Norman Connors
Easy Living
1996
1996
Album Review
By the time Norman Connors had left both Buddha and Arista in the early '90s, he spent some time touring and reviewing his career. Easy Living, released by Motown in 1995, is a full-on entry into smooth jazz territory. While Connors still insisted on employing vocals in tunes that looked toward sophisticated nu-soul, it seems that his primary interest was in narrowing down the once rainbow-wide meld of style on which he'd built his reputation as an innovator. Easy Living is a pleasant and at times engaging listen, with pristine production by the artist, violinist Jheryl Lockhart, and pianist /arranger Herman Jackson. There are guest appearances by Gary Bartz, Juewett Bostick, Gerald Albright, Bobby Lyle, Dale Atkins, Doc Powell, and many others. The opener, "One for Mr. C.," was the album's first single and does well thanks to a memorable little groove and an excellent piano solo by Lyle. It is one of those cuts that sits on the fence between what listeners think of as soul-jazz and smooth contemporary jazz, whereas the title track, which immediately follows, falls firmly into the latter category with a chorus vocal and Albright's sweet soprano saxophone. There are funkier tunes here, too, such as "Precious Love," with an excellent vocal performance by Denise Stewart, and killer urban soul in "The Day We Said I Do." But the clear winner in this stack o' tracks lies near the bottom in the slippery little jazz and light funk groover "Two Thumbs Up," with a smoking flute break by Alan Walker.
Thom Jurek
Eric McCaine Percussion
Larry McGee Guitar, Keyboards, Arranger, Associate Producer
Della Miles Vocals (Background)
Denise Stewart Arranger, Vocals, Vocal Arrangement, Vocals (Background)
Alan Walker Arranger
Wil Wheaton Vocals (Background)
Andy Grassi Engineer
Freddie Washington Bass
Art Webb Flute
Bob Tucker Engineer, Mixing
Carol Friedman Art Direction, Photography
Erick Labson Mastering
Eddie Miller Arranger, Programming, Keyboards
Bruce Walker Executive Producer
Donald Tavie Keyboards, Programming, Mixing, Engineer, Producer
Avis Nixon Vocals, Vocals (Background)
Chris Warrior Guitar
Christopher Odom Arranger, Programming, Keyboards
Ralph Sutton Engineer, Mixing
Dale Atkins Bass, Programming, Keyboards, Arranger
Cynthia Bass Vocals (Background)
Juewett Bostick Guitar, Associate Producer, Programming, Arranger
Norman Connors Percussion, Arranger, Vocals, Drums, Vocal Arrangement, Main Performer, Producer, Cymbals
Brenda Lee Eager Vocals (Background)
Kim Liat Edwards Vocals (Background)
Doc Powell Guitar
David Irvin Design
Herman Jackson Piano, Keyboards, Programming, Arranger
Munyungo Jackson Percussion
Jheryl Lockhart Violin, Vocals, Producer
Gerald Albright Arranger, Saxophone, Associate Producer, Vocals (Background), Sax (Soprano), Programming
Gary Bartz Sax (Alto)
Bobby Lyle Piano, Keyboards, Arrange
формат: APE/CUE/LOG
размер: 471mb/ape+scans
Tracks
1. One for Mr. C.
2. Easy Living
3. Saturday Afternoon
4. River Nile
5. Precious Love
6. The Day We Said I Do
7. You Go to My Head
8. The Captain's Choice
9. Every Time I Fall in Love
10. Do I Dare
11. Two Thumbs Up
12. Remember When
13. Star Flower
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