NEW CD REVIEWS: Jeff Lorber * Bob Holz * Lin Rountree
SmoothJazz Jul/Aug 2021
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MAGAZINE
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26 Feature
15 Steve Cole Talks
New CD: Smoke & Mirrors
26 Dave Koz Talks
New CD: The Golden Hour
35 Tito Puente Jr. Talks New CD: The King and I
Festival 48 Summer Festival Guide
Jazz Notes 08 New Grammy Class 2021
Latin Grammy Awards in Vegas Hollywood Bowl Best Venue
CD Reviews 65 Dave Koz & Cory Wong The Golden Hour
70 Jeff Lorber - Space-Time Inflexion 73 Lin Rountree - Fluid 76 Bob Holz Live In New York & LA
CD Releases
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SmoothJazz Jazz July / August 2021
Art Jackson - Publisher/CEO Dr. Ahava Talon - Editor in Chief Doris Gee - Research Manager Mann - Graphic Artist Manager
Smooth Jazz Magazine 3751 Motor Ave. Suite #531 Los Angeles, CA 9 0034 info@smoothjazzmag.com Web: www.smoothjazzmag.com
Contributing Writers Giget C. Johnson Lexi Lewis Keivu Knox Cheryl Dunlap Eryn K. Bozeman Avzal Ismail
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Contributing Photographers Mann
Los Angeles
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reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written consent from the publisher. Copyright @ 2021 Smooth Jazz Magazine All Rights Reserved.
The week of July 03, 2021 Hope Gerald Albright
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Affection Randy Scott feat. Blake Aaron Sunset Boulevard Gerg Manning feat. James Lloyd Back Together Again Kim Scott Tokyo Amends Groove Adam Hawley
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Jazz The Recording Academy extended invitations to 2,710 musicians and music industry professionals to join the 2021 class of new members. Members can participate in the in the Grammy Awards voting process, and the Recording Academy is touting the diversity of new invitees, saying 55 percent are from “traditionally under represented groups.” “Membership is the Academy’s change agent—our members drive everything we do,” Ruby Marchand, chief industry officer at the Recording Academy, said in a statement. “I’m inspired by the potential for each invited music creator and business professional to lend their creativity and passion to our organization.” The Academy’s existing membership is “26 percent female and 27 percent from traditionally underrepresented groups,” according to a press release. Of the 2021 invitees, 48 percent are women. In recent years, questions regarding diversity and alleged corruption have stuck to the Grammys. In an effort to change the stigma, earlier this year, the Recording Academy announced changes to its nomination process for the 2022 Grammy 08| SmoothJazz Magazine
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Awards. Grammy nominations used to be finalized by committees of 15-30 music industry “peers” representing “genre communities.” The final pool of nominees for nearly all Grammy Awards will now be decided by a majority vote of Academy voting members.
Jazz
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Jazz HOLLYWOOD BOWL NAMED AMPHITHEATER OF THE DECADE AT 32ND ANNUAL POLLSTAR AWARDS
THE LATIN GRAMMY AWARDS® RETURN TO LAS VEGAS The 22nd Annual Latin GRAMMY Awards® will air live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena Thursday, Nov. 18 on Univision Nominations to be announced Tuesday, Sept. 2
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www.brittanyatterberry.com Rising National Recording Smooth Jazz artist Brittany Atterberry is a blazing, soulful hot new female saxophonist. Her insatiable love for R&B matched only by her adoration for the idiosyncrasies of jazz shows Brittany’s versatility while she brings an energetic, smooth and sophisticated approach to the stage. Be ready for her to explode on the scene!
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Feature By: Cheryl Dunlap
Steve Cole’s new album “Smoke and Mirrors,” embodies the guiding sound of hope and forward movement. Its a must have in your musical arsenal as the energy transforms your atmosphere! It will motivate you, inspire you, and fill you with hope. My personal favorites are “Trust,” “Justice,” and “Wayman!” SJM: It was nice to learn that you from Chicago, because I am in Chicago. Steve: I lived all over the city of Chicago. I have lived in Minneapolis for the past 10 years. SJM: Your Father was a musician, what was it like to growing up with a father as a musician and did it have an influence on your decision to pursue music? Steve: My Dad played the saxophone, so I joined the family business. He introduced me to all kinds of music and my mother was a singer. There was music all over the place, all styles and genres. It was a great environment to grow up in. Before my Dad let me play any note of music in his band, I carried equipment for a few years before I could take the saxophone out, that was one disadvantage, it was the free labor! The cool thing is when I was young my dad would let me play in his band. I learn from a lot of fantastic and accomplished musicians, I had mentors informally and formally. My dad taught me how to play melodies by listening to musical standards. When I got to band to band in school, I could not play the melody all the time, it kind of bummed me out. I did it anyway and was kicked out a couple of times. I would not play my part, I just wanted to play the melodies! I learned to be a team player. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 15
Feature “Music is always, something people gravitate toward. It's a healing force and that helps people make sense of things that are confounding.” STEVE COLE SJM: Who would you say formally or informally was your musical influences? I read Grover Washington and David Sanborn were some of your favorites? Steve: Absolutely. One of the things my Dad was great about was introducing me to different players. We would listen to Public Radio all the time at night, listening to Jazz shows. He would talk to me about different players, identifying different players, it kind of help me to zero in on what made different players sound different. I was kind like a collage. The saxophone players I could pick out right away was Lester Young, Cannon Adderley, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane. As I got older and started to listen to different kinds of music I gravitated toward Junior Walker and the deep soul crossroads between soul and blues, jazz and pop music. Then I discovered King Curtis, David Sanborn, and Grover Washington. I was looking for players that I could identify that made them unique. My influences were all over the place. SJM: So you currently live in Minneapolis, where the tragic George Floyd death occurred during this pandemic. I know that had to have an impact on you, as well as producing the album. So, with these two guiding forces and with your creativity how do you describe that experience? Steve: It was kind of a one two punch. It was like, the pandemic happens, and all bets are off, right? We're all trying to figure out what does this mean? Life as we know it, how is that going to change and, and then it gets down to kind of, things that are more granular. Thoughts of am I still musician, and what does that mean? How do I do this? And we all were like, is anyone going to care about music? We, have bigger fish to fry. But, music is always, something people gravitate toward. It's a healing force and that helps people make sense of things that are confounding. So it was interesting that, my music subscriptions, for instance, we're increas16| SmoothJazz Magazine Let the music take you… Jul/Aug
Feature “The pandemic allowed us an opportunity to take a deeper look within, to figure out who and what are important to us.”
