Monterey International

The Milestone …

Maybe it's a letter. Maybe it's a Roman numeral.

Whatever it is, X marks the spot for those who like to feel a little heat in the heart of cool music.

What else would you expect from Fourplay? Fifteen years ago this quartet launched the smooth jazz movement with a debut album that shot straight to the top of the Contemporary Jazz charts – and it's only been uphill from there.

Now, with their tenth release, Fourplay – Bob James, Nathan East, Larry Carlton, and Harvey Mason – link the accomplishments of their collective and individual careers to a sound that's at once familiar and adventurous: the sound of X.

From the chart-searing single “My Love's Leavin',” which features the unmistakable guest vocals of Michael McDonald, through eight instrumental performances, X breaks new ground while building on the foundation of the group's unique style.

All the pieces of X fit together: the fiery polish of James's piano solos and easy-access sophistication of his compositions; the bluesy elegance of Carlton's playing, whether played at a high-velocity but clean-picked clip or singing in one long, perfectly bent note; East's funky, swinging bass, softened often by the velvet of his vocal in unison with his line; and Mason's dead-on groove, never missing the pocket, always fanning the flames that rise around the rhythm.

But there's more on X : a feeling of completeness in the compositions that suggests something different in how the quartet approached this landmark project.

It's not your imagination; it is, in fact, the result of each guy in the band coming to the first X date readier than he'd ever been to make some magic happen.

The Pre-Play …

Credit Bob James with setting this stage. With Fourplay sessions scheduled to begin last February, he took advantage of some rare down time in January to put together demos for several songs, convert them to MP3 files, and email them to his three colleagues.

“It was kind of scary,” he says, with a smile. “Most of the time in the past, we've all brought simple demos to the studio when we'd get together, so we could play them with the usual disclaimers: ‘It's not really mixed, it's only a rough idea,” and so on. You can't do that when you send an MP3; once you hit that button, it's out there, and it either lives or it doesn't.”

Seconds later, at his home near Nashville, far from James's place in rural Montana, Larry Carlton happened to be on his computer when the first MP3 arrived. “I actually had my two songs for the album mixed and ready to go, but I wasn't going to be the first to put them out there,” he says, laughing. “Then here comes ‘Turnabout,' and it sounded incredible, like a finished record. So I sent him my demo of ‘Cinnamon Sugar,' and Bob emailed me back the next morning and said, ‘Yeah, man, we can make this one happen. I love it.'”

With that, the gates opened, and soon everyone in the band was shooting demos to each other. Weeks before they actually got together, all four were working out their parts to each other's songs – some of them surprising, even unprecedented, in the Fourplay saga. “When I heard ‘Screenplay' I thought that it had a Modern Jazz Quartet feel,” explains Nathan East. “So I decided to play upright bass on that tune and on ‘Turnabout' too. It was the first time I'd ever done that on a Fourplay record.”

Nathan's demos included a soulful ballad, “Sunday Morning,” and a tune he'd written with his brother Marcel, “Eastern Sky,” whose quick tempo was also something of a departure. “Frankly, it surprised me,” Bob admits, “I knew I'd have to play a very different kind of solo over it than I'd played on most of the other tunes, so it was very helpful to have this in advance. Even so, there's still a gorgeous melody in there, which is very characteristic of Nathan's writing, and his fretless solo is quite amazing, even though he makes it sound effortless.”

Harvey Mason, like the others in Fourplay, contributed two songs to X , one of them, the street-smart, rhythmically infectious “Kid Zero,” a departure in a different sense. “I know what each guy brings to the table,” he says. “I used that in writing my ballad, ‘Twilight Touch.' But ‘Kid Zero' was the title song of a musical I wrote to promote better ways of teaching math to kids. I kept hearing it in my head, so I wrote it out, gave it to the band, and they interpreted. It's a great example of how Fourplay can find new ways of handling material that wasn't written specifically for it.”

The Voice …

That's our segue into “My Love's Leavin',” the only cover and the first single from X . Written and recorded originally by Steve Winwood, it's an ideal vehicle as well for Michael McDonald, whose emotional vocal receives perfect support from Bob's arrangement. Fourplay had appeared McDonald's Motown album three years before, backing his performance of Stevie Wonder's “Too High.” Memories of that experience inspired them to record another classic tune, Steve Winwood's “My Love's Leavin',” with hope that McDonald would be interested in adding his voice to the mix. Just in case they put it in a key that McDonald would find suitable.

“Of course,” Bob points out, “Michael's range is so huge that he probably could have sung this in any key.”

