Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Roy Ayers Ubiquity - Virgo Red (1973)



Despite contributions from an abundance of soul-jazz greats including Dee Dee Bridgewater, Jimmy Owens, and Garnett Brown, VIRGO RED is the most stripped-down and nuanced of Roy Ayers's Ubiquity LPs. Its sinuous funk grooves are first and foremost a showcase for the intuitive interplay of Ayers and electric keyboardist Harry Whitaker, whose Fender Rhodes fill-ins orbit Ayers's vibes solos like a planet circling the sun. The material is a crazy quilt of righteously soulful originals and deeply funky covers spanning Leroy Hutson's soul classic "Giving Love" to Stories' soft-pop smash "Brother Louie" to absolute treacle like THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE's "The Morning After"--by all rights it shouldn't work, but as the astrological overtones winding through VIRGO RED attest, sometimes the stars align.

1. Brother Louie
2. Virgo Red
3. I Am Your Mind
4. The Morning After
5. Love From The Sun
6. It's So Sweet
7. Giving Love
8. Des Nude Soul

Baritone Vocals - Argerie Ayers , Arthur Clark , Denise Bridgewater* , Leslie Carter (2) , Seldon Powell , Willie Michael
Bass - David Johnson (2) , Gordon Edwards
Congas, Bongos, Vocals - Chano O'Ferral
Drums, Percussion - Dennis Davis
Guitar - Dennis Heaven , Will Hawes
Percussion - Adrian Dey , Stephen Sadiz Shbazzberrios
Piano, Electric Piano, Organ - Harry Whitaker
Producer - Jerry Schoenbaum
Sitar [Electric Sitar] - Jerry Friedman
Trombone - Garnett Brown
Trumpet - Cecil Bridgewater , Jimmie Owens
Vibraphone, Organ, Vocals, Percussion - Roy Ayers
Vocals - Dee Dee Bridgewater

Recorded at Electric Lady Studios, New York, July 1973

5 comments:

Melanchthon said...

Thank You d3lta

itr said...

New for me, many thanks.

d3lta said...

Mel & Itr you are both very welcome, your efforts towards spreading the jazz word are outstanding.

Simon666 said...

... and big thanks for this one too, d3lta :)

thundergiant007 said...

thanks for the badass ayers album and everything else