ing during the pandemic, you know people are gravitating towards it. So, you know my record label, called me up. I thought they were going to say, hey we don't know what's going on. They were just the opposite. They said why don't you start your next record. I'm like really, and that was, incredible for me because it's like man, what a great gift to have a project to do. I'm certainly not traveling anywhere. That happened to be a lifesaver. Mentally, it's like, Wow, great timing. Then, I called up my dear friend, David Mann. We've produced my last several albums together; we've been working together since 2000. We got to work and it was a little bit different, because, you know, normally we get together in person with musicians and record music in a room together. That wasn't happening, but luckily everybody was available. You know there were some musicians I got to work with that I never, would have been able to because they were mostly on the road and it would be really difficult to kind of pin them down. Most everybody at this point is kind of set up to record at home as professionals; they were able to track their instruments and they sound brilliant, so that was cool. And then, as we're kind of in the process of doing all this and getting really excited about things, then the George Ford's murdered, a couple of miles away from my house. I'm wondering, I actually have to figure out like exactly how far from my front door, this is. SJM: 38th in Chicago, right? Steve: Yeah, yeah 3.4 Miles SJM: 3.4 you are kidding? Steve: 3.4 miles away, Yeah. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 17
Feature First of all, everything that happened around that event, it was kind of a double edged sword. I mean it was tragic. Yet, some of the things that kind of came from it were, almost, I don't want to say encouraging, but there's voice that was rising up that there was something that was happening. People needed to take notice and it was a very emotional time, especially being right in the center. I mean there were times where the army helicopters. I have pictures of them like from my backyard. We could smell the tear gas in the air. So this is all going on and, part of me was like maybe I should start doing something very deliberate with the music. Then I thought to myself, you know what, I'm just going let it all kind of wash over me, and I'm just going to absorb it. It's happening right in my town. I'm paying attention, I'm learning, I'm listening and I'm emphasizing. I always feel like I write the best music when I don't try to write any kind of specific thing. I just try to be open to what's going on, and allow myself to feel it all. I made a very conscious decision to be very open to feeling it. And also, trying to feel what other people feel really radical empathy, and just allowing myself to feel that and baked that into the music. With music being so important over the past year and a half, it was an escape for me. And it would be the only escape that I would legitimately have I think outside of the family that I could have contact with amazing escape. Some people, including myself, struggled with our emotions. And it was frightening. Sometimes, we have to sit in it, and to feel it. However, in this album, there is that place of hope. And hope is probably not the best word, but every single song, feels like things are going to get better. A reminder that this year was only temporary. SJM: I listened to the album without reading anything about you or the album. It sounds and feels like hope, definitely in the very beginning of the album, I could feel that there was a very deep emotional connection to the past year. But there was always this undercurrent of hope, or that we're on the way to the other side of the pandemic. 18| SmoothJazz Magazine Let the music take you… Jul/Aug
Feature Steve: I love that you kind of derive that from, the music. You're right I mean, all of a sudden to deal with this pandemic. Cope with it based on what you know, and the tools we have, and the support structure that we have around us. I'm sure that most people caught themselves kind of going down the rabbit hole a little bit. How bad can this get? How much more bad news can we get? How much more horrors can we encounter one side of the spectrum than the other? But, you know, the thing that I was trying to do is, is to find that hopefulness. This too shall pass. We must, we better be learning something from this, and then you see some things that happen that do give you hope. You know that situation that makes you feel like maybe there is life on this planet. That's what I started kind of keying in on. That got me through kind of the toughest parts of this whole thing was, those glimmers of hope. Sometimes a result sometimes a tragedy there are things that start to make you think we may be on our way here, or at least we're moving the needle. So that was my attitude, I was trying to focus on. It's really cool that you perceive that, in the music because that's a real thing that was there. SJM: There's nothing about that album that will allow you to go to that negative place and I was looking for it. Every sound is about keeping it moving. It's amazing by you were able to tap into a hopeful, positive space, when you were only 3.4 miles away from a tragedy that shook the world. I saw it on TV. I watched it on social media. I can't imagine what it was like to be that close, and musically remain so positive. If I was a musician, the music would have been somber. Steve: It could have been very easy to go there. Hope is interesting and meaningful, more meaningful, and I'm so glad that you said it landed on you that way. That's, incredible. Thank you for sharing that with me. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 19
Feature SJM: You're very welcome. Okay, so as I'm a researcher, and I was so very impressed to find out. You are a Doctor, Clinical Phycologist, and a teaching fellow of music, and entrepreneurship at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. You graduated from Northwestern University in Evanston. You have these amazing heavy hitters and incredibly talented musicians on this album. Each of them have a strong entrepreneurial spirit. I would just love to know how that whole process happened and of course your doctorate degree in teaching. Steve: Well, I started out as a music major, but ended up with a degree in economics, that's my bachelor's. I worked for a while and wanted to figure out how to quit my job because I didn't like it, and so I think the best way to do that is going to graduate school. So I studied on the south side (of Chicago), I went to the University of Chicago and got an MBA and. I kind of, did that because that's what people were doing. But when I went to get my master's degree, I didn't really have a goal in mind, other than this is something I should probably do. Fast forward, got back into music, got very serious and started playing with people who were able to, help me kind of move forward in my career. Then I started to make records and tour around the world and stuff. After my third record with Warner Brothers, I got dropped from the label. That was a great run, cool, I got to do that. I thought that was it, and what could I do? I remembered how much I enjoyed, when people would ask me while I was traveling on the road to stop by, colleges and universities and talk to music students about the music industry; because I had a background of business, a background as a performer and recording artist. I realized how much musicians and people who wanted to go into music business, needed to know about this industry of ours, 20| SmoothJazz Magazine Let the music take you… Jul/Aug
Feature and this was even back in to mid, kind of early 2000s. It is incredibly more complicated. I got hired eventually to run the music industry program at Columbia College in Chicago. It was just so incredible to be able to create curriculum for the business of music to help people who want to have lives and careers in music. Helping people really understand what they need to know, and what kind of experiences they need to have, what kinds of background in business and strategy and design that they need to have and it was really incredible. When I moved to Minneapolis I kind of continued on that on that path. Now the funny thing is right after I got the job at Columbia I got another record deal so my second act was a little bit premature. So I’ve been recording, touring, and teaching for the past 15 years. The business has become even more complicated now. Going back and getting a doctorate was really all about how can I learn more about better teach my students and prepare them for careers in this industry, as it becomes, more convergent and complex. So I wanted to learn to design experiences and curriculum that are really going to make a difference in how prepared students are to enter this industry. Pursuing my doctorate was really a very much of a purpose based. I knew exactly why I was doing it. It was great and I'm really glad that I did it because it's helped me become a better teacher. SJM: And additionally, better businessman as well. Steve: Absolutely. The thing about teaching is that, if you want to get better at whatever you're doing, teach it, because it really forces you to look deep, into your own practice, as you're trying to translate it and put it into some sort of a digestible narrative for others. You know I'm a better player. I'm a better business person. I'm a better entertainer because of teaching and certainly much better teacher. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 21
