Gap Mangione - Suite Lady (1978)

An Utter Classic
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Yet hardly known to those who weren't fortunate enough to have run across it back in the late seventies when the smooth jazz genre was in its ascendancy, though this isn't really smooth jazz as we've come to know it ~ it's rather fresher and funkier. Produced, recorded and even mixed by Larry Carlton at his own Room 335 studio in Hollywood, this is, for me, the pinnacle of Gap Mangione's musical career. And it's certainly not a Larry Carlton album with somebody else's name stuck on the cover, you may be pleased to learn. In addition to Mr. Mangione on a variety of keyboards (acoustic piano, ARP & Yamaha CS80 synthesizers & Fender Rhodes electric piano), we find Robert "Pops" Popwell (one of Larry Carlton's old pals from his days with the Crusaders), Mike Porcaro & Abe Laboriel (bass), (the now sadly late) Jeff Porcaro, Ralph Humphrey (later of Free Flight) & Peter Donald (drums & percussion), Joe Porcaro (congas & percussion), Greg Mathieson (acoustic and Fender Rhodes electric piano) and Dan Sawyer (sax & harmonica), plus strings and brass on selected tracks. Oh yes, Larry Carlton, as you might expect, played all the guitars. Mastering was undertaken by Bernie Grundman at A&M studios (and, coincidentally, A&M is the label on which this was issued). It's a touch on the bright side, but not disastrously so, and that touch of brightness is what's helped this album maintain its power and freshness after all these years. The opening track is unashamedly disco-ish (written, as it happens, by Larry Carlton) but, after that, the album settles down into a decidedly more sophisticated mood, not least the superbly bluesy Shh and King Snake, the latter followed by the superb title track which features a long-ish brass intro (trumpets, trombone and French horn) on which, with a good sound system, you can almost see each of the players standing side by side. You can certainly hear each of them breathing. This is a great album and I sincerely hope it won't be too much longer before it's reissued on CD. Though it's always difficult (I find) to get into an album several decades after its original release, Suite Lady might just be an exception to that general rule, whilst if you were there at the time, as they say, and like this particular genre of music, it might just be an indispensable memento of 1978 when the UK music scene was still pretty dire and people like me were looking across the pond for more inspiring fare. Still and always, one of my top ten albums. ~ Julian Stevens, Amazon.com. 

A&M Records, SP-4694, 1978
Recorded and mixed at Room 335, Hollywood, California

Musicians:
Gap Mangione - Synthesizer [ARP] (#A1,A4), Piano (#A2,A3,B1-B3), Fender Rhodes (#A2), Synthesizer [Yamaha C S 80] (#B1), Arranger [Brass] (#B1,B3,B4)
Chuck Findley - Trumpet (#A1,A2,B1-B4)
Bill Reichenbach, Jr. - Trombone (#A1,A2,B1-B4)
Vincent De Rosa - French Horn (#B3,B4)
Dan Sawyer - Tenor Saxophone, Harmonica (#A4)
Greg Mathieson - Piano [Acoustic] (#A1,A4), Fender Rhodes (#B2)
Larry Carlton - Guitar (#A1-A4), Arranger [Brass] (#A1,A2,B1,B2), [Strings] (#A3,B2)
Robert "Pops" Popwell - Bass (#A1,A2,B1)
Abraham Laboriel - Bass (#A3,B3)
Mike Porcaro - Bass (#B2)
Jeff Porcaro - Drums (#A1,A2,A4,B1,B2), Percussion (#A1,A2)
Peter Donald - Drums (#A3,B3)
Ralph Humphrey - Drums [Opening Statement Only] (#B1)
Joe Porcaro - Congas (#A1,A2,A4,B1), Percussion (#A1,A2,B1,B2)
Gerald Vinci - Concertmaster (#A2,A3,B2) 

Tracks:
A1. Mellow Out! {Greg Mathieson} (5:36)
A2. I Don't Know {Larry Carlton} (4:05)
A3. Shh {Greg Mathieson} (5:54)
A4. You Can't Cry For Help {Paul Bogush, Jr.} (3:32)
B1. Sister Jo {Gap Mangione} / Time Of The Season [Medley] {Rod Argent} (5:24)
B2. King Snake {Larry Carlton} (6:32)
B3. Suite Lady {Gap Mangione} (6:18)
B4. We Three [Scherzando] {Gap Mangione} (2:28) 

