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Billy Cobham had always incorporated elements of disco and funk into his solo recordings; however, this is the most painful example. Even his die-hard fans haven't forgiven him for this embarrassment…

Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture "Donald" Byrd II (December 9, 1932 – February 4, 2013) was an American jazz and rhythm & blues trumpeter. A sideman for many other jazz musicians of his generation, Byrd was best known as one of the only bebop jazz musicians who successfully pioneered the funk and soul genres while simultaneously remaining a jazz artist.

Sadao Watanabe - Orange Express (1981) {2016 Japan Crossover & Fusion Collection 1000 Series SICJ 167}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 334 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 116 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (png) -> 312 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1981, 2016 Columbia / Sony Music Japan | SICJ 167
Jazz / Fusion / Groove / Crossover Jazz / Saxophone / Flute

Reissue with the latest DSD remastering. Comes with liner notes. Sadao Watanabe hits a sweet fusiony groove – riding the Orange Express to LA, and picking up some great Dave Grusin arrangements on the way! The album's got the sweetly soulful finish of others from the classic years of Japanese fusion – a style that's as much influenced by mainstream soul as it is by jazz – but which comes across with some top-shelf playing throughout, thanks to a lineup that includes George Benson, Bobby Broom, Eric Gale, Richard Tee, and Marcus Miller – not to mention Watanabe and Grusin themselves! Titles include "Orange Express", "Ride On", "Straight To The Top", "Mbali Africa", and "Bagamoyo/Zanzibar".

GRAMMY Award-winning keyboardist/composer/producer Jeff Lorber recalls seeing guitarist Mike Stern during his much-ballyhooed tenure with Miles Davis in the early ‘80s. “I’ve been a fan of his for a long time,” said the keyboardist, who was touring hard in support of his hit records Wizard Island and It’s a Fact in those analog days. “Jeff Lorber Fusion and Miles Davis were playing some of the same festivals back then, so I got to hear him play.” For his part, Stern offered, “To be honest, I was aware of him, and had heard a bunch of good things, but I had never really checked him out. We were just in different orbits, me and Jeff.”

The Jeff Lorber Fusion is the debut album by keyboardist Jeff Lorber as leader of his band "The Jeff Lorber Fusion". Instrumental light jazz set that introduced Lorber as a leader and also featured contributions from a then unknown vocalist who went on to achieve Urban Contemporary success in her own right–Karyn White.

Fusion Orchestra was a highly talented progressive rock ensemble from the UK that did tight but not over-worked heavy prog with an honest, classic but unique sound. Singer/flautist/synthist Jill Saward, apparently the axis of the group, leads with a high squall and quite good flute, and paralleled the vocal sound the Wilson sisters would cultivate. Though unlike Heart, Jill Saward, Dave Bell (drums), Colin Dawson (guitar), Dave Cowell (bass), and Sten Land (synth, guitar, horns) did a very complex and multi-layered music with many roads into jazz-fusion, folk, and Celtic.
The album "Skeleton In Armour", especially for 1973, is a model of Prog Rock successfully integrated as a viable popular medium and though not truly competitive against the likes of bigger peers, is far better than many bands that have become well known…

French guitarist/producer U-Nam is again standing tall and looming large on the smooth jazz scene with another creative gem called C’est Le Funk. In addition to dazzling us with his graceful and funky instrumental work (and one funky delivery with vocals from Tim “TiO” Owens), the album is loaded with strong production and presence. Wasting no time putting the groove into high gear from the start, the guitarist leads off with a driving track called “Smoovin’,” continues plowing ahead with the party groover “Something’s Up” and strutting right through the super-funky, hook-rich title track which features Nivo Deux (Nivo Deux is actually a project organized by U-Nam and wife Shannon Kennedy focusing on the incorporation of 80’s Pop, Smooth Jazz, and Electro-Funk).