JoeBala 
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THE THREE DEGREES: STRATEGY - OUR TRIBUTE TO PHILADELPHIA (SMCR-5136X)
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Published: 12 February 2016
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Created By: David Nathan About David
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Track listing
1. Strategy
2. Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now
3. Me and Mr. Jones
4. Love Train
5. Disco Inferno
6. If You Don't Know Me By Now
7. Don't Leave Me This Way
8. You'll Never Find Another Love
9. T.S.O.P. (the Sound of Philadelphia)
The Three Degrees need no introduction - simply put, they were the most successful female soul/disco outfit of the 1970s, scoring many hits for Philadelphia International Records including the enduring classics, 'When Will I See You Again,' 'Year Of Decision' and 'Take Good Care Of Yourself'; and later, 'Woman In Love' and 'My Simple Heart,' both UK Top 10 hits. Strategy (Our Tribute To Philadelphia) is The Three Degrees' first new studio album for a quarter century and features the trio's own very personal tribute to timeless anthems such as The O'Jays' 'Love Train,' The Trammps' 'Disco Inferno,' Billy Paul's classic with a standout gender switch to 'Me & Mr. Jones' and the exciting title track, popularized by Archie Bell & The Drells, along with a new recording of the group's own '70s hit, 'T.S.O.P.' The album was recorded in 2015 with a top-flight band and a proper orchestra at Down In Deep Studios in Atlanta, GA.
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Grammy-winning Earl Klugh returns to Jazz Alley for 40 years of cross-over music
February 24, 201611:25 PM MST
Earl Klugh collaborated with a variety of favorite artists on his Grammy-nominated, smash hit record, “HandPicked.” His collaborations worked wonders on all kinds of audiences.
Concord Music Group
When you come upon Earl Klugh’s official website, you will see the contemporary, cross-over guitarist’s world-wide influence in the dizzying array of exemplary events he’s been a part of or is about to jumpstart soon.
Photo courtesy of Earl Klugh and Jazz Alley, used with permission
The Grammy-winning, Billboard-topping artist once again hosts his star-studded Weekend of Jazz at the Broadmoor for the 13th time April 7-9 at the five-star Colorado Springs resort. The stars include Keiko Matsui with David Benoit on acoustic pianos, Tower of Power, Grammy-winning Brazilian master Sergio Mendes, and the 2016 Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist Jamison Ross.
Klugh broke in the new Blue Note Hawaii in Waikiki, appearing live Jan. 26-31, as a part of the opening month of headliners.
Klugh is no stranger to the islands, having shared a memorable duet with Hawaii’s ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro— another Blue Note Hawaii headliner — on the eight-minute, instrumental version of the Eagles’ “Hotel California,”from Klugh’s 2013 smash hit record, the Grammy-nominated HandPicked. It was a fusion made in heaven, the natural result of two likeminded musicians who found a kinship instantly on board a jazz cruise in 2008.
Then, there’s a charity book launch, the 2015 Stanbic Misty Jazz Festival in Zambia, Southern Africa, Klugh’s own 6th annual Weekend of Jazz at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, S.C., where he reunited with Shimabukuro, along with a select group of other contemporary jazz names.
The man just does not stop.
Seattle’s Jazz Alley is next, as the Detroit-born superstar and master of acoustic-classical guitar celebrates 40 years of recording history, March 17-20. With him: keyboardist David Lee, drummer Ron Otis, bassist Al Turner, and Tom Braxton on sax and flute.
The 13-time Grammy nominee and winner (with pianist Bob James on the 1980 pop instrumental, One On One) is touring in celebration of the 40th anniversary of his debut album, the self-titled, 1976 Blue Note record of note. You know what that means, Klugh fans. He’ll pick from over 250 assorted original songs, crowd favorites, his favorites, and memorable collaborations.
Expect Klugh to dip into his most recent collaborative effort, HandPicked, where he got to mix it up instrumentally with a host of artists from other genres, like rock-jazz-Hawaiian shapeshifter Shimabukuro, experiential jazz guitarist Bill Frisell, and multi-instrumental, country singer-songwriter Vince Gill.