Feature SJM: That's a real interesting way to look at the whole cliché iron sharpens iron. As you are teaching and sharpening someone you're sharpening yourself, because through this challenge you to grow as well. So with touring and teaching how do you make it work? Steve: I've been really lucky because one is never really gotten in the way of the other. Matter of fact, part of how my position in higher education is evaluated on how engaging in your profession I am. So, what I do as an artist is encouraged as these two careers really do fit together very well. Honestly, I identify I'm kind of agnostic, at any given time, if you ask me what do you do for a living, I could say I'm a recording artist, and then I’ll say I'm a college professor. I mean I'm both. SJM: What is behind the title of the album? Does it have a connection to the current time period? Steve: The title, really kind of speaks to what do we see, what do we say, versus what do we do, how do we act. A lot of times you can look at something and you can believe one thing because what you know or what you hear and what you're led to believe is one thing but then when you kind of peel it back you understand that there's something ifferent behind it. At the time that we were in was kind of poignant for me, in the time that the record was being made and the world situation kind of looking at how far we think we've come, versus how far we actually come. Sometimes there are events that need to happen for us to really understand, what's the smoke and mirrors and what the truth is. That can be very personal too. I often find that I encounter people who act a certain way in public and feel a different way, when they're by themselves. What's going on in our society that makes people feel like they have to project one image, when that may not be their true self. So it's a number of different things that I was just thinking about, that led me to feel how can we get beyond the smoke of mirrors and how can we get to the kind of what's real and what's authentic. 22| SmoothJazz Magazine Let the music take you… Jul/Aug
Feature SJM: Within the album, you dedicated a song to bassist Wayman Tisdale and you speak about the loss of the beloved Khari Parker. I understand this was the first time that you had worked without him. Steve: Absolutely! It was strange because in previous albums I would, start working on a particular track and thinking definitely, when Khari gets a hold of this, it’s going to be amazing. It was funny because I felt myself kind of going there a little bit on this record and had to catch myself. One thing I realized how much of my writing, Khari influenced. I would kind of hear him, as I was writing and that would kind of inspire the compositional process and I didn't even realize that until, he wasn't there to do that. So I wish I would have realized that a little earlier so I could have told him that. It made me smile when I of realized that. It wasn't just in the studio and after the fact it was the whole process. You know, he was kind of, definitely played a role. This situation allowed me to, work with, some other musicians kind of honoring Khari, still kind of integrating him in the compositional process, just the drumming was done by other people, and done masterfully so. SJM: With the remaining musicians you chose to work with on this album any specific reasons why you chose them? Steve: Dave Mann played some horns. Trevor, incredible trombone player and Barron on guitar showed up on probably my last five records, they're incredible professionals. I met them through Dave they're all New York guys. They are some of the finest players. The great thing about it is, it doesn't matter what style it is, they're gonna adapt to what they do to the music. And Dave Mann's horn section ranging is just unparalleled. So it's a great combination of people that I have worked together with for so long and in so many different situations. They've always made my music sound amazing so I'm really grateful that they keep saying yes. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 23
Feature SJM: What inspires you to make music? Do you have hobbies? Does life inspire you? Do you have pets or a muse that inspires you? Steve: I think music has always been something that moves me. When I first started listening to it, I felt like I wasn't a passive listener. That it affected me and that made me want to make music. I think the thing that inspires me most to make music is the connection. As a musician and as a recording artist I get to connect with people and in a way that not a whole lot of people get to connect with people. There's this energy, there's this interaction that happens. I'm performing and playing and I'm communicating something that's meaningful to me and it lands on the audience and they give it right back. I think that most when writing music, I Like I put myself in that kind of performance situation where, where there's, there's other people. We're sharing this really great moment together. So I think it's just the humanity around music that inspires me to make it .What it can do and what it can communicate, that energy and that connection it creates between people, between strangers, it’s pretty amazing. SJM: My last question, you said that, chasing your wife, what's the love story real quick? Steve: Suffice to say that. Make a long story short, it was love at first, it was love at first sight. She could have moved to Antarctica, I would have figured out how to get there. SJM: That says it all. It has been my pleasure to speak with you. Thank you for the time, and speaking for us music lovers, thank you for this album. It is phenomenal! Steve: I'm so glad and I'm flattered that you thought of me, thank you so much. 24| SmoothJazz Magazine
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Feature By: Keivu G. Knox Last year, Dave Koz celebrated his 30th anniversary in the music business. His career has spanned not just music, but television and movies. Recently he released a genre-defining collaboration project entitled The Golden Hour, with guitarist Cory Wong. Recently, he sat down with us to discuss his career, his life, and his return to touring
SJM: How’s everything going in your world Dave? Dave: Well, I came back from Mexico and taking care of things at home. California is opening up so it’s good to get some normalcy back. SJM: As we are on the “other side” of the pandemic and looking at our “new normal” are there any lasting impressions or takeaways from it that you carry with you today? Dave: Well, I realized how important music is to our overall human wellbeing, especially given the realities of the pandemic that we've all experience. Music really helped me through it, and I know that was an interesting time for me because I ended up being very, very creative. During this time period I made two albums in the pandemic. I normally don’t make albums that quickly. But I realized how important music was, to me. When the pandemic started, I went immediately to my feel good musical heroes because in that music where I found comfort. I know during that time my music was comfort for others and it made me proud. And now as we're about ready to kind of resume our lives, I’m reevaluating everything with through a different lens that I didn't necessarily look at before. 26| SmoothJazz Magazine
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Feature SJM: During the pandemic you also performed concerts via live streaming. How was it to perform without an audience? Dave: We did four or five livestream concerts and it's a strange thing because music is such a celebratory thing especially the music that I make, but to get to the end and have silence is the weirdest thing. You realize how important applause is. By the same token, knowing that people were watching in the comfort of their home and feeling safe, and yet still being able to be supportive of the music, that felt really good. One of my favorite things to do throughout the pandemic is to read the comments after the shows. That was a form of applause for me, and I think we came across a new way to appreciate music in the future. People may not want to go out and spend money on a night out, but may feel more comfortable with watching from their home. SJM: Switching gears a little bit, congratulations on your 30th anniversary in the music business. When you released your first album, do you remember any goals you had? Dave: It’s still a mystery to me that I’ve been in the business for over 30 years. Honestly, this was not some thing I wanted to do. I went to college as a mass communications major, and it wasn’t until I met a few people who saw something in me, did that change. Jeff Lorber helped me to get my demos out and get signed to Capitol Records. My only goal at the time was just to sell enough records and to be able to make another one! (laughs) SJM: Did you ever notice the moment when you realized you were no longer an up and coming artist, but an artist that people wanted to collaborate with? Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 27
Feature Dave: There is an author named Malcolm Gladwell who has written a lot of very successful books. There's one concept that's very well known that he came up with, which was the concept of 10,000 hours. It basically states if you do something consistently for that many years, or hours in his case, at that point you're just known in the world. About 15 years into my career I remember that feeling of like one day, it felt like nobody knew who I was. And then the next day, everyone knew me from music, or TV or magazines. It was pretty surreal. It’s based on the feelings that I have been able to give people. It’s similar to the way that I feel about certain artists when I hear their name, it's not so much specifics that come to mind but it's a feeling, it's like a feeling inside your body that you resonate with when you hear the name, Stevie Wonder, for example. That's been the most important thing for me is to create, I mean obviously I'm not going to be Stevie Wonder, but I can continue to release music and do radio shows and cruises and tours, keeping a very consistent thread that runs through all of that so that when people would say my name, then it would elicit this nice feeling inside. That has been, and will continue to be my goal. SJM: Speaking of that, you do have a lot of things on your plate. How do you manage it all? What is the secret to balancing it? Dave: Well I think it's at my core. I probably suffer from ADHD (laughs) if I was just doing one thing I'd probably go crazy because I really enjoy the variety of showing up in different ways. I think the key is, for me is, is delegating to people that I really trust and believe in. I’ve had the same people work with me on the cruise for many years, and I’ve 28| SmoothJazz Magazine Let the music take you… Jul/Aug
