Blue-in-Green:RADIO is a contemporary soul/funk/jazz/Latin internet radio station broadcasting an array of incredible shows from presenters and DJs from across the world.
Episode 8 of our 'Get to Know the Producer' series brings us to Grammy-winning Blue Note pianist/musician/producer, Robert Glasper. We've dug deep to present a number of great tunes featuring his expert piano and keyboard playing and hope you enjoy the selection.
Below is the tracklist for your listening and downloading pleasure:
'Life is Better' - Q-Tip f/t Norah Jones 'Slim and Juicy' - Chris Dave f/t Sy Smith 'Vanguard' - Jose James 'Now I Know' - Brandon Williams f/t Robert Glasper & Jesse Boykins 'In A Dream' (Remix) - Gretchen Parlato 'Letter to Hermione' (Robert Glasper Remix) - Robert Glasper Experiment f/t Black Milk 'When Will You Call' - Bilal 'Already There' - Taylor McFerrin f/t Robert Glasper & Thundercat 'Get Lucky' (Daft Punk cover, live) - Robert Glasper Experiment 'A Love Supreme' - Robert Glasper Experiment
'Forever Dreaming' by Myles Sanko [Legere Recordings]
Myles Sanko epitomizes exactly the kind of artist that made me want to start writing about my passion for music. Incredibly talented, amazing work ethic, and music that will make you want to share it with everyone you know.
The release of Sanko’s debut EP in 2013, ‘Born in Black & White’, laid the groundwork for an artist more than primed to make his mark amidst today’s contemporary soul scene and, through Legere Recordings, the payoff has arrived with the release of the full-length album, ‘Forever Dreaming’. I previously described Sanko’s music as “horn-heavy, cheerfully-rousing, blissfully sweet, soul music masterfully presented by an artist adept at commanding a packed dance floor with uptempo funk numbers … while still being able to tenderly whisk you away with ballads”. While ‘Born in Black & White’ boasted a bevy of uptempo numbers, ‘Forever Dreaming’ opts to slow things down a little while still retaining Sanko’s charm, personality and inimitable energy throughout.
The band here are genuinely top-tier and add so much to the product rightfully warranting two pieces to demonstrate their worth without a vocal, ‘Lonely Dreamers’ and the instrumental version of ‘To My Surprise’. Other notable songs on the release include ‘My Inspiration’, ‘So Much Indeed’ and ‘Where We Need to Be’.
#5
'Rejuiced Phat Shake' by Nick Pride & The Pimptones [Legere Recordings]
Nick Pride & The Pimptones have a lot to be happy about in 2014 – brand new label home within the comfortable confines of Legere Recordings, and a brand new album release to boot as well: ‘Rejuiced Phat Shake’, serving as the follow-up to their 2011 Record Kicks debut, ‘Midnight Feast of Jazz’.
‘Midnight Feast of Jazz’ in itself was a genius concept record for an album – a soul band’s interpretation of jazz music – and it’s a concept that served as a fine introduction for the group, even extending to a remix album, entitled ‘Remixed Feast of Jazz’. Moving away from the jazz concept this time round though, the group flourishes within its natural aesthetic as a soul band whose music is brought to life with an array of excellent vocalists including names that appeared on the debut, Jess Roberts and Susan Hamilton, and new voices Courtney Velecia, Lane Thomas Hewitt, Micka Moran Parker, amongst others, and including rapper, Dubbul O.
‘Everything’s Better in the Summertime’ (featuring Karen Harding) – originally housed on the Record Kicks 10-year anniversary compilation from last year – thankfully finds a home on this release as well and sounds as excellent as it did then, but unfortunately, the band’s cover of Massive Attack’s ‘Unfinished Sympathy’ isn’t so lucky so I implore you good people to do all you can to get your hands on that piece of brilliance.
But as I say, there really is plenty of soul-filled and funky vibrancy and brilliance to wrap your ear buds round on this release with early standouts including the aforementioned ‘…Summertime’, Take Care of My Love’, ‘It’s A Love Thing’, ‘Wanna Treat You Right’ and ‘Hex on My Soul’.
#4
'Heroes + Misfits' by Kris Bowers [Concord Music Group]
I’m having particular difficulty in trying to keep up with the amount of new jazz releases and really have to tip my hat to the amount of excellent stuff that’s come out this year as I am fully enjoying immersing myself in as much of it as I can come across. The debut album from Kris Bowers – 2011’s winner of the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Piano Competition – is always going to raise particular interest though, especially when said winner is a part of Jose James’s touring band, and has his debut album released via the illustrious jazz label, Concord Music Group.
