Family Dinner – Volume 2 (GroundUp Music)
Snarky Puppy
Released February 16, 2016
The Guardian 10 Best Jazz Albums of 2016
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_njFJqsuhXMqSgTp3svI_SvEs11HqDK6iw
Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/album/6KEUuwIZRFjpg9rZaeufqJ?si=Iv9pKQpRQiOqcEEV-bJuEA
About:
In February of 2015, Grammy Award-winning band Snarky Puppy recorded Family Dinner Volume Two in front of a live studio audience with guest instrumentalists and vocalists from all over the world. A companion piece to the monumental album, this documentary/concert-film features exclusive candid interviews and acoustic performances from the guest artists.
The project is a true testament for showing first-hand how music can be a bridge between diverse cultures from countries from all over the world to create a unifying musical statement for the average listener or the devout music-connoisseur.
Track Listing:
1. I Asked (feat. Becca Stevens & Väsen) 6:54
2. Molino Molero (feat. Susana Baca & Charlie Hunter) 5:30
3. Liquid Love (feat. Chris Turner) 6:36
4. Soro (Afriki) [feat. Salif Keita, Carlos Malta & Bernardo Aguiar] 8:17
5. Sing to the Moon (feat. Laura Mvula & Michelle Willis) 5:51
6. Don’t You Know (feat. Jacob Collier & Big Ed Lee) 10:43
7. I Remember (feat. KNOWER & Jeff Coffin) 6:33
8. Somebody Home (feat. David Crosby) 6:29
9. Be Still (feat. Becca Stevens & Väsen) 4:32
10. Fuego Y Agua (feat. Susana Baca) 5:35
11. Shapons Vindaloo (feat. Väsen) 8:03
12. One Hope (feat. KNOWER) 3:30
13. Brother, I’m Hungry (feat. Nigel Hall & NOLA International) 8:35
Personnel:
Michael League: bass guitar, ukulele bass, Moog bass, & vocals
Jay Jennings: trumpet, flugelhorn, vocals
Mike Maher: trumpet, flugelhorn, vocals
Chris Bullock: tenor saxophone, flute, alto flute, vocals
Cory Henry: keyboards, vocals
Bill Laurance: keyboards, vocals
Shaun Martin: keyboards, vocals
Justin Stanton: keyboards, trumpet, vocals
Bob Lanzetti: guitars, vocals
Mark Lettieri: guitars, vocals
Chris McQueen: guitars, vocals
Robert Searight: drums, vocals
Larnell Lewis: drums, percussion, vocals
Nate Werth: percussion, vocals
Marcelo Woloski: percussion, vocals
Rachella Searight: vocals
Candy West: vocals
Peaches West: vocals
Guests
Ed Lee: sousafone (6)
Carlos Malta: pife, bass flute, alto flute, flute, & soprano sax (4)
Jeff Coffin: tenor sax, alto flute (7)
Jacob Collier: vocals, piano, harmonizer (6)
Michelle Willis: pump organ & vocals (5)
Charlie Hunter: guitar (2)
David Crosby: vocals, acoustic guitar (8)
Roger Tallroth (Väsen): parlor guitar, 12-string acoustic guitar (1, 9, 11)
Louis Cole (Knower): drums (7, 12)
Olov Johansson (Väsen): nyckelharpa (1, 9, 11)
Bernardo Aguiar: pandeiro, percussion (4)
André Ferrari (Väsen): percussion (1, 9, 11)
Carolina Araoz: vocals
Genevieve Artadi (Knower): vocals (7, 12)
Susana Baca: vocals (2, 10)
Amos Gohi Baraon: vocals
Aminata Dante: vocals
Salif Keita: vocals (4)
Bah Kouyate-Kone: vocals
Laura Mvula: vocals (5)
Becca Stevens: vocals, acoustic guitar, charango (1, 9)
Chris Turner: vocals (3)
Nola International
Sam Williams: trombone
Terence Blanchard: trumpet
Khris Royal: alto saxophone
John Gros: organ
Brian Coogan: piano, vocals
Ivan Neville: clavinet, vocals
Big D Perkins: electric guitar
Donald Ramsey: bass guitar
Jamison Ross: drums
Terence Higgins: drums
Mike Dillon: percussion
Jason Marsalis: percussion
Nigel Hall: vocals (13)
Recorded February 12 – 14, 2015, at Esplanade Studios, New Orleans, Louisiana, by Eric Hartman – except vocals on Soro (Afriki) recorded at Studio Moffou in Bamako, Mali, by Abou “Le Genie” Cisse & Michael League
Photography by Amelie Marchier
Producer: Michael League
Mixed by Eric Hartman, Michael League, Nathan Forsbach
Mastering: Scott Hull (2)
Artwork: MinaLima
Review:
High-flying jazz-fusion collective Snarky Puppy curated a collaboration with a raft of star vocalists in 2014 under the title Family Dinner. This is the second instalment, with an even glitzier guestlist, caught live in New Orleans during Mardi Gras. Young singer-songwriter Becca Stevens opens proceedings with some unexpectedly plaintive folk fiddle music, which builds towards the clamorous I Asked, with its odd-metre bassline and bold harmonies. Peru’s Susana Baca is joined by jazz-funk guitar maverick Charlie Hunter on the heated Molino Montero, ending up with a melee of percussion polyrhythms and interwoven backing vocals, and a similar explosive finale winds up Salif Keita’s Soro (Afriki). Britain’s Laura Mvula and Jacob Collier provide thoughtful soul and jaw-dropping vocal multitasking, with the latter’s Don’t You Know the longest and most exploratory track on the set. Legendary rock survivor David Crosby’s ballad Somebody Home doesn’t make for the most euphoric curtain-closer, and a jazz feel is mostly consigned to loose handling of the arrangements, but there are some inspired performances on this uninhibitedly diverse set.
John Fordham (The Guardian)
