Album Notes

\"ContraBand\" contains jazz arrangements of the music from the 1980\'s side-scrolling, run & gun, 8-bit video game called Contra. The songs chronical each level (or stage) of the game, in sequential order. Since the beginning of jazz, musicians have reworked songs familiar to non-jazz listeners and made them their own.

Music from pop tunes, movie soundtracks and Broadway shows have been arranged and performed in a jazz format. The album \"ContraBand\" was created in honor of this tradition. In his arrangements, Cliff has kept the melody, harmony lines, and feel of the compositions true to their original form, while still opening up the songs with jazz chord changes to allow for improvised solos.

Tenor saxophonist Cliff Colon performs with fellow Seattle musicians J. Charles on alto saxophone, Frank Seeberger on guitar, Eric Verlinde on rhodes, Chuck Kistler on bass and D\'Vonne Lewis on drums.