February 13th, 2010 by Fresh

Greetings listeners…

Welcome to a SPECIAL edition of The Sunday Soundtrack entitled Cupid’s Hunt 2010. This is the 3rd annual Cupid’s Hunt Podcast Collective. Cupid’s Hunt is a collection of podcasts done showcasing the BEST in Valentine’s Day music and the celebration thereof…along all aspects of it. It is the brainchild of Todd Grundy, and this year, it is BETTER and BIGGER than ever. With 27+ podcasters, you are sure to find a perfect mix of music and commentary to help you celebrate the day in the way you choose.

My business partner, long time friend and other half of AfterSix Productions Dan McCollum has put together a nice video in honor of Cupid’s Hunt and Valentine’s Day entitled “The Power of The Kiss”… Enjoy.

In the spirit of the Sunday Soundtrack, I’m keeping it smooth and mellow for you. I hope you enjoy the offering. I dedicate, again, this podcast to my Valentine of 14 years ….my wife, ‘Stine. That being said, I bring to you, the playlist:

Kiss Of Life – Sade/The Best Of Sade
Closer – Corrinne Bailey Rae/The Sea
Two Occasions – The Deele
Good As Gold – The System/E.S.P
Right Is Right – Paradiso/Paradise II Paranoia
Dreaming Of You – Chevalier
You Know What I Like – Mark Whitfield/Mark Whitfield
Ribbon In The Sky – Ben Tankard/Song Of Solomon
Really? – Bluemind – Om Chilled, Vol. 2

A big shout out to all the CH2010 participants. Their podcasts are off the chain. Todd Grundy is maintaining a link to the podcasts of all the participants. Visit them and partake of the goodness!

The 2010 Cupid’s Hunt Podcast Consortium

For more about Cupid’s Hunt, check the FAQ!

Sit back and relax….enjoy…and remember, keep it chilled.
Happy Valentine’s Day!

Background underflow music: Marrakech (Steve Spacek Main Mix) – Incognito/Future Remixed
Video Music: The Power of The Kiss – AfterSix Productions

 

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February 8th, 2010 by Fresh

No long blog post here. Many of you know how big of a Sade, not just her, her being, but her band. I bring to you the making of the album. Very exciting about the CD dropping tomorrow. Enjoy!

SOLDIER OF LOVE – OUT NOW.
Sade’s new album Soldier of Love is out now on worldwide release (except the USA).

The tracklisting includes:

1. The Moon And The Sky
2. Soldier Of Love
3. Morning Bird
4. Babyfather
5. Long Hard Road
6. Be That Easy
7. Bring Me Home
8. In Another Time
9. Skin
10. The Safest Place

Available to buy from here:
itunes
HMV
Amazon
Play.com

February 8th, 2010 by Fresh

Welcome listeners!

Welcome back to another edition of The Sunday Soundtrack. I am definitely glad to be back on track with some smooth electronica, ambient, and downtempo tracks for your enjoyment. It’s been (as usual) a very busy month and as I had mentioned on the FB group page, I’m transitioning the podcast from a weekly to monthly format. The reason is primarily to return to the type of content in blog and podcast that I originally started with at the inception of the podcast back in Dec 2007 – links, commentary (more), etc. This will also help with the amount of other musical production projects I’m involved with…oh, and then there’s my day job (wink).

I’m in the midst (with the rest of the DMV) of Snowpocalypse 2010…lol. We got over two feet of snow today and I haven’t shoveled a flake yet. Tomorrow morning I’m up at it early, and the earlier the better because there’s a LOT of white stuff out there!

This weekend has been, because of the snowstorm, pretty lazy. The tracks I am featuring are a few of my favorites, hopefully they’ll become the same for you. As I mentioned before, I often pick tracks that I think musically describe my general demeanor across a spectrum. If I had to pick a track from the playlist that fits how I feel at the moment, I’d say it’s Blackfish’s “Hidden Shore (Asia Mix)”, the opening track below. Of course, the definitive track, by constraint, this weekend IS Headphonism’s “Stay Home and Chill”. Any track I feature from Incognito is always a favorite, I think the group, for over 25 years has achieved a universal vibe that touches all in one way or another, an achievement that I think has been unparalleled by any other group. To fully round out the soundtrack, I always have to include some ambient goodness, this time around it’s Darshan Ambient’s ” The Geometer of Dreams” That being said, without further adieu, I bring you the playlist.

