Tom Grant - Mystified

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1976
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:06
Size: 90,7 MB
Art: Front

(6:01)  1. No Me Esqueca
(5:13)  2. Peddie Has A Point
(4:31)  3. Gazelle
(4:52)  4. Caribean Firedance
(7:35)  5. Mystified
(5:03)  6. Pannonica
(5:48)  7. Turtle Soup

Tom Grant, who has impressive technique and a likable style, has spent most of his recording career making music that purposely appeals to a wide crossover audience, combining jazz with pop and R&B. His father was a tap dancer who owned a record store and his older brother Mike played piano. When he was four, Grant began playing piano and drums. He graduated from the University of Oregon and then went to New York with Jim Pepper's Pow Wow band. He earned a masters degree in education and was teaching high-school social studies in Portland when Woody Shaw heard him playing at a weekend after-hours gig. Shaw offered Grant a job with his group and the experience soon led to more extensive work with Joe Henderson, Dexter Gordon, Charles Lloyd, and Tony Williams (1979-1981). Grant cut his first solo record in 1976 for Timeless and in 1979 he formed his own band, which was open to the pop music that the keyboardist loved. Starting in 1983 and continuing into the new millennium, Grant has recorded a lengthy series of poppish jazz-influenced dates (for labels including Chase, Verve Forecast, Shanachie, Double Play, and Nu-Wrinkle) that have variously fallen into the categories of new adult contemporary, quiet storm, contemporary jazz, and smooth jazz; all have been best-sellers in the jazz-lite market. In addition, Tom Grant has composed music for TV and radio. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/artist/tom-grant-mn0000604650/biography

Personnel:  Piano – Tom Grant ;  Saxophone – Joe Henderson; Bass – Rick Laird; Drums – Ron Steen

Mystified

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Tom Grant - You Hardly Know Me

Styles: Piano, Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 1981
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:35
Size: 110,2 MB
Art: Front

(3:52)  1. The Imposter
(3:52)  2. Heaven Is Waiting - Radio Mix
(3:58)  3. Whatever Feels Right
(3:47)  4. So Free
(3:45)  5. Workers of the World
(4:00)  6. You Hardly Know Me
(4:35)  7. High School Fantasies
(4:26)  8. Big Charlie
(4:27)  9. Brain Damage
(5:08) 10. Heaven Is Waiting - Extended Edit
(5:41) 11. Heaven Is Waiting - 12" Mix

Tom Grant, who has impressive technique and a likable style, has spent most of his recording career making music that purposely appeals to a wide crossover audience, combining jazz with pop and R&B. His father was a tap dancer who owned a record store and his older brother Mike played piano. When he was four, Grant began playing piano and drums. He graduated from the University of Oregon and then went to New York with Jim Pepper's Pow Wow band. He earned a masters degree in education and was teaching high-school social studies in Portland when Woody Shaw heard him playing at a weekend after-hours gig. Shaw offered Grant a job with his group and the experience soon led to more extensive work with Joe Henderson, Dexter Gordon, Charles Lloyd, and Tony Williams (1979-1981). Grant cut his first solo record in 1976 for Timeless and in 1979 he formed his own band, which was open to the pop music that the keyboardist loved. Starting in 1983 and continuing into the new millennium, Grant has recorded a lengthy series of poppish jazz-influenced dates (for labels including Chase, Verve Forecast, Shanachie, Double Play, and Nu-Wrinkle) that have variously fallen into the categories of new adult contemporary, quiet storm, contemporary jazz, and smooth jazz; all have been best-sellers in the jazz-lite market. In addition, Tom Grant has composed music for TV and radio. ~ Scott Yanow https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/you-hardly-know-me/306061964

Personnel: Backing Vocals, Piano, Synthesizer, Vibraphone, Percussion – Tom Grant ; Backing Vocals – Bob James ; Bass – Lester McFarland; Drums – Gary Hobbs; Guitar – Tod Carver; Saxophone – Gary Clinton; Trombone – Jeff Uusitalo; Trumpet – Laine Larson, Richard Burdell

You Hardly Know Me

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Tom Grant - Delicioso

Styles: Piano, Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 2010
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:09
Size: 142,0 MB
Art: Front

(5:21)  1. Luxurium
(4:18)  2. Cute New Car
(4:21)  3. Whistling In The Dark
(4:54)  4. Language of Our Own
(5:41)  5. Lizard Lounge
(5:20)  6. Delicioso
(4:35)  7. Nature Walk
(5:19)  8. The Dog Park
(3:59)  9. Escape Into Dreamland
(3:35) 10. Dancing Heart
(3:55) 11. Enamorata
(5:13) 12. Breathing In The Love
(4:38) 13. Heidi's Song

