Grover Washington Jr - Soul Box

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:17
Size: 156.3 MB
Styles: Fusion, Funk, Soul Jazz
Year: 1973/2008
Art: Front

[ 3:42] 1. Aubrey
[13:17] 2. Masterpiece
[15:57] 3. Trouble Man
[ 6:04] 4. You Are The Sunshine Of My Life
[11:12] 5. Don't Explain
[ 9:54] 6. Easy Living Ain't Nobody's Business If I Do
[ 8:08] 7. Taurian Matador

Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Grover Washington, Jr.; Arco Bass – Richard Davis, Ron Carter; Bass – Ron Carter; Bass Trombone – Alan Raph, Paul Faulise, Tony Studd; Bassoon – Donald McCourt; Cello – Charles McCracken, George Ricci, Seymour Barab; Drums – Idris Muhammad; Flute, Clarinet, Clarinet [Contra Bass], Bass Saxophone – Wally Kane; Flute, Piccolo Flute – Hubert Laws; Flute, Piccolo Flute, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Oboe, English Horn – Romeo Penque; Flute, Piccolo Flute, Oboe – George Marge; Flute, Piccolo Flute, Recorder – Harvey Estrin; French Horn – Brooks Tillotson, Jim Buffington, Peter Gordon; Guitar – Eric Gale; Organ – Richard Tee; Percussion – Airto, Dave Friedman, Phil Kraus, Ralph MacDonald; Piano, Electric Piano – Bob James; Trombone – Santo Russo, Wayne Andre; Trumpet – Bernie Glow, John Frosk, Jon Faddis, Randall Brecker; Viola – Alfred Brown, Emanuel Vardi, Theodore Israel; Violin – Charles Libove, David Nadien, Elliot Rosoff, Emanuel Green, Gene Orloff, Harold Kohon, Harry Cykman, Harry Lookofsky, Joe Malin, Max Ellen, Paul Gershman; Vocals – Barbara Massey, Bernard Thacker, Eileen Gilbert, Maeretha Stewart, Randolph Peyton, Bill Eaton.

The early work of alto saxophonist and composer Grover Washington, Jr. is a rare and beautiful thing to behold. His entire Kudu period, marked by the albums Inner City Blues, All the King's Horses, Soul Box, Mister Magic, and Feels So Good, is brilliant, solid urban groove jazz played with grace, mean chops, and slippery funkiness. Soul Box, a double LP recorded in 1973, has Creed Taylor's production enhanced by a symphony orchestra and full-blown jazz band arranged and conducted by Bob James. Some of the session men include Ron Carter, Billy Cobham, Eric Gale, Idris Muhammad, Airto, and Richard Tee. Soul Box only contains seven cuts. Among them are truly innovative reads of Billy Cobham's "Taurian Matador," Stevie Wonder's "You Are the Sunshine of My Life," a side-long jam on Marvin Gaye's "Trouble Man" (the album's centerpiece and masterpiece), and the deep funk of Norman Whitfield's "Masterpiece." "Trouble Man," however, is the cut on which all the contradictions of the session come to bear and are resolved due in large part to Washington's deeply lyrical improvising and James' ability to layer an orchestra into a groove. There are cadenzas written in after choruses that bring the orchestra in to accent the sketchy funk in the tune and bring out its deep blue hues. When Washington gets to the front of it all, he lets go like he's crying from the heart. On other tracks, the orchestra adds the right drama or sweetness -- as it does on Wonder's cut -- but Washington makes them grittier, with soloing that sidles up to the melody before reinventing it. For its length, Soul Box is a modern classic for its instrumental and arrangement invention and for its deeply emotional bounty. ~Thom Jurek

Soul Box mc
Soul Box zippy

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Eric Gale - Negril

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 37:52
Size: 86.7 MB
Styles: Funk/Soul/Jazz/Reggae
Year: 1992/2017
Art: Front

[3:47] 1. East Side West Side
[3:43] 2. Honey Coral Rock
[3:45] 3. I Shot The Sheriff
[6:03] 4. Lighthouse
[5:28] 5. Negril Sea Sunset
[4:56] 6. Negril
[4:59] 7. Rasta
[5:08] 8. Red Ground Funk

Bass Guitar – "Family Man" Barrett, Val Douglas; Drums – Paul Douglas, Sparrow Martin; Guitar – Peter Tosh; Percussion – Joe Higgs, Isiah "Sticky" Thompson; Piano – Keith Sterling, Richard Tee; Producer, Guitar – Eric Gale; Saxophone, Percussion – Cedric Brooks; Synthesizer, Organ – Leslie Butler.

