Smooth Jazz Therapy

David Benoit And Friends

For four decades pianist David Benoit has been creating a legacy that thrives very much at the high end of contemporary jazz and on August 23, 2019 he will make his Shanachie Entertainment debut with his thirty-sixth solo album, the outstanding ‘David Benoit And Friends’.  A heady mix of shifting moods, uplifting anthems, virtuosic playing and more than a few surprises, it is a magnificent blend of original compositions, head turning covers and tributes to some of the genre’s most iconic players all delivered as only David Benoit can.

Rick Braun - Crossroads

Chart-topping contemporary jazz pioneer Rick Braun releases his eighteenth solo album, ‘Crossroads’, August 16, 2019, on the Shanachie Entertainment label.  Totally in keeping with someone who has routinely played with the best in the business he is joined here by a cross-section of friends both old and new. Keyboard player Philippe Saisse, bass-man Nate Phillips, sax supremo Richard Elliot, drummer Eric Valentine and percussionist Richie Garcia are all around to lend a hand while he also welcomes first time collaborators Greg Phillinganes, Michael Thompson, and Gregg Bissonette for a collection that in the final analysis is bound to be among the best of the year.

Allen Carman Project - Carmanology

Although bass player Allen Carman shelved his musical aspirations twenty years ago it was a chance encounter with longtime friend and percussionist Gumbi Ortiz thatled to recording dates with keyboardist Philippe Saisse.  Then things began to get interesting.  Luis Alicea, Marc Antoine, Rick Braun, Andy Snitzer and Grammy-winning guitar legend Nile Rodgersall came on board to create what must be the most surprising super-group ever.

Testing the waters along the way with a series of radio singles that consistently hit the Billboard chart, this collective of musical soul mates morphed into the Allen Carman Project that has recently released it’s debut album, ‘Carmanology’.

Reza Khan - Next Train Home

Domiciled in New York but born in Bangladesh, jazz guitarist Reza Khan really began to make waves with the CD ‘A Simple Plan’.  It garnered the radio singles ‘Language Of Love’ and the equally good ‘Blue Dreams In Rio’ while the follow up, ‘Dreamwalker’, scored an instant success with the deliciously accessible title track.  Now he is back with his fifth album, the highly recommended ‘Next Train Home’, a project made all that more remarkable for the fact that he balances his musical career with a ‘day job’ of being a United NationsProgram Manager, a role that regularly takes him to Europe, Africa and the Middle East.  In fact Khan wrote the music for ‘Next Train Home’ in 2018 during a six-week UN trip.

Back in the recording studio in New York, Khan surrounded himself with a stunning array of guest musicians including Philippe Saisse and Andy Snitzer who had both featured on Khan’s ‘Dreamwalker’ project.  Also on board were sax-man Jeff Kashiwa, pianist Matt King, bass player Mark Egan, percussionist Gumbi Ortiz,David Mann on sax and flute plus drummers Mauricio Zottarelli and Graham Hawthorne.  The result is a stunning array of contemporary and straight-ahead jazz, world music and Brazilian rhythms.

Mattias Roos - It Goes On And On

‘It Goes On And On’ is the title and ‘It Goes On And On’ is certainly the sentiment as Swedish keyboard player Mattias Roos comes roaring back with this stunning ten track collection that once again finds him at the top of his creative game.  Written, arranged and produced by Roos throughout, ‘It Goes On And On’ is released on the Skytown Records label and follows his 2017 project ‘Movin’ Up’.  In common with this earlier effort it demonstrates to perfection the penchant he undoubtedly has for sublimely fusing smooth jazz grooves with an authentic old school vibe.

As well as being a solo artist and a ‘go-to’ keyboard player for several top-flight Swedish performers, many will know Roos as a founding member of the band Soweco that he formed in 2011 with drummer Peter Gustavsson.  Roos has carried some of that distinctive Soweco sound into what is now a burgeoning solo career but in doing so has fashioned an identity that is very much his own.

