Delightful: Liberation Frequency meets... Saunders Sermons [Interview]

Originally published on liberationfrequency.co.uk in July 2010

Written by Imran Mirza

Coming dangerously close to having crept under Liberation Frequency's radar, is Saunders Sermons' debut album, 'Classic Delight'.  Quiet as it's kept, this gem, released independently in 2009, is the work of a true master of his craft, and the singer/trombonist has a resume' as equally impressive.  Boasting collaborations and racking up touring duties with R&B, soul and hip-hop's elite, Sermons can add Jill Scott, Mary J Blige, Maxwell, Diddy and Jay-Z to the list of luminaries he's been blessed to grace a stage with, so it was certainly a pleasure for us to be able to secure time with Saunders to discuss his musical accomplishments so far, as well as his debut album.

Born and raised in Miami, Florida, Sermons has been singing since he was 5 years old, and playing trombone since he was 11, "I really thought that the Trombone was really beautiful at an early age so I gravitated to it".  Citing his musical heroes as including Prince and D'Angelo, Sermons was initially drawn to music through R&B, until the allure of jazz and its standards, as performed by the likes of Nat King Cole and Duke Ellington, proved too powerful and has gone on to heavily influence the music on Sermons' debut release.  Such masters are revisited on two of the album's tracks, 'In A Sentimental Mood' (initially recorded by Ellington in 1935) and 'Straighten Up And Fly Right' (recorded by Nat King Cole in 1944): "The reason I picked the Nat and Duke songs was because I wanted to hear how I would do it and I had a lot of fun revisiting the songs".

The aforementioned savants are perfect selections and examples of the level and quality of elegance that Sermons strives to replicate through his music, and although covers make a fair share of this release, Sermons' own songwriting skills are fully demonstratable on songs like, 'Most Beautiful', 'Day Dreaming' and the album's show-stealing number, 'Don't You Understand': "What inspired me to do this album was first I'm a big fan of jazz vocalists so I wanted to put together something really classy that would be noted as a modern day classic."

Lush arrangements and rich instrumentation are sprinkled all over this release as Sermons is backed by a wonderfully talented selection of musicians, and expert direction from Jon Notar.  Casey Benjamin (formerly of alternative duo HEAVy) brings his saxophone along to guest on the album also, as does trumpeter, Lee Hogans.

The biggest flaw with the album though is its length.  Clocking in at the criminally short time of less than 30 minutes, you're genuinely left yearning for more, so hopefully we'll be rubbing our hands together with glee for a swift follow-up to this classic delight.

Jazzmatazz, Vol.1: 20 years old.

Incredibly, last week marked the twentieth anniversary of the release of Volume 1 Guru's Jazzmatazz series.  Hip-hop heads will know that Guru’s legacy in hip-hop had been established years ago throughout his much revered work with fellow Gang Starr affiliate, DJ Premier, as pioneers in the jazz-rap sound, clocking up an incredible body of work since 1989, with albums ‘No More Mr Nice Guy’ (1989), ‘Step in the Arena’ (1991), ‘Daily Operation’ (1992), ‘Hard to Earn’ (1994), ‘Moment of Truth’ (1998) and ‘The Ownerz’ (2003).

The critical acclaim, the fan adoration and the peer respect the group amassed was, and still is, immeasurable.  For me, Guru was one of my first heroes in hip-hop, and, particularly through this Jazzmatazz series, I found myself wanting to expand my horizons and explore new styles of music.  While the basis of Gang Starr’s signature sound came from the maestro that is DJ Premier sampling vintage jazz records, Guru abandoned the sampling and recruited jazz musicians and artists like Donald Byrd, Roy Ayers, Herbie Hancock and Ronny Jordan for a hip-hop/jazz fusion series that spanned 4 volumes.

‘Jazzmatazz’ was such a big deal to me when I discovered it and I consider it hugely inspirational – it sounds like a conventional thing to say, but that’s what great artists do: inspire.  Guru’s lyrics always hit me like an experienced older brother was educating me on the ups and downs of life, teaching about responsibilities, always encouraging us to strive for something better, and he had an impeccable sensitivity when he relayed his tales of street hardships.

