Millie jackson caught up still caught up rar

It was providing funding for Black Jazz Records and distributing its releases. This gave the label a much needed helping hand and meant it had an edge on its competitors. The cofounders were determined that as wide an audience as possible hear the albums that the label was releasing so Gene Russell organised a promotional tour.

In September , Gene Russell and his Ray Lawrence who was his marketing consultant toured America giving interviews to newspaper journalists and featured on radio and newspaper where they showcased Black Jazz Records and its artists. This resulted in valuable publicity for the label.

Black Jazz Records had a come a long way in a short space of time. And so had Henry Franklin. His father was jazz trumpeter and bandleader Sammy Franklin, and It was no surprise when he decided to make a career out of music. Around this time, he also worked Harold Lamb and Hampton Hawkes. This was good experience for the young, aspiring bassist. This was the first of many recording sessions that featured the LA-born bassist. Henry Franklin was part of his band and featured on three albums released between and The group was founded in and by the lineup had evolved and included Henry Franklin who played on the soul-jazz album Soul Symphony.

When the album was released by Blue Note Records later in it was well received by critics. It was two more years before Henry Franklin returned to the recording studio to record his debut album The Skipper. When The Skipper was released in early it was Black Jazz Records seventh release and first of the year.

Seamlessly the talented and versatile band switched between and combined disparate genres on The Skipper. His hissing hi-hats also a play an important part before Charles Owens unleashes a sweeping, swirling, soaring saxophone solo that plays a starring role. The band move through the gears and soon this tight, talented and versatile band are in full flight.

Still, the arrangement is understated and drifts along as Mike Carvin the ride cymbal soars high above an arrangement. Initially the tempo is slow as Beauty and The Electric Tub unfolds but gradually it rises as Henry Franklin and his band combine fusion and bop. They play with freedom and an inventiveness during a twelve minute epic that has a filmic and theatrical sound.

Very different is Little Miss Laurie has a much smoother, laidback sound. The rhythm section provide the heartbeat as the arrangement glides along with the horns and Fender Rhodes playing starring roles on this beautiful ballad.

The title-track closes The Skipper and is another track with a cinematic sound. It sounds like the theme to a seventies television show as the horns play a leading role. Especially the saxophone which is played with power and passion before the trumpet replies. By the time Henry Franklin released The Skipper he was thirty-one and had been a professional musician since he was a teenager. He had worked with some of the biggest names in music, but never recorded an album. The Skipper was his debut and was well worth the wait.

Henry Franklin put together and led a tight, talented and versatile band who seamlessly switched between and combined funk, fusion, hard bop, jazz and jazz-funk. Playing an important part in the album was Gene Russell who produced The Skipper. When it came to mixing the album he wanted a wide sounding mix. He succeeded and the result was one of the best sounding albums that Black Jazz Records had released.

It was only much later that the twenty albums that Black Jazz Records released between and started to find a wider audience amongst DJs and discerning record collectors. Cult Classic: Chester Thompson-Powerhouse. During the late-sixties and early seventies, many small independent jazz labels were founded in towns and cities across America.

Sadly, many were short-lived affairs with some releasing just one album and others closing their doors having released just a couple of albums. However, Black Jazz Records released twenty albums and They were determined that Black Jazz Records would released an alternative to what they saw as the old school and traditional jazz that was popular at the time. Their new label would release albums that featured music that was influenced by politics and was also spiritual. The nascent label would release everything from free jazz and funk to soul-jazz over the next five years.

Black Jazz Records released six albums during and plans were in place that jazz fans across America could buy the albums. Cofounder Dick Schory had founded Chicago-based Ovation Records, which was a successful country and western label which was providing funding for Black Jazz Records and was distributing its releases. This gave the label a helping hand and meant it had an edge on its competitors. Five more albums were released during Whilst at elementary school he learned to play the flute and read music.

However, aged eleven Chester Thompson decided that he wanted to learn to play the drums. To learn the basics, Chester Thompson took lessons and his teacher was professional jazz drummer, James Harrison.

Having learnt the basics, he practised along with albums by the jazz greats. Later, he discovered Elvin Jones who along with Tony Williams were the drummers that would influence him and his playing style.

This lasted a semester and during this period, the young drummer was determined to master the rudiments of a book published by the National Association of Rudimental Drummers.

His practise paid off and two years later, Chester Thompson played his first live gigs. However, there was a problem. He was still underage and this worried the club owners. To make himself look older, he took to drawing a moustache on his upper lip with an eyebrow pencil. Soon, Chester Thompson was playing up to three jam sessions in local clubs.