1. Hidden Shore (Asia Mix) – Blackfish/Finest Asia Lounge (The Year of The Monkey)
2. Magnetic Ocean – Incognito/Tribes, Vibes & Scribes
3. Wanderers Creek – Art Bleek/Between Yesterday & Tomorrow
4. Entropy – Chevalier/Balance
5. Gotta Be Love – Joey Youngman/Om Lounge, Vol. 10
6. Smooth – Alex Cortiz/Magnifico
7. Stay Home And Chill – Headphonism/Om.Chilled
8. Come Back (Bonus Track) – Jose Padilla/Café del Mar: The Best Of (Disc 2)
9. The Geometer of Dreams – Darshan Ambient/From Pale Hands To Weary Skies
10. Florent 2 A.M – Blank & Jones/Relax Edition 3 (Sun) – EP

This is the year where I hope to bring to you more of my tracks. Tracks that fall into the same genres I have been featuring on my podcast. There’s a love I have for instrumental music, especially downtempo and chillout tracks that can evoke a certain mood. Moods that in these days of rushing and running that are probably welcomed by all of us. They’ll vary from short interludes to full pieces…so…stay tuned.

I’d like to give a special shout out to The GRAMMYs for allowing me (as you know) to be the official community blogger for the Jazz nominees this year. It was a blast writing the blog posts and honor at the same time. I had a great time doing it and made some great connections as a result. Congrats to the other official bloggers as well:

Once again, thanks for listening to this edition of the podcast. For those of you that are on Twitter, you can follow The Sunday Soundtrack here. On Facebook, you can join the group here.

Stay tuned next Sunday for a SPECIAL Sunday Soundtrack podcast, entitled Cupid’s Hunt 2010. One in a series of podcasts honoring the spirit of Valentine’s Day. I’ll be bringing to you a unique mix of tracks for you to, of course, chill to….

Until then…..keep it chilled.

peace,
F!

 

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January 24th, 2010 by Fresh

Kenneth Earl “Kenny” Burrell was born July 31, 1931 in Detroit, MI and by 12 years old, started playing guitar (similar to yours truly who started playing at the age of 14). Little did he know that he would be this year’s Grammy Jazz Honoree.

I don’t know who is more excited, Kenny or me. He has certainly been my favorite jazz guitarist for as long as I remember. Kenny’s choice as this years honoree is quite a substantial one, in my mind. His discography alone proves his ability (and history) of being a superb sideman and solo musician in his own right. Between the years of 1956 and 2006, Mr. Burrell has excelled as a leader, co-leader and sideman releasing recordings with stellar musicians in the world of jazz. His last release, Kenny Burrell: 75th Birthday Bash Live! released in 2007 on the prestigious Blue Note label, not only has a historic playlist of wonderful jazz standards, but showcases prominent musicians such as Joey DeFracesco, Hubert Laws, Snooky Young, and the like. During that same year, he began his tenure as Director of Jazz Studies at UCLA.
He has recorded on well respected jazz labels including Prestige, Verve, Fantasy, and Concord Jazz.

Kenny Burrell posesses a unique style (and grace) if you will, defines the essence of jazz guitar. His playing easily brings to life the stellar arrangements of his great predecessors, Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn and, in addition, has away of conveying the cool that IS jazz. If there was to ever be a true definition of “smooth jazz”, Mr. Burrell would undoubtedly be a defining factor. His remake of Neal Hefti’s classic song “Girl Talk” is one of my favorite tunes.

Mr. Burrell, if you are reading this, I came VERY close to being there this week to fulfill my dream of meeting you on Tuesday evening. Keep being the inspiration to jazz musicians and jazz lovers alike. I salute you in your accomplishments and in receiving this auspicious honor. There are many of your tracks that leave me “Just a Sittin’ and Rockin’”
Jazz lives.

January 24th, 2010 by Fresh

Hey everyone…I’ll be on Blog Talk Radio with my boy EJ Flavors this weekend. We’ll be talking about the Grammy Nominees of Jazz and R&B with Val Oliver on The Creator’s Parrot. Tune in and check it out if you can!

peace,
F!

