Evelyn 'Champagne' King - Smooth Talk (1977)

Wonderfully smooth soul from Evelyn Champagne King – one of her real standouts from the early days, before her disco fame, and a tremendous collaboration with producer/arranger T Life! The sound here is upbeat and catchy, but never too poppy – done with a hint of that groove that King would hit more famously in the 80s, but served up here with a deeper sense of warmth, and a slightly more laidback feel.

King is classy without being cloying – just like a sip of the right sort of champagne – and T Life's backings often have a slight undercurrent of funk. Titles include the club classic "Shame" – but the best numbers for me are the slower, more soulful "Smooth Talk", "Til I Come Off The Road", "Nobody Knows", "We're Going To A Party", and "The Show Is Over". My personal favorite though would be the album version of her disco hit 'I Don't Know If It's Right', a heartbreaking rendering of a wonderful song that would unfortunately be speeded up and remixed for dancefloor purposes in its more famous incarnation.


Enjoy it!

Greg


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Moacir Santos - Saudade (1974)

Some sunny sounds for these dreary winter days with this killer album of brazilian jazz-funk! This is one of the rare Blue Note gems from Brazilian arranger/composer Moacir Santos – an album of incredible warmth and charm, with a sound that's hardly been duplicated again!

Santos is usually best known for his early bossa arrangements in the 60s, but here he's working in the US – hitting a sweet LA groove that mixes his earlier Brazilian styles with breezy touches from 70s jazz – done in a great mix of acoustic and electric instrumentation that sparkles tremendously throughout! The rhythms alone are worth the price of admission – complicated, compelling, but always grooving straight ahead – far different than both the usual sound of Brazilian jazz and Blue Note at the time, and a unique hybrid that's certainly one of Santos' finest moments on record. A few tracks feature vocals as well, done in a nicely reserved mode that fits in perfectly with the instrumentation of the tunes – and titles include a wonderful version of the song "Kathy", recorded previously as an instrumental by Horace Silver – plus "Off & On", "Amphibious", "Early Morning Love", "Suk Cha", "The City Of LA", and "Haply-Happy".


Enjoy it!

Greg


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