkayToDream.htm

It's Okay to Dream

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Bob Baldwin - B Positive

Styles: Smooth Jazz
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:32
Size: 134,8 MB
Art: Front

(5:40) 1. Strength
(5:37) 2. Take the High Road (Just Crush It)
(5:49) 3. Summertime 3000 (Don't You Cry)
(4:02) 4. B Positive
(6:25) 5. A Woman Like You
(4:48) 6. Let's Rewind
(5:20) 7. Keep Your Spirit
(5:33) 8. You Got This
(4:54) 9. All My Life
(4:57) 10. Believe
(5:23) 11. Rejuvenate

Bob Baldwin’s 34th studio offering is a continual stay-at-home event. The 33rd offering was a live record recorded in Elmsford, NY (The live ‘Stay-at-Home Series’). The latest offering, “B Positive” is a musical road map on how to keep your chin up high. More information here.

“Having faced near-death family illness, I’m glad I can take away some things that I can share with my listener,” says the native New Yorker Pianist. “Chances are, if I’ve gone through it, so has a lot more people”, says Baldwin. “If you just look at the titles, you’ll clearly see what my intent is…simply don’t lose control of the ship, no matter what goes down”.

Here’s Baldwin’s further takes on some of the project below: This record feels more like a rejuvenation of his old projects like “Cool Breeze”, hearkening back to fun and bouncy melodies, with just enough harmonic tension to make the hair on the back of your neck tingle and tickle.
https://smoothjazzdaily.wordpress.com/2022/08/16/bob-baldwin-b-positive/

B Positive

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Bob Baldwin - Bob Baldwin Presents The American Spirit

Size: 122,6 MB
Time: 52:40
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2002
Styles: Jazz: Smooth Jazz
Art: Front & Back

01. God Bless America (4:54)
02. Bridge Over Troubled Water (5:36)
03. My Country Tis Of Thee (3:58)
04. Shower The People (5:33)
05. America The Beautiful (2:34)
06. Follow Your Dream (5:15)
07. Lift Every Voice - Count The Ways (5:45)
08. Color Blind (5:35)
09. Let's Roll! (5:18)
10. The Star Spangled Banner (4:55)
11. God Bless The Usa (3:14)

Considering how much popular smooth jazz artists love to play on each other's projects, and especially for a good cause -- in this case, the victims' assistance program Safe Horizon -- it's surprising that it took its musical community almost a year to emerge with its first tribute to America post 9/11. Bob Baldwin is hardly a household name in the genre, but he's been faithfully cranking out some of its funkiest keyboard projects over the past decade. Even if he's a little too synth-and-drum-machine reliant, this is still a fun project which captures the joyful spirit of America in the wake of a troubled time. He bookends the set with two classics on which he plays all the instruments. His lively "God Bless America" offers the Jeff Lorber/ Fender Rhodes retro-keyboard approach, while "God Bless the USA" features the same in a more restrained setting. The overall success of the project is due to his collaborations with saxophonist Kim Waters. There's an easy funk reading of "Bridge Over Troubled Water," the original, gospel-flavored "Lift Every Voice/Count The Ways," Marion Meadows on the shuffling original "Let's Roll!" and Dean James -- who did a few solid genre albums in the mid-'90s -- on the joyful anthem "Color Blind." Phil Perry's powerful falsetto is utilized to powerful emotional effect on "My Country Tis of Thee," but the staid arrangement throughout most of "Shower the People" doesn't give him room to strut his stuff; the best part of this tune is Chuck Loeb's crisp soloing throughout. ~by Jonathan Widran

Bob Baldwin Presents The American Spirit

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Bob Baldwin - Bob Baldwin Presents Abbey Road And The Beatles

Size: 148,1 MB
Time: 63:25
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2018
Styles: Jazz: Smooth Jazz
Art: Front

01. Come Together (Can We All Just Get Along ) (6:00)
02. (Mellow) Yellow Submarine (7:05)
03. And I Love Her (5:26)
04. Don't Wanna Be (The Fool On The Hill) (Feat. CeCe Peniston) (5:52)
05. Imagine (Living As One) (Feat. Euge Groove) (5:11)
06. Michelle (My Girl) (Feat. Ragan Whiteside) (5:38)
07. Something (In The Way She Moves) (Instrumental) (3:44)
08. My Love (Feat. Lori Williams) (4:19)
09. Abbey Road (Feat. Lori Williams) (4:38)
10. Yesterday (4:43)
11. Eleanor Rigby (6:03)
12. Something (In The Way She Moves) (Vocal) (4:40)