January 19th, 2010 by Fresh

Greetings listeners. As we are nearing the airing of the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards, those nominated in the category of Jazz have provided the fans a wide and exciting array of great jazz music. There is a color of jazz on this wonderful palette for every jazz listener.

The young lion Stefon Harris, and his group Blackout bridge the gap in between classical jazz stylings and comtemporary jazz in a way that some may call unconventional, yet captivating. The tracks on Urbanus offer musical stylings that satisfy even the young, neophyte jazz listener and still capture the traditional offerings best liked by the most discerning long time listener.

Mike Stern is no stranger as a nominee in this category. Returning once again to the nominee circle with his release Big Neighborhood, he brings to us not only familiarity of his own jazz offerings, but nicely mixes blues, funk and shades of rock in his release. A cast of star musicians help create a catalyst that rightly places Mike as a nominee once again.

Jazz is not jazz without the most organic jazz instrument of all, the human voice. Randy Crawford has represented such an instrument superbly for many years, and has done stellar work is piano virtuouso, Joe Sample on various occasions. “No Regrets” is a release that combines, once again, the commanding and captivating voice of Randy Crawford along with the unmistakably recognizable style of Joe Sample.

With the “voice” in jazz, it’s yet still not complete without that crisp, cool class of a voice like that of Kurt Elling. His release “Dedicated To You: Kurt Elling Sings The Music Of Coltrane And Hartman” eloquently covers the great tunes of John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman in a way that automatically demands a Grammy nod. His depth of style and grace continues to further bring an aspect of style that jazz will be ever known for.

Strong returning contenders to this year’s nominee circle are once again, vibraphonist Gary Burton, guitar virtuouso Pat Metheny, bassist Steve Swallow and drummer Antonio Sanchez. “Quartet Live” is a must for any fan of instrumental jazz and it decidedly earns it’s rank as a premier nominee in the subcategory of Best Jazz Instrumental Album. Swift competition comes from piano and synthesizer legend Chick Corea and his longtime bandmate from Return To Forever, John McLaughlin. “Five Peace Band – Live” is a collection of songs that define the term “jazz virtuosity” to the utmost degree. Both releases are strong contenders in this category.

Jazz, THE American music art form must be defined, as well, by the Big Band…and as such, “Fun Time” – Sammy Nestico And The SWR Big Band provide and excellent definition of the big band aspect in every respect. Fun Time is an excellent release for any jazz lover’s collection.

When Latin Jazz is mentioned in a conversation, the discussion cannot go long without mention of the name Valdes! “Juntos Para Siempre” –
Bebo Valdés And Chucho Valdés define the state of Latin Jazz and wholeheartedly represent that in a Grammy nomination well chosen by The Academy.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t pay homage, at least in this post, to this year’s Grammy Jazz Honoree, the great jazz guitarist and legend, Mr Kenny Burrell. Suffice it to say, as a guitarist myself, he is my favorite and it is truly and honor to see him receive this auspicious award.

2009 was a great year for jazz and all the nominees in every subcategory represent America’s music with greatness!

January 3rd, 2010 by Fresh

Hello and Happy New Year to you all. It’s a blessing to see another one and seeing as though u reading this, you’re sharing in it with me. So, what’s up…resolutions being held steadfast so far? Hopefully so. Now that the niceties are out of the way (wink), I have the distinct pleasure of doing yet another featured artist podcast. This one is on the special side because I’ve been in touch with the artist regularly over the last few months. He is…Philip Clark…vocalist, songwriter and saxophonist. The tracks I’ll be featuring are from his debut release entitled “The State Of Blue Eyed Soul“.

If memory serves me correctly, our paths crossed on Twitter via hearsay of me working with Fave and Todd Kelley on a collaborative effort entitled “Cross Country Collective” (C3). The name of the EP we’re working on is contempojazzsoulhop. After some tweets back and forth about the EP and remixing, he asked if I’d be interested in remixing a track off his debut CD, while he’s tracking the upcoming. Of course I jumped at the chance, as this kind of opportunity is one I’ve been waiting for for years (literally). The short story around this major interest came by listening to continual remix albums (CDs) that were and are released regularly by the UK giants, Incognito (my favorite group) They often release a remix CD of tunes from their current release and through that, I’ve studied the remix styles of Little Big Bee, atjazz, Kenny Dope (MAW), ig Culture, Jazzanova, David Morales, etc. Needless to say, I definitely was down for this. At the same time, I was working on the C3 EP with two remix kings in their own right, Fave and Todd, so it was crazy inspiration all around.

