Jazz
Marion Meadows - Clarinet, Concept, Saxophone
Anthony Church - Saxophone
Brian Chartrand - Vocals
Brian Keane - Guitar (Electric), Producer, Mixing, Piano, Keyboards, Drum Programming, Guitar (Acoustic)
Charlie Karp Vocals
Chip Shearin Producer, Bass, Keyboards, Engineer, Piano
Dave Love Executive Producer
Freddie Fox Guitar
Jay Rowe Soloist, Piano
Jeff Frez Albrecht Engineer
Jesse McGuire Trumpet, Soloist
Johnny Britt Vocals, Engineer, Instrumentation, Trumpet, Producer, Mixing
Karen Hall Stylist, Make-Up, Wardrobe
Keith Chirgwin Engineer
Mel Brown Bass
Mike Broening Engineer, Keyboards, Producer, Mixing, Programming
Mike White Engineer
Paul Blakemore Mastering
Perry Hughes Soloist, Guitar
Phil Magnotti Mixing
Rachel Eckroth Fender Rhodes, Organ (Hammond), Wurlitzer
Robert Hoffman Design
Sean Patrick Thomas Vocals
Tony Verdejo Percussion
Will Brock Keyboards, Engineer, Guitar, Producer, Drum Programming, Bass
Marion Meadows Reveals Secrets on New Release
Saxophonist Marion Meadows is hiding something. Like a deft sleight-of-hand artist, there's always something up his sleeve - something he's not showing you outright - that ultimately reveals itself when the music starts. Somewhere in those mysterious spaces between the notes - at the convergence of melody, harmony and rhythm - the simple treasures and universal truths are laid bare for those whose ears and minds and hearts are open to discover them.
Meadows uncovers some of these hidden mysteries on Secrets (HUCD 3150), his new recording on Heads Up International.
For Meadows, the secrets within the music reveal themselves on a subconscious level - a place where higher reasoning takes a back seat to instinct and intuition. And for as much as Meadows may be the keeper of the secrets, they are often just as much a revelation to him as they are to the listener. "Secrets are things that are kept hidden beneath the surface of our own intellect, our own decision-making," he says. "They're these treasures that are often right in front of our eyes and yet we don't even see them or know they're there."
Discovering these unseen treasures requires a more organic approach to the music, says Meadows. "I wanted to incorporate a more live sensibility into the recording process in the making of this record," he explains. "I wanted to use musicians who have also been part of my live performances. Contemporary jazz artists can get a little caught up in the more stylish side of the recording process, with computers and drum machines and other cutting-edge technology. For as good as all that stuff can sound, there's an organic element that gets lost. If you move too far in that direction, I think people start to take musicians in this genre - and the genre in general - less seriously as a result."
For all of the capable hands on deck, Secrets is ultimately about the army of ears on the other side of the musical equation, says Meadows. "When we put these records out, we tend to forget about the fans' initial response to them," he says. "We live with these projects from their conception and birth all the way up to the final details of post-production and pressing. In a lot of cases, once it's done and out the door, we need some distance from it for a few weeks. But at that same time, it's a fresh new experience for the fans who buy it. They're saying, ‘What's this thing going to sound like?' For them, it's still a secret. It's something that has yet to be discovered and explored."
Listen closely and catch the wisdom in the whisper of Secrets.
Saxophonist Marion Meadows is hiding something. Like a deft sleight-of-hand artist, there's always something up his sleeve that ultimately reveals itself when the music starts. Somewhere in those mysterious spaces between the notes, the simple treasures and universal truths are laid bare for those whose ears and minds and hearts are open to discover them. Meadows uncovers some of these hidden mysteries on Secrets.
Marion Meadows has the talent and the chops to record a truly great album of improvisatory jazz, be it fusion, post-bop, hard bop, cool jazz, or soul-jazz. The soprano saxophonist did, after all, receive his education in jazz from heavyweights like Eddie Daniels, Norman Connors, and the late Joe Henderson. But regrettably, Meadows has spent most of his career catering to smooth jazz stations and offering lightweight background music. Secrets, like so many formulaic smooth sax albums, has a strong Grover Washington, Jr. influence but generally lacks Washington's grit, edginess, or sense of adventure. There have been numerous Washington disciples in smooth jazz (from Najee to Dave Koz to Kenny G to the late George Howard), and most of them have played it much, much safer than their idol -- which is what Meadows does most of the time on Secrets. Overall, this 2009 release is a decidedly conservative affair from Meadows, who plays mostly soprano sax but gets in some tenor sax and clarinet as well. But Secrets does have its moments. This CD contains a memorable version of Pat Metheny's Brazilian-influenced "Here to Stay," and "The Shade Tree" (which is one of Secrets' vocal offerings) has an appealing, Michael Franks-ish quality. Also enjoyable is the Latin-tinged "Sand Dancers." So even though Secrets favors a by-the-book approach most of the time, Meadows occasionally lets loose and gambles with inspiration. One wishes, however, that he did it a lot more often. Secrets will probably be well received by the smooth jazz program directors that Meadows is going after, but he is capable of so much more. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
Marion Meadows
Active Decades: '80s, '90s and '00s
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Instrumental Pop, Fusion, Crossover Jazz, Smooth Jazz
Smooth jazz-styled soprano saxophonist Marion Meadows was born in West Virginia and raised primarily in Connecticut; after adopting the classical clarinet at age nine, he moved to the saxophone as a teen, later studying composition and arranging at Boston's Berklee College of Music. A protege of Joe Henderson and Eddie Daniels, Meadows later served a long stint as a member of Norman Connors' Starship Orchestra; after a series of session dates and sideman gigs, he made his solo debut in 1990 with the RCA release For Lovers Only, followed in 1992 by Keep It Right There. Resurfacing two years later with Forbidden Fruit, after 1995's Body Rhythm Meadows jumped to Discovery to issue 1997's Pleasure. He then moved to Heads Up for Another Side of Midnight (1999), Next To You (2000), and In Deep (2002).
---Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide |
