The godfather of today's urban contemporary jazz scene, Grover Washington Jr., was one of the most popular and influential saxophonists of the '70s and '80s. And while he may have paved the way for such easy-listening artists as Kenny G, Najee, George Howard and Gerald Albright, none of those popular saxophonists play with the chops and sheer intensity that Grover demonstrated on the bandstand from night to night throughout his career, which spanned three decades. And as the newly discovered Grover Live demonstrates, the man was clearly on top of his game well in to the '90s. Recorded on June 7, 1997 at the Paramount Center for the Arts in Peekskill, New York, Grover Live, produced by Jason Miles (Miles Davis, Luther Vandross, Sting), captures the consummate pro in concert and at the peak of his powers, blowing with unbridled conviction and a sense of risk-taking on a collection of his tunes spanning three decades.From familiar hits like "Winelight" and "Mr. Magic" to a medley of early numbers like "Inner City Blues," "Black Frost" and "Just the Two of Us" to more recent offerings like "Mystical Force," the hip-hop flavored "Uptown" and a contemporary spin on the old school groover, "Soulful Strut," Grover and his crew - Adam Holzman and Donald Robinson on keyboards and synthesizers, Gerald Veasley on electric bass, Richard Lee on guitar, Pablo Batista on percussion and Steven Wolf on drums - stretch out in dynamic fashion on this exhilarating live CD. Washington sets the tone for the evening on the engaging opener, "Winelight," which showcases his wonderfully relaxed style and big, beautiful tone on the tenor sax. This tune, and
several others on Grover Live, instantly reveals Washington to be, as Gil Evans once said of Miles Davis, "a great singer of songs." And while his mellow approach to melodic material established a school of playing that ultimately led to the smooth jazz movement, Grover can be heard wailing in pure spontaneous and aggressive fashion on a stirring cadenza, full of upper register squealing and virtuosic scalar runs that elicit wild shouts from the Peekskill crowd.
"Take Another Five" from the 1992 release Next Exit is a funkified take on Paul Desmond's "Take Five" the jazz anthem debuted by the Dave Brubeck Quartet on 1959's Time Out and showcases the individual band members stretching out with abandon. Again, Grover's delivery is relaxed and imbued with soul before he unleashes his mighty chops at the 3:15 mark. "Soulful Strut," the title track of Washington's current Columbia CD at the time of this concert, is a contemporary remake of the instrumental hit by Young Holt Unlimited from 1969. The atmospheric "Mystical Force," co-penned by Grover and his musical director Donald Robinson, is a smooth jazz offering with a funky edge while the slamming "Uptown," which has Grover switching nimbly from soprano to tenor sax, features sampled rappers, churning conga from Batista and some warm, Wes Montgomery-inspired octaves work from Lee. "Sassy Stew" is a slow grooving lyrical number from 1984's Inside Moves that gradually builds to a passionate crescendo that Washington wails over with signature abandon.
The Peekskill audience is next taken on a nostalgic trip by Grover in a well-crafted medley that travels from old school numbers like "Black Frost" (from 1974's Mister Magic) and an instrumental version of Marvin Gaye's "Inner City Blues" (title track of Washington's 1971 debut on Kudu) to the romantic "Strawberry Moon" (title track from his 1987 album on Columbia) and the Afro-Cuban flavored "Inside Moves" (title track of his 1984 album on Elektra). The funky "Jamaica" (from 1989's Time Out of Mind) is a showcase for Washington's robust baritone sax playing while the beautiful ballad "East River Drive" (A Grover original from 1980's Come Morning) has him playing soulfully on soprano sax. The extensive medley concludes with the chart-topper "Just the Two of Us" (sans Bill Withers on vocals), and the upbeat "Sausalito," which features a heated timbales solo by Batista over a percolating son montuno section. They close out the set with the funky "Let it Flow" (a paean to basketball superstar Julius "Dr. J" Erving which appeared his 1980 album Winelight) that showcases Veasley on a monstrous electric bass solo. And they encore with Grover's signature tune, "Mr. Magic," a '70s staple that has guitarist Lee wailing in Hendrix-like fashion and also features Washington erupting with visceral power on tenor sax.
Look out for this amazing recording to break come May 18th, 2010!
Source: theurbanmusicscene.com
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