I actually just learned this album today. It certainly wasn't one of the most commonly known albums in Eric Gale's catalog. But it was a significant one. This was, especially at this early juncture one of the first jazz-reggae collaborations of this area. Although I should note it was actually an old historical standard coming around full circle. Even before jazz got it's name people from different races would gather in New Orleans in a place called congo square. Many of them were West Indians, likely a lot of Jamaicans as well. Over the years these influences remained very consistant in jazz on an often sudtle level. But here the age old concept all came back here as the fairly new genre of reggae and Eric Gales' bluesy jazz-funk guitar stylings came together just as it had first met in jazz's beginnings in congo square. The interesting part of this album, featuring a slew of Jamaican and American musicians most notably in Peter Tosh on guitar and Richard Tee on keys is that it's divided up into two different styles. The first four songs on the album "East Side","Negril Sea Sunset", a cover of "I Shot The Sheriff" and "Rasta" are all very much attuned to the more urban reggae flavor of the time-the more "commercial" variety of it as it were. For a lot of people at that time it was probably unfamiliar, especially to jazz listeners to hear such direct styles of reggae but even still Eric's guitar style shines through very very well on these songs. The last series of songs including the title song, "Lighthouse" and "Honey Coral Rock" all showcase a more elaborate mixture of reggae with funk/jazz and other Caribbean styles such as Calypso and feature a lot of rainsticks and other percussive instruments. One exception is "Red Ground Funk" which is the most pop oriented funk groove on the album. It actually has something of a blacksploitation flavor to it with a cinamatic style in the melody. The songs provide a very potent brew to the point that you almost wonder if he was saving these more musically ambitious tunes on purpose for later in the album and putting the more sussinct ones earlier in the set. Either way it's an excellent instrumental jazz-reggae album that was both backward and forward thinking all at the same time. Solid proof that when it comes to African American music, especially when it comes to hip-hop and the funk era from which this came is most successful when crossing the bridges between it's past, present and future. ~Andre S. Grindle

Negril

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Grover Washington, Jr. - Winelight

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 1980
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:26
Size: 90,8 MB
Art: Front

(7:36)  1. Winelight
(5:54)  2. Let It Flow (For 'Dr. J')
(5:31)  3. In The Name Of Love
(6:19)  4. Take Me There
(7:27)  5. Just The Two Of Us
(6:37)  6. Make Me A Memory (Sad Samba)

When Grover Washington, Jr. passed away in 1999 the jazz world lost one of its most successful and talented creators, and in his wake a slew of saxophonists have stepped up to fill the void. None have. Philadelphia jazz deejay Bob Perkins said, of Washington, a native of the City of Brotherly Love, "He was the originator of smooth jazz, and all the rest Najee, Kenny G followed him."  It is absolutely true that Washington was, along with George Benson, one of the founding fathers of smooth jazz and following the monster hit that was the Grammy-winning Winelight it wasn't long before the saxophone became, along with the electric guitar, the two most preeminent instruments in the genre. For better or worse (and there's an argument to be made for either side), Washington blazed a trail many others have followed, with varying degrees of success. Within the crowed group of smooth jazz saxophonists there are a few originals following their own muse and blazing their trails of their own. Regretfully, the vast majority bland cookie cutter clones slavishly hacking out infinite versions of the R&B/jazz fusion of "Mister Magic" and "Just the Two of Us" without bringing anything fresh to the table. Smooth jazz is stuck in a rut of safe sax where nothing is risked and nobody wants to step out of their comfort zone. Real jazz is all about taking risks, not playing it safe.

Washington was not so much a daring innovator as much as he was a solid musician who had paid his dues as part of Creed Taylor's CTI and Kudu record labels, where the music was glossy and the album jackets were distinctive. Washington was labelmates with Benson, Stanley Turrentine, Freddie Hubbard, Bob James, Hubert Laws and Esther Phillips to name but a few of the artists on the CTI roster.  With his move to Elektra Records, in 1980 Washington uncorked Winelight. Predictably, it reached number one on Billboard's Top Jazz, but then it crossed over to other charts. The album went to number five on Billboard's Pop Albums, number two Top Soul Albums and "Just the Two of Us" reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100, and stayed there for three weeks. The album would go on to win two Grammy awards. The quiet greatness of Winelight has not faded 35 years after its release. It's far and away the best album of Washington's long career. The slip n' slide funk of "Mister Magic" put Washington on the map, but Winelight was the evidence he could flat out play.

