After 15 albums with Incognito, the band’s driving force Jean-Paul ‘Bluey’ Maunick has recorded his debut solo album. Very rarely featured as a vocalist on any of the band’s albums, Bluey impresses in handling all the vocals on “Leap of Faith”. Co-produced and co-written with one of his long standing collaborators Richard Bull, the album ranges from dance anthems to funk to modern soul classics such as lead single “Got To Let My Feelings Show”. His solo debut is both a surprise and a delight, featuring as it does both lead and backing vocals from this most reluctant of singers. “I have always felt comfortable leading from the back – guiding others and bringing out the best of their artistry,” he says. “This past year was the first time I felt a compelling desire to bare my soul in this way with what one of my friends called my musical autobiography.” Bluey has fashioned a truly impressive, soulful album, with stunning falsetto performances and stand-out house tracks “Ain’t Nobody’s Business” and “Why Did I Let You Go?”, as well as the laid back jazzy soul of “Take A Chance On Me and “Stronger”.
Born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1925, Mickey Baker first noticed music via youthful street jug bands. He lived for 87 years. Mickey recorded and wrote the perennial hit Love Is Strange with Mickey & Sylvia. In his later years Mickey went back to his roots of blues, jazz and rock. His solo blues playing took him around Europe and Africa. On his last tour of Africa he was joined by the bass player Alex Sanders and Mickey's show was able to expand to the full gambit of his musical experiences - from country blues to jazz. During this tour Alex and Mickey started to compose together and decided to try and record an album that would highlight their sounds and explorations. This is in fact the first solo jazz rock guitar album that Mickey ever recorded and it is full of intriguing and wonderful sounds from a rendition of Rachmaninoff's Prelude In C# Minor to the disco sound of Alexander's Funk Time to the 7/4 of Ouagadougou. Mickey has combined his skills of being one of the finest jazz guitarists with those of a guitar teacher and prepared a tab/music booklet for this project. This booklet is included on the enhanced CD as a PDF file. ~ Amazon.com
Confused, driven, and curious, the JazzFakers come alive from eons of pulsing sound waves. the JazzFakers quartet emerged from the chaotic New York music scene in 2008. The idea originated from saxophonist/keyboardist David Tamura who runs the New York City Experimental Music Meet-Ups, (former projects of David s are Charles K.Noyes, Von LMO). During this time, David teamed up with drummer Steve Orbach, and multi-instrumentalist Robert L. Pepper of avant garde experimentalists PAS, later to add bassist Raphael Zwyer to complete the project. (In 2013, Matt Luczak has taken the role of drums/percussion). The JazzFakers incorporate various forms of music including jazz, avant garde, noise, improv, and minimalism, along with a few mainstream hooks, to develop a new cutting edge sound which can only be described as beautifully schizophrenic and original. Over the past few years the JazzFakers have coordinated various events in the New York area including the New York City Experi-MENTAL Festival and have played numerous gigs trying to network and develop a community of like minded individuals to resurrect the New York City music scene. the JazzFakers sound matured and in 2010 they released their first self-titled album (at that time still with their former bassist Isaac Taylor) recorded and mixed by Martin Bisi, legendary producer of artists such as John Zorn, Bill Laswell, and Jim Thirlwell. ~ Amazon.com
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