Feature years I've been very fortunate to develop really great relationships with these team members that I think have my back. Therefore I trust them, and allows me the ability to kind of go from one thing to the next, and know that when I'm not overseeing it I don't have to micromanage it. SJM: So for your latest project, you worked with Cory Wong. Tell us about how that relationship started. Dave: So about three years ago, I started getting messages from his fans and when I did my research I found that he was going on tour with a green screen, projecting images of me on our cruises. He was trying to figure out ways to contact me and ultimately get on the cruise! So I reached out to him and we had dinner in LA and I realized that he really has a heart for music and creativity. We created a plan where I ultimately would give him what his calls the “Koz nod” and I would endorse him, in a sense. It really has been a great musical relationship, because he’s a younger guy with so many ideas that I may never had tried, and it gives me a different outlook on the industry and how things are going. So as a result we decided to do a record together. It got postponed a few times last year because of the pandemic, but late last year we all got together in Minnesota, as that’s where Corey is from, masked up, and did the record, and I’m really proud of what we were able to accomplish. Usually in those situations it’s assumed that the younger guy is only learning from the older guy, but I can tell you that I am learning so much by working with Cory, from social media to digital, to how younger people appreciate music. SJM: A couple of weeks ago, the two of you performed the album in its entirety on a boat in Minnesota. Performing albums is something that artists are doing more Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 29
Feature lately. Is there a particular album you would perform live on tour? Dave: I actually haven't thought about doing that. That’s a great question. I probably would do “The Dance,” since we had so many big radio singles from that one. It has memories for me, because it was released in 1999, and if you remember, there was so much uncertainty in the world at that time, heading into the year 2000. I recorded it with the hopes of giving people an ability to be calm, so that one is a very personal record for me. SJM: Speaking of “The Dance,” there’s a version of “Together Again” on the new album that sounds nothing like the original. How did that come about? Dave: It’s a funny story actually. It was a show in New York, and it was sold out. He asked me to come on stage with him and perform. We would do that from time to time so that was nothing new. So after I performed I was about to leave the stage. He asks me to stay because we have one more song to play. I’m like “uh, we rehearsed specific songs so I’m not sure what you’re talking about.” So Cory says he has a surprise for me, and his band goes into my version of “Together Again,” note for note just like I play it. So that kind of stuck in my head. Especially the arrangement, it had a different feel even though the notes were the same. So when we were putting this album together, I mentioned that I thought we could do a version of Together Again, but the rhythm section made it so different. Michael Nelson wrote an incredible horn arrangement and it was really fun to play and record. It’s a favorite of mine and I’ve played it so much, but to play it this way, the way it’s on the album, is even more fun for me. As an artist if we're lucky, we’ll have one song that people want to hear us play. When you play that song year after year, tour after tour, it’s hard to keep it fresh, but this version we put together, definitely does that. SJM: Tell us about the title track, it has some Earth, Wind and Fire vibes to it. 30| SmoothJazz Magazine
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Feature Dave: That was one of the first songs we wrote together. Cory and I, and it's kind of a funny, quirky melody. But then when it was arranged for the rhythm section and for the horn section, it totally took shape to me. It's like a mix of Earth Wind and Fire and Tower of Power horns for me. It has warmth to it, and while at first we didn’t call it “The Golden Hour” the name just came to us. In a sense it just reminded me of that time period. In a microcosm, it really represents where the meeting of me and Cory came together. When you think about the golden hour it's this magical time of day, and it's not really day, but it's not really night either, but it’s on the edge. I think for both Corey and I, this project was putting us on in that edge where it's sort of like at the very outskirts of our musical creativity. And that song, sort of, was the way that it kind of encapsulated that feeling best to us so that's why we called it “The Golden Hour” and it became the title track. SJM: What you just said brings up this question, and it’s one that I’ve always wanted to ask you ever since I heard “You Make Me Smile.” Do you typically come up with the name of the song after completing the song, or is it that you sometimes have this title in mind and you craft a song around the title, or a little bit of both? Dave: I think, in my experience, when writing, the song comes, and usually I have a working title. It can be a very basic working title like, “Song Number One,” for example. But in the end, when you listen to it over and over, it sort of reveals itself to you. You brought up, “You Make Me Smile” and that was a song that I was working on with my brother. At the same time, our sister was pregnant with her first child. The day that we were writing that song was the day that my sister gave birth to our first niece. We left the writing session to go meet our niece, and then we came back, and named that song “You Make Me Smile” because we were so happy. It was like a real world experience that sort of came into our songwriting Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 31
Feature process. That's the whole concept of the song but with instrumental music, one of the beautiful things is that when you listen to it, it can mean one thing to one person and another thing to another person. I love the fact that I’m able to have that sort of blank canvas with my music so that it can mean different things to different people. That is awesome. SJM: Talking about collaborations, If you were able to collaborate with any artist, who would it be and what song would you cover? Dave: Wow! That’s a mean question (laughs), I really have been very fortunate to collaborate with some of the superstars in my life. People like Stevie Wonder and Rod Stewart and Celine Dion and Stevie Nicks. I think, one that comes to mind would be to work with Sting, and to do a sax version of fragile but with him playing guitar on it. That would be pretty amazing. I love Elton John. I've met him before, but I've never collaborated with him, but the guy writes melodies that are so perfect for the saxophone. SJM: What's next for you? Dave: We are going out next month in July to start our Summer Horns tour. We are definitely excited about it and we have a great lineup. Kirk Whalum, Mindi Abair, Vincent Ingala and myself, and on certain stops, we’ll have Kenny Lattimore as a guest. It’s going to be really fun. The musicians so excited to be able to play get in front of people. As you said earlier, we've had to play songs in front of nobody for a long time so I’m really looking forward to that. And then hopefully we'll be able to have our Christmas tour this year as well. This will be our 24th year doing the tour and we feel that the 32| SmoothJazz Magazine Let the music take you… Jul/Aug
Feature SJM: Speaking of Christmas my wife is a big Hallmark fan, and she informed me that you were in a Christmas movie for them a few years back, called “Sharing Christmas.” What was that experience like? Dave: I’ve been on TV a few times over the years, playing myself and playing music, and I’m comfortable with that. However, “Sharing Christmas” was really an interesting thing with having to be written into the script in a movie like that. It blew me away. And I remember the day that we filmed that it was in Salt Lake City at this jazz club and I was a nervous wreck. I know that’s not my thing but they made me feel comfortable and were very nice to me. I loved the experience and it made me realize that a lot of people watch that channel for Christmas; probably the entire country! I was more nervous for that than anything else I’ve ever done. SJM: Last question: What is one thing that people may not know about you or will be surprised to know about to whether it's a hobby or maybe something that you picked up in the pandemic? Dave: Well, I learned this from my dad and I didn't understand it when he was alive. But somehow when he passed, he posthumously passed on a passion to me that now is the one surefire way that I can relax. I lead a pretty crazy life with a lot of things coming at me, but when I truly need to relax, nothing does it for me better than sitting down with a crossword puzzle. I don’t do them online. For me, having the Sunday New York Times crossword puzzle with a cup of coffee on a Sunday morning, that's my definition of nirvana. SJM: That is a fun fact! Thank you so much Dave, stay safe and see you on the road soon! Dave: Thank you it was my pleasure! Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 33
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By: Lexi Lewis
I had an enjoyable conversation with Latin royalty! “The King and I” didn’t speak, of course, but I spoke with his son Tito Puente Jr. who is heir to the throne! Tito Puente Jr. is the son of Tito Puente who was affectionately referred to as the “King of Latin Music.” His dad has made his impact on the world and now Tito Puente Jr is stepping out of the shadows of his dad and taking the world by storm with his new album “The King and I.” In the interview, Tito talks about the album title, his first single released from the album and much more. A lot of
laughter took place during this interview which made it very pleasant. We were like friends having a chat. Check it out!