“I’ve been so fortunate to be able to create the music that I’ve wanted to create, and work with some of the greatest artists of our time,” Klugh said in press for the 40th anniversary shows. “It’s hard to believe it’s been 40 years since that first record!”
Klugh’s mastered the art of other-worldly yet global music that touches the hearts of everyone in the audience, from the jazz enthusiasts to the younger, dreamy pop fans hungry for beautiful, unfolding melody. This jazz-pop veteran is ready for you all.
NATALIE COLE FEBRUARY 1978 INTERVIEW
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THE BEST SELLING LADY OF SOUL
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Published: 4 January 2016
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Created By: John Abbey About John
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 Ms. Cole's first 3 albums went gold. Her fourth, "Thankful", had a million advance orders and is storming to two million and that elite platinum award…
IN TERMS of record sales and public appearances, it's probably right to acknowledge Natalie Cole as the best selling lady in our musical sphere these days.
Her first three albums for Capitol all went Gold and the fourth — the just released "Thankful" — had more than a million pre-orders stacked up so that should give you some idea of the lady's sales potential. Pundits suggest that this could well be the one to surpass the Platinum mark and that would be a stepping stone in Ms. Cole's relatively short career.
"I'm certainly very happy with this album," the ever genial Ms. Cole enthused from her Los Angeles home. "I honestly believe it to be the best album I have made and that is because I felt more comfortable with the songs than I have ever felt before.
"This time, for example, we only used eight songs because I felt that by making them that little bit longer, I would be able to lock myself into the song that little bit more and could then concentrate on making them really strong — rather than putting in a couple of what I term 'throwaway songs'."
This album also marked Natalie's first recording experience outside of Chicago. "Yes, that's right," she confirmed. "We cut the album in Los Angeles. It was really a dream of mine that we should record in L.A. but it proved to be a very expensive dream because everything costs so much more there than in Chicago.
"Still, if the album does go Platinum, then I won't have any complaints! And if it does, it will mean that we'll record there in future, I guess, and that would make it all worth it, wouldn't it?
"However, I'm not so sure that it's where you record as much as who engineers it. In my case, Barney Perkins was so wonderful and it may well prove better simply to fly Barney into Chicago."
Can Natalie actually hear a difference with this album? "Yes, I can," she asserts. "Everything is so much clearer and the musicians are perfectionists — even though their rates are higher, they are worth it.
"In the past, there have been odd mistakes that have slipped through — even if the public didn't notice them, we knew they were there. This album is faultless in that way and the overall sound and quality is a different world.
"Oh, yes — and they let me sit in for the mix this time! In the past, Chuck (Jackson) and Marvin (Yancy, her husband) have locked me out of the studio because they felt I would make them nervous but they let me sit in this time. And I feel again that the mix is as close to perfection as you can get."
This album, though, does represent a slight change in direction for Ms. Cole as far as material is concerned.
"That's true, too," she agrees. "The past three albums have had a kind of set pattern as far as the songs are concerned. But this time, there isn't a song in the vein of a "Sophisticated Lady" and nor is there a "Joey" type song. In the past, we have kept to a pattern for sometimes five or six tunes on an album but this time, each of the eight is totally different.
"No, there isn't a disco track — the nearest to that would probably be "Be Thankful". But then I have never wanted to be a disco artist. Why? Well, to be honest, I'm a little paranoid about the whole dance thing.
"Before I made it, I used to play dance hall gigs and I hated singing while people danced to my music and I used to pray for the day when I could play concerts and people would actually listen to my singing. And without wishing to appear rude to some of the disco artists, it doesn't take a great singer to make it in the disco stakes.
"As you know, often the records are better known than the singer and I would hate to be in that category. And I also believe that I sell more albums my way and that helps."
A year ago, when Natalie's previous album was released, it was announced simultaneously that Natalie had married her producer, Marvin Yancy. Has their marriage affected their relationship in the studio?
"Well, first of all, we had actually already been married for six months when that announcement was made," Natalie now admits. "We were married on June 30, 1976, and that announcement was made in February of last year. But, to answer your question, it hasn't made any difference at all.
