Richard Elliot

Smooth Jazz Icon Richard Elliot has performed and recorded with jazz and R&B superstars Rod Stewart, Smokey Robinson, The Yellow Jackets, Tower Of Power,and Bonnie Raitt, just to name a few. With more than 20 top ten smooth jazz singles and number 1 contemporary jazz albums, he has delighted his dedicated fan base worldwide. 'Straight Up Down', produced by Richard and his long-time collaborator Paul Brown, overflows with Richard's ebullient spirit. Highlights include a deeply moving remake of the S.O.S Band classic "Tell Me (If You Still Care About Me)," Richard's tasty collaboration with Paul Brown, "High Tide," the joyous "Very Delicious," and much more!

The name of this collection is as applicable to Elliot's real life piloting skills as it is to his flourishing solo career. As with his three prior releases, his tenor and alto saxes give you everything – soul, passion, heat – Elliot established himself with releases like these as the James Brown of contemporary jazz. Elliot is not as rambunctious as he was on the previous year's The Power of Suggestion, but he made strides toward finding that unique "Elliot sound." He succeeds most of the time here, most noticeably with a soaring, heart-searing rendition of Percy Sledge's "When a Man Loves a Woman," which became a trademark concert tune and one of his legacies on smooth jazz radio. He starts to let loose on the perky "The Grip," then turns on the smooth for "4:00 a.m.," "In Your Arms," and the tropical flavored "Down to the Keys." In place of rockers, Elliot goes for that midtempo groove, but you can't argue with success.

"I believe that Richard Elliot is one of the most under appreciated artists around! This CD, "The Power of Suggestion", is a fusion of bluesy-funky rhythms (a`la Tower of Power) and smooth jazz with just a hint of tropical breeze thrown in. From the title track, (which makes you move) to [on some CD's] the last track, "Michele" (which, without words, makes your heart ache) and all of the tracks in between (in particular "St. Croix", "Hearts On Fire" w/Phillip Ingram and "Neon Nights") stories are told; some sad, some raucous, some tell of love lost and some of happiness found. All of them are told from the heart, most without words. If you buy only one Richard Elliot CD, make it this one."

Summer Madness is a new kind of Richard Elliot recording. For one thing, the cast includes two other horn men augmenting Elliot's signature sax work: trumpeter/trombonist Rick Braun, who also produced the album and, on several tracks, baritone saxophonist Curt Waylee. Most importantly though, the music was created from scratch as Elliot and his handpicked musicians formulated and honed their ideas in the studio, with Braun's ultra-capable guidance. For Elliot, recruiting the additional players and having the entire band plus a well-respected veteran producer help him shape the music was integral to the project's success.

Richard Elliot's In the Zone picks up where 2009's Rock Steady left off. Where that album paid tribute to the saxophonist's R&B heroes, In the Zone, which marks Elliot's 25th anniversary as a recording artist, offers a thank-you to the influences of his predecessors in the smooth jazz genre: namely Grover Washington Jr., David Sanborn, and Bob James.