“But I love where his voice falls in this key. He sounds completely comfortable. In fact, I've never heard him sing better than this,” adds Larry, whose sweet, understated guitar solo has plenty to do with the intensity of this track.

“He sang it,” Nathan sums up, “as if he'd written it himself.”

“I was actually a little worried about how Michael would feel about singing a song that one of his peers had written and recorded so brilliantly,” Bob says. “But he rose to the challenge, put his twist on it, and we completely flipped.”

The Road …

The Fourplay story has always been a dance of contrary energies: the group's identity and the characteristics of its members, each one a supreme artist on his own terms. In just the two years since Journey , the previous Fourplay album, Bob has released a solo CD, Urban Flamingo , and been honored with a Benson Lifetime Achievement Award at the Canadian Smooth Jazz; Nathan has recorded and toured on multiple projects, including an international tour with tenor sensation Andrea Bocelli; Larry has issued two original albums, Sapphire Blue and Firewire ; and Harvey Mason, in between sessions with Kanye West, John Legend, John Mayer, and other artists, has explored the acoustic jazz trio format on his all-star CD With All My Heart and on a second installment in the series, Trios II, scheduled to appear later this year.

For the time being, though, they're together through August and much of September on the Fourplay tour, which stops scheduled throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. The future beyond that is, as the future tends to be, somewhat mysterious – but based on these past fifteen years, several bets seem safe.

“I'm doing lots of producing this year, which means being in control of the direction for each project,” Nathan says. “But Fourplay is still the one opportunity I have to pursue creative freedom with friends of mine who also happen to be musicians at the top of their game. We're all very busy, but we always make time for this group; it's that important to us.”

“Four heads – four exceptionally good heads – are better than one,” Harvey states. “Here you have four players on equal footing, all working toward the same goal. It can't help but keep being a success.”

“Familiarity breeds success,” adds Larry. “We enjoy this thing so much because each one of us is equal, which makes it a uniquely open forum for us to explore each other's ideas.”

“This group is too important to all of us to give up,” Bob concludes. “So I imagine we'll be doing this for quite a few years to come.”

The Last Word …

All we can add is: X -quisite.