"Marvin, you see, is a unique kind of person and he has always been very easy to work with. And my other producer, Chuck Jackson, and Marvin get on so well — all three of us have a kind of spontaneous relationship.
"And in the studio, I don't look at Marvin as my husband — I respect him there solely as my producer and he looks at me simply as his artiste. We have a healthy respect for each other and that is the most important thing of all for all three of us. Lately, we have started to write songs together and we feel that on the next album, there may be a couple of the better things that we have written between us.
"Do we ever have disagreements in the studio? Sure, we do! In fact, during the sessions for that last album, we disagreed so much on one thing that we all walked out of the studio — but we had to go home together and so we were able to resolve it and were back in the studio the next day as if nothing had ever happened.
"And even now, when we do disagree on something, we sit at home and work it all out."
A lot of the doors opened early in Natalie's career because she is her father's daughter, a fact that she willingly concedes. But now that she has reached such a peak in her career, the comparisons with her father don't crop up as often.
"I'm still my father's daughter," Natalie stresses, "but the comparisons are different now. In fact, there are no musical comparisons because people tend to accept that I am merely continuing a musical legacy.
"Sure they used to compare us and I always felt that to be unfair — to both my father and myself. Let's face it, his music and his voice were divine but we both have our own contribution to make — and I am still making mine.
"And like my father, I'll never sell out to commercialism — that's my answer really to your question about me never making a disco record. It would all be a sell-out in my opinion and I have no plans to sell out just yet."
Natalie's success must be a comfort for her mother. "Oh, yes, she is so thrilled with it all because she had grown up with my father as he climbed up," Natalie is quick to point out. "I think she is also a little surprised that I have found it all a little easier.
"You see, when my father was coming up, times were very different and that left an imprint on her memory. She remembers what he went through to get to the top and she finds it hard to believe that I have managed it without much of the hassle. Ten years ago, it was a case of if you were black, get to the back and though it isn't perfect, it's changed a helluva lot today.
"I have seen some enormous changes in the three years I have been involved in the business and it's still getting better. In the old days, you had to wait in line — and you didn't get any recognition if you were black and went outside of jazz or R&B. Today, the barrier isn't half as thick and you are judged simply on your music — well, almost, anyway!
"I think that my success has made my mother feel more secure mentally and that's nice. After all, I have only had four albums and I am accepted by people who have been in the business for years and years. And that acceptance hasn't come about simply because of my being my father's daughter."
Of course, the other main comparison in her early career was with Aretha Franklin.
"I have always been waiting for the day when people could hear me do an album and simply say: 'Oh, that's Natalie Cole' and that is why I'm so happy with this album," she asserts.
"Sure, I have been compared with Aretha and I'm the first to admit that I owe a lot to Aretha — after all, she is one of the greats and I still idolize her today. But the media created a lot of that and I hope that they will now at least admit that this new album is me and only me!
"You know, when you are constantly compared to somebody, after a while you start to believe it and question yourself. I know that's what I did and I think Aretha started to listen out for it, too, after a while.
"I think that the media is the one thing that I'll never really come to understand because they are always looking for something to say and if you don't give it to them, they'll dream up something of their own.
"It has reached the point where I no longer believe what I read in a magazine or newspaper because I know how my words have been twisted beyond all belief in the past."
All of which seems an ideal place to say our fond farewell to the lovely Ms. Cole and stress that we are 'thankful' that she didn't accuse B&S of ever having misreported or misquoted her.
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As is customary with recordings by Smoke Sessions Records, this Harold Mabern disc gives evidence of being just as exceptional as any other from the opening bars of “The Chief”. There is extreme care for articulation and polyphonic voicing. We’re not talking extraneous touches of arbitrary whimsicality; Harold Mabern’s initiatives arise either directly from the memory or from experience and his admirable sensitivity to harmonic tensions. Occasionally the effect borders on the technical, but when you pay close attention to his left hand, you begin to hear the instinctive blues metaphors in his quiet voice. His rustic elegance quite becomes him and his poetic intensity at times, especially in the elegiac movements of his soli suggests that he has a lot going for him including technique in abundance and striking poise when he wants to “strut his stuff” like someone dressed in a tuxedo on a red carpet.
Jeff Benjamin
