Fourplay - Fourplay 30th Anniversary Edition (Hybrid SACD)
30th Anniversary Edition
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Fourplay :
- Bob James (Keyboards) [click here to see more vinyl featuring Bob James]
- Lee Ritenour (guitar)
- Nathan East (bass)
- Harvey Mason (drums)
El DeBarge – Vocal (12)
Darryl DeBarge, Patti LaBelle, Philip Bailey – backing vocals
Written by Bob James (1, 4, 7, 11), Marcel East, Nathan East (2), Lee Ritenour (1, 3, 9, 10), Harvey Mason (5,8), Mike Lang (5), Marvin Gaye (6), Harvey Mason (8)
1 SACD, cardbord slipcase
Original analog Master tape : YES
Stereo
Studio
Label : Evosound
Original Label : Warner Bros
Issued in cardbord slipcase
Recorded 1990-1991 at Ocean Way Recording (Hollywood), Sunset Sound (Hollywood), Pyramid Studios (Los Angeles), Starlight Studios (Malibu)
Engineered and mixed by Don Murray
Produced by Fourplay
Remastered by Steve Vavagiakis
Executive-Producer - Bob James
Originally released in 1991
Reissued in December 2021
Tracks:
- Bali Run
- 101 Eastbound
- Foreplay
- Moonjogger
- Max-O-Man
- After The Dance
- Quadrille
- Midnight Stroll
- October Morning
- Wish You Were Here
- Rain Forest
- After The Dance [Long Version]
Reviews:
"There was no great cunning master plan that brought noted jazz instrumentalists Bob James (keyboards), Lee Ritenour (guitar), Nathan East (bass) and Harvey Mason (drums) together to form a supergroup.
Released in October 1991, Fourplay – aided by the success of the smash single ‘After The Dance‘ – peaked at No. 1 in America’s Contemporary Jazz charts for 33 weeks and sold over a million copies. It rose to No. 16 in the R&B rankings and No. 97 in America’s list of top pop records, The Billboard 200. Bob James‘ ‘Moonjogger‘ is a more ethereal-sounding instrumental and episodic in structure, going through different changes of gear and mood.
Lee Ritenour plays some tasteful guitar lines in a deft call-and-response exchange with James. Drummer Harvey Mason is responsible for ‘Max-O-Man,’ which opens with an intro spotlighting James’ crystalline piano melodies before mutating into a brisk uptempo groove seasoned with Ritenour’s tasteful guitar lines. ‘After The Dance‘ reconfigures Marvin Gaye’s 1976 Motown hit into a silky slow jam featuring the vocals of Detroit singer, El DeBarge, who was also signed to Warner Bros at the time. “El DeBarge was a perfect complement to the record and brought his R&B audience along with his beautiful voice and musicality,” remembers Nathan East. The Bob James‘ tune, ‘Quadrille‘ – named after a 19th-century country dance – is an elegant mid-tempo piece defined by subtle shifts in mood and instrumental colour. James plays a deft acoustic piano solo over a funk-infused section. Ritenour demonstrates his fingerboard prowess with a fleet-of-finger solo that blurs the line between jazz and rock vocabularies. The next tune, the Harvey Mason-written ‘Midnight Stroll,’ has the distinction of being the first song that the band recorded together and its easy-going, subtle elegance sets the tone for the album as a whole.
Evosound has remastered using hi-resolution digital transfers from the original analogue master tapes and manufactured in the format of MQA-CD, hybrid SACD, 2 x 180g Vinyl LP, and Hi-Res digital. The hybrid SACD plays on both SACD and regular CD players, as a multi-channel hybrid SACD including a 5.1 surround mix. A previously unreleased long version of ‘After The Dance’ is included as a bonus track (only available in stereo). The remastering of the album was undertaken using the high-resolution digital transfers from the original analogue master tapes. The hybrid multi-channel SACD plays on both SACD and regular CD players. A previously unreleased long version of ‘After The Dance’ is included as a bonus track in the MQA-CD. The remastering of the album was undertaken using the high-resolution digital transfers from the original analogue master tapes. The MQA-CD plays on all CD players. When a conventional CD player is connected to a MQA-enabled device, the CD will reveal the original master quality. The 180g 2LP will be available in Limited Numbered Blue Vinyl and non-limited black Vinyl versions." Bass Musician Magazine, November 2021
“This CD was the debut for Fourplay, a popular quartet comprised of keyboardist Bob James, guitarist Lee Ritenour, bassist Nathan East, and drummer Harvey Mason. The music sounds more or less like a Bob James small-group date with Ritenour as a major soloist. The style is between jazz, R&B, and pop with an emphasis on lightweight originals, soulful and moderately funky rhythms, and predictable radio-friendly music. Nothing unexpected occurs, but fans of James and Ritenour should enjoy both this CD and Fourplay in general.” AllMusic Review by Scott Yanow
Ratings :
AllMusic : 4 / 5 ; Discogs : 5 / 5