Album Notes

Since its inception, FJC has been a gigging band. Which is to say, rehearsals have been anomalies to the group’s modus operandi; hardly reaching beyond conceptual abstraction. Foothill Jazz was born in the public sphere and continues to evolve out in the open.

The use of the term “collective” is not an accident. While the band rarely gigs anything larger than a quartet, it is, out of necessity, a web of relationships between different players in the local geography (including some excellent ones who didn’t happen to grace this recording).

This album is both a snapshot of the group in a particular time and space as well as a culmination of the last several years of playing music together. Some of the tunes are normal to the rotation; some were pulled out for the first time at the session.

While every track on the album is a standard, they are not all performed traditionally. Elements of funk, acid jazz, contemporary and even reggae are dispersed throughout. But the goal has not been innovative arrangements of standards. Rather, it has been an attempt to capture on tape the Spirit that has inspired this group to continue to play and develop; or, more fundamentally, to communicate THAT which inspires us to play music at all and in the first place.

I am happy to report that on this record are genuine moments where the band is not merely a collection of disparate elements; but instead one cohesive Unit, a single Sound, completely Present in musical Awareness. To the extent that that has been achieved, we can all rest easy with its contents. We can only hope that listeners will find a similar connection when taking in this material.

In closing, we would all like to thank family and friends; those who give import, support and meaning to our lives. I personally want to give special thanks to all the members of FJC for contributing their time, effort, and souls to this project (and to Kirt Shearer of Paradise Studios for putting up with me during the mix sessions as well as his wife Diana for the Beautiful artwork). Enjoy!

~Barry Eldridge