Drummer Terri Lyne Carrington pieces together her hotly anticipated Mosaic Project follow-up
‘The Mosaic Project: LOVE and SOUL’ is released August 7th with a stellar female vocalist and instrumentalist cast in a soulful tribute to her favourite men.
After winning a GRAMMY for Best Jazz Vocal Album for her 2011 release ‘The Mosaic Project’ drummer Terri Lyne Carrington releases the much anticipated follow-up, ‘The Mosaic Project: LOVE and SOUL’ on August 7th.
Like its predecessor this album showcases an enviable cast of female instrumentalists and vocalists including Oleta Adams, Natalie Cole, Lalah Hathaway, Chaka Khan, Chanté Moore, Valerie Simpson, Nancy Wilson, Jaguar Wright and Lizz Wright, as well as saxophonist Tia Fuller, trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, bassists Meshell Ndegoecello and Linda Oh and keyboardists Geri Allen, Patrice Rushen and Rachel Z.
On ‘The Mosaic Project: LOVE and SOUL’ Carrington pays homage to various male artists who have influenced her professionally and informed her musicality, such as Nick Ashford, George Duke, Duke Ellington, Frank Sinatra, Luther Vandross and Bill Withers.
“Whenever I do something that celebrates women, I never want it to feel like it’s something that excludes men,” she explains. “On this record, I consciously wanted to celebrate the various relationships women have with men either through original songs of mine or cover songs by male composers and song writers.”
“Duke Ellington said ‘jazz means freedom of expression’ and he also said ‘there’s nothing demeaning about playing music for dancing,’” Carrington explains. “I’m in agreement and this album is my spin on jazz meets soul, with danceable grooves as well as a jazz aesthetic that comes not only from the arrangements, but also from the singer’s sophistication and ability to go between genres.”
Carrington continues to show her deep admiration of Duke Ellington with a makeover of his 1943 classic, ‘Come Sunday’ featuring Natalie Cole. She presents Sinatra’s 1951 ballad, ‘I’m a Fool to Want You’ with Chaka Khan’s distinctive and soulful phrasing and covers Luther Vandross’ 1988 ballad, ‘For You to Love’ with Oleta Adams.
Valerie Simpson, of the legendary husband-and-wife duo Ashford & Simpson, sings their 1976 song, ‘Somebody Told a Lie’ with a delightful unexpected Afro-Latin breakdown, featuring pianist Geri Allen.
Legendary song stylist Nancy Wilson enlivens the amorous ‘Imagine This,’ a Carrington original in which she stretched herself as a lyricist.
The voice of Terri’s good friend George Duke introduces the soulful mid-tempo original ‘Best of the Best,’ on which Chanté Moore sings lyrics reflecting on his vivacious personality and influential musical legacy.
Carrington revamps ‘This Too Will Pass,’ an original she wrote 15 yeas ago with long-time friend Lalah Hathaway who features and takes lead vocals herself on her own song ‘Can’t Resist.’ Another original ‘Get To Know You,’ features soul-jazz vocalist Ledisi amidst opulent horn arrangements.
The U.S. edition of album concludes with Carrington’s rendition of Patrice Rushen’s 1978 ballad, ‘When I Found You’ with new hooks and Rushen sharing keyboard duties with Rachel Z and the voice of Lizz Wright.