When I got the request from Philip, I went to his Myspace page and checked out the tracks. “Granted” immediately jumped out at me as a tight track. I let him know, and in no time, I got remix stems for the track from him and was on my way. Interestingly enough, being my first time out of the gate, I found how easy it WASN’T to produce a remix (note to PC: Thanks for the undying patience!! lol). For my gear and music headz, I have another blogpost in draft about how I (Mr. Fresh aka Groove 7) constructed the remix…stay tuned.

For those of you haven’t heard his tracks yet, I’m sure you’re gonna enjoy what you’re about to hear. “The State Of Blue-Eyed Soul” brings elements of soul, jazzy progressions, sultry sax, superb vocal arrangements, funky flow, and some smooth but tight grooves….elements that I personally think could give current R&B a serious (and long awaited) shot in the arm. In addition to the tracks, you’ll hear from PC in his own words, providing some commentary on the tracks themselves. Being a songwriter and musician, I (as I’m sure a few of you can) relate with how they came about, when, where, etc.

So, without further adieu, I present to you the tracklist. Let’s go.

The State of Blue Eyed Soul/Philip Clark

Romeo And Juliet (Sun Go Down)
The Only Woman On The World
Free My Mind
Twenty Days
Granted
Thinkin’ Bout You
Place Where We Belong
Granted (Groove 7’s 3am Eternal Mix) ::: right-click to download :::

Philip, once again, thanks for the affording me the opportunity to remix “Granted”. Working with you through the process, up to the release of this remix, is indicative of the way it should be done. Thanks for the all the brainstorming, ideas, suggestions, etc, on how to drop it. I’m sure you’re used to rollin’ like that! By the way, PC is a heck of a comic book artist. Dude, you are giving Stan Lee a run for his money!

Philip Clark
Funky White Boy
Los Angeles, CA

Official Website
Twitter
Facebook
MySpace
Quantum Comics

Much thanks to Lis, super web & graphics designer extraordinaire for the remix artwork! Need graphics and webpage design? Contact her at anewlis.com

Thanks again, …

peace,
F!

 

 The Sunday Soundtrack f/Philip Clark - 03 Jan 09: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

January 1st, 2010 by Fresh

Crew…It’s coming. Stay tuned for a special Sunday Soundtrack, this Sunday, January 3rd!

Happy 2K10!!

Peace!
F!

December 27th, 2009 by Fresh

I was converting a song that my brother-in-law composed and recording in some studio, from cassette to mp3, and came across some old rehearsal session. Me and the fellas at the drummer’s house trying to put together a jazzy rendition of Donnie McClurkin’s “Speak To My Heart”. This had to be two summers ago or more. The keyboardist is Wydell Croom, someone I’ve worked with off and on since ‘97. Ken Stanback on drums, Roger Dent on bass, yours truly on guitar.

peace.
F!

December 27th, 2009 by Fresh

Greetings crew….

Happy Holidays (Kwanzaa, Happy New Year, etc) to all. A lot of you catch my tweets about what I’m doing musically, so I wanted to give you a peek at where it all happens. All the composers, songwriters, musicians, etc have such a spot, most of them (obviously your truly) tend to call it a lab of some sort. I was talking with a friend yesterday, who’s a songwriter/musician/producer about studio workspaces and how they run the gamut of styles. I kinda thrive on ergonomics, comfort, and organization, etc…helps the muse flow freely. As for as tools, I’m a firm believer that the best utilize what they have to the max to get the results needed.

I’m looking forward to completing a long awaited CD that my partner and I have been working on, continuing work on a collaboration called “contempojazzsoulhop” with my boys Fave and Todd, a smooth jazz project with KLWJazz, more remixes for Philip Clark, gospel jazz keyboardist Kevin Battle, vocal group Destined 2 Praise, vocalist Dana Yates, more production work with AfterSix Productions, saxophonist Harron Evoria, annnnnnd my own CD project, whew. Ok, anyway, here’s mine, in it’s current form:

That’s about it…now u see where the tweets flow from, the hangout spot.

Happy New Year…

peace,
F!