Lonnie Liston Smith

Capsule Info: Fresh out of a several year stint with Pharoah Sanders and Gato Barbieri, this is Smith's first solo album, and it's his album like his work with Pharoah Sanders. Features, in fact, a remake of "Astral Traveling" which Smith originally played on one of Pharoah's albums. (*Four tracks do appear on the GOLDEN DREAMS CD, see below).

COSMIC FUNK
Flying Dutchman 1974. Produced by Bob Thiele.
Track list Cosmic Funk Beautiful Woman Peaceful Ones Sais Naima Footprints Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards, perc Donald Smith, vocals, piano, flute Al Anderson, bass Lawrence Killian, perc, congas Art Gore, drums George Barron, sax, flute, perc Doug Hammond, perc Andrew Cyrille, perc Ron Bridgewater, perc

Capsule Info: Here Smith takes the spacey percussive jazz he'd been playing with Sanders and Barbieri and adds electronics and funk. Smith covers Mtume's "Sais" which became one of the few 'standards' of the kozmik genre. Still "Nubian space jazz" but the emphasis begins to be a little more on the "space", as in outer. Includes a wonderful version of Wayner Shorter's "Footprints."

VISIONS OF A NEW WORLD
Flying Dutchman 1975/RCA 1993. Produced by Bob Thiele and Lonnie Liston Smith.
Track list A Chance For Peace Love Beams Colors Of The Rainbow Devika (Goddess) Sunset Visions Of A New World, Phase 1 Visions Of A New World, Phase 2 Summer Nights Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards Donald Smith, vocals, flute Greg Maker, bass Reggie Lucas, guitar Lawrence Killian, perc, congas Art Gore, drums Wilby Fletcher, drums Cecil Bridgewater, trumpet Ray Armando, percussion Angel Allende, percussion Michael Carvin, percussion David Hubbard, horns

Capsule Info: Spiritual space jazz comes very close to the quiet storm, a la Norman Connors. "Colors Of The Rainbow" is a version of the song "Colors" found on Pharoah's KARMA album.

EXPANSIONS
Flying Dutchman 1975/RCA 1993. Produced by Bob Thiele and Lonnie Liston Smith.
Track list Expansions Desert Nights Summer Days Voodoo Woman Peace Shadows My Love Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards Donald Smith, vocals, flute Cecil McBee, bass Lawrence Killian, perc, congas Art Gore, drums Michael Carvin, percussion Leopoldo, percussion David Hubbard, soprano sax

Capsule Info: "Expansions" was the closest Smith had to a hit. Smith turns the African percussion and spacey influences into calm but light jazz funk.

Oliver Nelson: SKULL SESSION
Flying Dutchman 1975. Produced by Bob Thiele.
Track list Skull Session Reuben's Rondo 125th St. And 7th Ave. One For Duke Dumpy Mama Baja Bossa In A Japanese Garden Flight For Freedom Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, electric and acoustic pianos Oliver Nelson, alto saxophone, arrangements Mike Wolford, keyboards, synthesizers Willie Bobo, percussion Lee Ritenour, guitar Dennis Budimir, guitar Shelly Manne, drums, perc Jimmy Gordon, drums Chuck Domanico, bass plus full horn section

Capsule Info: Not a particularly spiritual album, but Oliver Nelson adds electronics like the arp synthesizer and a bit of funk to his big band arrangements and Smith provides some fine piano playing. (The title track does appear on Nelson's BLACK BROWN AND BEAUTIFUL CD). One of Oliver Nelson's last recordings.

LOVELAND
Columbia/CBS 1978. Produced by Bert deCoteaux and Lonnie Liston Smith.
Track list Sunburst Journey Into Love Floating Through Space Bright Moments We Can Dream Springtime Magic Loveland Explorations Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards Donald Smith, vocals, flute David Hubbard, sax, flute Lawrence Killian, congas, perc Marcus Miller, bass Al Anderson, bass George Johnson, drums Ronald D. Miller, el guitar

Capsule Info: I like disco music, really I do. I even like disco music by jazz guys who should know better like so many of them did in the late 1970s. I like knowing that the persistent conga beat was played by a live musician and a member of the once avant garde (Lawrence Killian). And while some of this album is not that different than his latter work for Flying Dutchman (warbling brother Donald and all), I think, Lonnie Liston Smith plus disco hack producer Bert deCouteaux? Oh what were they thinking! It's better jazz pop schlock than they're turning out these days: I mean give me this album over Kenny G anyday, but still, one wished better for Lonnie. (*On CD as part of European Columbia's JAZZ 2 ON 1: LONNIE LISTON SMITH (1998), with the album EXOTIC MYSTERIES.)

