Saxophonist Boney James calls Shine, his 10th CD and first for Concord Music Group, an upbeat and positive work that features many of his musical influences. The 12-song CD – with nine originals and three covers – has a guest performance by guitarist George Benson on the song “Hypnotic,” marking the first time the two smooth jazz powerhouses have collaborated together. Benson is also recording a album for Concord, a duets project with Al Jarreau.
Also guesting on Shine are pianist George Duke and five singers: R&B vocalists Dwele on a cover of the Dramatics’ “In the Rain”; Faith Evans; Phillip Bailey; gospel vocalist Ann Nesby, who sings on a cover of a song Chuck Mangione recorded in 1975 called “Soft”; and chill-influenced vocalist Esthero. James also adds an instrumental cover of Antonio Carlos Jobim’s bossa-nova classic “Aguas de Marco.”
Shine willl be released Sept. 26.
1. Shine (Boney James/Lily Mariye/Laren Evans) (With Esthero)2. The Total Experience (Boney James/Johnny Britt) (With George Duke)
3. Aguas de Marco (Antonio Carlos Jobim)
4. Let It Go (Boney James/Rex Rideout)
5. In The Rain (The Dramatics) (With Dwele)
6. Gonna Get It (Boney James/Rahsaan Patterson) (With Faith Evans)
7. Breathe (Boney James/Phil Davis)
8. Love Song (Boney James/Eric Daniels/Johnny Britt) (With Phillip Bailey)
9. Hypnotic (Boney James) (With George Benson)
10. The Way She Walks (Boney James/Leon Bisquera)
11. Dedication (Boney James/Joe Wolfe/Gerald McCauley)
12. Soft (Chuck Mangione) (With Ann Nesby)
Paul Hardcastle is returning to the familiar for his next CD but at the same time trying something new. He's once again reunited with vocalist Helen Rogers for Jazzmasters V, which he recently completed. Rogers has always been part of the Jazzmasters CDs, which alternate with the Hardcastle ones.
But on the new CD, Rogers only sings on three songs, “Children of the Ghetto,” “Garden of Eden” and “Live for the Dream,” after appearing on six of the 13 songs on Jazzmasters 4. That obviously means the new CD is more of an instrumental project than previous Jazzmasters efforts.
The 11-song CD features titles such as the first single "Free As the Wind,” “Never Far Away” and “The Sun Says Goodbye.” Jazzmasters 5 will be available July 25.
If you play the guitar and want to play songs from your favorite musicians and bands, the Internet is a great resource to find guitar tablature, which is a way of reading music. These tabs are posted by fans who figure out the songs and share them for all to see. But if you’ve wanted to play like your favorite smooth jazz guitarist you’ve pretty much been left out to dry as there haven’t been that many tabs available.
Smooth Jazz guitarist Jeff Golub has just changed all of that. Or at least in some small way - hopefully others will follow. On his newly designed Website, Golub offers tabs to eight of his most popular songs, including “Nitelife,” “Bobby’s Mood,” “Pick Up the Pieces” and “Gone But Not Forgotten.” In addition, Golub is also making available his original sheet music to “Cold Duck Time” and his No. 1 smooth jazz song called “No Two Ways About It,” which also featured the guitar work of good friend Peter White.
There is no charge to download the tabs or sheet music, although you must download a program to be able to read the tabs.
Golub's current CD is called Temptation and he's currently on a short break on this year’s version of Guitars & Saxes tour in the U.S. with Peter White and saxophonists Richard Elliot and Gerald Albright.