As we enter into the fall of 2018, pianist/keyboardist Bob Baldwin has craftfully unleashed several projects this year in celebrating his 30th year as an artist, and 10/1/18 will mark his 10th year on the air with his NewUrbanJazz Radio Network, which begun with a humble five stations within the NPR Radio chain. The show continues to grow with over 45 terrestrial stations and a listening base of over 500,000 listeners. The show can be consumed with a NewUrbanJazz app via your smartphone, or you can listen in from your desktop computer at work. Archived weekly shows appear on Soundcloud.

So what way to further celebrate 30 years in the music business and still turn heads? By releasing a personal best 10 projects in a 12-month period. His brand new September 20 release entitled, Bob Baldwin Presents Abbey Road the Beatles featuring House groove singer CeCe Peniston, Smooth saxman Euge Groove, Flutist Ragan Whiteside and Washington DC vocalist Lori Williams.
His creatively arranged arrangements of classic tracks by Lennon, McCartney and the rest of the Abbey Road gang has been on the back burner for several years, but Baldwin had to time it perfectly to record and release the project in 2018.

Bob Baldwin Presents Abbey Road And The Beatles

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Bob Baldwin - Betcha By Golly Wow: The Songs Of Thom Bell

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:52
Size: 118.8 MB
Styles: Soul, Crossover jazz
Year: 2012
Art: Front

[5:18] 1. Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time) (Feat. Russ Freeman)
[5:43] 2. The Rubberband Man (Feat. Paul Brown & Ragan Whiteside)
[5:06] 3. La La Means I Love You (Feat. Vivian Green)
[5:02] 4. Gonna Be Sweeter
[5:10] 5. Break Up To Make Up (Feat. Will Downing)
[4:49] 6. You're As Right As Rain (Feat. Paul Taylor)
[4:44] 7. I'll Be Around (Feat. Marion Meadows)
[3:02] 8. Bell & Creed
[6:42] 9. Betcha By Golly Wow (Feat. Toni Redd)
[6:13] 10. People Make The World Go Round (Feat. Marion Meadows)

Grammy nominee and a bona fide hero of New Urban Jazz, keyboardist and arranger Bob Baldwin makes his debut on Peak/eOne with an all-killer, no-filler collection of classic tunes penned by Philadelphia soul immortal Thom Bell. This set hits the sweet spot from the first track and doesn t miss for a single minute of the entire program.

An all-star cast puts the project over the top, a real whos who of contemporary jazz and smooth R&B.It includes: WILL DOWNING, VIVIAN GREEN, GERALD ALBRIGHT, MARION MEADOWS, PAUL TAYLOR, RUSS FREEMAN (of THE RIPPINGTONS), PAUL BROWN. To top it all off, the legend himself, Thom Bell, has written a brand new song especially for this tribute, Gonna Be Much Sweeter. And Bob Baldwin proves one more time that it doesn t get any sweeter than his brand of soul and jazz.

Betcha By Golly Wow: The Songs Of Thom Bell mc
Betcha By Golly Wow: The Songs Of Thom Bell zippy

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Bob Baldwin - Music With a Message

Styles: Jazz, Jazz Funk 
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 38:09
Size: 88,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:41)  1. Where's That Smile
(3:56)  2. Be Blessed (No Stress)
(4:19)  3. Global Warming
(4:44)  4. Make Love, Not War
(4:04)  5. Stand Tall 3000
(7:09)  6. Ukuphila (The Healing Song)
(4:15)  7. Be Blessed (No Stress)
(4:58)  8. Stand Tall 3000

Pianist, composer, arranger, and producer Bob Baldwin is an adept performer known for his many contemporary jazz albums. Born in 1960 in Mount Vernon, New York, Baldwin was first introduced to the piano around age four by his father, bassist and pianist Robert Baldwin, Sr. By his teens, Baldwin was listening heavily to jazz and R&B. After high school he attended Geneva College, where he earned a business degree, and later even worked as an accountant. However, all the while, he continued developing his music skills and by the '80s had transferred to a full-time performer and recording career. As a solo artist, he debuted in 1990 with A Long Way to Go, an album that also garnered him the Sony Innovator in Music Award. Buoyed by this early accolade, Baldwin embarked on a successful run of albums including 1992's Reflections of Love and 1997's Cool Breeze. An in-demand sideman, Baldwin also found work with a bevy of name artists including Marion Meadows, Regina Carter, Will Downing, Pieces of a Dream, and many more.