Washington would go on to record 11 more albums before his horn fell silent, but none approached the all-time high of Winelight. Not much of Washington's extensive catalog garners much airplay beyond "Mister Magic," "Let It Flow" and "Just the Two of Us," and that's a shame because he continued to make some interesting albums at Columbia which deserve to be heard. Perhaps this new reissued and limited edition multichannel 5.1 SACD release will rekindle a discovery of the extensive Washington discography. The Surround Sound remix was produced by Ralph MacDonald, the renowned percussionist who also co-wrote "Just the Two of Us" and shared production duties on Winelight with Washington. MacDonald died in 2011. Other notable musicians include drummer Steve Gadd, guitarist Eric Gale and a 21-year-old wizard on bass by name of Marcus Miller. The only complaint with the remastered release is the absence of any bonus tracks or new liner notes. It is a missed opportunity not to provide some details and insights into the recording process or how Washington and McDonald convinced the reclusive Withers to provide the vocals for "Just the Two of Us." When most lists of the Top 25 Jazz Albums of All Time are compiled, Winelight is nowhere to be seen. It likely wouldn't make the top 100 for the truly hardcore fan who likes their music with a rougher edge than smooth jazz provides. No way does it knock a Kind of Blue, A Love Supreme, Time Out or Blue Trane off the list, but when the list includes the 25 most influential jazz albums, Winelight belongs in there as much as Head Hunters or Breezin' for taking jazz into a brand new direction even if everybody wasn't happy with where it went.~Jeff Winbush http://www.allaboutjazz.com/winelight-by-jeff-winbush.php
 

Personnel:  Grover Washington, Jr.: soprano, alto, tenor saxophone;  Bill Withers: vocals (5);  Ralph McDonald: congas, percussion; syndrums;  Steve Gadd: drums; Marcus Miller: bass; Eric Gale: guitar; Paul Griffin: Fender Rhodes (2, 4), clavinet (1); Richard Tee: Fender Rhodes: (3, 5); Bill Eaton: synthesizer (5); Ed Walsh: Oberheim 8-voice synthesizer; Raymond Chew: clavinet (1); Robert Greenidge: steel drums (tuned by Rudolph Charles); Hilda Harris, Yvonne Lewis, Ullanda McCullough: background vocals.

Winelight

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Richard Tee - Inside You

Styles: Jazz Funk, Soul
Year: 1989
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:46
Size: 114,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:20)  1. Inside You
(4:39)  2. Thinking of You
(5:10)  3. Chalk It All Up
(5:21)  4. Precious Thing
(4:29)  5. Crying in My Sleep Tonight
(4:49)  6. Louisiana Sunday Afternoon
(4:31)  7. Lullabye
(5:13)  8. So Hard to Handle
(3:57)  9. Will You Be There
(4:29) 10. Changes
(2:44) 11. Wishing

Tee graduated from The High School of Music & Art in New York City and attended the Manhattan School of Music. Though better known as a studio and session musician, Tee led a jazz ensemble, the Richard Tee Committee, and was a founding member of the band Stuff. In 1981 he played the piano and keyboard for Simon and Garfunkel's Concert In Central Park.

Tee played with a diverse range of artists during his career, such as Paul Simon, Carly Simon, The Bee Gees, Barbra Streisand, Roberta Flack, Aretha Franklin, Donny Hathaway, Peter Allen, George Harrison, Diana Ross, Duane Allman, Quincy Jones, Bill Withers, Art Garfunkel, Nina Simone, Juice Newton, Billy Joel, Etta James, Grover Washington, Jr., Eric Clapton, Kenny Loggins, Patti Austin, David Ruffin, Lou Rawls, Ron Carter, Peter Gabriel, George Benson, Joe Cocker, Chuck Mangione, Tim Finn, Peabo Bryson, Mariah Carey, Chaka Khan, Phoebe Snow, Doc Severinson, Leo Sayer, Herbie Mann and countless others. He also contributed to numerous gold and platinum albums during his long career and joined the band Stuff led by bassist Gordon Edwards. Other members of the band included guitarist Cornell Dupree, drummer Chris Parker, and late adding Eric Gale and Steve Gadd to the line up.

Tee was born and spent most of his life in Brooklyn, New York, living with his mother in a brownstone apartment building. After a 16-year relationship with Eleana Steinberg Tee of Greenwich, Connecticut, the couple was married in Woodstock, New York, by New York State Supreme Court Justice Bruce Wright. The couple moved to the Chelsea Hotel in 1988, and later to Cold Spring, New York. Tee died of prostate cancer on July 21, 1993 in Cold Spring, New York. He is buried in the Artist Cemetery in Woodstock, New York. 