This was good practice for him and was part of his musical apprenticeship. He was putting in the musical equivalent of hard yards. Having turned professional, one of his first gigs was touring Canada with soul singer Ben E. He also spent time in Boston where he worked keyboardist Webster Lewis. However, the following year, was a big year for Chester Thompson as he released. Having signed to Black Jazz Records the twenty-two year organist began work on his debut album Powerhouse.

He wrote the four tracks Mr. Producing the album was label cofounder Gene Russell. Powerhouse was one of the most underrated albums that Black Jazz Records released during the five years it was in business. The album opens with Mr. T which swings from the get-go as the band play as one. Playing a starring role is saxophonist Rudolph Johnson. His playing is emotive before he passes the baton to trombonist Al Hall. He also plays his part in the sound and success of the track.

Meanwhile, the rest of the band play supporting role. Each member of the band seems to inspire the next who raises their game. He unleashes blistering bursts before Chester Thompson jabs and stabs at his keyboard as drums pound and drive this fusion of soul-jazz, funk and jazz-funk.

Powerhouse closes with the title-track. Black Jazz Records had high hopes for the track when they released it as a single. Sadly, it was the one that got away for Chester Thompson. Despite having a distribution network and a budget to promote the album it failed to find the audience it deserved. The young bandleader had led a band that combined bebop, funk, hard bop, jazz-funk and soul-jazz.

It was album that combined the music of the past and the present. Chester Thompson was looking to the future. However, the future of jazz was fusion which he would soon embrace. Maybe Powerhouse had been released on a label like Blue Note Records it might have been more successful and reached a wider audience? Fifty years year later, and Powerhouse which was once an underrated album is belatedly starting to find the new and wider audience that it deserves. Cult Classic: Ryo Fukui-Scenery.

Instead, Ryo Fukui had just turned twenty-two in , when he announced that he wanted to learn to play the piano, and was going to teach himself. So much so, that the self-taught pianist was good enough to embark upon a career as a professional musician, playing the music that he loved…jazz. As September dawned, twenty-eight year old Ryo Fukui was living in Sapporo, where he led his own trio who were a familiar sight in local jazz clubs. Ryo Fukui had also just signed to Trio Records, and was preparing to record his debut album Scenery, which is a reminder of a remarkable musician.

For his debut album Ryo Fukui had written the title-track Scenery, and the rest of the album comprised cover versions. Taking charge of production were Masataka Ito and Ryo Fukui who worked well together, and Scenery like many jazz albums was recorded quickly, with just a day spent laying down the tracks.

This was how countless classic albums had been recorded during the fifties and sixties. Scenery was released in late , and was regarded as an important album by Japanese jazz critics, who called the album a game-changing release that was one of the finest of the seventies. Despite receiving widespread critical acclaim in Japan, Scenery passed American jazz fans by, and they missed out on hearing what was a remarkable debut album. Ryo Fukui opens his debut album Scenery with It Could Happen To You, which was the first of four oft-covered classics that he set about reinventing.

However, the twenty-eight year old pianist who had only been playing for six years by the time he recorded Scenery, plays with maturity that belies his relative inexperience. For much of the time, his playing is smooth, subtle and effortless as his fingers glide and flit across the piano keyboard as he plays with fluidity ensuring the songs swing.

Stylistically, Ryo Fukui sometimes sounds like Bill Evans, and especially during the energetic modal rework of Early Summer. By then, Ryo Fukui and his trio play with a newfound urgency, before closing the album with the title-track Scenery.

Buoyed by the critical reaction and success of Scenery, Ryo Fukui continued to hone his skills as a pianist, and before long, he was already beginning work on his sophomore album Mellow Dream.

Following the success of his sophomore album Mellow Dream, Ryo Fukui continued to hone his skills and mature and improve as a musician, but made the decision to concentrate playing live.

This included in the Slowboat jazz club in Sapporo, which Ryo Fukui owned and ran with his wife Yasuko. With Ryo Fukui concentrating on playing live, it was eighteen years before he returned with a new album. It was another sixteen years before Ryo Fukui released A Letter From Slowboat in , which proved to be his swan-song. That day Japanese jazz was in mourning at the loss of one of its great pianists, who although self-taught was a masterful performer who played with grace, fluidity and invention during a career that spanned five decades.