During the early 2000's Baldwin stayed active, releasing a steady stream of albums, many of which reached the Top 20 on Billboard's Jazz charts, including 2000's BobBaldwin.com, 2002's Standing Tall, 2005's All in a Day's Work, 2008's NewUrbanJazz.com, and 2009's Lookin' Back. In 2010, he put his smooth jazz twist on the King of Pop's sound with Never Can Say Goodbye: A Tribute to Michael Jackson. NewUrbanJazz.com2: Re-Vibe appeared a year later. Baldwin then delivered another soul-themed homage with Betcha by Golly Wow: The Songs of Thom Bell in 2012. In 2013, he celebrated his 20th anniversary as a recording artist with Twenty. The Stevie Wonder tribute album, MelloWonder: Songs in the Key of Stevie, appeared in 2015. In 2016, Baldwin explored his love of bossa nova and the compositions of Brazilian artists like Antonio Carlos Jobim, João Gilberto, and Sergio Mendes with The Brazilian-American Soundtrack. ~ Matt Collar https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/music-with-a-message/id1305503937

Music With a Message

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Ragan Whiteside - Class Axe

Styles: Vocal And Flute Jazz
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 48:47
Size: 112,4 MB
Art: Front

(0:11)  1. Introduction
(4:12)  2. Funktuation
(4:45)  3. Gonna Fly
(4:02)  4. So Glad
(0:54)  5. Always There For Me (Interlude)
(4:34)  6. In Love
(4:33)  7. How Do You Know
(4:10)  8. Options
(1:23)  9. I've Been Thinking (Interlude)
(5:44) 10. 3 A.M.
(4:13) 11. Break Me Down
(4:56) 12. Call Me
(4:17) 13. Meu Amigo Meu Amante
(0:49) 14. Funktuation-Reprise

"...let elegance, also dexterity be recognized; the integrity of this fascinating musical composition should be heard on all smooth jazz and classic soul airwaves world wide; Ragan Whiteside is elegance and one to watch out for in the music industry… let the 'flutress' be heard."~Gary Tann, ''Harlem after Midnite'', Whcr 90.3 Fm, Ny

"She not only has The silkiest and sweetest flute tone in the business, but her tenacity and desire to be recognized in Urban, New-Soul AND smooth jazz genres makes her a musical force to be reckoned with!! Mark my words!"

- Bob Baldwin – Grammy-Nominated Arranger

From her clever introduction (a quick sojourn into a Felix Mendelssohn opus, interrupted by her chuckle and the word “Psyche”) to the first bars of “Funktuation” (Need I define that for you?), you know Class Axe is going to be something special. And it is. Mt. Vernon, Ny’s Ragan Whiteside is someone special. You can just tell. She’s totally connected to the hip, sexy side of the jazz flute (she switched from Classical some time back) for this awesome collection of Smooth Jazz, Urban, Neo-Soul songs that will totally convince you this woman has a huge future ahead of her. It’s hard to believe this is her debut album. The performances… and I’m talking her playing, her singing, her writing… are mature and confident. She’s got the masterful Bob Baldwin and Dennis Johnson producing this disc, which certainly adds a magnitude of strength to the project, but they’ll be the first to tell you that Ragan rises to the occasion beautifully with both her playing and her singing. This is an album that, as Bob Baldwin puts it, clearly shows that “her breakthrough on this instrument can be historical for the genre. She’s smooth, sexy, and radio-friendly.” You’ve really got to hear this one. From the aforementioned “Funktuation” to the delicious Bob Baldwin-penned Latin Samba “Meu Amigo, Meu Amante,” this is an album that gets my highest recommendation. I promise you, this is only the beginning of the Ragan Whiteside story! She is totally a class act with her Class Axe!  ~Scott O'Brien,   SmoothJazz.com  https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/ragan2

