 |
|
|
Highlights!
|
|
Back to Top
|
Showcase CD |
 |
|
The effort presented an ultramodern blend of influences from high tech jazz, break-beats, and laid back bossa-lounge, to disco house, mid-seventies soul beats, new millennium R&B, and several exotic flavours. This here to for untapped musical melange caused a bit of a stir in the European community and now represents one of our most unique & intriguing imports. Since its release, music from the album has been showcased on some of today's best selling compilations, including The Jazz Lounge Series and Ultimate Chill Out. Today we in our own way add to that list, as Camiel and Sunset are now the subject of our own showcase feature here at The Café. |
|
 Photo: Courtesy of Rendezvous |
Eighty Eight is the opener, a delectable tidbit drenched in a cool
Euro vibe that features a nice interlude with Markus Goldberg and his
Fender Rhodes. El Alba is the album's current single and opens hour
two. Highlighting the track is the keyboard work of Marty Belmondo as
well as a bit of tasty flute courtesy of Konstantin Klashtorni. Moreover,
to close we have I'm Ready, the album's first single to radio, which
serves to eliminate any guesswork about Camiel's impending fortunes
in the contemporary arena! |
|
Back to Top
| Fresh Trax: Part One | |
 |
Mr
McKay - Skip Prokop's Valecrest :
Near
the start of his career, Skip Prokop was the drummer and songwriter
for The Paupers who went on to record a pair of projects in the mid
60s. When the group disbanded, Skip found himself in demand as a session
player. He appeared on the Peter, Paul and Mary hit I Dig Rock and Roll
Music; he played on "Super Sessions" with Al Kooper and Mike Bloomfield;
and he gigged with Santana, Cass Elliot, and Janis Joplin. Then in 1968,
he formed Lighthouse, the groundbreaking rock ensemble that recorded
five albums that went either gold or platinum. The band garnered numerous
Juno awards and went on to headline many concerts around the world.
Although he's played with Lighthouse on various reunion tours, Skip
has for the most part been absent from the music scene. That is until
his most recent venture with Valecrest and In The Centre Of. The album
was recorded a couple of years back although it's just been released
and from it we've selected a track that's somewhat reminiscent of the
songwriting and performance style that marked Skip's earlier career
!! |
 |
Steppin'
Up - Eric Darius: Now,
here's a young musician who is quickly developing into a rising sensation.
No surprise about that either, as we were one of the first to get hip
to the sounds of the Tampa based sax player several years back with
his independently released solo debut. Eric was only in his mid teens
when he first recorded that project although it wasn't promoted nationally
until a few years later. For his follow up effort, Darius enlisted the
production talents of Ken Navarro, a move that helped catapult the twenty
year old into the upper echelons of young Smooth Jazz artists. It brought
an appearance at the Catalina Jazz Trax Festival hosted by Art Good
and The Smooth Jazz News named Darius as their "Debut Artist of the
Year"!! CD: Just Getting Started |
Back to Top
| Fresh Trax: Part Two | ||
 |
In
The Moment - Althea René:
Classically trained as a flautist, Althea René comes from a family that
has strong connections to the music industry. Growing up in Detroit,
Michigan, her father forged a career as a sideman with numerous Motown
stars and thereby provided Althea with a fertile grounding in music.
René began studying flute at age four and while in college, she played
with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, before turning her attention to
jazz and popular music. For a time Althea studied with the legendary
Donald Byrd while gaining further inspiration from the works of Hubert
Laws. Over the years, she has developed her own creative style to the
point where she is widely regarded as one of the top jazz flautists
in the US. Following the 2000 release of her debut, In the Moment is
now René's 3rd and most compelling release. This album should turn more
than just a few ears as Althea establishes her own unique and intriguing
voice. The record title suggests that one might try to live life to
the fullest. After listening to this album, it seems that Althea has
accepted this as her credo, for if the music is any indication, this
indeed is the moment for Ms René !! |
|
 |
Midnight
Thunder - Spyro Gyra: In
the mid 70s, Spyro Gyra created a new & unique sound, one that was inspired
by a blending of jazz fusion, pop, and R&B. Their debut was released
in 1976. Now 30 years and 24 albums later, leader Jay Beckenstein confesses,
"… it's not always easy to develop new material." Over the years, there
has generally been an attempt to veer away from what was done on previous
records while simultaneously attempting "to embrace anything that explores
new ground." This philosophy has kept the sound of the band fresh and
allowed them to maintain their position as a front-runner on the contemporary
scene. A case in point is this latest release. Never allowing their
sound to become pigeon holed, this album is packed with creative gems
and no doubt we'll be going to it frequently in the weeks ahead !! |
|
 |
Stand Back - Paul Thomas Yoder:
An accomplished musician with somewhere around 30 years of experience
under his belt, Paul Thomas Yoder grew up in Monterey Park, CA. His
home was filled with musical influences. His mother was a concert violinist
and his brother studied trumpet for a while. PT's own musical forays
included attempts at both violin and piano before he took a stab at
playing trumpet. The connection was immediate!! Over the years, Yoder
has frequently been acknowledged for his unique and creative approach
to playing while also being the recipient of numerous awards in the
So-Cal area. Dreamin' is his debut. Although the album was recorded
and released back in 2004, active promotion was only recently initiated.
To this point, reaction to several tracks has been very favorable. Our
favorite? Well, not surprisingly, it's the one we've selected for this
occasion. Simply outstanding!! |
|
| After Hours ~ Exclusive to our Web Site : | ||||||
| On this edition, we are spotlighting Snake Davis on our Then & Now feature. We have selected a trio of tasty tracks from one of Britain's premier sax players so be sure to look & listen for that at about the 40 minutes mark. Now if you've listened before you're probably familiar with the rest of this spiel, as apart from that we've done a bit of exploring just to see what we could find. Our efforts were well rewarded. Consequently, we have the latest from Chris Standring, Donald Fagen, and our favorite lady of sax Ms Pamela Williams. There is new music from Main Gazane, Alex Bugnon, Michael O'Neill, and Jason Parra as we delve ever more deeply into their releases. We're introducing The David Cochrane Experience, Kush, and Dan Carlin & Friends, there's more from Bob James and his new one as well as from Bradley Leighton who we introduced a couple of weeks back and that's all ahead in a great action packed fun filled segment that's stretched into about an 80 minute presentation. Starting things, we have one of the few tracks from Jeff Golub's Temptation that is still new to our show!! | ||||||
|
***Check The Contest Page for your chance to win an autographed copy of Hysteria!!*** 
Snake Davis: Snake
has enjoyed a lengthy career as one the premier saxmen in the UK.
He's appeared with all the big names on the British Pop scene, as
well as with many visiting artists from overseas. As the resident
sax player on Tonight With Jonathon Ross on British Tellie, he's played
with a lengthy list of top performers, one which has grown to include
James Brown, Smokey Robinson, and Chaka Khan. He's appeared with the
Eurythmics and played all featured sax and flute parts, on record
and on tour, for the likes of Lisa Stansfield and M-People. For the
past several years, Davis has also regularly contributed to Paul Hardcastle
& his Jazzmasters projects.
So it is, that for the feature we begin with Adder
Lessons, Snake's most recent release which in a way satisfies both
aspects of Then & Now. From that effort, we're presenting the very
hip Slippin and Slidin. From Snakebites we pulled You're The One a
track which proved to be modest hit on the British smooth scene. And
finally from Hysteria, there's Snake's great take on The Hustle, the
Van McCoy smash from '75!!
Site: Snake Davis Artist Page: Snake Davis
|
||||||
