Highlights!!
So what do we have for you this time? Besides the usual fanfare that accompanies the Showcase CD & Back Trax (which you can read about elsewhere in show notes) we have shout outs for the following ... Paul Taylor, Chieli Minucci, Norman Brown, Brian Culberston, Paul Hardcastle, Seal, 3rd Force, David Lanz, & Nils !! But wait !!

You know there's more, we also have music from Jay Soto, Brian Simpson, Gabriel, Janita, Monkey House, Ray Garand, & Kat Hendrix. You may have heard of some or most of these, perhaps not. In any event, it's artists such as these & the selections we choose from the better known players that set us apart from the rest !!

Showcase CD
Metro Blue - Richard Elliot:
The Scottish born sax player's family moved from Glasgow to Los Angeles when he was just three. It was in junior high that Elliot first took up the sax, but he didn't think of it as a career until high school when it turned out his teacher was a studio musician. At 17 & while still in school, Elliot landed his first professional gig touring with Natalie Cole and The Pointer Sisters. For a time he played in the fusion band called Kittyhawk, and followed that by taking part in some sessions with legendary Motown artists, among them Smokey Robinson, The Four Tops and The Temptations. Elliot toured & recorded with The Yellowjackets and between those dates, he did still more tour work this time with Melissa Manchester. 1982 was a pivotal year in Elliot's career as that was when he joined Tower Of Power. Elliot fondly recalls the 5 years that he spent with the legendary ensemble as the most influential period of his early career.

While with TOP, he played on a couple of Huey Lewis releases & then in 1986 he released his own solo debut. The success of that effort was all that he needed to set out on his own. In the time since, he's been a consistent chart-topper and has become one of the most recognizable artists in a genre that he helped pioneer!

Courtesy of ARTizen site

Therefore, it's with great pleasure that we now place Richard Elliot & Metro Blue in our spotlight. To begin, we've selected a moody & groove driven track called Mango Tango. Braun & Dwight Sills guest on that one. Coastline, which was co-written by Elliot, Braun, & Karukas, opens hour two. Once again, Sills & Braun are featured. Finally, to conclude the feature & the show we have Maxi's. This was the first track written for the project and was co-penned by Elliot, Braun, & Brian Culbertson. It's a dynamic track with a terrific Euro dance club feel & features Elliot's sax, brass & bold, layered on an irresistible & persistent R&B groove !!

***Check out The Contest Page for your chance to win a copy of Metro Blue!!***

CD: Metro Blue
Label: ARTizen Music Group
Web Sites: Richard Elliot ; ARTizen

Bittersweet - Glenn McNulty:
The San Francisco based saxman has been a vital part of that city's hip music scene for several years. He's been involved in club & studio work and during that time he's perfected a unique & expressive style, one that sets his playing apart from the rest. Back in 1998, McNulty issued Raw Silk, which has unfortunately proved to be his one & only release to date. So what can I tell you about the album? Well, it's a topnotch production, with terrific melodies & some great playing. And if you're at all familiar with the work of Ray Obiedo, you'll no doubt detect Ray's hand in the project. Obiedo not only produced several selections, including the one we've chosen, but also lent his inventive guitar work to the piece. It's called Bittersweet. In addition to Glenn's warm and soulful sax work, you'll also hear Peter Horvath on piano & Jeff Cressman on trombone. This has long been one of our favourites here at the Café, so get set to enjoy just a fabulous, fabulous track !! And as a bit of a footnote, although Raw Silk has been out of print for some time, it's easily an album deserving your consideration & would be well worth your effort in tracking it down!!

CD: Raw Silk (1998)
Label: Isona Records

Boulevard - Peter White:
It's rare that a performer is able to strike a balance between creativity, musical integrity, & popularity. But such a player is Mr. White. In the process Peter has met with much deserved critical acclaim as well enjoying considerable commercial success. For about the past 15 years, the former member of Al Stewart's band has created some of the most melodic & memorable music in Smooth Jazz and in the process he's helped define the genre with a string of chart-topping releases. Always distinctive, Peter's inviting acoustic guitar work has seduced many a listener with the warmth of his playing and beautiful instrumentation, including yours truly. So on this occasion we're heading back to 1993 and Promenade. From that effort we've selected Boulevard. It's moody & melodic, just the way we like 'em here at the Café & features Peter on both accordion & guitar !!

CD: Promenade (1993)
Label: CGR Productions / Sin-Drome Records
Web Site: Peter White

December Bossa - Gold Coast:
Gold Coast is comprised of guitarist Jon Coleman, percussionist John Pickell, and bassist John Ugarte. The three John's have performed together on the LA jazz circuit since the 80's. Coleman for his part, became aware of his talent at age 11. He took classical guitar lessons for 15 years, then continued to play & study music while attending college. In 1980 or so Coleman hooked up with Pickell and started the band Abracadabra with Ugarte. Although they played their final performance as Abracadabra in 1986, they reformed a few years later under the name Gold Coast. Blending Caribbean, North African and Latin influences, the Gold Coast style explores the rich terrain of world music in a smooth & jazzy sort of way. Latitudes was their debut release, and won "Best Jazz Guitarist" for Coleman at the 2000 LA Music Awards in a field of over 2,000 submissions. From that release we have December Bossa, an easy and melodic track that's further enhanced by the performances of Patrice Rushen on keys & Oscar Brashear on trumpet !! Uplifting & melodic, this is and incredibly beautiful piece & I for one can't wait to hear more from this fabulous trio !!

***Enter to win a copy of Latitudes on The Contest Page!!***

CD: Latitudes (2001)
Label: JonJohnJohnny Music
Web Site: Gold Coast

At Midnight - Bob Mamet:
The Chicago native issued a trio of excellent cds in the 90s. As adept at playing straight-ahead jazz as he was at creating hook laden smooth jazz, Mamet was a masterful keyboardist well able to skirt the rewarding territory between the two jazzes. It's the 3rd of his projects that we go to on this occasion, and one on which Mamet connected with fellow keyboardist David Benoit who produced the album. The effort found Mamet drawing liberally on many of the elements from both jazz camps, and was named Adventures in Jazz. It proved to be one of the most enjoyable releases for 1997. Unfortunately we haven't heard anything new from Mamet in the period since so in that regard, he's long overdue. Nevertheless, from Adventures in Jazz, At Midnight is our focus. Although the track was cowritten by Steve Cole, it features another saxman, that being Eric Marienthal. Very jazzy & exceedingly hip !!

CD: Adventures in Jazz (1997)
Label: Atlantic Jazz
Web Site: Bob Mamet