Friday, December 09, 2016

NEW RELEASES: DENIECE WILLIAMS – BLACK BUTTERFLY: THE ESSENTIAL NIECY; THE LITTLE RICHARD BAND – CALIFORNIA I’M COMIN; ROBERTO FONSECA - ABUC

DENIECE WILLIAMS – BLACK BUTTERFLY: THE ESSENTIAL NIECY

A treasure trove of work from Deniece Williams – one of the coolest, classiest soul singers to hit the mainstream at the end of the 70s! Williams has roots that go deep in the Chicago scene – including young work under the name of Deniece Chandler – but this set picks off from the time when she hit Columbia Records as a full-formed adult soul singer – one of the freshest talents of her generation – with an ability to hit some of the spiritual currents of Minnie Riperton, and some of the grooves you might expect from Cheryl Lynn! Both those sides and many more are featured here – in a 35 track set that's overflowing with gems, produced by soul music legends who include Maurice White, Charles Stepney, Thom Bell, Ray Parker Jr, George Duke, Jeff Lorber, and others. Titles include "Baby Baby My Love's All For You", "What Two Can Do", "I Can't Wait", "I'm So Proud", "Black Butterfly", "Silly", "God Is Amazing", "Free", "Healing", "All I Need", "Waiting By The Hotline", "Let's Hear It For The Boy (12" version)", "Do What You Feel (single version)", "When Love Comes Calling", "I've Got The Next Dance (12" version)", "That's What Friends Are For", and "It's Gonna Take A Miracle". Also features duets with Johnny Mathis on "Without Us", "Love Won't Let Me Wait", "Too Much Too Little Too Late", and "You're All I Need To Get By". ~ Dusty Groove

THE LITTLE RICHARD BAND – CALIFORNIA I’M COMIN

This album features Little Richard and his band with incredible songs from the mid-1970s. We all know about the iconic songs like "Good Golly Ms Molly," "Tutti Frutti," and many more, but this new album is a departure from that sound with elements of jazz, blues and funk. Producer Keith Winslow brought this project to life with a focus on the amazing band Little Richard was working with in 1970s. It features Johnny "Guitar" Watson, San Francisco Sound, Tower Of Power (horn section), Eddie Cornelius, Duane Winslow, Larry Williams, Ernie Watts, Tony Matthews, Jessie Boyce, Freeman Brown, Bobby "Youngblood" Forte, Melvin Wonder, Blood Sweat and Tears, and more.

ROBERTO FONSECA - ABUC

One of the most hard-hitting albums we've ever heard from pianist Roberto Fonseca – a set that deeply digs back into an older Afro-Cuban sound – as you might guess from the title's backward-spelling of Cuba! The music here is surprisingly rich and full – not just Cuban flavoring on jazz piano lines, but a well-conceived, fully-formed approach that mixes Roberto's fierce piano lines with larger percussion and horns, and some very strong acoustic bass from Yandy Martinez – which really drives the harder-grooving songs in a great way! We're often a bit suspicious of projects like this, but we're totally in love with this record – as there's a vibe that's at once respectful of the classics, but totally brand-new – and produced to perfection, without any fakeness or gimmicks at all. Titles include "Soul Guardians", "Sagrado Corazon", "Family", "Tierra Santa", "Tumbao De La Unidad", "Afro Mambo", and "Asere Monina Bonco". ~ Dusty Groove


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