Back with his first contemporary jazz foray in five
years, trumpeter Rick Braun appears to be wasting no time in his quest to add
more No. 1 hits to his burgeoning catalogue of chart-toppers. “Get Up And
Dance,” his fun-filled frolic with sax sensation Dave Koz that bodes to become
the song of the summer, is already No. 3 on the Billboard singles chart this
week, the first cut issued from Braun’s sixteenth set, “Can You Feel It,” which
was released today by Artistry Music/Mack Avenue Records.
Braun
produced and wrote or co-wrote nine songs on the new session that revisits the
spirit of his twenty-year-old breakthrough collection, “Beat Street,” reflects
his past playing in War and conjures the mighty Tower of Power. After
satisfying his creative itch to croon jazz standards on a pair of recent
albums, Braun entered the studio focused on delivering a high-powered horn set
filled with jazz-funk joints recorded with friends. The vibrant harmonies and
funky grooves are performed in a live setting center staging Braun’s trumpet,
flugelhorn and newest weapon, valve trombone, which bursts forth from a
rhythmic panorama of rapid fire horn section revelry. The eleven-song record
showcases Braun collaborating with some of the finest instrumental artisans
including Koz, charismatic keyboardist Brian Culbertson (“Back To Back”), sax
heavyweight Euge Groove (“Take Me To The River” and “Dr. Funkenstein”), fusion
pioneer Jeff Lorber (“Delta” and “Radar”), old soul singer Elliott Yamin (“Take
Me To The River”) and keyboardist-arranger Philippe Saisse, who played on five
tunes, co-penned the title track and authored the disc’s lone ballad, the
beauty “Another Kind of Blue.”
The
revered headliner will support “Can You Feel It” with concert dates through the
end of the year with his own band, with Groove and guitar star Peter White as
Jazz Attack, and with Grammy winners Kirk Whalum and Norman Brown as BWB with
whom he will play an August 17 show at The Hollywood Bowl. Braun concludes the
year with his annual New Year’s Eve fundraiser at the JW Marriott Star Pass
Resort and Spa in Tucson, Arizona sharing the bill with White, sax powerhouse
Richard Elliot and special guest vocalist Larry Braggs on an evening themed “A
Night in New Orleans.” The event benefits the Autism Society, a nonprofit
organization tasked with improving the lives of those affected by the autism
spectrum disorder, which includes Braun’s teenage daughter.
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