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One Night in Houston Rob Mullins Features Wilton Felder
(Crusaders), Ndugu, Larry Kimpel. A great mix of live recordings of
Jazz Funk, Original Fusion, and Straight Ahead. Product Details
Personnel
Track Listing
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Rob's Commentary We had one rehearsal before we went into the studio, and even scheduling that was quite difficult as Ndugu was working on the new Sheena Easton album that week, Larry rehearsing with the GRP All Stars for a European tour, Wilton was completing his solo album "Forever, Always", and I was at Indigo Ranch with Ronnie Laws recording his new album. But when it came time to hit, I was greeted at Ocean Way by three enthusiastic, yet tired musicians. What took place that day and the next was really a high. Wilton had never sounder better, Ndugu was his usual good-natured self, drinving us thourght the songs with perfect cues and flawless execution, and Larry added warm, fat bottom to the funky songs while singing on the upright bass through the jazz tunes. The music on this album was extremely challenging to perform. I had been touring Japan where the stages are so small the my whole synthsezer rig had to be set up on top of the acoustic piano. It was a serious challenge to play all the acoustic parts, the electric piano parts, the strings, bass, synth solos and bells simultaneously since we were doing everything live. I controlled the volume of the synthesizers with my left foot, usually adding electric piano and strings with my left hand while playing the melody with my right hand on the acoustic piano, and working the pianos' sotenuto pedal with my right foot. I had grown used to this keyboard stetup and knew it pretty well at the time of this recording. I wanted to take some chances with this album. One of the greater risks was the diversity of the songs. My approach to jazz is very open-minded. I grew up playing drums in a Count Basie-style big band in elementary school, doing my homework on a tour bus. I love the music of Basie, Ellington, Glenn Miller, Charlie Parker, Dizzy, Miles, Sonny Rollins, just to name a few of the traditional jazz greats. I've witnessed the change in jazz as musician such as Miles Davis, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and Joe Zawinul led the charge into uncharted territories, sometimes losing their fans or leaving them bewildered with the music they were playing. For the fans who hung in there, the rewards of the experimental music of the 60's and 70's have been numerous. I've been influenced by all the changes in jazz, and think that, as a composer, it is important to stay open to new ideas that will keep the music fresh and continuously evolving. That is why the album has songs like "Very Blue", "The Jazzman" and "Plus Three" right next to songs like "One night in Houston" and "Quick! Call the Note Police". This is why I find the synthesizer just as important as the piano, electric bass just as valid as the acoustic bass, etc. Jazz has to evolve, and the artists and composers have to take chances to lead us into the new discoveries that are so vital to the growth of any art form. Another chance I took was the fact that no jazz standards were recorded for the album. I have heard many great renditions of all the jazz tunes from the '40s, '50s and '60s performed by jazz masters of all ages. But who is writing the songs today that will be the standards for tomorrows' generation of aspiring musicians? I try to encourage young musicians to compose their own music as much as possible, so that someday we will have new songs that are just as beautiful as the current classics. At the end of the two days of recording we all went our separate ways, busy with our various individual lives and projects -Rob Mullins.
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