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Feature SJM: You just released a new album titled “The King and I.” Let’s first talk about the single 20 Años (20 Years) from the album that dropped on your 50th birthday in June 2021. I love, how you infused your father into the video and the song. Talk about how that came about and tell me the significance of the title of the song. Tito: I’ve been touring for 11 years and not recorded in that amount of time. But the record came together in collaboration with my fantastic wife Rosalie, and my producer Marlow Rosado. They said, we’ve got to do a record for your dad's 20th anniversary of his passing. He died on May 31, 2000, so we wanted the record to come out then, but we were smack dab in the middle of you know what – the pandemic so we had to put a pause on it. I wanted to really release it correctly, so we waited. I asked if we should put it out on the date of his passing as a tribute to him or should we put it out on my birthday in 2021 and make it more of a celebratory thing, to celebrate his life. We chose to release the 20 Years song that I collaborated with José Alberto “El Canario,” Frankie Negrón, Domingo Quiñonez and Michael Stuart on. Then, we got my father on that record! The producer, Marlow Rosado, said why don't do something like Natalie Cole and Nat King Cole did with Unforgettable? We took one of my father's old songs and found the master recording of a solo he did so he's really playing on the song. In the music video, you see him playing that particular solo, and then we go back and forth on the music video. It’s the title cut off the new album and the other songs on the record are all classic tunes from different eras of his career. SJM: I noticed that you did “Oye Como Va.” I wondered why you released that one but now I understand it's classics from your dad. Tito: Yes, a tribute to him. I never recorded Oye Como Va, but I always perform36| SmoothJazz Magazine Let the music take you… Jul/Aug
Feature ed it live. It was exciting to record it in a studio, but we added a fantastic singer named Michael Stuart - the original version does not have a singer. SJM: I've listened to a preview of all of the songs on “The King and I” and I think it's definitely Grammy worthy. Tito: You're making me blush because you're the first person to say that! I thought if I said it out loud to the public and via my social media it'll possibly come true. I'm getting my hopes up. However, I'm not going to be disappointed if it doesn't because I know that this music is timeless and I want people to enjoy you know, a time where it's infinite. People want to hear new music more than ever after being at home on lockdown. My competition can put a billboard up in the middle of Times Square but I'm not doing anything. I'm doing grass roots to the fans. SJM: Give me a little story about working with one or two of featured artists on this album - something that stood out to you. Tito: Each one of them have their own distinctive story. The album’s concept came from my wife, Rosalie. Her idea was that we should do a record with recording artists that worked in a studio setting with my father which I thought was a great idea. To help narrow the choices down, Rosalie said we should select people that actually worked in a studio with earphones on, that sat across from my father. That's why we choose these 10 artists, notwithstanding my brother Ronnie, not recording with my father but we wanted to do a tribute to our dad. We filmed the artists as they recorded and then after, they gave testimony about my father. The video will come out and you're going to hear everybody talk about my father and it will also be a documentary coming out in December. SJM: Describe how you felt after completing the album. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 37
Feature Tito: I shed a tear after listening to the songs. But, if my hairs weren’t standing up too and if certain members of my father's band didn’t give me the thumbs up, I wasn’t going to put it out. I hope you guys will enjoy it. SJM: We referenced being on lockdown. Tell me what positive changes came in your life as a result of the pandemic. Tito: Wow, well, I can go right straight to the core - I lost 29 pounds! SJM: Congratulations but I found them! Tito: Well, I gained it during the pandemic, but then I was like man this thing is going be over soon! I did the keto diet and I just shed the weight; it just went away. Something very positive is that I got to spend more time with my children, simply being at home or fixing things around the house. I didn't think I was a fix it kind of guy. I’ve discovered new things about myself and how far I can push myself physically, energetically, spiritually. I learned so much during the pandemic. I'm grateful, more so than anything else. Thousands of lives were lost during this pandemic and I'm just grateful for the life that I have. And I appreciate the ones that are close to me as well. You know, we all have to reflect on this thing.
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There's something just horrific happening to the planet, not just the United States or to the Latinos and Blacks, but everybody. I think it all is going to get better. They’re still a lot of changes that need to be made but I hope that through music, we can all discover something new about ourselves. I did when I was recording this album. I didn't think I could do it. No outside encouragement. Nobody was saying I could do it in my face because we're all doing zooms Let the music take you… Jul/Aug
Feature and phone calls. I just had my wife pushing me to get out and saying let's do it, we can do it. I discovered things about me, and my spirituality was really enhanced tenfold during this whole thing. SJM: Let’s talk about turning the big 5-0! Are you on par with where you want to be in life at 50? Tito: Wow, it's incredible. What a feeling. I never thought I would make it to 50. But it's been a beautiful ride. Very proud of my accomplishments. I think my father would be too. I feel like I'm living a parallel life as when he was 50. He came out with an album too. Ironic. But the difference between my father's life when he was 50 and mine is that I don't have any gray or white hair! (laughing) SJM: Well, you know what? Often times with age comes dom. What advice would 50-year-old Tito give 25-year-old Tito looking back?
wis-
Tito: Well, of course. I'm a father of two now. And a grandparent as well. I think I would give the advice to get ready for a rollercoaster ride of emotions when you have children. I love my kids. I love spending time with them. I think the 50-year-old would say to the 25-year-old to take the advice of my father just do what you have to do now because when you hit that, you know over the hill age, you're going to start settling down. It's such a beautiful feeling. Never thought I would feel this way or experience the success of parenthood. Fatherhood is the thing that I cherish the most. My father wasn't there for me when I was growing up, simply because he did about 300 shows a year. It was very rare that I got to see my dad until I was a teenager. And then I started traveling with him during the summers. My kids are now teenagers and I love spending more time with them and less on the road after this whole pandemic. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 39
Feature SJM: Fatherhood….what's your favorite thing to do with your kids? Tito: We have passes to all the amusement parks. We abuse the passes (laughing). We try to go as much as we can and as fast as we can on every roller coaster. I feel like a kid again when I'm around them. When I’m with my kids, I love teaching them about their grandfather's music and teaching them about my 80’s music. When talking with them, I support whatever they want to do in this world. I encourage that they put 100% into it. My father did not teach me how to play timbales or drums; I was self-taught. He then made me go to school and get my education and learn. I’m instilling that into my children as well. Whatever they want to do, they’ve got to go to school for it. SJM: Take your father out of the equation and tell me who was the most influential person in your life as a child? And who is the most influential person in your life today? Tito: Wow, really hard for me to delete the grand Tito Puente simply because I just embody him in every way, and I even look like him. My whole being is worshiping the ground that he walked on. But not only that, he was a father figure as well. However, there are many influences in my life. As far as musicianship, I think the members of my father's orchestra. I still feel intimidated by them because they are so good. They are like my uncles so their playing abilities and their skill in working with my father's orchestra for over 35 years is just incredible. And they are still resilient and still playing today. I look up to those musicians in high regard. My drum teacher, Mr. Sam Ulano. He taught me rudiments and how to read and write music. God’s spirit guided me the most as I navigated the ups and downs just being a celebrity kid, son of a legend. I have had a lot of pressure. It all kind of falls by the wayside now. So, at 50, I don’t think about that anymore. My father is no longer here, I'm here now so I 40| SmoothJazz Magazine
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Feature don't know why I’m compared to him. No one can compare to him alive or dead today. He was just one of a kind and I don't feel that pressure anymore. I feel more like I embrace who I am. Those influential people helped me be the man that I am today. Today, I would probably just say I’m not influenced but inspired by my kids. They inspire me to get up every day, go out there and hustle and bring grandpa's music to the world. Just being with my kids is a continuously party because it drives me to a place where I love being. It doesn't have anything to do with being a musician or being in the music industry. It’s a natural fun high and they just give me that joy.
Tito: Very, very polarizing right now. My father would be very disappointed because we play Afro-Cuban music, that's what we were stimulating. Racism is so over the top; we have to find ways to bring people together and hopefully my record and my album can do that at least musically. When I do my concerts, I always encourage everybody to bring mom, dad, everybody, your Hispanic friends, your Black friends, your White friends, and your Chinese friends!
