Now Is the Time (Heads Up Records)
Jeff Lorber Fusion
Released June 1, 2010
Grammy Nominee for Best Contemporary Jazz Album 2011
YouTube: https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nAgMPvUjVaNeeLz5RhHfoWER_DMRRwMrU
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1HzNe5djd6wTo8IiaBsEdP?si=6Koe1_47SpKBN5rIbimaRQ
About:
More than three decades after his earliest recordings, keyboardist and composer Jeff Lorber has come full circle. His new recording, Now Is The Time, is set for release on June 1, 2010, on Heads Up International, a division of Concord Music Group. The album delves back into his early catalog and reinvents some of the most compelling compositions from the Jeff Lorber Fusion heyday. As a result, the artist once again makes a bold statement in the evolution of jazz. In December 2010, Now Is The Time received a GRAMMY® nomination for Best Contemporary Jazz Album.
This new incarnation of the Jeff Lorber Fusion includes luminaries like bassist Jimmy Haslip (who co-produced with Lorber and Bobby Colomby), saxophonist Eric Marienthal, trumpeter Randy Brecker, guitarist Paul Jackson Jr., and drummers Vinnie Colaiuta and Dave Weckl.
“We all had a vision of what we wanted this record to be,” says Lorber, who points to a recent European tour with many of these same musicians – and the positive response that resulted from it – as the primary catalyst for the album. “We wanted a return to the sound of the Jeff Lorber Fusion, but informed by everything I’ve learned since then. All of a sudden, people seem to be interested in hearing that again. They’re ready to hear musicians who can really play, really stretch the envelope with their technique, with their songwriting, and with harmonic structure.”
In some ways, Now Is The Time is a culmination of all that has come before – and a nod to the raw energy and enthusiasm that fueled the music of the early days. The set opens with a reinterpretation of Lorber’s “Rain Dance,” a song that has been sampled by Lil’ Kim and other hip-hop artists since the original recording on the Water Sign album in 1979. The combination of vocals by Irene B and trumpet by Randy Brecker – with additional brass by the Blood Sweat & Tears Horns – provides a fresh look at an early Jeff Lorber Fusion classic.
Among Lorber’s favorites is “Mysterious Traveler,” a song originally written by Wayne Shorter during his Weather Report years. “It’s hard to compete with the original version of this song because it’s so interesting,” says Lorber, “but our version is much more funky and hard-hitting. There’s a sense of freedom in this track that really goes beyond anything else on the record, because the whole thing was sort of a jam session done live in the studio.”
“Black Ice,” originally from the 1978 album, Soft Space, “represents the essence of the Jeff Lorber Fusion sound,” says Lorber. “It’s very uptempo, with some quick-shifting harmonic changes and exciting rhythms. It was fun to revisit this song and do it in the studio with Vinnie Colaiuta on the drums.”
While Colaiuta handles the lion’s share of the drumming on Now is The Time, Lorber recruited Dave Weckl to manage the offbeat 7/4 signature of “Chinese Medicinal Herbs,” a song originally recorded for Jeff Lorber Fusion’s 1977 debut album. “The song is just so perfect for Dave,” says Lorber. “He just excels at that kind of music. The minute I heard him play three bars of it, I knew he was just the right guy for the job. The drumming is amazing on this track.”
Calling this set of refashioned classics Now Is The Time was no accident, says Lorber. The album represents a transition in the artist’s creative perspective – one that might well be a reflection of the changes in the audience’s perceptions as well. “This record is a clear statement,” he says. “It represents a real musical shift toward something a little jazzier, and a little more exciting. The title has a very positive thrust to it, and it evokes a certain sense of being serious and taking charge.”