Class Axe

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Ragan Whiteside - Quantum Drive

Styles: Vocal And Flute Jazz
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:19
Size: 106,2 MB
Art: Front

(0:30)  1. Intro
(4:20)  2. Valentin Dream (feat. Bob Baldwin)
(4:47)  3. Remind Me (feat. Patrice Rushen)
(3:35)  4. Indrani
(6:17) 5. Smokey Room (feat. Frank McComb & Bob Baldwin)
(3:30)  6. Work 'it Out (feat. Bo Valentine)
(3:48)  7. Sould Biscuit
(0:46)  8. Interlude
(4:59)  9. Like The First Time
(4:03) 10. Wing And A Prayer (feat. Althea Rene)
(4:17) 11. Gentle Touch
(5:22) 12. Quantum Drve

Smooth Jazz Therapy has admired the music of the wonderfully soulful Ragan Whiteside since 2007 and the release of the highly acclaimed ‘Class Axe’. Not only did it mark her out as a leading exponent the smooth jazz flute but also glistened with production touches from Bob Baldwin and Dennis Johnson. This collaboration was again on sensational show for Ragan’s 2012 project ‘Evolve’ and has carried on to her brand new CD ‘Quantum Drive’. Not only that, with an all-star roster featuring Baldwin, Patrice Rushen, Frank McComb and Althea René, this is a collection that merits closer scrutiny and which has already been described as soulful, daring, sultry and edgy. None more so in this respect is the zesty flute-fest of ‘Soul Biscuit’ that has both Baldwin and Johnson contributing on keyboards and when she notches down the tempo for the beguiling Bob Baldwin composition ‘Like The First Time’, the result is just as good. In fact Whiteside’s connection with Baldwin predates her ‘Class Axe’ debut as even before she had won the 2006 Capital Jazz Challenge, Ragan had already caught his attention. She played flute on Baldwin’s 2004 album ‘Brazil Chill’ and a year later Baldwin included her on his follow up, ‘All In A Day’s Work’. In fact, for ‘Quantum Drive’, Baldwin writes (or co-writes) seven of the twelve tracks that, complete with a smattering of intro’s and interludes, are all fine examples of hugely relevant R & B tinged jazz. 

Ragan’s trademark rhythmic style is front back and center of the of the sparking ‘Valentin Dream’ which features Baldwin on piano and he is again around for the easy grooving ‘Indrani’ that in every respect is beauty personified. Whiteside was recently voted Flutist of the Year at the 2014 Black Women in Jazz Awards and someone else in the shake-up for that particular honor, smooth jazz flautist Althea René, joins her for a duet on the seriously grooving ‘Wing And A Prayer’. From start to finish it is a complete delight and much the same can be said of ‘Gentle Touch’ for which the title betrays the sexy vibe of this sumptuous song. Later, the hard driving yet mellifluous title cut owes much to Whiteside’s prowess on flute and vocals while elsewhere the decidedly jazzy ‘Smokey Room’ includes a keyboard solo from contemporary jazz heavyweight Frank McComb. One of the highlights of ‘Quantum Drive’ is the funky dance groove of ‘Work It Out’ that has rising hip-hop star Bo Valentine stealing the show whilst in terms of personal favorites, Ragan’s exciting cover version of Patrice Rushen’s silky smooth ‘Remind Me’ is right up there. With Rushen guesting on keyboards and Whiteside combining flue and vocals like only she can, this one is a real winner. ~ Denis Poole https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/raganwhiteside2

Personnel:  Flute, Vocal  – Ragan Whiteside;  Keyboards – Bob Baldwin, Dennis Johnson

Quantum Drive

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Bob Baldwin - All In A Days Work

Styles: Jazz Soul, Smooth Jazz
Year: 2005
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:42
Size: 146,5 MB
Art: Front