	Fourplay + Promoter Tools Generally Available / New Album Fall 2008 Responsible Agent: Paul Goldman + View Upcoming Dates + www.fourplayjazz.com + Myspace Page *The Milestone …* Maybe it's a letter. Maybe it's a Roman numeral. Whatever it is, X marks the spot for those who like to feel a little heat in the heart of cool music. What else would you expect from Fourplay? Fifteen years ago this quartet launched the smooth jazz movement with a debut album that shot straight to the top of the Contemporary Jazz charts – and it's only been uphill from there. Now, with their tenth release, Fourplay – Bob James, Nathan East, Larry Carlton, and Harvey Mason – link the accomplishments of their collective and individual careers to a sound that's at once familiar and adventurous: the sound of X. From the chart-searing single “My Love's Leavin',” which features the unmistakable guest vocals of Michael McDonald, through eight instrumental performances, X breaks new ground while building on the foundation of the group's unique style. All the pieces of X fit together: the fiery polish of James's piano solos and easy-access sophistication of his compositions; the bluesy elegance of Carlton's playing, whether played at a high-velocity but clean-picked clip or singing in one long, perfectly bent note; East's funky, swinging bass, softened often by the velvet of his vocal in unison with his line; and Mason's dead-on groove, never missing the pocket, always fanning the flames that rise around the rhythm. But there's more on X : a feeling of completeness in the compositions that suggests something different in how the quartet approached this landmark project. It's not your imagination; it is, in fact, the result of each guy in the band coming to the first X date readier than he'd ever been to make some magic happen. *The Pre-Play …* Credit Bob James with setting this stage. With Fourplay sessions scheduled to begin last February, he took advantage of some rare down time in January to put together demos for several songs, convert them to MP3 files, and email them to his three colleagues. “It was kind of scary,” he says, with a smile. “Most of the time in the past, we've all brought simple demos to the studio when we'd get together, so we could play them with the usual disclaimers: ‘It's not really mixed, it's only a rough idea,” and so on. You can't do that when you send an MP3; once you hit that button, it's out there, and it either lives or it doesn't.” Seconds later, at his home near Nashville, far from James's place in rural Montana, Larry Carlton happened to be on his computer when the first MP3 arrived. “I actually had my two songs for the album mixed and ready to go, but I wasn't going to be the first to put them out there,” he says, laughing. “Then here comes ‘Turnabout,' and it sounded incredible, like a finished record. So I sent him my demo of ‘Cinnamon Sugar,' and Bob emailed me back the next morning and said, ‘Yeah, man, we can make this one happen. I love it.'” With that, the gates opened, and soon everyone in the band was shooting demos to each other. Weeks before they actually got together, all four were working out their parts to each other's songs – some of them surprising, even unprecedented, in the Fourplay saga. “When I heard ‘Screenplay' I thought that it had a Modern Jazz Quartet feel,” explains Nathan East. “So I decided to play upright bass on that tune and on ‘Turnabout' too. It was the first time I'd ever done that on a Fourplay record.” Nathan's demos included a soulful ballad, “Sunday Morning,” and a tune he'd written with his brother Marcel, “Eastern Sky,” whose quick tempo was also something of a departure. “Frankly, it surprised me,” Bob admits, “I knew I'd have to play a very different kind of solo over it than I'd played on most of the other tunes, so it was very helpful to have this in advance. Even so, there's still a gorgeous melody in there, which is very characteristic of Nathan's writing, and his fretless solo is quite amazing, even though he makes it sound effortless.” Harvey Mason, like the others in Fourplay, contributed two songs to X , one of them, the street-smart, rhythmically infectious “Kid Zero,” a departure in a different sense. “I know what each guy brings to the table,” he says. “I used that in writing my ballad, ‘Twilight Touch.' But ‘Kid Zero' was the title song of a musical I wrote to promote better ways of teaching math to kids. I kept hearing it in my head, so I wrote it out, gave it to the band, and they interpreted. It's a great example of how Fourplay can find new ways of handling material that wasn't written specifically for it.” *The Voice …* That's our segue into “My Love's Leavin',” the only cover and the first single from X . Written and recorded originally by Steve Winwood, it's an ideal vehicle as well for Michael McDonald, whose emotional vocal receives perfect support from Bob's arrangement. Fourplay had appeared McDonald's Motown album three years before, backing his performance of Stevie Wonder's “Too High.” Memories of that experience inspired them to record another classic tune, Steve Winwood's “My Love's Leavin',” with hope that McDonald would be interested in adding his voice to the mix. Just in case they put it in a key that McDonald would find suitable. “Of course,” Bob points out, “Michael's range is so huge that he probably could have sung this in any key.” “But I love where his voice falls in this key. He sounds completely comfortable. In fact, I've never heard him sing better than this,” adds Larry, whose sweet, understated guitar solo has plenty to do with the intensity of this track. “He sang it,” Nathan sums up, “as if he'd written it himself.” “I was actually a little worried about how Michael would feel about singing a song that one of his peers had written and recorded so brilliantly,” Bob says. “But he rose to the challenge, put his twist on it, and we completely flipped.” *The Road …* The Fourplay story has always been a dance of contrary energies: the group's identity and the characteristics of its members, each one a supreme artist on his own terms. In just the two years since Journey , the previous Fourplay album, Bob has released a solo CD, *Urban Flamingo* , and been honored with a Benson Lifetime Achievement Award at the Canadian Smooth Jazz; Nathan has recorded and toured on multiple projects, including an international tour with tenor sensation Andrea Bocelli; Larry has issued two original albums, Sapphire Blue and Firewire ; and Harvey Mason, in between sessions with Kanye West, John Legend, John Mayer, and other artists, has explored the acoustic jazz trio format on his all-star CD *With All My Heart* and on a second installment in the series, Trios II, scheduled to appear later this year. For the time being, though, they're together through August and much of September on the Fourplay tour, which stops scheduled throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. The future beyond that is, as the future tends to be, somewhat mysterious – but based on these past fifteen years, several bets seem safe. “I'm doing lots of producing this year, which means being in control of the direction for each project,” Nathan says. “But Fourplay is still the one opportunity I have to pursue creative freedom with friends of mine who also happen to be musicians at the top of their game. We're all very busy, but we always make time for this group; it's that important to us.” “Four heads – four exceptionally good heads – are better than one,” Harvey states. “Here you have four players on equal footing, all working toward the same goal. It can't help but keep being a success.” “Familiarity breeds success,” adds Larry. “We enjoy this thing so much because each one of us is equal, which makes it a uniquely open forum for us to explore each other's ideas.” “This group is too important to all of us to give up,” Bob concludes. “So I imagine we'll be doing this for quite a few years to come.” *The Last Word …* All we can add is: X -quisite. made in chime/PROD Any use of any material on this site, including but not limited to any images, is strictly prohibited without the prior written approval of Monterey International.