Highlights Hour One
Fairway - Gene Dunlap:
With performance dates extending back to his high school years, Detroit native Gene Dunlap has enjoyed a lengthy 30-plus year career. He began performing as part of the Earl Klugh Trio, and in the early 80s issued three solo albums primarily within the sphere of soul and dance. After reuniting with Klugh, he's collaborated on ten or so of Klugh's albums. With the release of Groove with You in 1994, Dunlap resumed his solo career as leader of The Gene Dunlap Band. However, despite the success of the effort, shortly after its release, Dunlap gave up performing to teach Detroit's inner city youth. After a several year hiatus, Dunlap returned to the studio in 2000 with Peaceful Days as his latest offering. From that effort, we've selected Fairway, the opening track and one of our absolute favourites from the past year!!

CD: Peaceful Days
Label: 215 Records
Site: G.Dunlap/215

Dreamer - J Thompson:
J Thompson is a Bay area musician, songwriter, and producer who's been performing professionally since he was 16. Well-versed at playing a variety of instruments, Thompson began his career in the 70's, as guitarist for a group managed by Tommy Smothers - he' gained national recognition by the age of 19, performing on the Merv Griffin show. Studio work has included sessions with Greg Allman, Steve Smith, and Tom Coster (among many others), while in the late 1970's and early 80's Thompson played bass for Jorge Santana and followed that with a stint in the band Pablo Cruise in the 90's.

Thompson's first Smooth Jazz release came back in 1989. Described as one of the year's best, Tell Me Tell Me enjoyed national airplay in the US for an extended period. More recently, Thompson's 2003 Romantic Night became one of the most played independent releases for the year yielding the R&R top 10 hit Tell Me the Truth. Following on that success, Thompson brings his deep background in jazz, rock, and R&B to Inside World. The album line up includes some great players - keyboardist Peter Horvath, Oscar Seaton on drums, and percussionist Louis Conte all contribute - and from that effort, we're featuring one of our favourites for the year !!

CD: Inside World
Label: AMH Records
Site: J Thompson

Cruizin' - Wilton Felder:
Wilton Felder spent 30-plus years as a founding member of The Jazz Crusaders continuing thru until the late 80s - during the period the band became known simply as The Crusaders while accompanying the change in name, there was a correspond shift in styles to a more R&B oriented sound. At the same time, Felder was developing his career as a front man and although he exhibited flashes of brilliance, for the most part his solo projects were overshadowed by his work with The Crusaders. Nevertheless, Let's Spend Some Time, his latest release and first in over a dozen years, stands a particularly strong outing! From that effort we've selected Cruzin', a track highlighted by the interplay of Felder's sax & the trumpet of George Shaw - in a word, exceptional !!

CD: Let's Spend Some Time
Label: BSC Records
Site: W.Felder/BSC

Street Beat - Dan Siegel:
Seattle Washington born, and Eugene Oregon bred, Dan Siegel began in music with piano lessons at the age of eight. By 12, he was already performing professionally in a rock band handling both lead vocals and guitar duties. After earning a degree in Music Composition from the University of Oregon, Siegel began recording his own compositions, issuing his debut in 1980. His sophomore effort released the following year, climbed to #1 on R&R, and reached the Billboard Top 10 where it remained for a full ten-week period; its success and that of his subsequent efforts firmly established Siegel as a radio staple in the early days of the contemporary movement.

A prolific and respected pianist, composer, and producer, to date Siegel has issued 16 cds to go along with one best of project. From his latest, the 2006 Brian Bromberg produced Departure release we present Street Talk with Norman Brown on guitar!!

CD: Departure
Label: Native Language
Site: D.Siegel ; Siegel/Native

Do It Again - Philippe Saisse:
As a teenager, Saisse attended the Paris National Conservatory and upon graduating in 1975, he accepted a scholarship to attend Berklee in Boston. There he studied advanced composition and later jumped directly into a successful career as a sessionist; Narada Michael Walden, Al Di Meola, Billy Cobham, and Tom Scott were just a few of the performers he worked with - that soon expanded to include playing keys for The Stones, David Bowie, The B-52's, Vanessa Williams, and Tina Turner. He did a bit of composing for David Sanborn among others while helping as the co-director/keyboardist for Sanborn's Night Music Show. In the midst of all this Saisse also launched a solo career back in 1988. Although quite successful in that regard, he's had only a handful of releases in the time since, as for the most part Saisse has thrown himself into a role as a producer and collaborator. That's all likely to change with the Body and Soul Sessions yielding one of the biggest hits of the year in Saisse's cover of the Steely Dan classic !!

CD: The Body & Soul Sessions
Label: Rendezvous Records
Site: P.Saisse ; Rendezvous

Under The Sun - Michael Franks :
Readily acknowledged as one of the strongest and most imaginative lyricists in contemporary music, Michael Franks turned to performing on a part time basis while attending UCLA as a literature student. For a time in the early 70s he switched roles, teaching an undergraduate course in music at UCLA and then later at Berkeley. He released his debut cd in 1973 and enjoyed tremendous popularity throughout most of the 70s and 80s, before the ever-changing radio climate saw his style of expression fall out of favour. Now a senior statesman in the smooth movement, Franks could well experience a significant resurgence in popularity with Rendezvous in Rio - apart from a live and a seasonal release, this is his first project since 1999. As quirky and brilliant as ever, from that effort we've selected the lead single !!

CD: Rendezvous in Rio
Label: Koch Records
Site: M.Franks ; Franks/Koch