The Jazz scene has been undergoing a much needed reconnection with the younger urban audience with cool and hip artists that are reinvigorating the artform: Jose James, Gregory Porter, Gretchen Parlato, Robert Glasper to name a few. Darryl Reeves’ Mercury signals the return of the soulful saxman. Already a force on the scene, Reeves’ has recorded and toured with Roy Ayers, Julie Dexter, Jill Scott, & Les Nubians plus he gets props from The Roots’ drummer and music savant Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson. Mercury is a combination of covers and originals that will leave you enjoying Reeve’s powerful jazz/Hip Hop/funk/soul fusion.

Get Darryl Reeves Mercury at iTunes

Source: BamaLoveSoul

No it’s not Sunday(this tune is certainly a prime candidate for our “Cover Me” series) but the reason I selected this song today is all about the 0:03 mark. Ms. Badu says it all there. Because this is truly “Grown Folks Music” (more…)

Classic Soul Train episode!

Interesting week as usual, see below for news you might have missed!

1. Just Dizle interview with Roy Ayers (plus mix) [KN]
2. Bandcamp nixes free downloads, adds incentives to sell [Prefix]
3. 24 Tips for Indie Artists [Kleer]
4. Gospel Music Community Reacts to the death of Linda Sapp [Mlive]
5. Why Albums Are Released on Tuesdays in the U.S. [NPR]
6. Billboard Unveils Indie “Dreamseekers” Chart [WSJ]
7. [New Music} Lauryn Hill & Ron Isley - Close To You [GFM]
8. [Video] AIMP Forum: The History of 360 Deals [MIR]
9. How Much Does It Cost To Run iTunes? Hint: It’s Big [Hypebot]
10. More Rapper Beef on Twitter [MTV]

Well considering today is the “Sun’s Day” (plus it’s is officially Summer and been rather hot this past week…) I thought it might be appropriate to post Roy Ayers’ 1976 classic and a few covers. Stay cool. (more…)

The good folks over at soulBEAUTIFUL inc. have provided us with a preview into the world of Ms. Avery Sunshine courtesy of Dome Records. Available THIS MONDAY 10TH MAY, so please support good music and purchase your copy. You can download the preview here. (more…)

As a resident of Virginia, I’m a little over the snow and ready for the warmer temps of Spring. Here’s to warmer weather! Please enjoy a GFM classic fo’ sho.

Rotary Connection

A Tribe Called Quest

Ok, here we go again. This round features a very distinctive sample, “Memory Band”, (Robert Rudolph, Charles Stepney), (Chess/1967) from a fairly obscure group, Rotary Connection. If it doesn’t ring a bell, it will at about :17. If you knew this one (and you’re not a DJ or producer), get at me! I’ve got plans for you…..

Now, there’s also the jazz influenced, Roy Ayers produced “Daylight” (William Allen, Roy Ayers, Edwin Birdsong), from Ramp (Roy Ayers Music Productions), that contains elements that serve as the bass line for the  A Tribe Called Quest classic, “Bonita Applebum” (People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm/Jive/1990) and also the Fugees, “Killin’ Me Softly”.

From their AMG bio:

Rotary Connection’s psychedelic chamber soul continues to sound ambitious and progressive decades after the group’s departure. Instantly recognizable from the dramatic string arrangements of Charles Stepney and the five-octave voice of Minnie Riperton, the group released six albums between 1967 and 1971 that combined rock, soul, and psychedelia to theatrical and occasionally transcendental heights. The racially mixed group never really broke out of the Midwest, a region in which they frequently played out. Their failure to become more than a regional cult act can be partly attributed to their management’s decision to spurn a slot at Woodstock in order to play a more lucrative festival in Toronto. Despite some patchy albums and poor management decisions, Rotary Connection’s status as an influential cult group has steadily risen since the ’70s.

Source
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