SJM: And you know what, that's what they're going to remember - those special memories with Dad like jumping on I hope that as the world opens up with a bed, pillow fights and movie nights. mask mandates being alleviated a little bit that people have something smart to Tito: What you just said are the things I say, we've covered our mouths for a wish that I had with my dad. He just year, but nobody has anything bright to couldn't be because of the workload. say when they lower their mask. When you take your mask off, say something, SJM: This country has a lot going on and with pride and intelligence - something you mentioned there is something hor- that can make our fellow brothers sisrific going on right now on the planet. I ters come back together. That's the chalwant to know how you feel about race lenge. relations. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 41
Feature SJM: What kind of music do you listen to outside of Latin music?
with him, and I was just a fanboy (laughing). Marc Anthony is a friend of mine and a classic guy that I’ve known Tito: I am a heavy metal fanatic! Love prior to his success and that's why I heavy metal. I love Metallica. That's have respect for him, and I appreciate what I played before I played in college. what he's done for music. As a teenager I was in a rock band. Phil Collins, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Def LepFor my 50th birthday, my wife asked pard all the stuff I love. Iron Maiden one what I wanted because I have everyof my favorite bands of all time. I wear thing I want. She thought what is it that rock shirts all day long. People don't he really has never done before? She know that. I also love hip hop. I love the went and got skydiving equipment and old school guys like Wu Tang clan. told me I can go skydiving. She bought me one way trip up into the sky to jump SJM: Do you have a dream that you out of a plane! I haven't signed up yet. I haven't lived yet? told her that I want to wait for the album to come out. I want real album Tito: Well, I have a bucket list. And I'm sales because if I go on the plane then kind of checking things off as I go. But I die, I'll go platinum! (laughing) My wife wanted to be a rock star. I always feel keeps asking me when I’m going to like it when I'm playing but there’s no schedule it and I say why are you so flashing lights and fire like I’d really love quick for me to go up in the plane!? She with an arena full of people. told me because she wants me to fulfill my dreams. I’m not reluctant to do it I have dream artists that I would love to but I’ll go tandem with someone and do perform with like Carlos Santana. I did it before the fall. I’ll post it on all my sodo something with him earlier last year, cial media too. I’m going to be crying but it was a fundraiser. There are other like a little girl! (laughing) artists that I would love to work with too. Most of my idols and icons aren't SJM: Okay, the next few questions are really with us anymore. Some have just going to be fun facts, using your imagiretired. I’m a Phil Collins fan and I some- nation and some of your favorite things. times I run into him. I did a concert 42| SmoothJazz Magazine
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Feature So, you're composing a new song and the title describes your life. What's would be the title? TITO: Wow! I have a tune called Caliente, which means hot, that I did back in so I would probably make another revision of it…hot and exciting life. I have no regrets so Caliente would be the name of the song. SJM: You are now sworn in as the President of the United States of America. What is the first thing you would change and why? Tito: You're asking me this question as if I was a contestant in a beauty pageant (laughing). I'll just be funny with my answer and say, I would like all the radio stations to start playing Tito Puente music all day on the new Tito Puente Day. SJM: You fill in the blank. I really dislike it when… Tito: I really dislike it when I have to wake up and drive the kids to school. SJM: I love it when… Tito: I love it when I don't have to wake up and drive the kids to school. SJM: I believe… Tito: I will be saying that when I jumped out of plane - I believe I can fly (laughing). SJM: If you had do-overs in life what would they be? Tito: Oh, wow! That one flat note I hit back in ’97 or maybe that car wreck where (I’m sorry mom) I smashed up dad’s car at prom in ’87. Yeah, that was a little regretful there. Sorry officer I didn’t mean to Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 43
Feature blow up that toll booth in New Jersey Tito: Fruits, vegetables, and tons of waback in 91. Got a couple of regrets there. ter. Here’s another one - dyeing my hair with Jolene bleach. My God, I was scratching SJM: What is your favorite color? my head for a year. Tito: Black; simply because I love the SJM: If you if you were a cartoon charac- heavy metal thing. ter, who would it be and why? SJM: What's your favorite movie? Tito: I think it would be zany like Woody Woodpecker. Or maybe smart mouthy, Tito: I like the whole Close Encounters like Bugs Bunny. I'm an old Hanna Barthing. bera guy. SJM: Who is your favorite author? SJM: Where is your favorite place to visit in the United States? Tito: I like the Stephen King novels. Tito: I love going to New York City where SJM: If you didn't live in the United I grew up. I love going home. States of America, where would you live and why? SJM: Favorite place to visit outside the United States? Tito: Oh, wow! I think I would probably go to the Far East. I think that the people Tito: I love Japan. there respect Latin music in a way that I don't see in other countries. I feel very SJM: Favorite food? cultured when I go to the Far East like the Orient, Nepal, Indonesia, those Tito: I'm trying to do the vegan thing but countries just have this aura and spirituI’m going to say rice and beans. ality about them. SJM: If I opened your refrigerator right now what would I see?
SJM: Define music in your own words. Tito: Melody, rhythm, excitement. De-
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Feature finitely a rhythmic journey - rhythm is really where it's at….drums, bass, conga. SJM: What is the best piece of advice you'd give a music student? Tito: My father taught me this piece of advice and I'm going to encourage everyone to listen to this one. He told me “Son, surround yourself with creative people thus you will be creative.” If you are around other musicians consistently every day you are going to feel creativity because the creativity bounces off each other. Surround yourself with creative people thus you will be creative and inspire each other. That's my advice. SJM: Who do you go to for advice and who is your rock? Tito: No doubt Margie Puente, my mother. I can go to my mother with any situation that I have whatsoever. It has nothing to do with anything financial or spiritual. I can just say to her I’ve got a hang nail. She would say okay, let me tell you how to fix that. You don’t need YouTube just call me. I love that. And the rock of course is my wife. I can just turn to her whenever I have an issue. She makes me laugh and makes it all better. My mother is my biggest rock and then my wife Rosalie. SJM: If this was your last interview, and no one would ever hear from you again, what you say to your fans? Tito: The last thing that I'll say to the fans, thank you very much! I love each and every one of you! Muchas gracias to you all and I already paid my taxes so if you work for the IRS, leave me alone (laughing). And my stimulus check is gone too!
