Top Ad
Monday, June 30, 2025
Smooth Jazz Chart - Weekly Top 100 - June 30, 2025 #jazz #music
Thursday, June 26, 2025
Grammy-winning Contemporary Jazz Guitarist/Producer Paul Brown Hits All the Right Notes on So Much To Say Out June 27th #jazz #music
Shane Theriot, Rick Braun, Jeff Ryan and Darren Rhan & More Join Brown For Sterling Originals & Memorable Reworking of a Classic
“Music is my spirituality and has been my entire life,” confesses the chart-topping and Grammy-winning guitarist and producer Paul Brown, who has garnered more than 80 #1 Contemporary Jazz radio hits. The LA born and raised musical titan’s parents were musicians who sang with Mel Tormé, Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley, among numerous others. Brown’s anticipated recording and thirteenth as a leader, So Much To Say (Shanachie Entertainment - June 27, 2025), showcases his winning combination of astounding virtuosity, soul, grit, fire, and grace that have earned him the trust to produce such luminaries as George Benson, Luther Vandross and Al Jarreau and engineer for such iconic divas as Aretha Franklin and Diana Ross. “It's more of a musical thing,” explains Brown about the meaning behind the title of his new recording. “There's a lot that can be said with a few notes. Often too many notes confuses the issue. I try to tell a story with my melodies, solos and with dynamics.”
One of the beauties of So Much To Say is Paul Brown’s seamless ability to fuse a multitude of divergent influences into one cohesive and thrilling experience. This is not a surprise given the fact that he cites Wes Montgomery, Peter Gabriel, Johnny “Guitar” Watson, and Jerry Garcia as primary influences. He confesses about the latter, “I've been a dead head since 1970. Garcia was one of my guitar heroes even though back then I was a drummer. I’ve played drums since I was four and thought that would be my life instrument, but I think the guitar choose me.” Brown plays percussion on five of the album’s tracks.
At the forefront of So Much To Say is Paul Brown’s relaxed yet simultaneously charged playing. His solid and fluid Jazz chops, R&B/Soul roots, Rock-edge, and Bluesy feel infuse the album with his instantly recognizable signature sound. He shares, “Since my first CD I've wanted to have a classic Jazz tone with little effects but surrounded by a modern R&B sound with lots of booty and groove.” So Much To Say opens with the title track, a dance-happy and rock-steady groove providing the perfect canvas for Brown’s crisp and soaring guitar lines. The opener was co-written with Shane Theriot (Hall & Oats, The Neville Brothers, Branford Marsalis, Dr. John) who joins him on the track. “This is kind of my throwback to the 70's Jazz à la (George) Benson,” admits Brown, who is an avid golfer who makes it a point to golf on tour no matter where he is in the world. A striking and unique reworking of a Jazz standard becomes a high point on the album when Brown offers the funkiest and most blues-drenched version of Gershwin’s “Summertime” likely ever heard. This is track is a powerful first single for the album. “I love the idea of taking a classic song and re-inventing it,” he muses. “It doesn't get much better than a Gershwin song. That melody just bursts out of the track. Hopefully there will be young people that will be introduced to the song for the first time through my version.” Brown and Theriot come together for the ebullient “Spill Da Beans “featuring saxophonist Darren Rhan (Bob James, Tobi Keith, Najee, Kirk Franklin). Jeffrey Smith arranged the additional instruments heard and co-wrote the laid-back and in-the-pocket groove “Vice- Versa.”
Brown wrote or co-wrote almost every song on So Much To Say and shares, “When I am working on an album, I write and produce every day. Sometimes songs are written specifically for other artists but more frequently lately I end up loving what I played and decide to keep it for my own CD. The keeper, “My Sweet Baby,” is a dazzling number bound to uplift your mood with its tantalizing and breezy buttery-soul melody. Paul Brown’s guitar licks delight and he also provides nice percussive accents on the track. Trumpeter Rick Braun enters the mix on the song “Play It Forward” and the catchy interplay between Brown and Braun is a highlight on the album as they trade choruses and unleash their magnetic chemistry. Brown turns on the quiet with the sultry ballad, “Take Me As I Am,” a collaboration with bassist Roberto Vally (Michael Franks, David Benoit, Patti Austin, Richard Elliot) and pianist Leon Bisquera (Chaka Khan, Boney James, Anita Baker, Randy Crawford).