The Philippe Saisse Trio - The Body And Soul Sessions

Back in 2006, that classy collective The Philippe Saisse Trio had its own crack at delivering a covers album to end all cover albums.  The resultant ‘TheBody And Soul Sessions’ was an eclectic collection of pop, R&B and jazz covers with four of them being released as singles.  These included the  #1 hits ‘Do It Again’ and ‘September’ that fizzed along courtesy of Saisse's nimble piano, Fender Rhodes and keyboards, David Finck's bouncy acoustic bass, and Scooter Warner's crackling drum and percussion rhythms.

Thirteen years on and Saisse has called upon the Grammy-winning mastering engineer Colin Leonard to re-master ‘The Body And Soul Sessions’.  The re-mastered album, available for the very first time on vinyl, will be released June 21 on the Bandar Log Music label from which it will also be offered as a CD and in digital form.

A fun, party record then and a fun party record now. It should do well.

Norman Brown - The Highest Act Of Love

Often compared to George Benson, the always-excellent Norman Brown has been effortlessly fusing the finer elements of jazz, R & B, pop and blues for the past twenty years. In so doing he has created his own instantly identifiable musicology that has just been added to by the sensational ‘The Highest Act Of Love’ which was released February 22 on the Shanachie Entertainment label.

U-Nam - Future Love

Sometimes the making of music can be uplifting.  At other times it can simply be entertaining.  Yet in the case of ‘Future Love’, the brand new release from writer, producer and guitarist extraordinaire Emmanuel “U-Nam” Abiteboul the activity has been nothing short of cathartic.

From the debris of a complicated divorce that occurred in Autumn of 2018, this musical trendsetter with nine top 30 Billboard hits to his name has used the creative process to purge the emotions and relieve the tensions that for a while hung heavily upon him.  Not only that, with the title ‘Future Love’ he is making a bold statement as to what might come next, a message that particularly resonates through the zesty title cut which also happens to be the first single serviced to radio.

Jamie Bonk - Who Said It Was Easy?

A long time in the making and more than justifying its title, ‘Who Said It Was Easy?’ from Vancouver based guitarist Jamie Bonk finds him in predominately reflective mood for a collection that is so evocative that it might just take your breath away.  It marks a change of style for Jamie who with a string of smooth jazz orientated projects has earned inclusion in these pages and then some but although this latest venture doesn’t really fit the genre it has merits that are many, varied and totally compelling.

In a lot of ways ‘Who Said It Was Easy?’ can be summed up as fourteen self penned numbers all of which are in search of a movie score.  They are heartfelt and emotional; they evoke love, life, loss and longing yet despite Jamie being Canadian they could equally provide the backdrop to a commentary on the American mid-west, a soundtrack to small town USA.

Particularly so in this respect is the stunningly beautiful ‘You And Me’, the similarly inclined  ‘For This One Time’ and the magical ‘Let’s Go Home’ yet truth to tell the charm of ‘Who Said It Was Easy?’ does not come in the isolation of any single track but rather in the collective splendor of the entire set.

Whatever your musical preference this is an album that is well worth checking out.

Fabio Mignola - Encantado

Brand new from Swiss born guitarist Fabio Mignola comes the delicious ‘Encantado’.  It is an excellent addition to a discography which includes ‘Flyin Away’, ‘Luna Rossa’ and ‘Take Me Higher’ which, at the time of its release, I described as being “a showcase for Mignola’s wide raging musical talents that extend not only to delivering eleven self penned tracks but also to engineering and producing throughout.”

Of course students of the language will know that ‘Encantado’ translates to ‘charmed’ and the chances are that listeners will be exactly that with this mellifluous collection which again finds Fabio pulling the strings on eleven of his own sumptuous compositions for a musical journey that is very much on the Latin side.

Doug Jones - Crossing Lines

‘Crossing Lines’ is the brand new project from sax-man Doug Jones and much like ‘Top Down’ (from 2013) and ‘Secrets’ that followed three years later it is a tight collection of contemporary jazz tracks that Doug writes, arranges, produces and performs in his own special style.

Kayla Waters - CoEvolve

Brand new for 2018, Trippin N' Rhythm recording artist, keyboard player, vocalist and composer Kayla Waters is all set to release her sophomore project ‘CoEvolve’.  This stunning twelve-track collection seems destined to propel the classically trained Waters (daughter of Kim Waters and graduate of Howard University) right into the contemporary jazz spotlight.