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Feature Thank you, Tito, for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak with me for a bit. It was great getting to know a little more about you and hope the readers enjoy our time together as well. Be sure to purchase “The King and I,” you won’t be disappointed! He puts his own spin on his father’s classic music, and it will make you want to dance, dance, dance! Follow Tito on his social media – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter: @ titopuentejr
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Festival
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Festival 16 Balcones Heights Jazz Festival: Nils, Johnny Britt among othersSan Antionio, TX 16-17 Winter Park Jazz Fest: Peter White, Rick Braun, Richard Elliot, Damien Escobar, Bell Biv Devoe, Elan Trotman, Julian Vaughn, En Vogue, Avery Sunshine, Dotsero Winter Park, CO 16-18 Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz: Eric Darius, Adam Hawley, Hiroshima, Temptations, Grace Kelly, Brubeck Brothers, among others. Hartford, CT 30-01 Newport Jazz Festival : Andra Day, Christian McBride, Robert Glasper, Charles Lloyd, Catherine Russell among others. Newport, RI
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Festival 06-07 Jazz & Coffee Escape: Marcus Anderson, Jeff Kashiwa, CeeLo Green, Elan Trotman, Jazmin Ghent, Kim Scott, Justin Schultz, BK Jackson, Javier Colon Asheville, NC 06-08 Scranton Jazz Festival: TBA Scranton, PA 07 Vanport Jazz Festival : Gerald Albright, Sheila E, Marion Meadows, Tahirah Memory Portland, OR 13-15 Telluride Jazz Celebration: Robert Glasper, Catherine Russell, Christian Sands, Preservation Hall Jazz Band among others Telluride, CO 13-15 San Jose Jazz Summer Festival: TBA San Jose, CA 13-15 Long Beach Jazz Festival : TBA Long Beach, CA 13-22 Berks Jazz Festival: Brian Bromberg, Peter White, Nick Colionne, Mindi Abair, Euge Groove among others Redding, PA 20-21 Southern Tier Jazz Festival : Paul Brown, Adam Hawley, Marcus Johnson among others Elmira / Corning, NY 20-21 Norfolk Waterfront Jazz Festival: George Benson, Lonnie Liston Smith, Jean Carne, Norman Connors, Ronnie Laws, Adam Hawley, Jackiem Joyner, David Sanborn Electric Band, Euge Groove, Cindy Bradley, Paula Atherton among others Norfolk Waterfront, VA 22 Gardena Jazz Festival: TBA Gardena, CA 22-27 Blue Jay Jazz Festival: Patrice Rushen, Paul Jackson Jr., Michael Paulo among others Lake Arrowhead, CA Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 53
Festival
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Festival 01-05 DC Jazz Festival: Regina Carter, The Spanish Harlem Orchestra, Orrin Evans Presents “Terreno Comum.” Lakecia Benjamin Presents: "Pursuance," Cyrus Chestnut among others Riverfront, DC 03-05 Low Country Jazz Festival: Richard Elliott, Najee, Lindsey Webster, Peabo Bryson, Adam Hawley, among others Charleston, SC 03-05 Riverfront Jazz Festival: Erykah Badu, David Sanborn, David Benoit, Marion Meadows, Rick Braun, Pete Escovedo among others Dallas, TX 03-06 Detroit International Jazz Festival: Dee Dee Bridgewater, Bob James, Herbie Hancock, Brubeck Brothers Quartet, Lionel Loueke among others Detroit, MI 04-05 John Coltrane International Jazz and Blues Festival: Chris Botti, Tito Puente, Jr., Kenny Lattimore, Julian Vaughn, Marcus Anderson, Kurt Elling among others High Point, NC 04-05 Gulf Coast Summer Jazz Fest: Jeff Lorber, Gerald Albright, Norman Brown, Lindsey Webster, Eric Darius, Peter White, Elan Trotman, Euge Groove, Cindy Bradley among others Pensecola, FL 04-05 Capital Jazz Festival: Marcus Miller, Sheila E., Will Downing, Lalah Hathaway, Avery Sunshine, Bill Withers among others Columbia, MD
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Festival 04-05 Jazz On The Creek: Ronnie Laws, Patrice Rushen, Michael Paulo, Paul Jackson Jr., David P. Stevens, Lin Rountree, Marqueal Jordan among others San Diego, CA 05 Atlanta Jazz Festival: Patti Austin, Mike Phillips, Jazzmeia Horn, Theo Croker, Sean Jones among others Atlanta, GA 11-12 Cleveland Tri-C Jazz Fest: Christian Sands, Emmet Cohen, Catherine Russell, the Spanish Harlem Orchestra among others Cleveland, OH 17-19 Pittsburgh International Jazz Festival: Marcus Miller, Chaka Khan, Gregory Porter Dianne Reeves among others Pittsburgh, PA 14 The Atlantic City Jazz Fest: Boney James, Najee, Pieces Of A Dream, Norman Brown, Lindsey Webster, among others Atlantic City, NJ 24-26 Monterey Jazz Festival: Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny Side-Eye, Terri Lyne Carrington among others Monterey, CA
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New CD Releases 2021
Kenny Garrett “Sounds from the Ancestors” 08.27.21 BUY
Brian Simpson “All That Matters” BUY
U-Nam “Love In Motion” Part 3 BUY
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Dan Siegal “Faraway Place” 08.13.21 BUY
Gabriel Mark Hasselbach “Tongue & Groove” 06.04.21 BUY
Christian McBride “The Q Sessions” 04.29.21
Dave McMurray “Grateful Deadication” 07.16.21 BUY
Jonathan Karrant “Shadows Fall” 05.22.21 BUY
Lunar Octet “Convergence” 022021 BUY
Let the music take you… Jul/Aug Yola Nash “Touched By
FEATURE
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Smooth Jazz
Magazine
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CD Reviews By: Giget C. Johnson
A Man’s Man Album – The reference to cars . . . fast cars, getaway car, junkyard dunebuggy . . . perhaps a change of life album for men. Fasten your seatbelt. At first impression, it is VERY BRASSY and a little too upbeat, perhaps not the smooth jazz we expect from Dave Koz upon first hearing it. But keep listening. It’s an album that grows on you. I mean . . . it is a spectacular album, if you get out of your own way and just “lay back, kick it and enjoy the ride.” Track 1. Today – A brassy but easy-listening opening song. Signature Sound of Dave Koz is laid in the track. You know it’s him. It starts off smooth but before long the brass kicks in. Then it calms back down as it closes to finger snapping.
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CD Reviews Track 2. Getaway Car – Upbeat tempo. Funky beat & full of brass. Almost a “James Bond” intro. Reminiscent of days of old. As if you may actually be on the run, it sounds a little dangerous. If you’ve ever been to a Dave Koz concert, it’s that one song that he plays to bring the crowd to the edge of their seats & ultimately cause a rise to their feet. There is a lot going on in this song. It’s probably a really fun song to perform. But it is loud. Almost too energetic. Like a workout that kicks your butt, you’ll be glad when it’s over. Track 3. Feed the Id – A show opener. Slower than Getaway Car but still very lively, just not excessively so. It has some calming parts. It also serves us a funky beat. A variety show of the talent involved. The guitar will have your head bobbing with your eyes closed, as you feel the rhythm. You might end up out of your seat on your feet playing an air instrument on this one. It is lit! On fire! Track 4. The Golden Hour – The album’s title track is refined. It is perfectly titled. It’ll cause you to sway back and forth. It is reminiscent of the part of life when you think you have it all together and can kick back and relax, when life is almost on auto-pilot. Track 5. Junkyard Dunebuggy – Guitarlaced. Many men must have a fast car at some point – when the “gotta have a fast car” hits – that’s what this album is. Midlife Crisis - Ego kicks in – “I’m still badass! This is for me!” The Change of Life - What else can I do? I’m gonna try something new! 66| SmoothJazz Magazine
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CD Reviews Track 6. Little Rascals – Slower than the other songs. A restaurant song. Perfect for enjoying a meal over a family buffet. You have driven many miles and finally must stop for sustenance in a little unknown town, but there’s food, albeit buffet style and you must fix your own plate. Track 7. Family Reunion – Perfect music for pulling up to the local park to meet family and friends. A happy go lucky song. A family of musicians would bring their instruments with each getting their time to shine on this song. Track 8. Engine 71 – All engines are revved up. This track could be the Finale. But it isn’t because after this we’re brought back down from the highest of energies on this album. Perhaps this is done to prevent heart attack on the side of the road. Track 9. Your Side of Town – Fun loving. As if you’re falling for someone, this song is a much-needed reprieve from the high energy of the other songs. A reminder that at the end of the day, when the man is done playing with his toys, he is coming back home. Hanging up his ego with his keys, he flips the switch and the gentleman reappears. Ladies, he didn’t forget about us. Jul/Aug Let the music take you… SmoothJazz Magazine | 67
CD Reviews Track 10. Together Again – A Remix. It is a song made for dancing and guess what? He ain’t dancing with his buddies on this one. It is Dave Koz as we’ve come to know him. This song is a gift on a macho-man album. A reminder that although “this is a man’s world, it wouldn’t be nothing without a woman or a girl,” as James Brown would sing. Track 11. Gratitude – The album winds its way to an end. Just like the end of each day, a moment is taken to give thanks. Slower thoughts. Deeper breaths. An acknowledgement that there is so much to be grateful for. Just like ladies have a “Girls Trip,” “Ladies’ Night Out,” “Spa Day,” men should have their own guilty pleasure, as expressed in this album. The Golden Hour– Track Listing “Cars, Trucks, Motorcycles,” “Bourbon, Cigars, High End Tequila,” “Fancy Sneakers, Nice Brims, Expensive Belts,” “Diamond Ring, Gold Necklace, Rolex Watch” Whatever suits your fancy.