Although Gene Russell and Dick Schory founded Black Jazz Records in , two years passed before the nascent label released its first album. It was the first of twenty albums by a label that was very different from other new indie jazz labels that were being founded across the America. This included albums that featured political and spiritually influenced music. Between and the label released twenty albums that included everything from spiritual jazz and soul-jazz to free jazz and funk.

Eclectic described the music that the label released. That described the albums that Black Jazz Records released during That was still to come. Doug Carn who was just twenty-three when he signed to Black Jazz Records. Augustine, Florida, and growing up music was all around him and was part of the culture around him at home.

His mother was a musician, while his uncle was a bebop DJ who could scat the Dexter Gordon solos. It was no surprise that growing up, Doug Carn started listening to jazz and later, decided to learn an instrument. Initially, Doug Carn took piano lessons and proved to be a quick learner and was soon able to play Bach Two-Part Inventions.

This resulted in Doug Carn being given an alto saxophone which he also mastered was able to play well. Already he was well on his way to becoming a multi-instrumentalist and it was no surprise when Doug Carn decided to study music at university. He enrolled at Jacksonville University in , and for the next two years studied oboe and composition.

When Doug Carn graduated in he headed to Georgia State University where he completed his musical education in Later that year he made his recording debut as bandleader. The twenty-one year old multi-instrumentalist was still living in Georgia and had founded the Doug Carn Trio.

However, the new combo needed gigs and the young bandleader decided to visit a friend who ran a booking agency. When he entered the office he was greeted by the receptionist and secretary who was also a singer. This was Jean Carn who later become his wife. Before that, she started singing with the Doug Carn Trio who were about to make their recording debut. Through the owner of the booking agency, Doug Carn was introduced to Herman Lubinsky the founder and owner of Savoy Records.

This introduction turned out to be a gamechanger for the bandleader. It turned out that the label had a session booked in Atlanta which was going to be produced by Fred Mendelsohn, the President of Savoy.

He explained that there was every chance that there might be some spare time after he had recorded the gospel album, and if there was, they would use the time to record the Doug Carn Trio. That turned out to be the case. That day in , the Doug Carn Trio recorded what became their eponymous debut album.

However, for Doug Carn recording the album was an invaluable experience as he prepared to move to LA as the sixties gave way to the seventies. When he arrived in LA, Doug Carn started spending time with the members of Earth, Wind and Fire and this resulted in him playing on their first two albums.

He played Hammond organ on Earth, Wind and Fire which was released on February and was certified gold. By then, his solo career was well underway. Not long after this, he began work on his debut album Infant Eyes. Doug Carn put together a band and spent the best part of a year practising and then when he signed to Black Jazz Records recorded the album.

The rhythm section featured drummer Michael Carvin, bassist Henry Franklin and bandleader Doug Carn who switched between electric piano, organ and piano. Meanwhile his wife Jean added her unmistakable vocals. George Harper played tenor saxophone and flute and was joined in he front line by trombonist Al Hall Jr and Bob Frazier who played trumpet and flugelhorn. This talented and versatile band worked their way through the seven tracks which became Infant Eyes. The session was engineered and produced by label owner Gene Russell and the album was scheduled for later in When Infant Eyes was released in , Doug Carn still regarded the album as a demo.

Despite that, it was well received by critics and hailed as a groundbreaking album. It was a similar case with the other two albums Doug Carn released for the label. That was no surprise given the quality of the three albums he released. The first was Infant Eyes. Initially the arrangement is intense and almost frenetic before the band lock into a groove.

By then, the scat disappears as unleashes an impassioned vocal. On Moon Child Doug Carn switches to piano, and his playing is moody and melancholy. Meanwhile, the horns add an atmospheric backdrop during this eight minute epic which is an emotional roller coaster.

Horns are to the fore as the organ sweeps and swirls and join with the cymbals in playing a crucial role in the sound and success of the track. However, six years later Doug Carn added lyrics and his wife Jean takes charge of the vocal. Doug Carn added new lyrics full of social comment which are delivered by Jean. She plays a leading role in the success of breathtaking, powerful and poignant take on a familiar track from the late, great jazz pianist.

Despite that, it was the most successful album that Black Jazz Records released that year. It was also a label that had a vision.

They had created an album that was an alternative to what Gene Russell and Dick Schory referred to as old school jazz. Infant Eyes was very different to old school jazz and was new type of jazz album. It featured everything from avant-garde and even elements of free jazz, funk, fusion, soul, soul-jazz and spiritual jazz. These genres were combined by Doug Carn and Jean Carn who unleashed her five octave vocal on Infant Eyes which introduced the pair to the record buying public across America.

