Paul Brown has had the
Midas touch since the early ‘90s when he began producing some of the biggest
contemporary jazz hits and definitive chart-topping albums by the brightest
urban-jazz stars in the galaxy, amassing more than 60 Billboard No. 1 singles.
In the past twelve years, the guitarist stepped forward as an artist in his own
right, consistently cranking out hits of his own. Although his formative
recordings established the sound of the smoother side of contemporary jazz for
more than two decades, Brown yearned to reconnect with his first musical
passion: the blues. On Friday, Woodward Avenue Records issued his eighth solo
collection, “One Way Back,” a self-produced ten-track outing on which he
followed his heart back to his blues roots.
“There was only one way back to my roots and that was to go
down every road and embrace each one of them in order to find my way back to
where I began,” said Brown, a two-time Grammy winner who wrote nine new tunes
for the disc that was preceded by a reimagined take on Joe Sample’s party
starter “Put It Where You Want It,” currently bulleted at No. 8 on the
Billboard singles chart.
Bubbling under Brown’s clean and cool electric jazz guitar
expressions throughout “One Way Back” are blues-powered keyboard and Hammond B3
organ blasts courtesy of the similarly-named Brother Paul Brown (no relation)
and stacks of muscular horn section workouts from saxophonist Greg Vail and
trumpeter-horn arranger Lee Thornberg. Having enjoyed a tremendous amount of
success producing signature hits for saxophonists Boney James, Kirk Whalum,
Euge Groove and Jessy J, Brown invited label mate saxman Darren Rahn to guest
on “Sexy Thang.” Guitar fans will rejoice that four cuts – “Piccadilly Circus,”
“River Walk,” “Take Flight” and “Rear View Mirror”- spotlight Brown trading
stringed barbs with contemporary jazz guitar sensations Chris Standring, Marc
Antoine, Peter White and Chuck Loeb respectively. Standring, Antoine and White
stand apart using the voice of nylon guitars while Fourplay’s Loeb emotes
deftly on jazz guitar. The session boasts a roof-raising gospel-jazz vocal from
Don Bryant on the celebratory juke joint original “Well Alright.” Brown himself
takes to the mic to croon the intimate “Heaven,” a poignant,
heart-on-the-sleeve country-blues album closer spotlighting the artist’s
character-rich voice.
“’One Way Back’ is a journey thru my musical and life
experiences. This album is a pure sense of expression and everything I’ve got to
give,” said Brown before adding, “I’m a much better guitarist, producer and
writer now than ever before.”
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Calif., initially Brown was
a drummer before picking up the guitar. After learning his way around the
recording studio, he became the engineer for R&B legends Diana Ross, Luther
Vandross and Aretha Franklin. Moving over into the producer’s seat, Brown
almost single-handedly architected the sound of smooth/contemporary jazz since
the 1990s before delivering his solo debut in 2004, “Up Front.” From subsequent
albums, three of which went Top 10, two singles -2005’s “Winelight” and 2007’s
“The Rhythm Method” – were the most-played radio songs of their respective
years. Concert performances around the world enabled him to refine and develop
his guitar chops as well as cultivate his fan base far beyond the limiting
confines of a recording studio. For more information, please visit
www.PaulBrownJazz.com.
Brown’s “One Way Back” album contains the following songs:
“Put It Where You Want It”
“Sexy Thang” (featuring Darren Rahn)
“Hush”
“Piccadilly Circus” (featuring Chris Standring)
“River Walk” (featuring Marc Antoine)
“Well Alright” (featuring Don Bryant)
“Take Flight” (featuring Peter White)
“One Way Back”
“Rear View Mirror” (featuring Chuck Loeb)
“Heaven”
No comments:
Post a Comment