So Much To Say also features the zippy and buoyant “Let’s Bounce,” the ultimate mood enhancer while the climatic Stax flavored “Smooth Moves” features saxophonist Jeff Ryan (Peter White, Jeff Kashiwa) and thrilling guitar work from Brown alongside driving percussion courtesy of Theriot. "I grew up listening to rock and blues and my parents were jazz musicians, so I heard a lot of that music in the house," reflects Brown, who confesses, "I have always loved soul music.” Paul Brown will have you crying the blues on the stand-out “Down On My Knees,” which will have even a stone-cold heart soften once they hear his pleading guitar testify. It’s a lesson in authenticity, no gimmicks just heart-felt playing. Brown flips the script on the turbo charged “Step It Up” while So Much To Say comes to a rousing finale with the celebratory “The Get Down” which is an all-out lose yourself and your worries jam. The perfect way to end an unforgettable musical journey. Brown’s states that his goal for the album is “to bring peace of mind to people.”
Paul Brown’s inaugural recording for Shanachie Entertainment was Love You Found Me in 2010. In 2021 Brown joined forces with fellow guitarist Larry Carlton for their acclaimed project Soul Searchin’. 2022 saw the release of Promise Land and in 2024 he collaborated with bassist Brian Bromberg and saxophonist Michael Paulo for the formation of the supergroup BPM and their highly touted recording Seriously. Paul Brown sums up his life and musical journey as a blessing. “My advice is do what you love. I've been incredibly blessed to be able to make music and play golf. I love all kinds of music as long as it's good. I have a great family life and that allows me the time and energy to be as creative as possible.”
Best selling smooth jazz at amazon.com
Jazz from Amazon.com
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
Contemporary jazz guitarist Ron Bosse teams up with three GRAMMY winners for new single #jazz #music
Hitmaker Paul Brown produced “Look At Us,” which drops on Friday.
Personal development gurus preach about the power of proximity, which one might say that contemporary jazz guitarist Ron Bosse has taken to heart. The critically-acclaimed fretman teamed up with three GRAMMY® winners – Paul Brown, Shane Theriot, and Brian Bromberg - for his new single, “Look At Us,” which drops on Friday (June 20) from Deep Cat Records.
Two-time GRAMMY® winner Brown has produced more than sixty No. 1 singles by Boney James, Luther Vandross, George Benson, Al Jarreau, and many others. While Bosse is primarily known for his fiery and furious fusion guitar tracks featuring his prodigious speed and dexterous technique, Brown played Bosse a song that he wrote with Theriot and Bromberg that slows Bosse down and places his electric jazz guitar into a soulful R&B groove.
“What really attracted me to ‘Look At Us’ is the lyrical nature of the melody. When I think of all the melodies I've played on my albums, many of them are more be-bop, jazz/fusion oriented. On ‘Look At Us,’ I felt that for the first time I was playing a melody as if I were a singer. This was such a beautiful musical setting to be put in. I'm a huge fan of pop, R&B, and rock music, which are primarily vocal driven. I have a lot of experience playing and teaching that music. Therefore, to put myself into that space and really let my guitar sing, it was incredibly inspiring and a totally new context for me. At the same time, despite it being new, I felt like I'd always been there as it was extremely comfortable and satisfying. Having the chance to really focus and communicate a beautiful melody is an immensely powerful, emotive, and expressive artistic experience,” said Bosse about the single that will be serviced to radio and begin collecting playlist adds on July 28.
There was another interesting connection to “Look At Us” that piqued Bosse’s attention. Theriot, longtime music director for Hall & Oates, cowrote the song and played bass, keyboards, drums, and rhythm guitar on the track.
“When Paul (Brown) presented the song to me, I didn’t know about Shane’s (Theriot) incredible background as a guitarist and multi-instrumentalist. However, I remembered his name from my past but couldn’t quite pinpoint where I knew it from. It finally came to me. When I graduated from Berklee College of Music some 25 years ago, I was profiled in the Spotlight section of Guitar Player magazine, which was a very prestigious recognition and accolade at the time. It then dawned on me that the other guitarist chosen was Shane Theriot! The fact that this connection with Shane ultimately came full circle felt like the universe was telling me that ‘Look At Us’ was meant to be,” recalled Bosse, who Guitar Player magazine selected as an “Outstanding Guitarist” and called him “a master in the making.”
In addition to the accolades from Guitar Player magazine, Bosse’s recordings have garnered praise from JazzTimes, DownBeat, and the New York Times. As an innovative artist, musician, and composer, he thrives in collaborative settings, having shared the stage or studio with Norman Brown, Randy Brecker, Mike Stern, Bob Mintzer, MonoNeon, Bob Reynolds, Dave Liebman, Lil’ John Roberts, Gary Novak, and Jerry Bergonzi. Bosse is working on his next album with Paul Brown producing. Look for it in 2026.
To preorder “Look At Us,” go to Look At Us by Ron Bosse - DistroKid.
For more information, please visit http://www.ronbosse.com.
Jazz from Amazon.com