‘Heroes + Misfits’ sees Bowers heading up his own sextet for a release rooted in classic jazz tradition, while progressive enough to speak as an artist in his own right, in his own time. With song titles like ‘Wake The Neighbors’ and ‘#TheProtester’, even the album title itself, ‘Heroes + Misfits’, present a young artist with a charming air of rebellion that culminates in an irresistible sound.
Guests include Robert Glasper Experiment’s very own Casey Benjamin, who blesses us with his saxophone on several songs throughout, and even brings his now infamous vocoder along too for the aforementioned ‘#TheProtester’; Jose James appears on the album closer, ‘Ways of Light’, but it’s Julia Easterlin who steals the show with her contribution to ‘Forget-er’ – I’d use a lot of words and not really come close in being able to describe how beautiful this song is so please check it out.
Aside from the songs already mentioned, ‘Drift’ is another that will definitely find itself on ‘best of 2014’ playlists (certainly mine!) and on ‘Heroes + Misfits’, there really is buckets to choose from so make this album a part of your playlists as soon as you can.
#3
'Black Messiah' by D'Angelo [RCA]
I'm genuinely still pinching myself that this is real. Even after a week, I find it hard to sum up that feeling of finally pressing 'play', hearing the music start on the album's opening track ('Ain't That Easy'), and hearing D'Angelo's voice occupy his own album after the much-talked about 14/15-year absence. It's monumental that an artist with only two albums to their name over the span of nearly 20 years can create such a buzz, such a frenzy in fans that this moment means the amount to them that it does.
I'm one of them.
What makes this frenzy and excitement so much better is that 'Black Messiah' is good. It's really goooooooood. It has to be good, it's stormed its way to number 3 on our 'best of the year' list and even forced us to have to extend the list to include six albums instead of five.
Always one to wear his influences on his sleeve, D'Angelo makes no bones about making efforts to emulate his heroes, which include Sly & The Family Stone, Jimi Hendrix, Prince ['The Charade' is by far the most Prince-like song anyone has ever made. I feel like even prince would hear it and say 'This has to be my song but I have no idea when I made it - and that's intended as a compliment!]. Musicians appearing on 'Black Messiah' include Pino Palladino, Chris Dave, Questlove, Jesse Johnson and Roy Hargrove, who recreates much of their 'Voodoo' chemistry with excellent horn arrangements that compliment the music so well.
Time is against me here so I'll attempt to delve into the album with another review at a later date but as far as Christmas presents go... this was a pretty good one!
#2
'Dawn' by Emma Donovan [HopeStreet Recordings]
The name 'Emma Donovan' may be new to most but her credentials as a vocalist and songwriter stretch all the way back to gracing stages at the tender age of seven years old. While there have been various musical unions and collaborators since that time, it’s the magic she now makes with The PutBacks which is proving the very perfect chemistry to propel all involved into premier names in soul music.
Courtesy of the incredible HopeStreet Recordings label, the gritty and bluesy funk injected into ‘Dawn’ by The PutBacks has seen the band open for fellow funk luminaries, Charles Bradley & The Menahan Street Band, The Bamboos and Booker T. They also have a series of 45s and other excellent releases through HopeStreet, but it’s ‘Dawn’ – which also acts as the band’s own first full-length release as well – that marks their crowning achievement to date.
Together with Emma Donovan, they deliver such a distinctive and unique interpretation of soul music that it’s almost hard to draw upon any comparisons amongst today’s artists. Any soul music fan knows they’ve stumbled onto a real gem in those rare instances. It’s soul music that’s part country, part rock, part gospel, part blues; the lyrics have been touted as depicting ‘Emma Donovan’s life through song’ which is an incredibly apt description, but when you couple that with a voice that resonates every single emotion like it’s being experienced within that single moment, it makes for an undeniable moment for a listener. It’s a distinction that not just turns listeners into fans, but fans into believers.
#1
'Emma Jean' by Lee Fields [Truth & Soul Records]
Lee Fields’ job of securing his spot as the marquis act for Truth & Soul Records could be argued to be an increasingly difficult task bearing in mind the label’s ever-growing popularity and achievements: aside from being the production team behind Aloe Blacc’s mega-selling ‘Good Things’, the label also boasted an unexpected overnight sensation with the trans-Atlantic pairing of Terri Walker and Nicole Wray forming the group, Lady.
Well, as difficult as the aforementioned task may be for 62 year-old Lee Fields, he completes it with an incredible ease that his last three albums with the Daptone/Truth & Soul super-group mash-up – ‘The Expressions’ – as backing, steadily secure coveted spaces among any worthwhile ‘best of the year’ lists amongst soul music releases. ‘My World’, ‘Faithful Man’ and 2014’s ‘Emma Jean’ – while serve to direct keen fans to celebrate and explore his older catalogue – show Fields as practically as good as it gets for soul music today. I amuse myself by imagining that being a comment that would make him smile, considering how hard Fields admittedly tried earlier in his career to emulate the unabashed funk-ness of the legendary James Brown [see Fields’ release ‘Problems’, recorded in 2002 where he showcases what’s now known as the signature James Brown style, even going as far as covering ‘Get on the Good Foot’].