Total Time: 39:49 

Credits:
Producer, Recording, Mixing - Larry Carlton
Engineer [Second] - Steve Carlton
Engineer [Strings] - John Guess
Mastering - Bernie Grundman [A&M Studios]
Coordinator [Strings] - Gerald Vinci
Photography - Mark Hanauer, Raul Vega
Art Direction - Roland Young
Design - Phil Shima
Management - Richard Burkhart 

Suite Lady

Randy Crawford - Secret Combination (1981)

It is little wonder that Secret Combination remains Randy Crawford's most successful album in the UK. It is a superb collection of well-chosen material, expertly played by the cream of L.A session players and sung with great conviction. Macon, Georgia-born Crawford had first risen to prominence in the UK as the featured vocalist on the Crusaders' Street Life in 1979, and enjoyed her first solo hit the following year with One Day I'll Fly Away. Secret Combination, released in May 1981, was the album that capitalised on this success. Although Crawford had previously been an earthy jazz singer, Secret Combination barely breaks a sweat. Produced by Tommy LiPuma (the man responsible for turning George Benson from a jazzer into a commercial superstar) and it is consistently pleasant, radio-friendly pop-soul. What bite there is can be found on lead single You Might Need Somebody, a Hollywood-softened dirty blues and the album's closer, Trade Winds. Crawford imbues everything with a honeyed experience - none more so than on the title track where her quiet steadfastness retains the love of the song’s hero. Secret Combination’s covers excel: Crawford's version of Tony Joe White's A Rainy Night In Georgia may lack the despair of Brook Benton's famous reading, but sweetens the longing. That's How Heartaches Are Made (made famous by 'Baby' Washington/the Marvelettes) makes the song's desperation almost playful. In 1981, Secret Combination seemed to be everywhere. It spent 60 weeks on the UK charts and reached No. 2. And in 1982, she won the Best Female Artist award at the Brits on the strength of this record. It remains a delightful time-capsule, perfect for sunny Sunday mornings. ~ Daryl Easlea, 2009, BBC Review. 

Warner Bros., 7599-23541-2, 1990?
Recorded and Mixed at Sound Labs and Capitol Recording, Hollywood 

Personnel:
Randy Crawford - Vocals
Ernie Watts - Flute, Solo (#B1)
Chuck Findley - Horn
Gary Herbig - Horn
Larry Williams - Horn
Bill Reichenbach Jr. - Horn
Jim Horn - Horn
Leon Pendarvis - Piano, Keyboards, Arranger [Rhythm]
Neil Larsen - Organ (#A2,B3,B5), Keyboards
Dean Parks - Guitar
Robben Ford - Guitar, Guitar [Electric] (#A4)
Steve Lukather - Guitar
Abraham Laboriel, Sr. - Bass
Jeff Porcaro - Drums
Lenny Castro - Percussion
Marti McCall - Vocals [Background]
Petsye Powell - Vocals [Background]
Alfie Silas - Vocals [Background]
Phyllis Saint James - Vocals [Background]
=============================================
Arranger [Strings] - Nick DeCaro (#A1,A3,A4,B1,B2,B4,B5)
Bill Reichenbach - Arranger [Horns] (#A1,B3)
Dale Oehler - Arranger [Strings] (#A2,A5)
Arranger [Horns] - Larry Williams (#B3) 

Tracks:
A1. You Might Need Somebody {Tom Snow, Nan O'Byrne} (4:19)
A2. Rainy Night In Georgia {Tony Joe White} (4:22)
A3. That's How Heartaches Are Made {Ben Raleigh, Bob Halley} (2:57)
A4. Two Lives {Mark Jordan} (3:47)
A5. You Bring The Sun Out {Tom Snow, Jesse Dixon} (3:23)
B1. Rio De Janeiro Blue {Richard Torrance, John Haeny} (4:18)
B2. Secret Combination {Tom Snow, Frannie Golde}  (3:24)
B3. When I Lose My Way {Turley Richards} (3:44)
B4. Time For Love {Leon Russell} (4:15)
B5. Trade Winds {Ralph MacDonald, William Salter} (4:55) 

Total Time: 39:28 

Credits:
Producer - Tommy LiPuma
Recording & Mixing - Al Schmitt
Assistant Engineer - Stewart Whitmore, Don Henderson
Production Coordination - Noel Newbolt
Original Mastering - Mike Reese
CD Remastering - Lee Herschberg
Art Direction - Richard Seireeni
Photography - Phillip Dixon 

Secret Combination on Two Ronnies Show