(6:12)  1. A New York Minute
(4:57)  2. All In A Day's Work
(5:51)  3. Day-O
(5:40)  4. Third Time's The Charm
(6:31)  5. Quirky
(6:38)  6. Can You Feel It?
(5:53)  7. Steamy
(4:54)  8. Sunrise
(1:46)  9. Quality Time
(0:52) 10. Steamy (Interlude)
(5:21) 11. The Very Last Night In Rio
(7:44) 12. Don't Get It Twisted
(1:19) 13. Can You Feel It? (Interlude)

Bob Baldwin's follow-up disc of ""Brazil Chill"" is an album that was recorded in Rio De Janeiro and New York City. Features Dave Mann, Café Da Silva, Barry Danielian, Tonni Smith and featuring Zoiea on Vocals. A must-have for the Baldwin collection. This disc was to be a sequel to ""Brazil Chill"", however the label at the time filed bankruptcy (A440 Records), so Baldwin completed disc on his own. ~ Editorial  Reviews https://www.amazon.com/ALL-DAYS-WORK-BOB-BALDWIN/dp/B005RYF5W2

Personnel: Bob Baldwin (vocals, strings, piano, keyboards, bass instrument, percussion, drum programming); Tonni Smith, Zoiea (vocals); Phil Hamilton (guitars); Ragan Whiteside (flute); Dave Mann (saxophone); Barry Danielian (trumpet); Ronald Jenkins (bass instrument); Dennis Johnson (drums, drum programming); Buddy Williams (drums); Armando Marçal, Cafe De Silva (percussion).

All In A Days Work

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Bob Baldwin - The Brazilian-American Soundtrack

Size: 166,9+179,2 MB
Time: 71:33+76:55
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Jazz Soul, Smooth Jazz
Art: Front

CD 1:
01. Funky Rio (8:49)
02. Ipanema Fusion (6:35)
03. Teardrop (Feat. Ragan Whiteside) (5:47)
04. Caipirinha (Feat. Torcuato Mariano) (7:19)
05. Corcovado - The Redeemer (Feat. Torcuato Mariano) (5:17)
06. Greatest Lover (Feat. Zoiea) (4:45)
07. Boa Noite (1:53)
08. Looking At Me (Feat. Gigi) (5:44)
09. Anjo De Mim (5:57)
10. The Island (Feat. Leo Gandelman) (4:01)
11. Eu Te Devoro (5:32)
12. Oasis (4:59)
13. Love Dance - May I Have This Dance (4:47)

CD 2:
01. Children Of The Sun (Feat. Cafe Da Silva) (4:01)
02. Home From Work (5:42)
03. The Sound Of His Voice (For Maurice White) (7:28)
04. My Soul (6:09)
05. For You (Feat. Porter Carroll) (5:26)
06. Summer Madness (Feat. James Crab Robinson) (Remix 3000) (5:58)
07. Yesterday (6:53)
08. South Of The Border (7:06)
09. Mobile And Global (Feat. Mark Gabriel Hasselbach) (5:11)
10. Summer's Over (6:27)
11. I Need The Air (You Breathe) (6:09)
12. State Of Mind (7:25)
13. The Message (A Maurice White Dedication) (2:52)

The Bob Baldwin love affair with Brazil began with his love of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Joao Gilberto and Sergio Mendes as a child. His love elevated when he witnessed the marriage of American Funk/Jazz and the Samba/Bossa Nova sound, which was later explored by the likes of Djavan, Ivan Lins, Elaine Elias, George Duke, Maurice White, and Pat Metheny. Fast forward, Baldwin follows up his experimental Brazil Chill (2004) disc with more flavors from Rio, with covers by the aforementioned Djavan, Jobim and Lins. The result is a 20-song plus soundtrack through the eyes of this American…musically celebrating the year of the 2016 Summer Olympics, in beautiful Brazil. Enjoy!

