Melvin Smith
Portrait
© 2007 Melvin G. Smith Music (837101362030)
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He brings to the table the organic fusion of jazz, Latin, folk, and gospel standards. Along with his daring originals, Smith definantly satisfies the listener spirit, soul, and body.
tracks
- 1 Lord I Lift Your Name On High
- 2 Go Down Moses/Wade in the Water
- 3 Manasseh
- 4 Trylenera
- 5 Someday We'll All Be Free
- 6 1750 Washington St
- 7 God Bless The Child
- 8 Trylenera (part 2)
- 9 We Shall Overcome
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Melvin Smith, a Jacksonville, Florida native, began playing clarinet at the age of twelve. By the time he was thirteen Smith gravitated toward the tenor saxophone. Growing up in Florida, Melvin was exposed to many styles of music. Developing at a relatively fast rate, he started playing at various venues in Jacksonville. By his senior year of high school, Melvin decided on a career in music. In 1992 Smith was accepted and given a scholarship to the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston.
Moving to Boston was an eye opening experience for Melvin. Playing with so many good musicians was a great motivator for Smith to develop even further. While in Boston, he had the pleasure of studying with Andy McGhee, Billy Pierce, George Garzone, and Walter Beasley to name a few. He was awarded the Lennie Johnson Award while at Berklee. In 1996 after completing his Bachelor’s degree, Melvin decided to move to New York and enrolled in Queens College for further study. While at Queens, he studied with jazz legends Jimmy Heath and Sir Roland Hanna as well as the proficient Todd Williams and Michael Phillip Mossman. Melvin completed his Master’s degree in 1999.
Influenced by Many styles, Smith has had the pleasure of opening for Ce Ce Winans and Donnie McClurkin. Melvin has shared the stage with Norman Connors, Michael Henderson, as well as Charlie Persip, and Ben Vereen. Smith’s focus these days are on composition. Melvin melds gospel, jazz, world beat, folk and rock into his music for a style that is uniquely his own. Melvin Smith is definitely an emerging voice to look for on the scene today.
"....Whether playing gently or blowing hard and furious, Melvin Smith lays down nine tracks of saxophone savvy music in a burner of an album." Edward Blanco E Jazz News
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Strong musician, strong music, incredible album
author: John Book. Music For AmericaSpirituality and the respect of culture are the themes behind Melvin Smith's Portrait, which is a snapspot of his thoughts and views of life and the world. While I don't know the song, I have heard "Lord I Left Your Name On High" through various made-for-TV compilation albums, so it was a surprise for me to hear it done in a jazz frame of mind. Smith's playing in this track sounds a lot like what Grover Washington, Jr. was doing in the early and mid-70's, the CTI-era that a lot of fans still call some of his best. He and the band add a bit of a Latin flair to the proceedings, and one can almost imagine Smith walking around from city to city, country to country, delivering good music to everyone who is able to hear him. After the first track, Smith undoes his tie and gets a bit more serious by turning "Go Down Moses" and "Wade In The Water" into an earthy blues medley. It is unexpected, but it works very well. One might say "oh no, that sounds like the dirge of the bordello" and while that may be, the contradiction is what makes his performance work, by placing the gospel into a setting that one might feel is unfitting for that kind of music, and in time shows the strength of not only the song, but the musicianship involved. In fact, his passion for mixing the traditional with the unknown or uncertain work very well for him. Covering Donny Hathaway's "Someday We'll All Be Free" would have definitely made him very happy to hear his song done in this way. He also has a number of his own compositions on the album, including "1750 Washington St.", which is said to honor friends of days gone by, and it sounds that way as one can hear nothing but smiles and good times, especially in the piano work of Gregory Royals. When Smith and the band get to "We Shall Overcome", it's a call for unity, strength, and justice that continues to be the core in the fight against inequality around the world, especially here in the U.S. Portrait is an album that could have easily been a snapshot of this country in 1967, 1962, 1957, or 1897, and perhaps that's the point for an album like this. Despite the different faces and different styles of clothing, the portrait may very well be the same throughout the ages. Smith merely serves as the man/musician behind the camera, and someone who plays with optimism and hope in order to one day be someone to witness a different portrait taken.