The Braxton Brothers - Higher

That San Diego based dynamic duo The Braxton Brothers make a welcome return to their smooth jazz roots with ‘Higher’, their first overtly contemporary jazz project since 2004 and ‘Rollin’.  Not that sax-man Wayne Braxton and his brother Nelson (who plays guitars and keyboards) haven’t been busy.  Nelson is a longtime member of Michael Bolton’s touring band and Wayne has a history of working with Sheila E.  Now, as writers, producers and performers of all twelve tunes, ‘Higher’ is taking them very much center stage. 

Paul Hardcastle - Hardcastle VIII

Just when you thought that Paul Hardcastle had run out of musical creativity, along he comes with ‘Hardcastle VIII’, a collection that finds him doing what he does best while throwing in a few surprises along the way.  In fact it was two years ago with ‘The History of Paul Hardcastle 1984-2016’ that he offered up the chance to get reacquainted with his not inconsiderable discography yet with this latest project Hardcastle is confirming how, thirty four years into a hit strewn career, he is still looking to the future as well as never being afraid to take a glance at what has gone before. 

Brian Simpson - Something About You

Keyboard player, composer, producer and prolific studio musician Brian Simpson has just weighed in with his eighth solo project, the dazzling ‘Something About You’.  It is a rare amalgam of jazz, R&B, and soul all conveyed via ten original compositions for which he is assisted by regular collaborators Steve Oliver and Oliver Wendell.  Completing the line-up are bass players Alex Al and Andre Berry, guitarists Darrell Crooks and Yarone Levy, percussionist Ramon Yslas and trumpeter Ron King for a collection that confirms Simpson as having top-notch smooth jazz pulsing through his veins.

David Garfield - Jammin Outside The Box

Together with collaborators of unrivalled calibre, keyboard player David Garfield   has come up with what might just be the best pop-orientated R & B album of 2018.  Titled ‘Jammin Outside The Box’ and with with input from A-list performers such as George Benson, David Sanborn, Freddie Washington, Smokey Robinson, Michael McDonald, Natalie Cole and Ray Parker Jr. it is the second in Garfield’s five part multi genre ‘Outside The Box’ series and one which sublimely crosses over from R & B, to contemporary jazz, to pop and back again. 

Tea - Grand Cru

Tea, the production team of guitarist Frank Balloffet and drummer - keyboard player Phil Bunch has been on the Smooth Jazz Therapy radar since 2009 and the release of its second CD ‘Dreams’. Since then the duo have collaborated with the legendary Brian Auger for his solo project ‘Language Of The Heart’ and consequently it is particularly pleasing that for the band’s latest offering, ‘Grand Cru’, they have enlisted the services of Auger who features on eight of the eleven choice tunes.

‘Grand Cru’ has been described elsewhere as a collection of electro-pop songs that draws influence from jazz, lounge and soul. Indeed the vibe that Balloffet and Bunch effortlessly create engenders a warm intimacy that is precious and this is particularly the case with the decidedly retro ‘Cargo’ and the wonderful ‘Natural’ where Ines Murer on vocals is superb. She also features on ‘Princess’ that shimmers with an understatedly theatrical aura and when she returns one more time for ‘Drive Me Away’ she perfectly complements Auger’s work on Hammond B3.

‘Grand Cru’ provides five further vocal numbers all of which are fronted by the delightfully soulful Sabrina Williams. Among them is the groove drenched ‘Wonder One’ for which Auger again excels and the equally good ‘I Can’ that has an ‘Everything But The Girl’ thing going on. It is right up there with the best that ‘Grand Cru’ has to offer yet all things considered the Smooth Jazz Therapy top track is the vibrant instrumental ‘Trapeze’ that serves as the perfect vehicle for the collective talents of Balloffet, Bunch and Auger.

Sam Rucker - Redemption

Hip-hop producer turned sax-man Sam Rucker hails from Williamsburg, Virginia and caught some attention in 2014 with his sophomore CD ‘Tell You Something’ that was mixed and mastered by Euge Groove and included contributions from Norman Connors, Bobby Lyle, Tom Browne and Alyson Williams. Now he is back with ‘Redemption’, a tight ten-track collection that he produces writes or co-writes throughout and which promises to be one of the urban jazz events of 2018.