MC CD1 - MC CD2
Ziddu CD1 - Ziddu CD2

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Bob Baldwin - Mellowonder: Songs In The Key Of Stevie

Styles: Jazz Contemporary
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:38
Size: 173,6 MB
Art: Front

(5:30)  1. The Real Thing/Keeping It Real
(5:19)  2. Creepin'
(5:13)  3. Don't You Worry 'bout A Thing
(5:57)  4. That Girl
(5:52)  5. Lately/No More Tears
(6:13)  6. Love's Light In Flight/Love Trippin'
(4:39)  7. The Stevie Wonder Mashup
(3:36)  8. Wonder Wander
(6:00)  9. Stevie
(6:14) 10. You And I/The Wedding Suite
(5:57) 11. Rocket Love/Back To Earth
(6:10) 12. Superwoman
(3:57) 13. Looking For Another Pure Love
(4:54) 14. Love's In Need Of Love Today

The title certainly gets it right as the great keyboardist Bob Baldwin turns over some sweet mellow takes on the classic music of Stevie Wonder! Bob's the mainman at the helm for most of the record working on Fender Rhodes, piano, and other keyboards and even vocalizing just a bit and there's also sweet instrumental contributions on the album from U-Nam and Chieli Minucci on guitars, Marion Meadows and Ryan Kilgore on saxes, and Ragan Whiteside on flute all players who know just how to get into the right sort of 70s vibe that Baldwin's going for on the record! The focus on Stevie's tunes makes the album a bit hipper than some of Bob's other recent albums although we also like those quite a bit  and titles include "Don't You Worry Bout A Thing", "Creepin", "The Real Thing/Keepin It Real", "Superwoman/Where Were You When I Needed You Most", and "Love's In Need Of Love Today" plus the Baldwin originals "Stevie" and "Wonder Wander". https://www.dustygroove.com/item/750604

Personnel :
Bob Baldwin - Arranger, Bass, Composer, Drums, Fender Rhodes, Keyboards, Melodica, Moog Bass, Percussion, Piano, Strings, Vocals
Ragan Whiteside - Flute
Ryan Kilgore, Marion Meadows - Saxophone
Chieli Minucci, Derek Scott, U-Nam - Guitar
Erma Dionne Davis, Renita Pope - Viola, Violin
Dave Anderson, Tres' Gilbert - Bass
Tony Lewis, Jorel "J-Fly" Flynn - Drums
Jorel Flynn - Cymbals
Dennis Johnson - Drum Loop, Drum Programming
Toni Redd, Stanley Thompson - Vocals

Mellowonder:  Songs In The Key Of Stevie

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Bob Baldwin - Cool Breeze

Styles: Jazz Funk
Year: 1997
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 58:02
Size: 133,3 MB
Art: Front

(5:03)  1. Give In To Love
(5:08)  2. Summer Breeze
(4:58)  3. Bahia Maria
(5:51)  4. People Make The World Go Round
(5:09)  5. Ties That Bind
(5:10)  6. Walk On By
(5:03)  7. Hot Fun In The Sun
(5:20)  8. Vi's Pies
(5:05)  9. Cool Wind Blowing
(6:15) 10. I Give Unto You
(3:47) 11. Be Encouraged
(1:07) 12. Ties That Bind - Interlude

The smooth jazz format has lent itself to an unfortunate trend towards sugary and fluffy generic album titles that hardly characterize the grit and energy of the music they represent. Boney James went the route with Sweet Thing and now Bob Baldwin's blandly titled but explosively executed Cool Breeze makes a strong case for not judging a disc by its cover. As with his independent City Sketches earlier this year, the keyboardist never quite approaches the free-for-all soul-fusion jam sessions which marked his early Atlantic albums, yet he throws enough aggressive, improvisational punches into these up-tempo romps to remind his old fans of the way he once pounded. Rather than crazed earthquakes, he gives us thoughtful, slickly produced tremors that lean towards gospel every so often. 

He also twists familiar pop hits like "Summer Breeze" and "Walk on By" into funky blue knots. His artful, no-frills jazz trio spins on "Cool Wind Blowing" and "I Give Unto You" make many of the other tracks seem overproduced and machine generated by comparison. While Baldwin knows how to balance electric and acoustic currents to great effect, he should consider stripping down like this more often in the future. Why hide behind smoke and mirrors when you have this much emotion to offer? ~ Jonathan Widran  http://www.allmusic.com/album/cool-breeze-mw0000025975

Personnel: Bob Baldwin (strings, piano, keyboards, drums, loops); Larry Coryell (electric guitar); Marion Meadows (saxophone, soprano saxophone); Fred Vigdor (soprano saxophone, alto saxophone); Tad Gulley, Tony Lewis (drums, cymbals).

Cool Breeze

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