After a 40 year career as a composer/ arranger in film & TV (including over 700 national TV commercials), Phil Kelly has "returned to his musical roots as a hobby," and recorded his first big band jazz album. Featuring the very best studio and jazz players in the Pacific Northwest plus several old friends from L.A., New York and Nashville including Pete Christlieb, Andy Martin, Pat Coil, and Gary Smulyan, this album will be of great interest to fans of modern mainstream big band jazz. From Basie and Herman to Tower of Power and the Metropole Orchestra, Convergence Zone displays Kelly's deep love and knowledge of the music and offers a fresh new platform for the big band idiom.
TRACKS PERFORMERS
1 DAMP BROWN PLACES 6:39
2 CUZN BUBBA LUVZ EWE 6:11
3 SUBZTATOOT SHUFFLE 7:32
4 SWEET GEORGIA UPSIDE DOWN 5:15
5 BELLA LUCE 7:05
6 YOU AND THE NIGHT AND THE MUSIC 6:31
7 YADA YADA 5:28
8 O.T.B.S 7:21
9 KATHY'S WALTZ 4:29
10 THE REFRIGERATOR 8:26
Conductor: Phil Kelly
Trumpets/Flugelhorns:
BRAD ALLISON
JAY THOMAS
PAUL BARON (lead trumpet 3,5,7)
VERN SEILERT
Saxes /Woodwinds:
BILL RAMSAY
TRAVIS RANNEY
PETE CHRISTLIEB
JIM COILE
GARY SMULYAN
Trombones:
ANDY MARTIN
GARY SHUTES
DAN MARCUS tuba
NELSON BELL bass trombone
Rhythm:
JOHN HANSEN piano
CHUCK DEARDORF bass
GARY HOBBS drums
Rhythm on "Bubba" and "Refrigerator":
PAT COIL piano
PAUL LEIM drums
CRAIG NELSON electric bass (Bubba)
GERALD STOCKTON electric bass (Refrigerator)
MARK BALDWIN guitar
String Programming:
MATT BENNETT
PRODUCTION
Recorded and mixed August 25 & 26, 2003 by TOM HALL
at TRIAD STUDIOS, Redmond WA
Except "Bubba" & "Refrigerator"recorded at The Holler in Nashville TN
Engineered by DAVID HALL & mixed by DAVID LANGE at David Lange
Studio, Tacoma WA
Mastered by RICK FISHER at RFI Mastering, Seattle, WA
Cover photography by TODD BISHOP
Band photos by STEVE ROBINSON
Layout & design by JOHN BISHOP/OriginArts
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Publication: All About Jazz
Reviewer: Dan McClenaghan
If you watch any television at all it's a good bet you've heard Phil Kelly's sound. Kelly has worked for forty years as a composer/arranger in film and TV, including over 700 national TV commercials. For Convergence Zone Kelly has assembled some of the finest studio and jazz players in the Northwest for a swinging, sassy set of big band jazz.
The opener, ?Damp Brown Places - a sendup of ?Camp Town Races - sets an immediate tone for the recording: clean lines and brightly polished, meticuolously-crafted arrangements; propulsive swing; and a sound that brings Doc Severinson's Tonight Show Band to mind. No surprise there, since Kelly has written for Doc's band, in addition to writing and arranging stints for trombonist Bill Watrous's NYC Big Band.
?Cuzn Bubba Luvz Ewe and ?The Refrigerator bring some funk into the mix, while ?Sweet Georgia Upside Down swings with a sweet Ellingtonian brass/reed mix. The arrangement on ?Bella Luce is reminscent of Robert Farnon's work on the late trombone master J.J. Johnson's great but underappreciated Tangence CD (Gigantes, 1995), with some subtle but beautifully-done string programming.
Too many great solos to mention - two or three on every song; and listen to the way the limber rhythm guys adjust to the shift from ensemble to solo accompaniment throughout.
A highly polished sound, well-crafted arrangements: a bright, swinging set of big band jazz.
more reviews:
( Norm Tompach bigbandjazz.net )
If you think Julia Childs, Emeril Legasse, and other media applications, he has written for bands like Bill Watrous NY
Wildlife Refuge, the Old Tonight show band , Doc Severinsen, Si Zentner, as well as
functioning as arranger/ conductor / drummer for vocalists Buddy Greco, Mel
Torme, Oscar Brown Jr., Julius LaRosa, Frank DeRone, Sylvia Syms, John Gary, M
arilyn McCoo, Jenny Smith, Mike Douglas, and Al "TNT" Braggs among others.....
Listen to the sound bite, and see if this isn't one of the finest big band
CD's this year.
****************
Phil:
I do afternoon drive on WSIE-FM, a 50,000 watt,24 hour jazz station here in the St. Louis area. I have been playing you new CD for several weeks in HEAVY ROTATION. THIS CD IS BRILLIAMT! It should be nominated for a Grammy! Congratulations on such a wonderful CD and thanks for all of the hard work that went into this disc.
It really shows!
You can reach me any afternoon from 1-6 PM Central Time toll free at 1-888-325-8870 or email
at ross@standardsinjazz.com. My web page is: www.standardsinjazz.com
Best Wishes
Ross Gentile
"Standards In Jazz"
WSIE-FM
****************
Jae Sinnett ( jazz Programmers list
"Convergence Zone" adds a much needed upgrade to what the jazz orchestras are dealing with today in terms of predictability. The arrangements are challenging, fun and work only because of the quality of these musicians playing them. The sections are cohesive and beautifully in tune. The dynamic range of this band is refreshing. Jay Thomas is one of many standouts. Considering the overhead involved with making something like this work, give Origin and the musicians credit for what was I'm sure - a compromising, labor intensive and draining venture.
Jae Sinnett
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