Two-time
Grammy winning producer, guitarist, recording artist and all around musical
Renaissance Man Paul Brown had another banner year in 2017, adding two more
Billboard #1 Smooth Jazz singles to his ever-expanding resume. He’s kicking
back and keeping it silky smooth for the holidays! On this intimate, sensual
rendition of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” Brown glides his sultry electric
melody lines and graceful improvisations over the lush keyboards and easy
flowing bass and drums of Lew Laing. This version is perfect for a cozy
fireside playlist when the temperature drops! ~ smoothjazz.com
RICKY ALAN
DRAUGHN – HOLIDAY BEST WISHES
Ricky Alan
Draughn might be new on the Smooth Jazz artist radar, but he’s been rated one
of the hottest cutting-edge artists on the East Coast by virtue of his
Tri-State area performances with the Slammin’ Band. Previewing next year’s full
length holiday album, BEST HOLIDAY WISHES, the intensely emotional soul singer
creates a dramatic, orchestra-enhanced version of “O Holy Night” under the
guidance of two-time Grammy winning producer Chris “Big Dog” Davis. In addition
to his towering vocals, the track is notable for its clever quoting of “My
Favorite Things.” Draughn’s “O Holy Night” is one of the most inspiring tracks
of the season! ~ smoothjazz.com
GILI YALO - GILI YALO
A fantastic
debut from Gili Yalo – an important artist on the current Tel Aviv scene, but
one with roots in Ethiopia, too – a mix of cultural modes that he works to
great effect on this album! The sounds here definitely echo some of the hippest
Ethio sounds of the 70s – but the approach is never too copycat at all, and
Gili certainly brings a lot of new spirit of his own to the lyrics, and his use
of funkier currents in some of the instrumentation! Yalo's probably got more
right to reference these sounds than other contemporary artists – and that also
seems to give him more of a chance to play with them openly, too – really
hitting some new ideas on titles that include "City Life",
"Tadese", "Selam", "Africa", "Hot
Shot", "Sab Sam", "T'Ebik'Ew", and
"Fire". ~ Dusty
Groove
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