Smith, Shawn

Charlie Hunter, Chinna Smith & Ernest Ranglin - Earth Tones (2005) {Breadfruit Music GSE-704}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 387 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 138 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 57 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2005 Breadfruit Music / Green Streets Entertainment | GSE-704
Jazz / Reggae / Modern Post Bebop / Soul Jazz / 8 String Guitar

Groovemeister Charlie Hunter joins Jamaican guitarists legends Earl “Chinna” Smith and Ernest Ranglin for a spirited set that blends reggae flavor with dub aesthetics, courtesy of Saturday Night Live drummer Shawn Pelton’s adventurous echo and looping effects triggered from his kit. Anchored by the tight hookup between Hunter’s deeply grooving bass lines and Pelton’s insistent, slamming backbeats, Earth Tones also features the coloristic percussion work of former Weather Reporter Manolo Badrena.

It's been nearly a decade since Charlie Hunter collaborated with other guitarists (the great T.J. Kirk band of the mid-'90s), but Earth Tones finds him revisiting the format with very different results. Hunter got together with legendary Jamaican guitarists Ernest Ranglin and Chinna Smith for an easygoing set of (mostly) covers that largely tread the kind of Jamaican-flavored jazz that Ranglin's been known for for years. There are some reggae and dub elements here and there, but you'd be hard-pressed to call it a reggae album. Recorded with very few overdubs, the cooperative arrangements are perfect, with plenty of space for everyone and the players almost finishing each other's thoughts. Hunter's guitar always has a bit of Leslie effect on it (remember, he's throwing down the basslines at the same time!), Chinna sticks to acoustic, and Ranglin plays with his trademark clean electric sound, so it's really easy to pick out who's doing what and compare their different styles.