Brian Culbertson - Secrets

Styles: Piano Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 1997
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:01
Size: 104,1 MB
Art: Front

(4:12)  1. So Good
(4:29)  2. On My Mind
(4:02)  3. Backstreet
(3:53)  4. Straight to the Heart
(5:04)  5. Secrets
(4:35)  6. You'll Never Find
(4:47)  7. One More Day
(6:00)  8. You're the One
(7:55)  9. At the Backroom

One of smooth jazz's brightest young keyboardists seems to be caught in the same marketing trap as his contemporaries aiming to please radio programmers first, and waiting till very late in the running order of the disc to challenge himself and listeners who have many other new and similarly likeable keyboard releases to choose from. When he finally blows his lid on Secrets and goes for broke, it's a joyous affair, as the eight-minute closing track "At the Backroom" finds Brian Culbertson jamming hardcore blues/funk and bouncing off the inspirations of older cats like Jeff Golub (guitar) and Ricky Peterson (wicked on the Hammond B-3). The tune sounds like an outtake from Golub's more adventurous solo efforts. Surprises abound Culbertson seems to close the piece, then after a short bit of silence, comes back playing smokin' trombone, giving the whole affair an authentic New Orleans club flavor. On the eight previous tracks, Culbertson once again shows a mastery of cool groovin', easygoing melodies, and some tight ensemble action and yet beyond the bouncy opening cut "So Good" and the Paul Brown-produced soul-inflected "Backstreet," he's just cruising in the middle of the road with pals like Gerald Albright and Dwight Sills. As a balladeer, oddly he has never matched the compelling emotion of the home recorded "Beautiful Liar" from his 1994 debut. That song had an urgency, just as "At the Backroom" does. Much of Culbertson's middle ground between those peaks has found him a bit too complacent. ~ Jonathan Widran https://www.allmusic.com/album/secrets-mw0000595468

Personnel: Brian Culbertson - piano, keyboards & drum programming; Steve Cole - tenor saxophone; Dwight Sills - guitar; Richard Patterson - bass; Lenny Castro - percussion; Nanette Frank - lead & background vocals; Teresa Davis & Dianne Madison - background vocals

Secrets

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Steve Cole - Moonlight

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:51
Size: 102.7 MB
Styles: Saxophone jazz
Year: 2011
Art: Front

[6:56] 1. Moonlight
[3:02] 2. You Can Close Your Eyes
[4:05] 3. (I'm Afraid) The Masquerade Is Over
[4:51] 4. Undun
[6:23] 5. Angel
[3:56] 6. You Don't Know Me
[5:12] 7. Cry Me A River
[5:03] 8. The Look Of Love
[5:19] 9. Long And Winding Road

Steve Cole (soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone); Dale Prasco (guitar); David Mann (alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, keyboards); Mike Logan (piano); Steve Rodby (acoustic bass); Tom Hipskind (drums); Dede Sampaio (percussion).

Moonlight is the Artistry Music debut of saxophonist Steve Cole, who has sold hundreds of thousands of albums worldwide and scored four #1 radio hits in the US. This alternative American songbook interpreting compositions by James Taylor, Sarah McLachlan, Lennon & McCartney, Bacharach & David and more-backed by the strings of the prestigious Millennium Chamber Players of Chicago-is a lush and moving testament to the timeless soul of great songs. Featuring Mike Logan (Will Downing) and Russell Ferrante (Yellowjackets) on piano; Steve Rodby (Pat Metheny Group) on bass; and tenor man Steve Cole.

Moonlight mc
Moonlight zippy

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Steve Cole - Turn It Up

Size: 101,6 MB
Time: 42:46
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Jazz: Smooth Jazz
Art: Front

01. Sidechain (4:12)
02. Turn It Up! (3:32)
03. Reverence (5:02)
04. She's The One (4:12)
05. Bright Side (4:13)
06. Woman's Gotta Have It (4:02)
07. Laws Of Attraction (4:41)
08. Life Is A Groove (4:22)
09. Workhouse (3:17)
10. Mirage (5:09)

Students of chart placings and listeners of smooth jazz stations will already be familiar with an insidious little tune from sax man Steve Cole. The cut's 'Mirage' and it's just risen to #1 on Billboard's BDS chart, a placing reflected by 'Mirage's' heavy rotation on discerning music stations. The track is the first single from 'Turn It Up', Cole's newest long player and those who are digging the tune will be delighted to know there are plenty more like it on the 10 tracker.

The title track, for instance, offers more of the same soul-inflected grooves (shades of prime time David Sanborn) while the opener 'Sidechain' is another bright n' breezy, easy on the ear romp. 'Workhouse' is just a touch different.... Cole's smooth jazz take on house. We're told he's a big fan of the Chicago house scene, but don't expect it being play listed in Ibiza any time soon.

