“The
second tour was even better than the first,”
says Koz, the world-class saxophonist
who piloted the release, which rocketed
to No. 1 on Billboard’s Current Contemporary
Jazz Albums chart. “We had a total blast
and the fans really gravitated toward
it.” There was no question in Koz’s mind
that a sequel was in the stars, but getting
everyone’s schedules to align was never
going to be easy, each participant being
a headliner with bookings well into the
future. It took a few years but finally,
says Koz, through “divine intervention,”
a window of time opened up so that everyone
could be in the same place at the same
time.
Summer
Horns II From A To Z, scheduled for release
on June 22, 2018 via Concord Records,
is the result, a stunning set of 11 more
timeless tunes reimagined by Koz (soprano,
alto, tenor and baritone saxes), joined
by alto saxophonist Gerald Albright and
tenor saxophonist Richard Elliot—both
returnees from the earlier session—with
new additions Rick Braun (trumpet) and
Aubrey Logan (trombone and vocals). A
crew of ace rhythm players collaborates
with the Summer Horns lineup along with
a who’s who of arrangers: Tom Scott
(who’s worked with everyone from
Frank Sinatra to Aretha Franklin to Steely
Dan), Greg Adams (best known for Tower
of Power, but also Santana and Elton John)
and GRAMMY-winning arranger Gordon Goodwin.
Braun, himself a legend of contemporary
jazz, produced the album, with co-production
by Koz.
With
the creative team in place, the biggest
dilemma facing Koz, Braun and the others
was which songs to choose—or, rather,
how to narrow down an enormous list of
contenders. “My original list was
in the hundreds,” Koz says. “We’d
have good-natured arguments during weekly
conference calls. We each pitched songs
and then tried to get other people on
our team.”
The
final track list, 11 in all, is impeccable,
to say the least. Opening Summer Horns
II From A To Z is a medley of Earth, Wind
& Fire’s 1976 smash “Getaway”
and the KC and the Sunshine Band dance
staple “That’s the Way I Like
It.” Next up is “More Today
Than Yesterday,” the only Top 20
hit from the Spiral Starecase, from the
spring of 1969. “Most people, when
they hear that song, think it was by Chicago,”
says Koz. “It sounded so much like
them.” The Crusaders’ “Keep
That Same Old Feeling,” written by
that group’s late trombonist Wayne
Henderson, is next, with a horn arrangement
by Adams (best known for his work with
Tower of Power) and Braun.
The
fourth track in the sequence gives the
album its subtitle, “From A to Z.”
It’s another medley, and on paper
it seems an improbably marriage: Here,
with a horn arrangement by Gordon Goodwin
and rhythm arrangement by Goodwin and
Braun, are the 1939 Billy Strayhorn standard
“Take the ‘A’ Train,”
made famous by Duke Ellington, seamlessly
intertwining with hip-hop icon Jay-Z’s
“Roc Boys (And the Winner Is).”
Hence the A to Z.
How in the world did this one come about?
Says Koz, “Somebody sent me ‘Roc
Boys’ and said, ‘Jay-Z’s
got this song that’s got a bunch
of horns in it.’ I’m a fan but
I don’t know that music well. I heard
that track and I said, ‘That horn
line is so great! We have to utilize it
somewhere.’ Originally, it was going
to be its own song. But also on the song
list was ‘Take the “A”
Train.’ Rick Braun said, said, ‘Wouldn’t
it be great to do something so classic
and so old and yet modernize it?’
It was [Concord Records president] John
Burk, the executive producer of the album,
who said, ‘Maybe the two songs could
work together. It would be really funny
to go from A to Z.’”
Let’s
start off the New Year in the right direction
with a purpose to help preserve the history
and legacy of the “Arts In All It’s
Forms”. I am talking about music,
dance, film, theater, fashion, and all other
forms, that were created with a passion
to express and entertain. I have made a
mission of Jamsource/Runway to expose and
support the industries and hope that the
readers find it interesting enough to follow
up on the featured stories and find the
same pleasure I received learning about
the many educational and entertaining foundations
across the nation.
Celebrate
the vibrant career of early Texas Modernist
Dorothy Hood at the Art Museum of South
Texas. This is the largest collection
of Dorothy’s work to be on exhibition.
Both
albums became successful among soul blues,
R&B and soul fans and on urban radio
stations. In 1985, she enjoyed her only
recognition in the UK Singles Chart, when
her cover version of Rockin' Sidney's
"My Toot Toot" reached #6.