Good Music serves as the soundtrack to a good time. This really is an album made “For Men By Men.” You are so very deserving of it. We are grateful for each of you. This album was released just in time for Father’s Day and a perfect gift it is for the music lover!
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CD Reviews By: Avzal Ismail
Fresh, vibrant, intoxicating yet comfortably familiar. That's the impression I got with the latest album from the great Grammy winner Jeff Lorber. The core trio of Lorber on keys, bassist and long-time collaborator Jimmy Haslip and powerhouse drummer Gary Novak is nothing short of epic. These guys complement each other brilliantly and they make up the perfect modern jazz trio that would bring the house down anywhere that they performed. However, not being content with the trio format, Lorber in a stroke of genius brought in an all-star cast of guest artists which includes the likes of saxmen; Bob Mintzer, Hubert Laws, Gerald Albright, and Paul Jackson Jr., on guitar to truly garner together a lineup of stellar musicians. Lorber has built up an impressive reputation and over a career spanning four decades transcending musical boundaries with his own immediately identifiable musical footprint. This album of eleven magnificent tracks is once again a trailblazer that offers some brilliant new compositions with Lorber's unique stamp. Make no mistake; he is a true leader who knows exactly what he wants while still allowing for endless creativity and space to the musicians and the music. “Space -Time” is without a doubt an odyssey of sonic proportions offering a voyage of brilliant delights. The musicians capture the feeling that you are right there 70| SmoothJazz Magazine
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CD Reviews in the middle of the room with them taking in all of that creativity and musicianship that they have to offer. The album opens up with a blazing up tempo soaring bluesy ride that sets the tone for the rest of the album with Bob Mintzer ripping up his tenor as the group takes off the brakes and accelerates into space. Bring in the likes of Dave Mann, Gerald Albright who also plays bass (bet you didn't know that) , and the rest of the cast supported by the solid rhythm section and you have an eargasm of note. Lorber credits the late great Chick Corea for his jumpstart in jazz years ago as an up and coming artist. He recorded "The Samba" on his album Soft Space decades ago together with Chick. And so he penned a beautiful dedication to Chick simply entitled "Chick." I'm pretty sure Chick is smiling every time that song is performed. With the release of Space Time, Jeff Lorber continues to show us that his inspiration to push his craft and his music is as energised as ever. In his own words “Just being alive at this time with everything that’s going on and all of the developments in music and technology, keeps me busy and on my toes.” This is without a doubt Grammy material and it won't surprise me in the least if it was nominated. Definitely a musical tour de force and a must have for any fusion lovers and fans of Jeff Lorber.
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CD Reviews you move and brings some smooth funk. The way this jam flows, you will find it hard not to keep it in rotation. Again, the keys on this joint are amazing, and yes, it’s also Overall, so tight and well made. This CD Michael Browning. These two musicians feels so good. You will dance, jam, and flow very well together, as they say toeven just feel serenity while listening to day, “Issa Vibe.” this. It is so well balanced. I know it’s expected from Lin Rountree, but it exceed- I could speak on every single tune, but ed my hopes and anticipation. I know for the sake of my review space, I will this is selfish, but I would go through an- say, “Candie’s Dance,” “Fusion,” “Koolin” other Covid-19 solitude for music artist- are all jams to kick it and party to. They ry like this. So let’s jump on in. This will bring it every time you play them. They be Lin’s latest project with Trippin’ N have movement and you can dance, Rhythm records, and it does not disap- smile and you will feel so good when point. Grab your speaker, headphones, you play them. There’s something about car radio, or whatever you jam on, and music that makes you smile. I love sharget ready for the funky smooth ride, like ing it with the world. only Lin can provide. This is entire cd is perfection. There is The ride starts with Release, track 1, it nothing to skip, you know, we all have brings that modern day jazz I long for, music, where we only like a couple nothing held back by Lin and his group tracks. It’s just reality. I found myself lovof talented musicians. The keys on this ing this entire cd. I do have a favorite, tune by Michael Browning, are fantastic. and if you’ve read my reviews before This tune will leave you wanting a live you know, I must share. version if you have ever experienced Lin live. Next, is Fluid, and this jam, makes “I Dream,” the final track on the cd. It By: Eryn K. Bozeman
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Feature CD Reviews feels like a serenade. I’m not sure what Lin was expressing from his point of view, but from mine, it was like a woman standing on a balcony at sunset, and her love played a tune just for her, below the balcony. It feels like an expression of all he felt and dreamed, for them. This track is simply beautiful on so many levels, from David P Stevens on the guitar, Mark Whitsett on percussion, and Lin saying it all without words. Music is truly a story, and this one has so much to say. Wow music is amazing. Please treat yourself with this amazing music, because I haven’t even mentioned the tracks with Skinny Hightower, Lindsey Webster, or Selina Albright. You will have to find out how great those tracks are for your yourself. When you do, shout Lin out on social media, and as Lin would say, “Stay funky!”
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CD Reviews By: Keivu G. Knox After seven albums in a six year stretch, drummer Bob Holz has firmly established himself as one of the premier drummers and band leaders in jazz. With that as the foundation, Holz is taking things up a notch with his most recent release, entitled "Live in New York and LA. This right song extravaganza was recorded over a three year period in Syracuse, NY and Los Angeles, CA and features covers of classics along with original material. While some may assume having such a mix of locations and material could make the project uneven, Holz and his band's consistency is the constant, which results in a compelling release. The album opens with a cover of "All Blues" by Miles Davis. The guitar of Chet Catallo compliments Holz's drumming (which includes a ripping solo) and Ronnie Leigh's vocals quite nicely. "Little Sunflower" is up next, which treats the Freddie Hubbard classic rather lovely. Tom Witkowsky's keyboard is the stabilizer on this track, as he moves back and forth between lead and accompanying instrument, driving the melody. The two additional covers are just as strong. Dizzy Gillespie's standard "A Night In Tunisia" provides a measure of the original, but is fueled by a Latin twist. Leigh's vocals sway along while the tempo and vibe evolves throughout the song. "Georgia on My Mind" is an all out blues jam, giving all of the musicians a chance to flex their chops. This song is 76| SmoothJazz Magazine
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CD Reviews of the examples where the audience is audibly locked into a masterful performance. The four original songs on this album serve equal amounts of high points as the covers. "Blue Mashed Potatoes" is a song written by Ralphe Armstrong. It's a smoky blues cut that provides just as much punch as "Georgia" but is aided by a memorable lyric and vocal delivery by Armstrong. Keeping the blues torch alive is "Blues for CC" named for the song's writer, Chet Catallo. His guitar is front and center on this track but allows Armstrong on bass and Witkowsky on keys to drive the melody as well. "Jammin Man" is a reggae/jazz number written by Holz and Frank Stepanek that leans heavily into both genres simultaneously. On this song, it's Brandon Feld's saxophone that gets a chance to shine through the bouncing melody. The album closes with another Holz original, co written with Billy Steinway, entitled "Riptide." Fusion is the key on this track, as Holz on drums and Steinway on keys give a tribute to 70's Bob James with their interplay and melody. "Live In New York and LA" is an album that clearly displays what makes projects by Bob Holz essential. Confident musicians, calculating covers, and creative originals served as this album's formula. When you put that musical equation together, the typical result is success, and this latest release by Holz is no exception.
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“When you thought the Lies, Betrayal and Deceit could not get any worse…”
Author Robin Munro
“Pure Revenge picks up right after the end of Pure Deception with even more twist and turns.”
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CD Reviews Feature
2019 - 2021
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