DIRK QUINN - QUINNTET

Sunset is set to release Dirk Quinn's QuinnTet, a daring fresh CD from Philadelphia's finest jazz funk ensemble and the debut CD on Sunset Jazz Recordings, the newly created jazz label. Since starting his music career, guitarist Dirk Quinn has gained a name as one of the most intense jazz, soul -funk artists in the music scene, a work horse on the road playing live in places everywhere from small coffee houses to music festivals throughout the entire summer. When the guitarist began to work on his acoustic music, this year, he discovered that rather than go that direction with his follow up CD, he started creating new music with his band. The result is this nine song incredible CD by incredible jazz musicians.

"We would show up at our live shows and realize we had something special ," Dirk recalls. "I continue to play acoustic shows every week, 'Sometimes at 10AM" The guitar aficionado continues to say as he laughs. "We then began to record some of the stuff we played live. We all added some great layers to the music. And it all ended up on this new CD."

With QuinnTet, Dirk Quinn's band have taken that quintessential jump from being great performing artists to being great recording artists. Quinn's astounding guitar work has had a ground breaking effect in the live music world and he has set some high standards for his second studio CD. "Dirk wanted his next CD to be produced at a high level and he wants this CD to be more than just something for his fans to leave with at his shows," says Don Lichterman, the head of the Sunset Records group of Distributed Labels. As far what inspires Dirk Quinn - Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Theloniuos Monk, David Brubeck along with the more contemporary sounds of Bela Fleck, John Scofield, Ahmad Jamal and Jaco Pastorius -- are some of the artists that come to mind when describing his music. Lichterman goes on to say that "Quinn began heavily turning his musical direction to a more free form and improvisational sound" and "his guitar wizardry is the focal point of his live shows."

Lichterman says this is one of the best full length CDs he has listened to in a long time drawing comparisons to The Word, Robert Randolph and Soulive. "I've always wanted to bring fresh new sounds and even reinvent myself with every project; I never really wanted to ever fall into doing the same old thing all the time," says Quinn from his latest show held in Reading Pennsylvania last weekend.

Quinn has been easily recognized for his astounding abilities on his guitar. He makes no bones about knowing the time spent playing in the studio is ultimately how this CD evolved this year. "Nowadays, we have the ability to play over the basic layers that had been the basis of our music and I have learned to intertwine melodies along with a defined arrangement in each song, " he says about the new QuinnTet CD. "We did not intend to change the way the music is today, but it all needs to work within my grooves and melodies within music". Lichterman says that is what "I look for in developing music - it can be a 98 piece orchestra or one person with an acoustic guitar -- when it works, it is easy to see which is the case with these guys live." Lichterman ends the interview by saying that "this CD by Dirk is amazing for the label and I have it playing in my car all the time."

Having grown up outside of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, Quinn has now made the elevation from playing tiny coffee houses around the east Coast of the United States to headlining weekend long music festivals, Quinn's goals with his music go well above his individual melodious limits. "I am making the attempt to build a new scene and a new style of jazz funk that will hopefully inspire people to say that they want to grow up playing improvisational jazz music from the Philadelphia area," he says. "I have followed the careers of Miles Davis and John Coltrane, how they evolved as artist in the jazz community and they would just play live as much as possible every day - - and I truly believe music fans always want to see live improvisational music."

You can see how Quinn has broken through to a higher level of playing with this QuinnTet CD in stores this month at Sunset Jazz Recordings. The band will play live at key events throughout the summer - a July 4th show at the Phoenixville Music festival, the Rex fest in Milford, PA and the Endless Summer Music Festival in New Jersey - along with a very special show at the World Cafe Live on WXPN will culminate the summer tour for Dirk Quinn.

"I am still creating music every day, Quinn says. "What Don (Lichterman) has done by giving us this worldwide reach is open up avenues for me to create more creative music. We have definitely elevated our situation as band by signing with Sunset."