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Lee RitenourLee Ritenour has long been the perfect studio musician, one
who can melt into the background without making any impact. While he possesses
impressive technique, Ritenour has mostly played instrumental pop throughout his
career, sometimes with a Brazilian flavor. His few jazz efforts have found him
essentially imitating Wes Montgomery, but despite that he has been consistently
popular since the mid-'70s. After touring with Sergio Mendes' Brasil '77 in 1973,
Ritenour became a very busy studio guitarist in Los Angeles, taking time off for
occasional tours with his groups and in the mid-'90s with Bob James in Fourplay.
He also recorded many albums as a leader.
Over the course of Rit's milestone
thirty recordings, (including 1997's Alive in L.A., the first time he chronicled
his live performances), he has earned several gold albums, numerous #1 spots in
guitar polls and the prestigious "Alumnus of the Year" award from USC. Since the
70s, Rit has been a huge presence in a cross-section of radio genres. In 1981,
he scored the pop 15 hit "Is It You," featuring vocalist Eric Tagg, which has
also become a smooth jazz radio classic. Most recently, "Get Up Stand Up," the
first single from the A Twist of Marley recording, was the #1 Radio & Records
NAC airplay single of 2001.
In the 90s, he was a founding member of
Fourplay, the most successful band in contemporary jazz, with keyboardist Bob
James, bassist Nathan East and drummer Harvey Mason. The first Fourplay album
in 1991 spent an unprecedented 33 weeks at No. 1 on Billboard's contemporary jazz
chart, while their Grammy-nominated follow-up, Between the Sheets, captured the
top slot on the Billboard, R&R, Gavin and NAC charts on its way to a gold sales
certification. In addition to producing his own recordings, Ritenour has produced
projects for such artists as Eric Marienthal, Phil Perry and Vesta, which were
released on his i.e. music label, along with A Twist of Jobim. Additional production
credits include Patti Austin, Will Downing and most recently, A Twist of Marley.
Visit
the official Lee Ritenour website here |
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Lee
Ritenour: Rit's House The
old Rit is back! His smiling, swaggering guitar-playing alter ego has resurfaced,
and he's invited all his friends over for a tumultuous jam, including George Duke,
Marcus Miller, and Peter Erskine. Red-hot organist Joey DeFrancesco brings the
Wes Montgomery out of Ritenour on the corner of "78th & 3rd," and
a killer overhaul of Dave Grusin's movie theme "Three Days of the Condor,"
re-titled "Condor," is a reminder that Rit was kicking the smooth jazz
before they had a name for it. Some beboppers already know that Ritenour is quite
capable in that genre, too. In case they've forgotten, he's got Lee Morgan's "Party
Time" and Gary McFarland's nice Brazilian piece, "13." Michael
McDonald sings a Sting song, and the guitarist's buddy, Ernie Watts is back on
sax on "A Little Dolphin Dreamin'," a tune that harkens back to their
old fusion days. There's no themes or long-form tributes; everyone is just having
a great time and it sounds like it. Rit's House is the guitarist 30th album, but
it's the first "real" Lee Ritenour record in a long time. --Mark
Ruffin. Order
here from Amazon.com |
"Play
What You Hear" author Chris Standring has a brand new album out on Ultimate
Vibe Recordings entitled "Blue Bolero". "With
his sixth CD, Blue Bolero, Standring returns with a left-turning musical project
so daring in its scope but still so true to his sound that it is destined to be
one of the year's most-discussed projects, while certainly sure to be remembered
in years to come as a highlight of the guitarist's works. He's taking a chance
with Blue Bolero, but it's one his fans will certainly embrace as they follow
Standring's ever-evolving career. - Brian Soergel, Jazz Times Listen
to & purchase Blue Bolero
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