On Unified
Brian Simpson and Steve Oliver enlist help from bassist Alex Al, drummer Eric
Valentine and percussionist Ramon Yslas. The CD opens with the inviting, spicy
and funky title track and album’s first single. Simpson and Oliver set the
perfect mood to take you for a spin on the dance floor with a righteous
combination of sophistication and soul. The exquisite “The Road Never Ends”
travels a euphoric path with its shifting and pulsating rhythms, sailing
melodies and harmonic twists. A few tracks on Unified lean towards Brian
Simpson and Steve Oliver’s affinity for EDM. “Our original vision for the CD
was more of an electronic music concept, but as it is evolved it moved more
into a Contemporary Jazz project.” Two of the tracks that showcase this vibe
are the hypnotic “What The Wind Knows,” and the ethereal “Last Summer.” “I am a
big fan of electronic music and I like the combination of great rhythms and
melodies with acoustic instruments and electronic sounds,” shares Oliver who is
a fan of both Art of Noise and Dzihan & Kamien. Label-mate and trumpeter
Rick Braun joins Simpson and Oliver on the bluesy swinger “Fired Up,” while the
tender “Like No Other” will have you singing its sweet and ear-catching melody
in no time.
“There is a
tremendous amount of respect between us,” confides Brian Simpson. “Our greatest
asset is that we complement one another. Our strengths are different and that
is what makes these compositions come to life in such an original way...a way
that neither of us could recreate individually.” Simpson and Oliver’s chemistry
is brilliantly illuminated on the track “The Way Home.” Their joie de vivre is
wrapped in every note and the tracks uplifting and triumphant flow. Perfection!
“Celestial Body” is a sensual R&B laced track while “Café Du Monde” draws
inspiration from the Crescent City. Simpson explains, “This song made me
envision a cafe setting and Café Du Monde is a place I’ve enjoyed on my visits
to New Orleans.” Unified closes with two striking ballads; “A Distant Love” and
“And Then You Loved Me.” Oliver shares of the latter, “We wrote this song at
Brian’s studio in one day. We recorded it playing live together with just
piano, nylon guitar, and acoustic Bass. It’s one of my favorites.”
Hailing from
Gurnee, Illinois and based in Los Angeles, Brian Simpson always knew music
would play center stage in his life. “Our house was filled with music. My older
brother and sister both played instruments, and my brother's rock band
rehearsed in our living room every weekend,” shares the keyboardist whose
father introduced him to jazz. Simpson’s breakthrough as a solo artist began in
2005 with the #1 radio hit “It’s All Good.” In 2007 Simpson released Above the
Clouds, featuring the hits “What Cha Gonna Do?” and “Juicy.” After graduating
from Northern Illinois University, Simpson relocated to Los Angeles where he
quickly immersed himself in the local jazz scene, playing alongside everyone
from saxophonists Everette Harp and Boney James to guitarist Norman Brown.
Simpson would go on to tour the world with pop divas Teena Marie, Sheena Easton
and Janet Jackson. In January, 1991 he co-wrote the #1 Pop hit “The First Time”
by Surface, which conquered both the R&B and Adult Contemporary
charts. Simpson who has been musical
director for Dave Koz for close to 20 years has toured with some of the greats
of recent jazz history, including George Duke, Stanley Clarke, Larry Carlton,
George Howard, Billy Cobham, and Gerald Albright. In 2010 Simpson released
South Beach whose title track snagged a #1 slot on the charts. Just What You
Need followed in 2013 featuring the Antônio Carlos Jobim/ Vinicius de Moraes
classic “The Girl From Ipanema” which hit #1 on the charts and “Emerald City,”
a Top 3 hit. 2015’s Out Of A Dream featured the Top Ten single “Skywatcher.”
2016 saw the release of Persuasion which featured the Top 10 single
“Wonderland” and Something About You in 2018 featuring the smash single
“Morning Samba.”
“I knew from
birth that I wanted to play and create music. My earliest memory was in the
crib and wanting to climb out and get closer to the stereo to turn it up,”
reflects Steve Oliver. With a career spanning over two decades and multiple #1
hits (including “High Noon,” “Fun In The Sun” and “Global Kiss), Oliver has
been a first-call producer and writer for many of his contemporaries on the
Contemporary Jazz scene. His recording debut came in 1999 with the release of
First View, which was followed by Positive Energy in 2002. The album spawned
three hit singles and garnered the guitarist a Debut Artist of the Year award
from Smooth Jazz News. In 2004, Spyro Gyra keyboardist Tom Schuman produced
Oliver's third album, 3-D which featured Harvey Mason and Eric Marienthal,
among others. 2006 saw the release of two recording sessions from Oliver,
Radiant and the Christmas recording Snowfall. The experience of Steve Oliver’s
exhilarating live performance at the State Theatre in Modesto, CA, along with
behind the scenes footage is harnessed on the 2008 two-disc CD/DVD set One
Night Live. Oliver’s fifth studio recording, Global Kiss (2010) showcases his
vocal chops on three tracks and highlights the singles “Fun In The Sun,” “Ba
Aye” and “Angel Amore.” 2012 saw the release of World Citizen and the
compilation Best Of So Far followed in 2014. Steve Oliver recorded his
long-awaited and first all-vocal project in 2016, Pictures & Frames, at the
famed Capitol Studios along with the all-star rhythm section of bassist Leland
Sklar and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta. Steve Oliver’s most recent solo recording is
Illuminate (2018) and features all originals alongside saxophonist Nelson
Rangell, bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer Joel Taylor.
At a time where
human interaction is being replaced by screen time and people seem to be more
focused on our differences rather than our commonalities, it is refreshing to
experience something that speaks to the soul. Brian Simpson and Steve Oliver’s
Unified is a refreshing journey to a happy place. Simpson concludes, “Music has
the unparalleled ability make a profound difference in all of our lives.”
Oliver adds, “I sure love this album even after writing it and listening to it
a thousand times. I never tire of it and hope people will feel the same!!!”
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