This Just In ...

Goodnight everyone, and have a laid back weekend!

Posted by Kevin Fischer on May 28, 2010

It's Friday night. Time to unwind with our regular Friday night feature on This Just In.

The weekend has finally arrived.

The sun has set.

The evening sky has erupted. 

Let's put controversy and provocative blogs aside for the rest of this work week and smooth our way into Saturday and Sunday, and this week…..Monday!

Tonight, more contemporary smooth sounds.

We open with Jeff Kashiwa. The saxman who was inspired by the great Stan Getz played with the Rippingtons from 1990-1999 before going solo.

This tune’s a natural tonight.

 
Next up, David Benoit, probably most famous for a Christmas song. 





Musicianguide.com writes, “When Benoit was small, his parents bought a piano and placed it in his bedroom. When he was eight, he moved with his parents and two brothers to Hermosa Beach, California. In this smaller house they were unable to keep the piano. When he was 13, the family moved again, this time to a larger home, and his parents bought another piano. David started taking lessons and his natural talent quickly blossomed. He began playing at high school events, and played with other school musicians in jazz and rock combos. By 17, he was playing the piano professionally. After high school, Benoit began attending El Camino College to study piano and composition. He dropped out to concentrate on developing his career, playing gigs in Hollywood nightclubs. His first big break came when he was only 20 years old. Richard Bascomb, a composer, overheard Benoit playing in a studio. In an interview included on the All About Jazz website, Benoit recalled Bascomb saying, ‘I like the way you play. I want you to play in this movie that I'm doing.’ The film, Nashville, directed by Robert Altman, was released in 1975.”

Benoit continued playing as a sideman but also started banging out solo albums.  He’s still going strong today. I think you'll enjoy this Latin-flavored number with some great sax work.



 

 



Good stuff.

Next...

We stay on the same theme.

Does he look familar?

Drawing a blank?

What if....

We...

Put him in, say....

Some pin stripes?

Wade Kergan of  All Music Guide writes, " Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Bernie Williams grew up in nearby Vego Alta and began playing guitar when he was eight, eventually studying classical guitar privately. He continued to concentrate on guitar in his teens, and considered it his career goal as a student at a performing arts high school in San Juan. Destiny, however, had different plans for Williams, who developed an impressive game on the baseball diamond and was drafted by the New York Yankees after high school. His interest in music never waned, though, and he continued to play guitar, often taking one on the road for away games. While most of his music studies concentrated on classical music, Williams' interests included, among others, jazz fusion luminaries like Pat Metheny, Scott Henderson, and Mike Stern. The all-star Yankees center fielder stepped into the music arena in 2003 with his Latin-tinged smooth jazz debut Journey Within."

This is Williams' most recent recording, with special guest Dave Koz on sax.

 

Wow.

Bernie Willams a polished pro on the guitar.

Neat, huh!

That’s it for this week.

Goodnight.

Sleep well.

Have a great holiday weekend.

We close with a track you’ve probably heard many times but may not be aware of the artist and/or title.

Enjoy Paul Hardcastle and “Serene.”