It was announced 18th April 2010 that Guru (Keith Elam), one-half of legendary rap group Gang Starr, sadly passed away due to suffering from cancer over the past year.  He had suffered a heart attack in February and had been in a coma since that time.

It’s always difficult for anyone to lose someone who instils a passion in them, but in this case, it’s a wonderful thing that Guru’s efforts will not be forgotten.

On last week's show, we kicked it off with two songs from the album, including 'Loungin' (featuring Donald Byrd, which seemed an apt song to play coinciding with his recent and sad passing) and 'Sights in the City' (featuring Carleen Anderson and Courtney Pine).  Hopefully, if this project is new to you, the below will encourage some of you to explore the ‘Jazzmatazz’ work more extensively.

Mini March Update

Been a while since I posted anything – even though I am in the midst of getting several articles together – so am really just posting now to say ‘hi’. 

A few random things… we’ve received some excellent feedback from the Kat Webb interview which is really exciting.  We’ve been in contact since it was posted and she’s hoping to come over to the UK really soon for some live gigs which would be excellent, so I really look forward to that as and when it happens.  Hope people check out her music, which stands so high on its own merits and really doesn’t need me to preach about it.  Songs from ‘A bit Different’ will be added to the Blue-in-Green Sessions playlist over the next few weeks, but in the meantime, here’s one to whet your appetite:

Jesse Fischer, the man behind Soul Cycle and who helmed a hefty chunk of the production on Kat Webb’s ‘A Bit Different’ has actually added me to his newsletter so I’m thinking he may have seen the interview too, which would be very cool.  Hopefully, we can reach out to him as well(?).  Great things seem to be coming from Fischer as well, including his killer new remix of Jose James’s ‘Trouble’, which he’s just entered into the Blue Note remix competition, plus new work for Melanie Charles.  Furthering their collaboration from the Soul Cycle album ‘Flipped’ (and their tackling of Stevie Wonder’s ‘My Cherie Amour’), this new number is called ‘Drifting’ and is described by Fischer as ‘gritty and psychedelic’.  Well, have a listen for yourself…

Listen and purchase here:
http://melaniecharlesmusic.bandcamp.com

New music from Melanie Charles is definitely a great thing.  I first heard of her from her vocal contributions to what was the absolute best album released in 2011, ‘Love and Revolution’ by the Italian maestro, Nicola Conte, appearing on two of the album’s best songs including the title track itself, ‘Love and Revolution’, as well as ‘The Mystery of You’.  [That album also put us on to vocalists, Gregory Porter and Nailah Porter, the latter being of no relation to the former… or the other way round either.]  ‘Introducing Melanie Charles & The Journey’ marks her first full-length release, along with her accompanying band ‘The Journey’, who are as much the stars on this release as Charles – her vibrant and fresh-faced vocal has found a fantastic home with her complementary musicians whose refreshing blend of jazz with contemporary soul and R&B is equally effervescent and delightful, particularly evident on ‘My Love’, ‘One in a Million’ and, for me, the album’s highlight, ‘Unfamiliar’.  Albeit, criminally short… really, really short actually… of the ten numbers on the album, only six are complete songs with four (although musical) interludes.  (A few choice remixes or alternate takes supplied at the end as bonus tracks would perhaps have made a nice addition?)

‘Introducing Melanie Charles & The Journey’ really is something to get excited about though so get it quick as it seems may be on the way!

Kat Webb: A Welcome Change [Interview]

Chances are, if you’ve heard the name ‘Kat Webb’, it may very well have something to do with her brilliant new – and potentially breakthrough – single, ‘Old School’, which is currently doing the rounds and doing exceptionally well here in the UK.  Kat Webb – the Brooklyn residing, Texan born soul singer – may sound like a new name to the music scene but, currently promoting her second album since 2011, her incredible work ethic and singular approach to her music, which includes having trained with the Yale School of Music, having written and sung background vocals for other artists and interning in audio engineering at The Honablue Institute, raises hopes for an ever-growing discography. 

