Carlos Garnett - Black Love (1974) [re-rip>re-post]

A 70s soul jazz classic - one of those albums we go back to again and again over the years for inspiration! The album was one of the first from young reed player Carlos Garnett - and it's virtually a super-session, with a lineup that includes heavyweights like Buster Williams, Norman Connors, Charles Sullivan, Mauricio Smith, Reggie Lucas, Billy Hart, Mtume, and Dee Dee Bridgewater - all coming together in a righteous blend of soul, funk, and jazz! The vibe here is incredible - far deeper than even on any of Garnett's other albums of the time - at a level that sounds as beautiful on the mellow cuts as it does on the soaring, spiritual soul jazz anthems that have made the record a classic for years. Includes the perennial favorites "Mother of the Future" and "Taurus Woman", two cuts which transformed the global jazz dance scene years back - plus the tracks "Ebonesque", "Black Love", and "Banks Of The Nile". © Dusty Groove America, Inc.

Muse Records, MR 5040, 1974

Recorded 18^th and 21^st January, 1974 at C.I. Recording Studio, New York City

Musicians:

Carlos Garnett - Tenor, Alto & Soprano Saxophones, Vocals (#A1,A2)

Charles Sullivan - Trumpet

Mauricio Smith - Flute

Allan "Onaje" Gumbs - Piano

Reggie Lucas - Electric Guitar (#A1,B1,B2)

Alex Blake - Bass (#A1,B1,B2)

Buster Williams - Bass (#A2,A3)

Jabali-Billy Hart - Drums

Norman Connors - Drums (#A1,A3,B1,B2)

Guilherme Franco - Percussion (#A1,A3,B1,B2)

James Mtume - Congas (#A1,A3,B1,B2)

Carlos Chambers - Yodeling (#B1)

Ayodele Jenkins - Vocals (#A1), Backing Vocals (#A2, B1)

Dee Dee Bridgewater - Vocals (#A3), Backing Vocals (#A1,A2,B1)

Tracks:

A1. Black Love (5:24)

A2. Ebonesque (8:05)

A3. Banks Of The Nile (4:11)

B1. Mother Of The Future (7:39)

B2. Taurus Woman (12:12)

All Compositions by Carlos Garnett

Credits:

Producer - Carlos Garnett, Joe Fields

Recording Engineer - Elvin Campbell

Mixing Engineer - Carlos Garnett, Elvin Campbell

Arranger - Carlos Garnett

Photography [Cover] - Clarence Eastmond

Album Design, Photography [Liner] - Ron Warwell

Kenny Barron - Lucifer (1975) [re-rip]

Totally excellent Kenny Barron album on Muse, and one of his hardest to find! There's a killer cut on here called "Hellbound" that's got Kenny playing this fantastic electric piano and moog stuff on top of overdubbed acoustic piano, which provides a rhythmic underpinning. The track is long and spacey, with an excellent modal groove that would make an excellent sample, but which also grooves beautifully on its own! Lots of other cool cuts too, all with more instrumentation, and a nice soulful funky sound. Titles include "Lucifer", "Spirits", "Firefly", and "Ethereally Yours" – and players include James Spaulding, Bill Barron, and Billy Hart. Beautiful! ~ Dusty Groove, Inc.

Kenny Barron recorded this album in 1975, at the age of 32 with the help of his brother and host of heavy jazz cats. The result is pure bliss. Not unlike his previous album "Peruvian Blue", Lucifer hands us a bit of a mixed bag as far as styles go. There are some scorching jazz-funk numbers, a spiritually tinged acoustic affair and an almost avant-garde fusion cut. Kenny even coined a term to describe his music called “Electracoustic Fusion” which is talked about in length on the back cover. Regardless of what its called, the music is surely one of the bright spots in Kenny’s career as a leader.

This album was recorded just as Barron was leaving Yusef Lateef’s band. The liner notes on the back are all about Barron’s thoughts and experiences with Fusion and electronic instruments as opposed to Bop, which was Barron’s roots having played with Dizzy Gillespie in the mid-1960s. I don’t know what the big deal was though, because his other albums from the time period all had electric instruments on them as well, but let’s focus on the actual music. The reason to check for this album is the opening Spirits, a fine piece of funky Soul-Jazz with a nice rhythm and a series of solos. Hellbound is also a good Fusion piece with a distorted bass line over which Barron plays electric and acoustic piano as well as clavinet.

Muse Records, MR 5070, 1975

Recorded 28^th April, 1975 at Bell Sound, New York City

Musicians:

Kenny Barron - Piano (#A1,A3,B1,B2,B3), Electric Piano (#A2,B1)
String Synthesizer (#A2,B1), Clavinet (#A1), Cowbell (#A1,B2)

Charles Sullivan - Trumpet (#A1,A2,B2)

James Spaulding - Bass Flute (#A2,A3), Alto Saxophone (#A1,B2)

Bill Barron - Soprano Saxophone (#A1,A2,B2)

Carlos Alomar - Guitar (#A1,B2)

Chris White - Electric Bass (#A1,A2,B1,B2)

Billy Hart - Drums (#A1,A2,B2)

Track Listing:

A1. Spirits {Kenny Barron} (8:56)

A2. Firefly {Kenny Barron} (8:45)

A3. Ethereally Yours {Kenny Barron} (5:45)

B1. Hellbound {Kenny Barron} (12:58)

B2. Lucifer {Kenny Barron} (5:32)

B3. Oleo {Sonny Rollins} (5:03)

Credits:

Producer - Michael Cuscuna

Engineer - Malcolm Addey

Mixing - Tony May

Cover - Ron Warwell