Funk’s loss was soul’s gain as currently exemplified by ‘Emma Jean’ (named after Fields’ late mother) with production handled by Leon Michels. Much like Charles Bradley’s incredible ‘Victim of Love’ album from 2013, Fields comfortably opts not to play it safe and stick to traditional fare, even though – through all the musicians involved – it would result in sure-fire success. What we’re left with though is genuinely something special and, with twinges of country soul throughout, album highlights include ‘Just Can’t Win’, ‘Magnolia’, ‘It Still Gets Me Down’ and even more notably ‘Stone Angel’.
I’ll conclude with a statement I made earlier and that’s that Lee Fields & The Expressions are genuinely as good as it can get in today’s contemporary soul market so if you’re yet to board the bandwagon, then ‘Emma Jean’ could be as good a place as any to start.
Ok, well hands up if you saw this coming... ? Mere days away from 2014 coming to an end, D'Angelo's long, long, oh-so-long awaited third album has finally seen the light of the day. Unfortunately, the release currently exists as digital-only but I don't imagine it'll be too long at all before the CD follows in suit. I'll save any further words about the release until I actually have the CD in my hands but I - like the rest of the soul-loving world - am crazy excited that it's finally happened. To mark the occassion, I unearthed a review I prepped a while ago of D'Angelo's return London gig from February 2012 and thought it would be interesting to republish. It naturally contains the (now) pre-dated musings of where he's been and whether a third CD actually surface but hopefully you'll enjoy the read anyway...
D’Angelo live @ Brixton’s O2 Academy 03/02/12
Would he or wouldn’t he? That was the question I kept asking myself as soon as D’Angelo’s European tour was announced. There was a time the announcement of a D’Angelo gig would have had me prepared to crawl through broken glass for a ticket, to dance over hot coals, to jump from a tall building, to… well, you get the point, but the announcement of this particular gig didn’t have me prepared to do those things. I guess, as I say, I didn’t fully believe it would happen, and maybe I’ve just lost a little faith in D’Angelo, ‘the artist’.
To quickly address the things we already know: ‘Brown Sugar’ comes out in ’95, births a new movement for contemporary soul artists, the Grammy-winning ‘Voodoo’ is released five years later and in the 12 years between then and now, all fans have had to tide them over is a handful of collaborative songs and news reports of arrests, drug addiction and ballooning weight.
It’s all very sad really. I have no wish to comment on the man’s personal life, of which I know nothing about, but what makes me sad is what he could have achieved in those 12 years – there could have been multiple albums, collaborations, tours – my iPod salivates at the music it could have listed under his name. One part of me thinks he could have become a soul music legend, but thinking about it, I think he already has. I can’t come up with any other names of artists that could have released two albums over the course of 17 years, and after a 12-year gap, have generated this much excitement and interest in their return.
I didn’t initially jump at the chance to go along to see D’Angelo in Brixton, but I’m really glad I changed my mind.
He looked good, he sounded great, and the list of musicians forming the band went a long way to further rejuvenating my interest and reassuring me that this is something he was taking seriously: Pino Palladino (bass), Jesse Johnson (lead guitar) and Chris ‘Daddy’ Dave (drums), all masters in their own right and all shone on the night. With a guitar strapped around his shoulder for most of the night, D’Angelo displayed a great energy about him throughout the night and threw himself into the songs as much as he needed, even going as far as to hurl the mic stand behind him during a rockier take on ‘Devil’s Pie’, to screams of delight from the crowd, all happily feeding off of his enthusiasm.
Perhaps even more surprising was the amount of new songs that made the setlist – all of which currently doing the rounds on YouTube, and as great as they sounded, it’s a shame that they came at the expense of established classics: ‘Me and Those Dreaming Eyes of Mine’, ‘Untitled’ and ‘Cruisin’ were only allotted a few minutes each during a solo piano medley. ‘Lady’, shockingly, didn’t even make the cut in any fashion!? ‘Brown Sugar’ was repackaged with incredible new ‘funky’ life breathed into it and made for a fantastic encore, and other songs like ‘Devil’s Pie’ and ‘S##t, D#mn, Mother F###er’ had equally innovative and welcome new takes delivered on their performances as well.
Without getting too ahead of myself, hopes are currently high for new material this year, and, fingers crossed for another supporting tour, but I guess attention will then inevitably turn to the already long overdue FOURTH album(?)!
Yes friends, it's that time again! As we slowly prepare our top 5 albums of the year - particularly dificult list to compile this year - here is our list of honourable mentions: albums that were released which were outstanding in their own right and very much require your ears but unfortunately just narrowly missed out on the coveted top 5.