They say an artist has a lifetime to write their first album, so  it’s definitely interesting that a writer as skilled and succinct would choose an album of covers in which to introduce themselves to the grand stage, in many ways though, that served as the perfect method to whet our musical appetites…

The aptly entitled ‘An Old Soul’, released in 2011, showcases soul and jazz classics like ‘I Heard it Through the Grapevine’, ‘Fever’ and ‘Cry Me a River’ which are tackled with such a distinctive charm and personality that it was exciting to consider what an album consisting of new and original material would sound like.  Thankfully, the wait wasn’t long and 2012 brought us Kat Webb’s sophomore effort, ‘A Better Picture’.  Following on from the groundwork laid out in ‘An Old Soul’, this album builds expertly on that foundation and expands it even further with a swathe of everything glorious 90s-esque r&b and sweet summer soul thrown in to the mix.

Even more exciting for ‘A Better Picture’, is the first-time pairing of Christian Ver Halen and Jesse Fischer as co-producers helming the entire project.  Ver Halen, having established his name through his production work with Maya Azucena and Kendra Ross (the latter of which even turns up for backing vocal duties on a few numbers), and Fischer whose work with his band, Soul Cycle, as a musician and producer garner an increasing amount of praise with each of their releases, not to mention his work with the UK’s very own Laura Izibor, amongst countless others.

Kat's success seems to already to be moving so fast but for the uninitiated, it’s The Blue-in-Green Blog’s distinct pleasure to introduce you all to a fantastic new artist… Kat Webb!

What are some of your earliest memories of music?
One of the earliest memories I have of music are my parents dropping me off at voice lessons when I was about five. I remember spending works on the Theme from ‘Mahogany’, ‘Do You Know Where You're Going To’, originally performed by Diana Ross. Looking back, that's probably an odd song for a five-year-old to be learning, especially considering I wasn't even close to being born when the movie came out, but I guess I was an old soul from the beginning.

What made you decide on an album of covers for your debut?
I had been singing since I was very young, and singing background for artists in the NYC area, but no one really knew who I was. I thought singing covers that everyone knew would be like being introduced to me through the mutual friend of the music. Plus, I wanted to let people know from the beginning that I would be performing soul, R&B and jazz, since that music will always be close to my heart.

How did you go about selecting the songs to tackle?
If the song is either a cover or an original from another writer, I make sure that the lyrics are discussing something positive or empowering, since I'm not a fan of a lot of the negative songs that are out there about love. That's not to say that I won't sing about heartbreak, but you won't hear me singing a song about cheating or lying, since that's just not something I believe in. With my own original songs, obviously I can skip this step, since I only write about what I want to sing about. Then I listen to the song and see if I like the melody and it's in the genre I enjoy, or can be arranged to be in the genre that I enjoy singing. And last but not least, I sing it. Sometimes you love a song, but it doesn't actually sound great in your voice. I got started writing for other singers, and there are some songs that I will never think I should sing.

How did you come to collaborate with Christian Ver Halen and Jesse Fischer?
Jesse Fischer and Christian Ver Halen are both working musicians in the NYC area. I'd been introduced to Christian through the producer of ‘An Old Soul’, Chris Rob, when he was performing with Kendra Ross at The Blue Note. I loved his work with Kendra Ross and Maya Azucena and thought that sound would be great for my original album. I also met Jesse through other musicians, and saw his band, Soul Cycle, totally rock out live. I loved their funky and jazzy sound and wanted that for my original album as well. I reached out to both of them and they both said yes. They knew each other previously, but this album was their first chance working together.

How would you say the creative process in writing, producing and recording new music usually works for you?
It depends. My acapella music and some of my other music just comes to me. I tend to write a verse, a pre-chorus and then the chorus all in one sitting. Then I take a break and work on the next verse and bridge either the next day, or maybe the next week. I tend to write songs pretty quickly once I get going. But I also love to write music to instrumental tracks. Those get written very quickly, usually in less than a week, including harmonies and everything, and then they're rearranged to be performed with live instruments in the studio, and possibly the chords tweaked by the arranger. I will always prefer live instruments to synthesized.

