Smooth Jazz Therapy

Greg Manning - Grateful

With a flurry of catchy hit singles such as ‘Top Down’ and the zesty ‘Twinkle’ (that was written by Earl Klugh and featured Darrel Crooks on guitar), composer producer and keyboard player Greg Manning has been cementing his reputation as one of the brightest talents the genre has to offer.

Now he is back with the smoothly up-tempo ‘Grateful’ that features Judah Sealy on sax.

Nice track.

 

 

Dave Koz - Side By Side

 

With a sublime touch of symmetry smooth jazz superstar Dave Koz will release his latest album, ‘A New Day’, on October 9, exactly thirty years and one day on from the release of his self-titled debut album.

Not only that, this pioneer of the genre is, in part, using the project as an opportunity to team with that other smooth jazz trailblazer David Sanborn.  The result is the track ‘Side By Side’ that unbelievably marks the first time that these heavyweights have recorded together.  They wrote ‘Side By Side’ with Rick Braun, Philippe Saisse and Alice Soyer while Braun produced, recorded and arranged it as well as playing trumpet, trombone and keyboards.  With Saisse also on keyboard and Hammond B3 this one is a real collectors item.

Check back here soon for more on ‘A New Day’.

 

 

Vincent Ingala - Maybe You Think

 

‘Maybe You Think’ from writer, producer and multi instrumentalist Vincent Ingala is the latest single his hit album ‘Echoes Of The Heart’. A silkily mid tempo number it sums up to perfection what Ingala is all about and is a wonderful showcase for the entire collection that with nine original compositions plus one carefully crafted cover is a veritable tour de force.

Check it out.

Special EFX - Mr Marzipan

The latest (and twenty first) offering from the Grammy nominated Special EFX is titled ‘All Stars’ and after a four month hiatus while quarantining from the virus the band has just released the latest single from it.  Titled ‘Mr Marzipan’ it is a dazzling dose of horn driven fusion where tasty electric guitar riffs from leader Chieli Minucci blend with the trumpet of Lin Rountree and sax from long time collaborator David Mann.

Good track

 

 

 

Adam Hawley - Escape

Hot on the heels of the hit single ‘To The Top’ that featured the fulsome sax of Jeff Ryan, guitarist Adam Hawley is back on radio with the title track from his current CD ‘Escape’.  It’s a moody mid tempo charmer that benefits in no small measure from the distinctive trumpet of Rick Braun and to Adam it represents yet another step along the road to smooth jazz stardom.

Indeed six of the seven singles lifted from his first two recordings blasted their way to No. 1 on the smooth jazz charts and there is no reason to think that ‘Escape’ will not do exactly the same.

 

 

Gino Rosaria - Sunday 3-00 pm

Something of a newcomer to smooth jazz, keyboard player Gino Rosaria released his first album in that genre in the summer of 2019. Titled ‘Still Waters Run Deep’ it featured several heavy hitters such as Marcus Anderson, Althea Rene, Elan Trotman and Adam Hawley while the first radio single, ‘Night Groove’, powered its way into the Billboard top 30 contemporary jazz charts.

Now he is back on the airwaves with the excellent ‘Sunday 3-00 pm’ that features sax man Elan Trotman.

Great track!

 

 

Randy Scott - Elevation

Already fan-fared by the hot radio single ‘Joy Ride’, ‘Elevation’ is the latest project from Detroit based sax-man Randy Scott who burst into the scene in 2015 with the album ‘Serenity’

Perhaps ‘Elevation’ is best summed up by the feisty title cut that demonstrates to perfection the penchant Scott has for big, ballsy sax driven smooth jazz.  Equally fulsome is ‘Sanctity’ that has the sort of hook that could well become infectious yet when Scott turns down the tempo the result is just as good.

This is particularly so with the decidedly moody ‘Day Dreams’ that includes a featured performance from trumpeter Cindy Bradley and again with ‘Intimacy’ which proves to be a sumptuous slice of instrumental quiet storm.

Scott keeps it mellow for ‘Tempo’ that is anchored by vocals from Anesha Birchett and he closes out ‘Elevation’ with the interesting named ‘Untitled (How Does It Feel)’ that uses Hammond B3 as a scene setter before kicking open the door to more of Scott’s smoky sax.

He again hits the gas and then some with the high octane and appropriately titled ‘Ignite’ and although ‘Step’ has all the attributes of being a dance floor filler in the making the Smooth Jazz Therapy top track is the sublime ‘Affection’.

Take a listen, right here, right now.

 

‘Elevation’ is out now on Trippin n Rhythm and is well worth checking out.

Spotlight On Justin Lee Shultz

Multi-instrumentalist Justin Lee Schultz has already, at age of thirteen, dazzled audiences on TV shows such as Harry, Little Big Shots and American’s Most Musical Family. 

Now he is gearing up for his much-anticipated Shanachie Entertainment debut with the album ‘Gruv Kid’ that is set for release in November of this year and rumoured to feature smooth jazz a-listers such as Bob James, Harvey Mason, Najee, Jonathan Butler, Gerald Albright and Pieces Of A Dream.

Catch him here with the great Bob James. Impressive!