EXOTIC MYSTERIES
Columbia/CBS 1978?. Produced by Bert deCoteaux and Lonnie Liston Smith.
Track list Space Princess Quiet Moments Magical Journey Exotic Mysteries Singing For Love Mystical Dreamer (A Tribute To Miles Davis) Twilight Night Flower Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards Donald Smith, vocals, flute David Hubbard, sax, flute Lino Reyes, drums Steve Thornton, congas, perc Marcus Miller, bass Al Anderson, bass Ronald D. Miller, el guitar plus strings and background vocals

Capsule Info: Mostly pleasant light jazz/funk/disco from the late 1970s. It's interesting to trace the evolution of this music: Miles' BITCHES BREW broke the boundaries of jazz, Donald Byrd's BLACKBYRD married it to slick pop R&B grooves, and almost every jazz musician playing in the late 1970s tried (or was pushed by their record companies) to cash in on its financial gain and popular appeal. Twenty years later I find it preferable to modern "smooth jazz" but much of it is not all that compelling; in any case it cries out for the spiritual meaningfulness that launched musicians like Smith. (*On CD as part of European Columbia's JAZZ 2 ON 1: LONNIE LISTON SMITH (1998), with the album LOVELAND.)

GOLDEN DREAMS
Bluebird/RCA 1988. Produced by Bob Thiele and Lonnie Liston Smith.
Track list Get Down Everybody Quiet Dawn Sunbeams Meditations Peace & Love Beautiful Woman Goddess Of Love Inner Beauty Golden Dreams Journey Into Space Astral Traveling Let Us Go Into The House Of The Lord Imani (Faith) In Search Of Truth Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards see original albums plus on the last four tracks: Cecil McBee, bass David Lee, Jr., drums Badal Roy, tabla Sonny Morgan, congas, perc Mtume, congas, perc Geeta Vashi, tamboura George Barron, saxophones Joe Beck, guitar

Capsule Info: A repackaging of his "Cosmic Echoes" period GOLDEN DREAMS album plus four cuts from ASTRAL TRAVELING.

WATERCOLORS
Novus/RCA 1991. Produced by Bob Thiele and Lonnie Liston Smith.
Track list Watercolors Sunset Starlight And You My Love Expansions A Song Of Love Renaissance Devika Summer Nights Aspirations Colors Of The Rainbow Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards see original albums

Capsule Info: A second compilation of his "Cosmic Echoes" period material.

DREAMS OF TOMORROW
Signature/CBS 1983/1989. Produced by Bob Thiele, Lonnie Liston Smith and Marcus Miller.
Track list A Lonely Way To Be Mystic Woman The Love I See In Your Eyes Dreams Of Tomorrow Never Too Late Rainbows Of Love Divine Light A Garden Of Peace Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards Donald Smith, vocals, flute Marcus Miller, bass, synthesizers David Hubbard, saxophones Steve Thornton, perc Yogi Horton, drums Buddy Williams, drums

Capsule Info: This stuff is pretty tame, bordering on bland new age music. Which is kind of what happened to a lot of the spirituality of the '70s after all. As Smith is quoted in the liner notes: "When I had that unhappy experience I told you about with the big record company, I decided to get away from the music business for a while and just clear my head. Meanwhile I discovered Sri Chinmoy, became one of his disciples and got into meditation. I became a vegetarian. I found it all worked: I became a brand new me, rejuvenated, regenerated, just as if I was starting over."

REJUVENATION
Signature/CBS 1985/1989. Produced by Bob Thiele.
Track list Rejuvenation Island In The Sun London Interlude The Eternal Quest (In Search Of Truth) A Frozen Lake Girl In My Dreams Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards Robert Zantay, lyricon Cecil McBee, bass Premik, saxophones Daniel Carillo, guitar Steve Thornton, percussion

Capsule Info: Not his most interesting work, but for mellow pop jazz it's better than what's being routinely churned out nowadays.

MAKE SOMEONE HAPPY
Signature/CBS/Dr.Jazz 1986/1989. Produced by Bob Thiele.
Track list Satin Doll Make Someone Happy Close Your Eyes I Can't Get Started Speak Low Wives And Lovers Cary Paul And Louisa Duke's Place Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, piano Cecil McBee, bass Al Foster, drums

Capsule Info: A straight-ahead jazz trio playing the standards. Who woulda thunk he had it in him. Pleasant. McBee is great, as usual.

LOVE GODDESS
Startrak/Ichiban 1990. Produced by Lonnie Liston Smith, Norman Connors, Terry Burrus.
Track list Love Goddess Obsession Heaven Giving You The Best That I Got Star Flower Monk's Mood I'm Your Melody Don't Write Checks That Your Body Can't Cash Dance Floor Blue In Green Blue Bossa A Child Is Born Musicians Lonnie Liston Smith, keyboards Norman Connors, percussion Phyllis Hyman, vocals Jean Carn, vocals Terry Burrus, keyboards Najee, saxophone Grover Washington, saxophone Marion Meadows, perc Doug Nally, drums Lonnie Plaxico, bass others

Capsule Info: Following Norman Connors' latter-day formula, this is all over the place: a mix of glossy popfunk with jazzy touches, with the classic quietstorm vocalists Norman Connors developed fifteen years before. Mostly, can you say "overproduced" and "drum machine".

A Jazz Supreme