Jeff Lorber Fusion: Now Is The Time (2010)

Keyboardist and producer Jeff Lorber has wrapped up production of a new CD that delves back into his early catalog and reinvents some of his compositions from the Jeff Lorber Fusion heyday. The CD, Now Is the Time, is Lorber’s follow-up to 2008’s Heard That. The new CD will be released June 1.

By the late 1970s, Lorber had become a prominent figure in the new movement known as jazz fusion – a marriage of traditional jazz with elements of rock, R&B, funk and other electrified sounds. Lorber and his band, Jeff Lorber Fusion, first honed their craft in the Portland, Ore., club scene and rapidly expanded their reach to a national and international audience.

This new incarnation of the Jeff Lorber Fusion includes bassist Jimmy Haslip (who co-produced with Lorber and Bobby Colomby), saxophonist Eric Marienthal, trumpeter Randy Brecker, guitarist Paul Jackson Jr., and drummers Vinnie Colaiuta and Dave Weckl.

“We all had a vision of what we wanted this record to be,” says Lorber, who points to a recent European tour with many of these same musicians – and the positive response that resulted from it – as the primary catalyst for the album. “We wanted a return to the sound of the Jeff Lorber Fusion, but informed by everything I’ve learned since then. All of a sudden, people seem to be interested in hearing that again. They’re ready to hear musicians who can really play, really stretch the envelope with their technique, with their songwriting, and with harmonic structure.”

Tracklist:

01. Pixel (Jeff Lorber-Jimmy Haslip-Bobby Colomby) – 5:23

02. Black Ice (Jeff Lorber) 4:22

03. Rain Dance/Wanna Fly (Jeff Lorber-Irene Bauza-Frankie Biggs) – 4:13

04. Las Rosas (Jeff Lorber) – 4:00

05. Water Sign(Jeff Lorber-Irene Bauza-Frankie Biggs) – 3:56

06. Mysterious Traveller (Wayne Shorter) – 4:55

07. Curtains/Before We Go (Jeff Lorber-Irene Bauza-Frankie Biggs) – 4:17

08. Dr. Moy (Jeff Lorber-Steve Dubin) – 3:07

09. Sugar Free (Jeff Lorber-Irene Bauza-Frankie Biggs) – 4:49

10. Chinese Medicinal Herbs (Jeff Lorber) – 4:24

11. Sumatra (Jeff Lorber) – 4:11

Now Is the Time
Rapidshare / Hotfile @vbr

Yellowjackets: Blue Hats (1997)

As they continue to evolve, the Yellowjackets have gradually gone from being an R&B-oriented fusion band to a more acoustic group that emphasizes fairly straight-ahead improvisations. Although this CD has nine originals by bandmembers and some electronics are utilized (primarily by keyboardist Russell Ferrante for color), much of the music would satisfy even hard bop listeners. Bob Mintzer's many solos on tenor, soprano, bass clarinet and EWI are excellent, but it is the tightness of the rhythm section (which also includes bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer William Kennedy) that continues to give the Yellowjackets their own original sound. -- AMG

Buy at Amazon.com
Blue Hats (RS) / Blue Hats (HF) / Blue Hats (DF) @ 320K

Yellowjackets: Lifecycle (2008)

"Lifecycle" is, in some respects, two albums in one. Seven of the ten tracks are quintet pieces featuring guitarist Mike Stern and the Jackets, while the remaining three are quartet pieces that showcase the individual and collective talents of the current Yellowjackets lineup: keyboardist Russell Ferrante, saxophonist Bob Mintzer, bassist Jimmy Haslip and drummer Marcus Baylor. Whatever the combinations and permutations, it's all good. Mintzer contributes three tracks: the energetic opener, "Falken's Maze," the rhythmically complex "Yahoo," and the easygoing "I Wonder."

Buy at Amazon.com

Lifecycle (RS) / Lifecycle (DF) @ 320K