Can you talk a little about what went into making 'A Better Picture'?
Wow. That's a big question. I contacted Christian and Jesse in July 2011, only about two months after I released ‘An Old Soul’. I wanted to get started with original music because I knew cover songs didn't have the same longevity in people's minds. In late Fall 2011, they began sending me songs from songwriters in the area, but Christian in particular really pushed me to include some of my own originals into the mix. I'm really glad he did, because they were five out of the album's eleven songs! All the songs were chosen by the end of December, we rehearsed in January 2012, and had recorded the full band sessions by February. Then came instrumental and vocal overdubs with Ryan Fitch at his Brooklyn studio. It was great working in such an intimate space because I really started to feel more comfortable and myself. Ryan and Christian got some great stuff out of me. I'd say all of the overdubs were done by the end of September and October was for mixing and mastering. It was definitely an ordeal, but I'm extremely proud of the final product.

Is 'Old School' a statement on current trends in music or strictly nostalgia-based?
‘Old School’ is mainly supposed to make you think of Summer BBQs, family reunions, cruising at the beach, pretty much anything positive and grooving. It's mainly a nostalgic, feel-good song than a statement on the current trends in music. But I feel my desire to stick with live instruments and keep a strong hold of the soul and R&B influences in my music is enough of an indication on how I feel about current music trends.

Who would be a dream collaboration for you?
There was a time when I felt like the highest musical achievement would be to be Jill Scott's backup singer. She is just that amazing. I would love to work with her, even if I'm sure I'd be super intimidated. I also really enjoy Erykah Badu, because of her strong jazz roots. She is a bit darker and has more of a psychedelic edge than I do, but I admire her for her incredible lyrics and she is clearly so comfortable in herself that it's hard not to be in awe.

What song from your last two albums would you play to introduce a prospective new fan to your music?
Hmmm. That's a tough one. I would have to say either ‘Waver’, ‘Good to Me’ or ‘Can't Stop Thinkin Bout You’. They include the full band feel that I always strive for, they are really popular among my current listeners, and they show off the deep soul and jazz roots of my background. I hope everyone enjoys them and picks a favourite!

What's been a notable career highlight for Kat Webb?
I'd say the period I'm in right now is the highlight. My songs are huge in the UK. I just got physical distribution in Japan. I'm in some major NYC showcases and people are asking for interviews, etc. Even ‘An Old Soul’ is popular again with the popularity of ‘A Better Picture’. It feels amazing and I am beyond grateful. None of this is possible without all of the listeners across the globe, and I'm hoping it continues to snowball. Hopefully I can come over soon and perform in person for fans in the UK!

The Greatest (Music) Ever Sold

I used to drive a red 1992 Nissan Micra called Jemima.  I’ve had two cars since then but this one was by far the most reliable car I’ve ever owned.  Jemima’s problem though was she couldn’t help but attract interest from other fellas, so imagine how I felt coming home one day to see that someone had bent the top of the passenger door open with a crowbar just enough for them to slip their hand in and simply unlock it.  I wasn’t overly worried about it in as much as there was nothing in the car for anyone to take.  It literally consisted of an A to Z and three cassette tapes for the car stereo.  There was a Sade album (the name of the album escapes me, but I think it was ‘Love Deluxe’), there was a modern jazz compilation tape, and Prince’s (although, officially, New Power Generation’s) ‘New Power Soul’ album.  Thankfully, none of the tapes were taken in this instance.  However, when I walked past Jemima around three weeks later, and saw the door bent in exactly the same way… I feared the worst.

That’s right.  The swine came back.

And took the tapes.

There’s something about being a Prince fan that can drive you to the point of obsession.  I like to think that that young hoodlum, who broke into Jemima, soon afterwards met a young female hoodlum who he found was a huge Prince fan.  In a bid to impress her, he did the only thing he could, and that was to go back and take my Prince tape.  In a strange way, I like to think ‘New Power Soul’ brought those two lovebirds together and I’m glad to have had a hand in that.  It’s hard to specifically be able to put your finger on it – but I’m sure we all know someone in our lives who pledges allegiance to the Purple Majesty.  And for everyone that knows me, I’m that person.  Through all the music I’ve purchased (hunted and tracked down), through the books I’ve read, through the arguments I’ve had with people about the greatness that they’re completely blind to – if there’s one thing my obsession has taught me, is that I don’t think Prince likes me very much.