~ Bio  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Tee

Inside You

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Richard Tee - Strokin'/Natural Ingredients

Styles: Jazz Funk, Soul
Year: 1979/1980
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:41
Size: 167,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:57)  1. First Love
(5:27)  2. Every Day
(5:23)  3. Strokin'
(5:04)  4. I Wanted It Too
(5:32)  5. Virginia Sunday
(4:46)  6. Jesus Children of America
(4:43)  7. Take the 'A' Train
(6:11)  8. What A Woman Really Means
(6:12)  9. Wow
(4:32) 10. The Nuts Off The Screw
(4:34) 11. Tell It Like It Is
(4:43) 12. Us
(4:51) 13. Back Door Man
(4:40) 14. Spinning Song

Native New Yorker Richard Tee is one of the unsung heroes of jazz, funk and soul. He was a ubiquitous session pianist during the 1960s, '70s and '80s and he's mainly remembered - he died in 1993 from prostate cancer - for his work accompanying jazz legends, among them Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Hank Crawford and George Benson, but he also made significant contributions to albums by rock and pop artists; namely George Harrison, Billy Joel, David Bowie and the Bee Gees. A versatile musician, then, Tee was also a member of the Big Apple-based session supergroup, Stuff, in the late '70s and during the same timeframe cut a couple of albums for Bob James' CBS-distributed Tappan Zee imprint. Often overlooked and underappreciated, those two long out-of-print albums have just been reissued as a tasty twofer by the Cherry Red imprint, Robinsongs. Tee's hallmark was rolling, gospel-infused acoustic piano licks and on '79's 'Strokin'' he doesn't disappoint. 

The set was helmed by Bob James who had worked with Tee on many C.T.I./Kudu sessions for producer Creed Taylor and features a stellar line-up of sideman: including fellow Stuff members Eric Gale and Steve Gadd plus bassist Chuck Rainey, percussionist Ralph MacDonald, and horn men, Tom Scott and the Brecker brothers. The opener, the Chuck Rainey-penned, 'First Love,' is a driving instrumental with a disco-funk backbeat that highlights Tee's churchy piano chords. He supplies a textured, resonant vocal on the ballad 'Every Day,' a song he co-penned with Bill Withers. The rest of the album is devoted to slick, adroitly-executed but soulful instrumentals, such as the blithely grooving title cut which spotlights Tee's piano and 'I Wanted It Too,' a slice of mirrorball funk which features Tee on organ and Hugh McCracken on harmonica. 'Virginia Sunday' is a dreamy ballad whose mellow mood is quickly dispelled by a superb jazz-funk deconstruction of Stevie Wonder's 'Jesus Children Of America.'

The set closes with a highly imaginative retooling of Duke Ellington's Billy Strayhorn-penned 'Take The A Train,' which not only shows off Tee's virtuosity on the piano but also his sublime arranging skills as it morphs from a quasi-piano concerto into a seismic chunk of disco-funk. Also produced by Bob James, 1980's 'Natural Ingredients' featured mainly the same line up of musicians but laid more emphasis on Tee as a vocalist. It opens with the pianist's funked-up vocal take on the Ralph McDonald/William Salter tune, 'What A Woman Really Means' (a song also recorded at an earlier juncture in the '70s by Donny Hathaway). 'Now' is a fine instrumental distinguished by a bluesy Eric Gale guitar solo while the humorous 'The Nut's Off The Screw' - another Tee/Bill Withers co-write - is a fluid slice of four-on-the-floor funk featuring Tee's husky vocal and some evocative harmonica playing.  Aaron Neville's 'Tell It Like It Is' also gets a run out but is rejigged as a chugging, late night groover. Willie Dixon's blues classic, 'Back Door Man,' also gets a makeover, transmogrified into an undulating funk groove propelled by slapped bass. 

The album's closer, believe it or not, is Tee's take on 'Spinning Song' by classical composer, Felix Mendelssohn, which is transfigured into piano-led romp through blues, jazz, gospel and funk styles. The piece cogently not only demonstrates the pianist's genius at melding different musical elements into a cohesive whole but also succinctly encapsulates his unique and immediately recognisable piano style. It's been 21 years since Richard Tee's death but excellent reissues like this will certainly help in keeping his memory alive. ~ Charles Waring  http://www.soulandjazzandfunk.com/reviews/2717-richard-tee-strokin-and-natural-ingredients-robinsongscherry-red.html

Strokin'

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