'While You Were Sleeping' by Jose James [Blue Note Records]
Calling this release 'bold' would surely be an understatement - Jose James's follow-up to last year's 'No Beginning No End' saw him undertake an entirely new direction in his music. Citing his affection for Nirvana, amongst others, as his inspiration, people may have possibly been thrown by the album's lead single 'Every Little Thing' but the album continues to showcase James's diversity and skill, and continually make us ask, "What's he going to do next?"
'Free Souls' by Nicola Conte [Schema Records]
From one of my absolute favourite producers ever, Italian musician, Nicola Conte, returns with an excellent album, armed with a typically diverse and always gloriously-sounding array of guest vocalists, including Jose James, Bridgette Amofah and Melanie Charles, Nicola Conte once again ushers in his own brand of bossa nova-infused jazz but ever so gently this time turning the needle towards blues with excellent results.
'Hear To See' by Seravince [MOOVMNT Records]
From Holland, keyboardist and producer, Vincent Helbers (aka Seravince) unveils his debut album of jazz-funk numbers which was an excellent find for 2014. Featuring drumming throughout by Richard Spaven, Renee Neufville also appears as a vocalist on three tracks, along with Sharlene Hector on a further three. Interestingly, Helbers cited the 2000 sophomore release, 'Voodoo', by D'Angelo as his chief inspriation for this project - notably within the old-school techniques of recording whole takes to tape, which was a technique mirrored within this recording process as well. Do all you can to get your hands on this! (Hardcopies are available direct from the label's Bandcamp page: http://moovmnt.bandcamp.com/album/hear-to-see)
'The Brazil Connection' by Studio Rio [Sony Music]
Helmed by the Berman Brothers, the musicians comprising Studio Rio (Marcos Valle, Roberto Menescali) revisit classic recordings by Marvin Gaye, Nina Simone, The Isley Brothers, Sly & The Family Stone and Sarah Vaughan injecting them with exquisite Latin rhythms pinned againt the original vocals - some of the songs have such a perfect end-result, you almost have to remind yourself that the vocals in some cases over 50 years ago. The Studio Rio revisiting of Aretha Franklin's 'Walk On By' is fantastic and worth the cost of the entire album by itself. An impassioned and sentimental producers’ notes section in the inlay booklet – prepared by the Berman Brothers themselves – describes more intricate details of how the project came together along with stories of the recording sessions, which is really worth a read. It also discloses that 20 songs were recorded in total so hopefully the remainder can see the light of day some time.
'Rising Son' by Takuya Kuroda [Blue Note Records]
Trumpeter Takuya Kuroda marks his debut Blue Note Records release with an excellent project, produced by long-time friend, collaborator and label-mate, Jose James. Boasting a number of great songs throughout including the album's title track, 'Afro Blues' and 'Mala' serve as standouts, along with James himself who appears as a guest vocalist on the Roy Ayers cover, 'Everybody Loves the Sunshine'. Now, granted, many of you may feel it's potentially time to draw a line under further covers of the Ayers classic but I would emplore you to listen to thsi version before doing so. Musicians throughout consist of Kris Bowers (keys), Solomon Dorsey (bass) and Nate Smith (drums).
'Give The People What They Want' by Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings [Daptone Records]
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings... <swoon>. I'm so in love with this team and they can really do no wrong in my eyes. Delayed by about 6 months as Sharon Jones underwent treatment for cancer, her recovery (her recovery was the best news by the way!) - this album delivered the atypical sweet soul numbers the band have become famed for. Instant standouts on this for me are: 'Stranger to My Happiness', 'Making Up and Breaking Up' and 'People Don't Get What They Deserve'.
'Whole Other*' by Richard Spaven [Fine Line Records]
We've discussed it above but let's put it all together here: drummer Richard Spaven's work this year includes drumming throughout Seravince's jazz-funk effort, 'Hear To See' and Jose James's eclectic, 'While You Were Sleeping'. All of this clearly marks 2014 as an incredible year for Richard Spaven and must surely whet appetites for his own release. Comfortably - and skillfully - straddling that line between jazz and drum'n'bass, 'Whole Other*' genuinely displays the talents of a master at work within production as much as his own playing throughout.
'Say Yes (Evolved)' by Iyeoka [Underground]
Very possibly the album that would have secured sixth place in our best of the year list, much like David Murray's 'Be My Monster Love' from last year. Nigerian-American vocalist and poet, Iyeoka, delivers a fresh and assured album through a brilliant fusion of R&B, soul and jazz with just the right amount of pop sensibilities to make this an excitingly infectious release. Songs to wrap your ears around come in the form of 'This Time Around', 'Breakdown Mode' and 'Simply Falling'.
