The Sulah Jordan “Ladybug” album came out a little while ago. I was invited to perform tenor saxophone and flutes on some songs. It was fun to record and a delight to listen to. Now there are videos. Enjoy.
Collab:: Sulah Jordan "The Sweetest Gift"
The second installation of some collaborations with my friend Sulah Jordan and company. This song is a rendition of Sade’s “The Sweetest Gift" I was invited to perform tenor saxophone solos. If you haven’t checked her first EP “Lady Bug”, you can find it on Spotify or at Bandcamp. Enjoy.
Summer 2021 News
Time continues to march on. I’m at my studio a lot, just collaborating with MoonRun on a new film soundtrack at Tiny Telephone in Oakland, dipping into the the studio for some last-minute horns to the new Toro y Moi album, and vocal engineering and production with vocalist Chris Gabo, writing new music for the next Antibalas record, and taking care of my baby daughter.
Stranger’s Guide, the literary / travel magazine of which I’m a contributing editor, recently won two major magazine awards: the ASME / National Magazine Awards for 1) General Excellence, Literature, Science and Politics, 2) Photography. This was a big win as the only other organizations that won more were the New Yorker and ProPublica.
I’m also excited to announce the release of an album I’m on, a long time in the works, Daptone Super Soul Revue - Live at the Apollo. My group Antibalas, along with Sharon Jones (RIP) and the Dap Kings, Charles Bradley (RIP), Naomi Shelton (RIP) and the Gospel Queens, Sugarman Three, Budos Band, Menahan Street Band did three nights at the Apollo in December of 2014, the culmination of a summerlong tour through Europe.
New Collab: "Prisma Tropical" : Balún feat. Antibalas Horns
Congratulations to Balún on the release of their new album "Prisma Tropical" (out 7/20/2018).
I was honored to be invited to the studio with the Antibalas horns, recording arrangements by trumpeter and Antibalas bandmate Eric Biondo for the song "Pulsos."
The rough mixes of the record sounded fantastic and otherworldly. I'm so happy this crew is making music and that this record will be soon out in the world.
Angelique Kidjo's REMAIN IN LIGHT: Album out 6/8/2018
Cover design: Kerry James Marshall
At the end of 2016, Angelique Kidjo asked me to compose and prepare horn arrangements for "Crosseyed and Painless" by Talking Heads.
I had grown up in the late 70s and early 80s listening to Talking Heads (thanks, MOM!!), recorded with David Byrne and St. Vincent a few years ago, and then served as the musical director for "The Music of David Byrne and Talking Heads" at Carnegie Hall in 2015, with Antibalas as the house band.
Little did I know that this would turn into doing horn arrangements for the entirety of Remain in Light, recording on the album with producer Jeff Bhasker, and touring the country and the world with Angelique, her band, amazing guest musicians (including David Byrne and Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads, Nona Hendryx of Labelle, Lionel Loueke, keyboardists Ray Angry and Jason Lindner), and of course, my brothers from the Antibalas horns.
We just finished up a run of shows on the West Coast, and the project will continue to travel the world and beyond after the release of the album on June 8, 2018.
Live at the Theatre at Ace Hotel, Downtown LA. 5/5/2018. Photo: Oz McGuire
For those who got a chance to see the show, THANK YOU!! For those who haven't, brace yourselves! It is powerful and poetic.
New Ocote Soul Sounds 45 out TODAY!
New 45 single release by Ocote Soul Sounds feat. Quantic and Chico Mann. Out 6/17/2016 on Wonderwheel Recordings.
Upcoming collab: Fabrizio Cammarata
This September, I'll be headed to Palermo, Sicily to work with singer/songwriter Fabrizio Cammarata on his new album. We met a few years back on my first trip to Palermo and he and I have stayed in loose touch since then.
I'll be bringing some flutes, 1-2 one, some percussion and a few gizmos and we'll see what we come up with.
I am very excited to get back to Sicily. I was able to make a week-long trip after Questlove's Afro-Picks back in 2011. I spent two nights in a grimy hostel in Catania, then took the train across the north side of the island to Palermo, where I met up with Christoph Storbeck, Fabrizio's manager. I spent four or five days there getting to know the town and meeting some musicians and getting lost in the ancient delicious weirdness of Palermo.