This was just the first chapter in the Doug and Jean Carn story. Infant Eyes was the first of four critically acclaimed albums that Doug Carn released between and These albums are now regarded as cult classics, and amongst the best that Black Jazz Records released during the five years it was in business. However, this lineup would evolve over the next six years and even the name had changed.

The original lineup that feared on Cafe Bohemia, Volumes 1 and 2 never recorded another album together. However, over the next six years some of the greatest jazz musicians joined the Jazz Messengers. The collective was akin to a finishing school for jazz musicians with many becoming bandleaders and recording classic albums. By then, it had already recorded a string of classic albums. This was the first time when the lineup changed since the quintet made their recording debut on The Big Beat.

By then, the quintet had also recorded The Witch Doctor. The frontline contributed four of the six tracks on the album. These tracks would become The Witch Doctor and were recorded by this class lineup of the collective. Although this lineup of Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers had only been recording together for a year, it seemed like they could do no wrong.

The five albums they had already recorded would all eventually be regarded as jazz classics. It took just a day to record six tracks that became The Witch Doctor. However, things were very different by the time The Witch Doctor was released. This was a huge blow for Art Blakey who watched as Jazz Messengers left to join other bands. They toured Europe and spent time in Japan. The only problem was that the lineup continued to change. It was very different from when the classic lineup recorded six classic albums during and By , music and jazz had changed.

Rock music was the most popular genre and jazz musicians were experimenting with free jazz and fusion while soul-jazz was growing in popularity. However, the hard bop that Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers had pioneered was no longer as popular as it had once been.

When The Witch Doctor was released to critical acclaim in Although hard bop was no longer as popular as it had once been critics recognised the quality of the music on the album. It was the last album that the classic quintet had recorded and would eventually be regarded as a jazz classic. The Witch Doctor opens with the title-track which was written by Lee Morgan. He and Wayne Shorter play a leading role while pianist Bobby Timmons plays a supporting role. They all play their part in the sound and success of this memorable hard bop shuffle.

Soon, things change and the arrangement starts to swing as Wayne Shorter delivers a breathtaking tenor saxophone solo. This seems to lift the rest of the band when they delivered their solos. Especially Bobby Timmons and then Art Blakey who pounds his drums as unleashes one of his trademarks thunderous solos. After that, the band briefly revisit the earlier themes before this captivating track comes to a close after seven magical minutes.

Again, pianist Bobby Timmons plays an important part while the rhythm section power the arrangement along and ensure it swings. The result is a truly memorable example of hard bop from one of its pioneers as he leads one of his finest groups. Bobby Timmons wrote A Little Busy. The pianist is at the heart of action and combines with the front line of Lee Morgan and Wayne Shorter as the rhythm section power and drive the arrangement along.

Joelle is the second Wayne Shorter composition on the album, and just like The Witch Doctor the front line and piano play leading roles. Their spellbinding solos are some of the finest on the album. They play effortlessly as the arrangement reveals its secrets and subtleties.

They recorded six albums for Blue Note Records in the space of a year and nowadays, every one of them is regarded as a jazz classic. That is no surprise given the all-star lineup of the Jazz Messengers. They were hand-picked by Art Blakey who allowed them to shine and play a starring role.

The three musicians play their part in the sound and success of The Witch Doctor which nowadays is regarded as a hard bop classic. Sadly, it was the swansong from this classic line of Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers who recorded six albums in the space of a year. Nowadays, the most important period in the development of J-Jazz is between late-sixties through to the early eighties.

During that period, many Japanese composers and musicians and bands released ambitious and innovative music that astounded those who heard it. When critics, cultural commentators and record buyers heard the albums that were being released they were amazed just how far Japanese jazz had come in such a short space of time.

Just over twenty years earlier Japanese music fans were banned from listening to jazz during World War II. Jazz fans were now able to hear jazz on the radio and watch the allied forces bands play jazz in concert halls across Japan. Some of the bands featured some of the top American jazz musicians who were serving their country. Sometimes, these musicians spent time collaborating with local jazz musicians who were keen to learn from some of the names they had only heard on the radio.

By the time the allied forces left Japan in and returned home, musicians like Frank Foster, Harold Lamb and Oliver Nelson had formed firm friendships with local jazzers. They had played an important part in the cultural rebirth of Japan. Left to their own devices, a new era began for Japanese musicians who were determined to make up for lost time. Musically there had been no winners after six years of war. While jazz had been banned in Japan during the war, many British and American jazz musicians had been called up and were serving their country.