Before I expand on that, I should just say that I’ve recently finished reading ‘Chaos, Disorder and Revolution’, an unauthorised biography of Prince.  It’s a good read, and it’s funny that I talk about obsession from the fan’s perspective to Prince’s music, because bizarrely he seems to be as obsessed by it as the most die-hard fan is.  I can’t think of a more single-minded artist that I’ve read about who went to war with his label because he wanted to make more music than they wanted to release.  It’s usually the other way round – artists holding their product for ransom, but certainly not in this case (although it actually was with his album, ‘The Gold Experience’).  It’s a very simplified way of assessing his ‘discontent’ with Warner Brothers, but at the crux, I’d say it’s still an accurate assessment.  Normally a label can look at an album of having a near 18-month shelf life, when you factor in the album promotion, releasing the three/four singles, touring, etc.  But for Prince, the album that would have kicked off our 18 month cycle, would now be old news and he would have created another two albums in that time he’d want released, before Warner Brothers had recouped everything from album number one.  It’s a fascinating perspective for someone whose prolificacy knew absolutely no boundaries.

That ‘obsession’ for ‘more, more, more’ could only affect his fans in the same way.

I remember having a chat with someone once who asked the excellent question of ‘What are your concert fails?’ (i.e. what did you miss that you would have liked to see, what was particularly bad, etc.).  For me, my top three concert fails are Prince gigs…

There’s the time I flew out of the country for a three week extended honeymoon with my wife, which is the same day tickets for Prince’s 21 night residency at the O2 was announced (me subsequently returning having missed out on all the tickets); there was the time that I secured tickets to a Prince aftershow performance, that he decided not to show up to (as I suspect he was actually hanging out with Alicia Keys instead, truly); and, the time we bought tickets for Prince’s Croke Park performance in Dublin (which had involved booking flight and accommodation), that he decided to cancel with less than a week to go before the gig.  Yes, friends, I’ve suffered my fair share of Prince let downs, so how could I not take it personally :)

But it’s not all bad – I have had the fortune of seeing Prince perform twice and there’s something fulfilling about actually seeing Prince perform ‘Purple Rain’ bathed in purple stage lighting, singing to thousands of people waving lighters and mobile phones illuminating the darkness.

I referred to ‘Chaos, Disorder and Revolution’ as a good read, and it is, but, thinking about it, there’s little that would be new to the die-hard fan.  Stories surrounding his numerous side projects, including The Time, Madhouse, Vanity 6, etc are fascinating, and the background stories behind certain albums being put together, are equally enthralling, but I really got the impression that the author’s feelings echoed those of millions of others who relegate Prince’s best material to the 80s and subsequent releases have involved him attempting to recapture that glory through albums that will never live up to darling releases like ‘Purple Rain’ and ‘1999’.  I don’t think I’d particularly agree with that but the one thing the author does give credit for is his innovation when it comes to realising the potential power of the internet (before he would later go on to completely turn on it), and the ground-breaking ways he would go on to release albums.  His last four album releases have been released via newspapers (‘20ten’), released through a singular music store (‘Lotus Flower’), accompanied in books (‘Indigo Nights’) and given away with concert tickets (‘Planet Earth’), and to now where the concept of the 'album' seems to be pushed aside for songs being directly released to the internet (3rdeyegirl.com).

In fact, the genius of Prince can best be summed up by the following extract from the aforementioned book…

Prince might just be the most successful artist ever to walk the planet.  He hasn’t self-destructed or died, and he hasn’t allowed himself to age disgracefully or descend into self-parody.  Despite not having a genuine hit record in years, Prince can always claim he’s Number One at the bank.  He shows no signs of stopping.  Having changed the way music sounds and industry operates, he can rightly claim to be the most prolific and inventive artist of modern times, without having lost sight of his first passion.  After more then 30 years in the business he still maintains that “music to me is a life force.  It’s not what I do.  It’s what I am.”
‘Chaos, Disorder and Revolution’ by Jason Draper. Published by Backbeat Books, 2011