Grover Washington Jr. • Side Star

 

 

One of the most popular saxophonists of all time, Grover Washington, Jr. was long the pacesetter in his field. His roots were in R&B and soul-jazz organ combos, but he also fared very well on the infrequent occasions when he played straight-ahead jazz. A highly influential player, Washington pushed himself with the spontaneity and risk-taking of a masterful jazz musician.

Grover Washington, Jr.'s, father also played saxophone and was his first influence. The younger son started playing music when he was ten, and within two years was working in clubs. He picked up experience touring with the Four Clefs from 1959-1963 and freelancing during the next two years, before spending a couple years in the Army. He moved to Philadelphia in 1967, becoming closely identified with the city from then on, and worked with several organists, including Charles Earland and Johnny Hammond Smith, recording as a sideman for the Prestige label. His biggest break occurred in 1971, when Hank Crawford could not make it to a recording date for Creed Tasylor's Kudu label; Washington was picked as his replacement, and the result was Inner City Blues, a big seller. From then on he became a major name, particularly after recording 1975's Mister Magic and Feels So Good, and later 1980's Winelight; the latter included the Bill Withers hit "Just the Two of Us."

Although some of his recordings since then found him coasting a bit, Washington usually stretched himself in concert. He developed his own personal voices on soprano, tenor, alto, and even his infrequently-used baritone. Grover Washington Jr. recorded as a leader for Kudu, Motown, Elektra, and Columbia and made notable guest appearances on dozens of records ranging from pop to straightforward jazz. He died of a sudden heart attack on December 17, 1999 while taping an appearance on CBS television's The Saturday Early Show; Washington was 56. The posthumous Aria was issued early the following year.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/grover-washington-jr-mn0000944206/biography

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Grover Washington, Jr. fue durante mucho tiempo uno de los saxofonistas más populares de todos los tiempos. Sus raíces estaban en los combos de órgano de R&B y soul-jazz, pero también le iba muy bien en las raras ocasiones en que tocaba jazz directo. Washington, un intérprete muy influyente, se esforzaba con la espontaneidad y la asunción de riesgos de un músico de jazz magistral.

El padre de Grover Washington, Jr. también tocaba el saxofón y fue su primera influencia. El hijo menor empezó a tocar música a los diez años y en dos ya trabajaba en clubes. Adquirió experiencia en giras con los Four Clefs entre 1959 y 1963 y trabajó como freelance durante los dos años siguientes, antes de pasar un par de años en el ejército. En 1967 se trasladó a Filadelfia, ciudad con la que se identificó estrechamente desde entonces, y trabajó con varios organistas, entre ellos Charles Earland y Johnny Hammond Smith, grabando como músico de acompañamiento para el sello Prestige. Su mayor oportunidad se produjo en 1971, cuando Hank Crawford no pudo acudir a una cita de grabación para el sello Kudu de Creed Tasylor; Washington fue elegido como su sustituto, y el resultado fue Inner City Blues, un gran éxito de ventas. A partir de entonces se convirtió en un nombre importante, sobre todo después de grabar Mister Magic y Feels So Good, de 1975, y más tarde Winelight, de 1980; este último incluía el éxito de Bill Withers "Just the Two of Us".

Aunque en algunas de las grabaciones que ha realizado desde entonces se le ha visto un poco indolente, Washington suele esforzarse al máximo en los conciertos. Desarrolló sus voces personales de soprano, tenor, contralto e incluso su poco utilizado barítono. Grover Washington Jr. grabó como líder para Kudu, Motown, Elektra y Columbia e hizo notables apariciones como invitado en docenas de discos que iban desde el pop hasta el jazz más directo. Murió de un repentino ataque al corazón el 17 de diciembre de 1999 mientras grababa una aparición en el programa de televisión The Saturday Early Show de la CBS; Washington tenía 56 años. El disco póstumo Aria se publicó a principios del año siguiente.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/grover-washington-jr-mn0000944206/biography

Tracks:
A1 - Johnny Hammond - Who Is Sylvia?
Written-By – Arthur MacDermot*, John Guare

A2 - Johnny Hammond - Rock Steady
Written-By – Aretha Franklin

A3 - Randy Weston - Ganawa (Blue Moses)
Written-By – Randy Weston

B1 - Idris Muhammad - The Saddest Thing
Written-By – Joe Beck

B2 - Idris Muhammad - Loran's Dance
Written-By – Grover Washington, Jr.


Credits:
    Arranged By – Bob James (tracks: A1, A2, B1, B2), Randy Weston (tracks: A3)
    Bass – Gary King (tracks: B1, B2), Ron Carter (tracks: A1 to A3)
    Conductor – Bob James (tracks: A1, A2, B1, B2)
    Design, Art Direction – Blake Taylor
    Drums – Billy Cobham (tracks: A1 to A3), Idris Muhammad (tracks: B1, B2)
    Electric Piano – Randy Weston (tracks: A3)
    Electric Piano, Organ – Johnny Hammond (tracks: A1, A2)
    Engineer – Rudy Van Gelder
    Guitar – Eric Gale (tracks: A1, A2), Joe Beck (tracks: B1, B2)
    Keyboards – Bob James (tracks: B1, B2)
    Percussion – Airto Moreira (tracks: A1, A2, A3), Azzedin Weston (tracks: A3), Omar Clay (tracks: A1, A2), Phil Kraus (tracks: A3), Ralph MacDonald (tracks: B1, B2)
    Photography By – Alen MacWeeney
    Producer – Creed Taylor
    Soprano Saxophone – Grover Washington, Jr. (tracks: B1, B2)
    Tenor Saxophone – Grover Washington, Jr. (tracks: A1 to B2)
    Trumpet – Freddie Hubbard (tracks: A3)
    Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Randy Brecker (tracks: B1, B2)

Recorded 1971-1974. Issued 1983.
The titles were "remixed" by Rudy Van Gelder in April 1983 and differ slightly from the originally presented recordings.
The sleeve of Kudu SS-1 indicates the "Sidestar" series features various CTI/Kudu artists, this was the only record issued in the series.

A1, A2 from the album by Johnny Hammond - Wild Horses Rock Steady, recorded in 1971
A3 from the album by Randy Weston - Blue Moses, recorded in 1972 has a significative time reduction from the original 13:25, due to a supplemental editing.
B1, B2 from the album by Idris Muhammad - Power Of Soul, recorded in 1974

Label: - Kudu – KUDU SS1
Country: - US
Released: - 1983
Genre: - Jazz, Funk / Soul
Style: - Jazz-Funk, Soul-Jazz
https://www.discogs.com/release/1477465-Grover-Washington-Jr-Side-Star

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