Wed. April 23, 2008
By DJ Plez
"Wright On!"
OMG! The new album by Lizz Wright, THE ORCHARD (Verve), is an incredible piece of musical magic. Possessed of a beautifully strong voice, Wright presents 12 tracks on this third effort of hers that has been hailed by many as both the best adult contemporary and best jazz vocal albums to be released thus far in 2008. Her smoky vocal performance is hauntingly seductive and her effortless ability to blend jazz, R&B, and gospel will undoubtedly bring comparisons to the likes of Nina Simone and Billie Holiday. Don't sleep on Ms. Wright; THE ORCHARD needs to be in your collection.
30 Down. 30 More To Go?
Centaur is back at it again and it has hit another home run with its latest continuous mix, GLOBAL GROOVE: LIVE 3. Mixed by DJ David Knapp and DJ Escape this CD is a full on high-energy peak-hours affair filled with tracks that have recently been rocking dance floors around the world and a few that are sure to be hits in the coming months. Among the album's 13 songs are "The Boss" by Kristine W, "Another Cha Cha" by Offer Nissim, "Stars" by Erika Jayne, "Amazing" by Celeda, "Eye Can See U" by Suzanne Palmer, and "Say You Will" by Inaya Day. Knapp and Escape are formidable creative forces on their own and thus it is no surprise that as a team they have succeeded in putting together a mix that will undoubtedly delight many throughout the spring and into the summer.
It's Randy Jackson's World
Branching out, and quite profitably so, from his "American Idol" judges seat, Randy Jackson is proving to be quite a significant media mogul with current projects that can be seen on television and heard on radio (and on your MP3 player). On MTV, Jackson produced the highly-rated "America's Best Dance Crew," a multi-week competition featuring hip-hop dance groups. The dancing on this show was top-notch and incredibly inventive while the host (Mario Lopez) and the panel of judges (choreographer Shane Sparks, rapper Lil Mama, and former N'Sync member J.C. Chasez) added tons of coolness and sexiness to the show.
More closely related to his musical roots, Jackson, who is an accomplished Grammy Award winning rock bassist, has been busy in the studio this past year creating RANDY JACKSON'S MUSIC CLUB – VOLUME ONE (Dream Merchant 21). This CD features songs by the likes of Joss Stone, Katherine McPhee, Angie Stone, Richie Sambora and his fellow "AI" judge Paula Abdul. Not surprisingly, MUSIC CLUB is a solid radio-friendly effort that is sure to please a wide range of listeners. This new CD (which is charting well), combined with "Dance Crew" and the current season of "American Idol" is proof that Jackson is arguably one of the most influential persons in American pop culture today.
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