Now they had returned home, and like their Japanese counterparts were making up for lost time. Many Japanese musicians were collecting albums on Blue Note and Prestige which heavily influenced them. It would only be later that some would find their own voice.

Meanwhile, many of the top American jazz musicians no longer serving in the US Army, and had returned home. Some joined new or existing bands while some musicians put together new bands. Initially, they returned to their local circuit where they tried to pickup where they had left off.

This changed a few years later. In the late-fifties and early sixties, many of these musicians who had played in Japan during World War II were keen to return to a country where so many loved and appreciated jazz music.

They made the long journey to Japan where they were reunited with some old friends. Whether any of these legendary musicians were aware at the time, they were playing a part in the cultural rebirth of Japan.

Before long, Japanese jazz musicians were soon sporting the same preppy Ivy League clothes as their American counterparts. Despite many people enjoying the visits of American jazz musicians, the Japanese authorities heard that some musicians had been arrested on drugs offences. However, with the laws tightened, much fewer American jazz musicians visited Japan. Those that visited, played in packed concert halls and continue to influence Japanese jazzers.

However, not all Japanese jazz musicians were inspired by their American counterparts by the mid-sixties as homegrown musicians were making their presence felt. This continued as the sixties gave way to the seventies. In , twenty-six year old saxophonist Kohsuke Mine released his sophomore album Mine on the Three Blind Mice label. By then, he was already an experienced musician. With the country at war, he was evacuated to Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture, which was home until his first year of elementary school.

This changed when Kohsuke Mine returned to Tokyo. By the time he was seven or eight he was given a radio. He also heard his father sing rokyoku which is a kind of Japanese narrative music. Soon, he decided that he wanted to learn to play an instrument. The chance came when started high school and joined a brass band. Not long after this, he decided to learn the clarinet which he studied during his second year of college.

One day at high school, Kohsuke Mine was playing his clarinet when he one of his friends heard him and invited him to a local jazz cafe. Soon, the two friends were heading to Mama, a jazz kissa in Yarakucho on a regular basis.

This was where Kohsuke Mine discovered jazz and this was the start of a lifelong love affair. By the time he was in the second year of college, Kohsuke Mine was studying clarinet. At the time, there was a big cabaret scene and he joined a dance band. It turned out that the bandleader also loved jazz music and would influence the new recruit who soon had switched to alto saxophone which he preferred the sound of.

Having switched to alto saxophone he decided not to take lessons and had to find a place to practice. This was in Ashikaga and Gunma and only lasted a month. However, this was how he Kohsuke Minei met Kinoshita Circus and he played with them.

After this, he was part of the band backing singer Akira Matsushima. All this was good experience for a young aspiring musician. It was around this time he became friendly with the leader Kato-san. After a gig in a club in the Pony jazz cafe in Shinjuku Mr Kato arrived at the club and explained he was looking for an alto saxophonist. This was the start of a six year spell with the band where Kohsuke Mine matured and evolved into a versatile musician. He left the band around Soon, it was time to move on and join a prestigious band.

This coincided with a period when Japanese jazz was modernising between and with the arrival of fusion. It was around this time that Kohsuke Mine made the move from sideman to bandleader.

It was released by Nippon Columbia. The following year he released his debut album on Phillips. This was First which features six tracks. The only Kohsuke Mine composition is Morning Tide. Four tracks were written by band members. Bandleader and alto saxophonist Kohsuke Mine is joined by the American rhythm section of drummer Lenny McBrowne and bassist Larry Ridley who were joined by virtuoso keyboardist Masabumi Kikuchi on electric piano.

When First was released by Phillips later in only a small amount of albums were pressed. It found Kohsuke Mine and his band combining contemporary jazz, fusion and modal over six tracks. The album opener Morning Tide was written by bandleader Kohsuke Mine. He delivers a breathtaking performance on alto saxophone.

His playing is emotive, imaginative and full of enthusiasm. Not to be outdone bassist Larry Ridley and Masabumi Kikuchi on electric piano unleash stunning solos on a track that sets the bar high.

Love Talking is a sprightly sounding track that swings. Masabumi Kikuchi who wrote the piece plays a starring role on electric piano.