Track Listing:
1. Rain Dance/Wanna Fly (Irene Bauza / Frankie Biggz / Jeff Lorber) 5:23
2. Dr. Moy (Bobby Colomby / Steve Dubin / Jeff Lorber) 4:22
3. Pixel (Bobby Colomby / Jimmy Haslip / Jeff Lorber) 4:13
4. Sugar Free (Irene Bauza / Frankie Biggz / Jeff Lorber) 4:00
5. Mysterious Traveller (Wayne Shorter) 3:56
6. Curtains/Before We Go (Irene Bauza / Frankie Biggz / Jeff Lorber) 4:55
7. Black Ice (Jeff Lorber) 4:17
8. Las Rosas (Bobby Colomby / Jeff Lorber) 3:07
9. Chinese Medicinal Herbs (Jeff Lorber) 4:49
10. Water Sign (Irene Bauza / Frankie Biggz / Jeff Lorber) 4:24
11. Sumatra (Jeff Lorber) 4:11
Personnel:
Jeff Lorber: guitar (2, 8), keyboards, synthesizer bass (4, 11)
Eric Marienthal: alto saxophone (2, 3, 11), soprano saxofone (5, 7-9), tenor saxofone (6, 10)
Frankie Biggz: backing vocals (1)
Alex Al: bass (2)
Jimmy Haslip: bass (1, 3-11), percussion (5)
Dave Weckl; drums (9)
Jimmy Branly: drums (6, 11)
Li’l John Roberts: drums (2)
Vinnie Colaiuta: drums (1, 3 -5, 7, 8, 10)
Randy Brecker: flugelhorn (1),
Larry Koonse: guitar
Michael Thompson: guitar (5, 6, 8)
Paul Jackson Jr.: guitar (1, 3, 4, 7, 10)
Tony Maiden: guitar (2)
Jimmy Branly: percussion (1, 5, 7, 9)
Lenny Castro: percussion (2)
Irene B.: vocals (1, 4, 6, 10)
The Blood Sweat & Tears Horn Section:
Tom Timko: saxophone (1, 3, 11); flute (9)
Steve Jankowski: musical director, trumpet, flugelhorn (9)
Jens Wendelboe: trombone
Teddy Mulet: lead trumpet
Recorded at 34th Street Sound, New York, NY; JHL Sound, Pacific Palisades, CA; Mannerism Music, New York, NY; Tempo Studios, Orlando, FL; The Garage, Canoga Park, CA
Produced by Jeff Lorber, Jimmy Haslip & Bobby Colomby
Recorded by Frankie Biggz
Engineer: Ada Rovatti
Mixing: Allen Sides
Mastering: Chris Bellman
Photographer: Lori Stoll
Review:
An accepted kernel of jazz historiography states that cats who play what has ultimately become smooth jazz play it because they can’t play the real music. But even back in the day—specifically the seventies—this wasn’t true across the board, as evidenced by the undeniable chops of Ramsey Lewis, Grover Washington Jr., Joe Sample, and Philly-born keyboardist Jeff Lorber. His group, The Jeff Lorber Fusion, was a mainstay on urban black radio, and his compositions, arrangements and solos swung in the commercial contexts of the day, so much so that decades later rap artists would resurrect his songs in the hip-hop generation of the nineties.
So we have rappers to thank for this dancing and delightful disc that features dynamic do-overs from Lorber’s catalog—specifically from his critically-acclaimed The Jeff Lorber Fusion (Inner City, 1977), Soft Space (Inner City, 1978) and Water Sign (Arista, 1979), along with some new offerings. Now is the Time, whose title riffs off of the famous Charlie Parker tune, features a new Jeff Lorber Fusion lineup, with members including bassist Jimmy Haslip, vocalist Irene B, trumpeter Randy Brecker and saxophonist Eric Marienthal. Hot out the gate is the anthemic “Rain Dance/Wanna Fly,” which was sampled by Lil’ Kim on her hit, “Crush on You.” Lorber and company lay down a 21st Century mid-tempo groove as good as the original, with Irene B’s lithe, uplifting vocals, Brecker’s ebullient flugelhorn tones and Lorber’s in-the-pocket acoustic piano solo. The laidback lilt of “Curtains/Before We Go,” which provided the foundation for rapper Nelly’s naughty “Pimp Juice” remix, is reborn with its original balladic beauty, featuring a lush orchestral/synth introduction and another Irene B vocal treatment, graced by Marienthal’s piercing sax solo. The complex tempoed, samba-fied “Chinese Medicinal Herbs,” is a showcase for Dave Weckl’s technically brilliant and crisp drumming.
The Blood, Sweat and Tears horns are featured on the funky “Dr. Moy,” and “Pixel.” Lorber’s take on Wayne Shorter’s Weather Report classic, “Mysterious traveler,” manages to stay true to its exotic and evocative aural aura, while interjecting some intelligent urban rhythmic motifs to the mix. Lorber’s pianism—acoustic and electric—is short and sweet, but to the point; along with Haslip’s ingenious bass lines and Weckl’s lickety-split rhythms. All told, Lorber and his fusioneers serve up a pleasing disc that confirms that old saying that (musically speaking) some things are better the second time around.
Eugene Holley, Jr. (All About Jazz)