From a soul perspective, 'Turn It Up's' USP is the album's big cover, a version of Bobby Womack's 'Woman's Gotta Have It'. It's such a great tune isn't it? And Cole doesn't mess with it. He just lets his tenor glide over the melody lines while vocalist Keith Fluitt coos the title line sweetly... but he's so far back in the mix you might not even notice.

Other guests on the album include Ricky Petersen, Khari Parker and Pieces of A Dream's James Lloyd who adds pleasing, distinctive keys to 'Bright Side' - like everything else on offer here, a perfect summation of what contemporary smooth jazz is all about.

MC
Ziddu

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Steve Cole - Pulse

Styles: Smooth Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:16
Size: 99,1 MB
Art: Front

(3:54)  1. Pulse
(4:32)  2. Do Your Thing
(4:17)  3. With You All the Way
(4:08)  4. Slinky
(4:54)  5. Going in Circles
(4:25)  6. Looking Up
(3:55)  7. Maximum Cool
(4:38)  8. Minty Fresh
(3:58)  9. Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City
(4:30) 10. Believe

In the 15 years since the release of his debut record, saxophonist Steve Cole has traveled full-circle creatively and arrived back home on Pulse, the 10-song set mixing R&B, contemporary jazz, gospel, blues and pop that he produced with fellow saxman David Mann. The new collection surveying Cole’s musical passions showcases the artist’s affinity for infectious melodies, a wall of horns and soulful grooves. It also displays a musician comfortable in his own artistic skin. “Pulse is about finding an audience and really honoring them. I have a voice and an instrument, but my job is to entertain. It's simple in a way: if you focus on those people right in front of you and what excites them, you win every time. My work is about moving people. 

If you can figure out how to do that, the rest falls into place,” explains Cole, who has consistently delivered chart-topping hits and won fans via entertaining live performances. 2011’s elegant Moonlight placed the classically trained tenor saxophonist in an orchestral setting. “The last album was transformative and it is certainly one of the highlights of my career. It was a massive undertaking and I am incredibly proud of the record and the live show where I presented the album backed by a full orchestra and incredible musicians like Steve Rodby [Pat Metheny Group]. As an artist, sometimes I take left turns and it helps me find out who I am creatively. We, as people and as artists, tend to circle back to where we really live and I found my way home 15 years later on Pulse.” As a player, Cole describes his sound with one emphatic word: “BIG! My sound is warm and I strive to communicate effectively through my horn. I’ve heard it said that my sound is like a big warm blanket. I kind of like that description,” he chuckles. His inspired sax play throughout Pulse is poured with passion and precision, enriched with genuine soul power. There is feverish urgency and muscle along with harnessed control, grace and gentility. The Chicago native exploded onto the scene in 1998 with the album Stay Awhile that was produced by fellow Chicagoan Brian Culbertson. The disc scored two #1 hits and earned Cole the Oasis Smooth Jazz Award for best new artist shortly before his sophomore set, Between Us, was released in 2000. 

His catchy singles made him an instant radio favorite and he cranked them out with regularity on subsequent albums NY LA (2003), Spin (2005) and True (2006). In between leading his own band on the road, Cole utilized high-profile sideman gigs with Culbertson, Boz Scaggs, Peter White, Jeff Lorber and Rick Braun as a platform to build a national fan base. Today, he tours as a headline performer, and for the past 10 years as a member of Sax Pack, a stellar sax trio completed by Marcus Anderson and Jeff Kashiwa. As a young musician, Cole’s first pivotal gig came at the side of Richard Patterson, who was the bass player in Miles Davis’ band. “Playing with Richard Patterson, who had just come from playing with Miles Davis, taught me to push myself to reach far beyond what I thought possible.” Touring in Scaggs’ band also proved to be a valuable learning opportunity. “Performing with Boz Scaggs was an incredible experience. I learned so much about listening to the band and how dramatic dynamics can be. It was a bit intimidating to be honest, but it was a thrill to perform with such an amazing artist.” Cole and Mann co-wrote the tunes for Pulse. “I enjoy the [songwriting] process although I am constantly amazed and baffled by it. It’s always a great surprise writing music.” He’s been collaborating with Mann since Between Us. “It’s very natural working with David and we make a great team. He is great at writing and arranging horn section parts and there’s a lot of that on Pulse. We both respect each other so much. David creates lovely textures, colors and countermelodies. He weaves these beautiful fabrics throughout the track and has a unique ability to get inside the song,” says Cole of Mann, who plays horn section saxes, keyboards, flute, synth bass and programming on Pulse.  http://www.mackavenue.com/artists/detail/steve_cole/

Pulse

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