His playing his rhythmic and he uses pauses to a degree of drama. Stealing the show is Kohsuke Mine whose playing starts off smooth and becomes impassioned as he paints pictures with music on this modernist modal piece. Straight No Chaser is a jazz classic and the band seem to raise their game as if paying homage to Monk. Later, he gets the chance to stretch his legs and plays with an inventiveness before a bass solo takes centrestage.

McPhee swings and grooves the rhythm section power the arrangement along. The playing is emotive and expressive and has made in America written all through it. Masabumi Kikuchi wrote and named Little Abbi after his young daughter.

Partly this is because of the interplay between the band. Nowadays, the album is a cult classic and original copies of the album are much-prized rarities. He was one of the pioneers of fusion in Japan and released a string of critically acclaimed albums.

However, First was the album that saw Kohsuke Mine step out of the shadows and into the spotlight as he made the move from sideman to bandleader a role that he was perfectly suited and handled with aplomb. Cult Classic: Ian Carr-Belladonna. In , thirty-six year old Ian Carr who was born Dumfries, in the South West Scotland, formed Nucleus who would become one of the top British fusion groups.

By then, the Scottish trumpeter was a familiar face on the London jazz scene. However, Nucleus was a new beginning for Ian Carr. Within a year, Nucleus had signed to the Harvest label and released their groundbreaking debut album Elastic Rock in March It must have been frustrating for Ian Carr as the group were one of the pioneers of British fusion. Later in when the group returned with a new album Solar Plexus and this time, they were billed as Ian Carr with Nucleus.

Despite the new name and another groundbreaking album of ambitious fusion it also failed commercially. For founder Ian Carr this was hugely disappointing and resulted in a rethink for the thirty-eight year trumpeter. They had been together just two years and released three unsuccessful albums.

By then, Nucleus were experiencing financial problems and the group disbanded. It looked like a sad end to the story of one of the groups who pioneered fusion in Britain. Ian Carr decided to change tack and began work on his debut solo album. It became Belladonna which was released by Vertigo in and featured some of the top British jazz musicians. This included percussionist Brian Smith who by was the only remaining original member of Nucleus.

For his much-anticipated debut album Ian Carr wrote four of the six tracks. Ian Carr played trumpet and flugelhorn on Belladonna. He was joined by a rhythm section of drummer and percussionist Clive Thacker, bassist Roy Babbington and guitarist Allan Holdsworth.

They were joined by Brian Smith who switched between tenor and soprano saxophones plus alto and bamboo flutes. This all-star band played accompanied Ian Carr as he embarked upon his solo career. This was hugely disappointing for Ian Carr given the quality of music on the album. The music on Belladonna was atmospheric, ethereal and sometimes headed in the direction of avant-garde and experimental music.

Other times the music is broody, moody, dark and dramatic. He really understands how to combine jazz and rock and leads a band who do this seamlessly. Sometimes this all-star band combines fusion and funk to good effect. Then on Summer Rain the introduction of an electric piano plays an important part in sound and success of the track. It meanders along and a stunning example of fusion unfolds as the band showcase their considerable skills.

Playing a starring role is guitarist Allan Holdsworth who unleashes one of his finest performances on the album. Very different is Suspension which is atmospheric, moody, haunting and cinematic. It sounds like part of the soundtrack to horror movie. When all this is combined the result is a haunting filmic track that shows another side to Ian Carr and his multitalented and versatile band.

Once again, the band enjoys the opportunity to stretch their legs as the tempo rises and showcase their skills during solos. Saxophonist Brian Smith looks like playing the starring role. Then Allan Holdsworth unleashes a spellbinding guitar solo played with speed and accuracy. The rest of the rhythm section and electric drive the arrangement along before it reaches a crescendo. However, Belladonna was his finest solo album and is a reminder of one of the pioneers of British fusion at peak of his powers.

Composer, arranger and musician Keith Mansfield nowadays is recognised and regarded as one the doyens of library music and original copies of his albums are now highly collectable. This includes Vivid Underscores which was released in , a year after his other genre classic Contempo.

A Moment's Pleasure Spring Records Live And Uncensored Spring Records For Men Only Spring Records Live And Outrageous Spring Records Hard Times Spring Records Rock N' Soul Ichiban Records It's Over IC Records Energetic Happy Hypnotic. Romantic Sad Sentimental. Sexy Trippy All Moods. Drinking Hanging Out In Love. Introspection Late Night Partying. Rainy Day Relaxation Road Trip. Romantic Evening Sex All Themes. Articles Features Interviews Lists. Streams Videos All Posts.

My Profile. Advanced Search. Track Listing. The Rap.