fonè Natural Jazz Recordings (30th Anniversary) Various Artists

• 1 Beyond Words 03:25
• 2 Pastels 06:26
• 3 The Sky Is Crying 06:30
• 4 Dark And Loose 06:01
• 5 Espresso 03:34
• 6 Indiansong 07:59
• 7 Africa 10:13
• 8 A Felicidade 04:42
• 9 Rompe Saraguey 04:23
• 10 Respect 02:38
• Total Runtime 55:51

Info for fonè Natural Jazz Recordings (30th Anniversary)

My dream has always been to record the sound of silence, and in silence to find the breath of life. To record the feelings and the emotions of people, as nearly as I can. The problem is not how to capture the space or the depth or the source of the sound, all this of course is fine and provides emotions, but is not in itself moving. To portray the smell of the concert hall, or the concentration of both performers and listeners, that is what is moving. If we believe that recording means portraying truth by following objective, absolute criteria, then we have completely missed the point. When I record, I follow all my senses, which means not only what I hear, but more importantly the feelings that come into the soul and to the heart. For me, placing the microphones is something of a sacred ritual, almost a mystic art. I have to find, and I know that it exist and is waiting to be found, that pocket-handkerchief sized space of air where the whole atmosphere can be felt. I measure the dimension with eyes and ears, I evaluate the materials, and, as an instrument-maker would, I ‘tune’ some gigantic structure like a church, a theatre or a music salon. And if the public are present, so much the better! Like an extraordinary acoustic trap, the bodies and the faces of hundreds of people make the sound more linear. If I could, I would record the bodies! And after, two, three, four microphones higher, lower, to the right, no, to the left... each time the conditions change and everything has to be discovered again, even the “emotion centre”.

The microphones are eventually exactly there where they should be; I must be aware of everything, the beautiful women, the musicians, their state of mind, and remind myself of the flavour of the occasion... and then, draw everything together at that “centre”. Reality on its own does not exist, it only exists in our own feelings. In truth, I record my own feelings, fonè is my gift to music and to all music lovers.“ (Giulio Cesare Ricci)

Track list:

1. Beyond Words
J. Sklair F. Crawford; Josh Sklair (guitar), Ron Ross (bass), Frank Crawford (piano & organ), Jack Le Compte (drums)

2. Pastels
S. Bunch; Sekou Bunch (tenor bass), Karen Briggs (violin), Jim Oppenheim (saxophone), Nick Smith (piano), Bill Summers (percussion), Keith Jones (fretless bass)

3. The Sky Is Crying
E. James, M. Robinson, C. Lewis; Vickie Leigh (vocals), Bruce Bishop & Josh Sklair (guitars), Ron Ross (bass), Frank Crawford (piano & organ), Jack Le Compte (drums)

4. Dark And Loose
J. Leftwich, M. O’Neill; David Garfield (piano), Michael O’Neill (Yamaha nylon stringed acoustic guitar), John Leftwich (bass), Larry Klimas (tenor & soprano sax), Efrain Toro (drums and percussion)

5. Espresso
K. Knowles, R. Mitchell; Karen Knowles (vocal), Franck Crawford (piano & keyboards), Bruce Bishop (acoustic guitar), John Leftwich (bass), Josh Sklair (electric & acoustic guitars), Efrain Toro (drums & percussion), Bob Summers (trumpet & flugelhorn) - Larry Klimas (saxophones), Eve Anna Manley (baritone saxophone), Sam Sklair (arranger, MD, clarinet), Vickie Leigh & Bruce Bishop (backing vocals)

6. Indiansong
M. O’Neill; David Garfield (piano), Michael O’Neill (Yamaha nylon stringed acoustic guitar), James Earl Warwick (acoustic bass guitar), Larry Klimas ( tenor & soprano sax, Flute), Walfredo Reyes (drums Custom Pearl Kit)

7. Africa
L. Verdieu, S. Bunch; Louis Verdieu (vocals),Sekou Bunch (bass), Joe Heredia & Russ Henry (drums), Juan Quintero & Alan Yoshida (guitars), Bennie Maupin (flute & saxophones), Deron Johnson (piano), Karen Briggs (violin), Luis Conte, Angel Figueroa, Marina Bambino, Bill Summers & Louis Verdieu (percussions), Felicidad, Elissa Lala, Linsey Fiddmont, Huey Jackson & Marina Bambino (background vocals)

8. A Felicidade
A.C. Jobim, V. Moraes; Kate Mc Garry (vocals), Paul Kreibich (drums), Karen Hammack (piano), Eric Von Essen (bass)

9. Rompe Saraguey
M. Chapottin; Nengue Hernandez (vocal), Ramon Estagnado (bass), Bobby Rodriguez & Oscar Brashear (trumpets), Karen Briggs (violin), Mike Turre (saxophone & flute), Nengue Hernandez, Bill Summers & Munyungo Jackson (percussions)

10. Respect
O. Redding; Vickie Leigh (vocals), Bruce Bishop & Josh Sklair (guitars), Bill Von Ravensberg (bass), Frank Crawford (piano & organ), Jack Le Compte (drums)

A compilation dedicated to funk and pre – zouk period, which has never been documented before. It is compilated by specialists of the genre: Julien Achard (Digger's Digest) and Nicolas SKLIRIS (ex-Superfly Records).

After the success of Kouté Jazz, Heavenly Sweetness comes back with a dancefloor but not jazz compilation, enough to move your feet at through the whole summer ! 13 disco, boogie and Zouk tracks recorded in the 80’s in the West Indies.

The advantage of this selection is precisely that it reveals a broader spectrum than the zouk music style that are badly defined. Most of the tracks, were not much broadcasted even if interpreted by some big names in Caribbean music (Pierre-Edouard Decimus / Patrick St. Eloi / Eddy La Viny). They were too fast classified as Zouk. These Tracks reveal this will of singularity, this merger between traditional and other rhythms genres (funk, disco, afro-beat, Latin Brazilian ...), with the addition of new instruments such as synthesizers and drums machine in the creative process.

In many zouk’s albums, this period often included one or even several, tracks that were qualified as "proto-zouk" and "funky-zouk" or the "boogie-zouk" to emphasize the fusion of genres . But these tracks have remained unknown to the general public because only the "hits" were played on the radio, dance floors (the famous "tan" or “zouk”), clubs and bus.

Booklet for fonè Natural Jazz Recordings (30th Anniversary)