The reputation of smooth jazz went from bad to worse in the ‘90s and 2000s, and 2010 was full of forgettable, shamelessly uncreative smooth jazz CDs that did absolutely nothing to make its soiled reputation any better. But Tom Grant's self-produced Delicioso, it turns out, is among 2010's more substantial smooth jazz releases. The pianist/keyboardist (who is also heard on vibes) offers a light, commercial, gently funky blend of jazz, R&B and pop; Delicioso never pretends to be a Red Garland recording. But there is a difference between light and lightweight, and laid-back, groove-oriented offerings such as "Whistling in the Dark," "Lizard Lounge," "Cute New Car," and "Luxurium" are light rather than lightweight. The vibe that Grant seems to be going for on much of this album is something along the lines of Joe Sample, Lonnie Liston Smith, Jeff Lorber, or Rodney Franklin circa 1979-1982; Delicioso isn't in a class with Sample's Carmel or Smith's Loveland, but it isn't a bad album, either. Grant isn't afraid to stretch out and do some improvising, and his solos have more energy than one usually expects from the jazz-lite crowd. Plus, the 60-minute CD's Brazilian-flavored tunes (which include "The Dog Park" and the title song) are also easy to appreciate. It's obvious that Grant, who turned 64 in 2010, didn't want to record just another turn-your-brain-off album for smooth jazz/NAC radio programmers. That said, Delicioso does have a few throwaway tracks; the disc is slightly uneven. And even though Grant gives himself adequate solo space, he overdoes it with the electronic programming (which is fine for electronica or hip-hop, although jazz is better served by a more organic approach to producing). But all things considered, Delicioso is a decent listen and demonstrates that smooth jazz doesn't have to be total fluff. ~ Alex Henderson https://www.allmusic.com/album/delicioso-mw0002028528

Personnel: Tom Grant - vocals, piano, vibraphone, programming; Marlon McClain - guitar; Dan Faehnle - guitar; Chance Hayden - guitar; Shelly Rudolph - vocals; Paul Mazzio - trumpet; Renato Caranto - saxophone

Delicioso

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Tom Grant and Rebecca Kilgore - Winter Warm

Styles: Vocal, Piano, Christmas 
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:00
Size: 115,5 MB
Art: Front

(2:29)  1. Christmas Waltz
(3:17)  2. Santa Claus is Coming to Town
(3:22)  3. Christmas Time is Here
(3:39)  4. I'll Be Home for Christmas
(4:06)  5. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
(4:49)  6. The Christmas Song
(3:11)  7. A Song for Christmas
(2:30)  8. Let it Snow
(4:50)  9. Winter Warm
(4:12) 10. Winter Wonderland
(3:30) 11. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
(4:02) 12. Sleigh Ride
(2:43) 13. Christmas Dreaming
(3:14) 14. Snowbound

Warm is a treasure from two Northwest jazz icons. Pianist Tom Grant has produced over twenty albums of chart-topping smooth jazz and singer Rebecca Kilgore, a featured regular on Garrison Keillor’s Prairie Home Companion and Terry Gross’ Fresh Air (both on NPR), is an acclaimed performer of the Great American Songbook. Rebecca tours the world with her own band and has sung on over 30 records. Famed guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli has said of her “If Benny Goodman were alive today, he’d hire Becky to sing in his band.” Dick Hadlock, author and jazz host on KCSM-FM, San Mateo CA says that Rebecca “has refined her vocal gifts and stands now….as a leading interpreter of America’s classic popular songs.” She has toured with the famed pianist, humorist-composer Dave Frishberg and they have recorded together as well. He says of Rebecca “she has a great sense of swing…and a heartfelt unpretentiousness.” Tom Grant has toured the world with such jazz greats as Joe Henderson, Tony Williams and Charles Lloyd. Jeff Lorber says “Tom is a terrific improviser and writer. He plays with an inventiveness, elegance and economy. He is one of the best players on the scene today.” He has recorded on Verve Forecast, Windham Hill and many smaller labels and during the 80’s and 90’s had sales of 30-50 thousand units on various titles.

Tom Grant is a fixture on the Northwest music scene. He was a pioneer of jazz fusion and adult contemporary jazz. His longtime group, the Tom Grant Band, was one of the biggest drawing bands of the ’80s and ’90s. Tom’s numerous recordings consistently landed at the top of the New Adult Contemporary and Smooth Jazz charts, a genre Tom helped pioneer in the mid-80s. Over the years he has played with numerous jazz icons, including Jim Pepper, Woody Shaw, Tony Williams and Joe Henderson. He plays jazz piano with the harmonic sophistication and deep sense of swing that comes from more than three decades on the bandstand, and his smooth crooning voice blends perfectly with Day’s clear-cut interpretations of the classics. Grant was recognized for his lifetime of work by the Jazz Society of Oregon, being its inductee to the Hall of Fame for 2004. The material on this Holiday record reflects Rebecca’s unique gift for finding little-known song gems. The title track “Winter Warm”, is a Burt Bacharach/Hal David song whose only prior recording is by the relatively obscure 50’s artist, Gale Storm. Another great track is the singularly quirky (and jazzy) Frishberg winner, “Snowbound”. Tom and Rebecca do a charming duet on a slightly obscure Sinatra classic called “Christmas Dreaming.” Another rare beauty is “A Song for Christmas” which Rebecca sings with a tenderness that touches the soul. http://tomgrant.com/winter-warm

Winter Warm

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