"Don't Mess With Mr. T," titled after the classic soul tune composed by Marvin Gaye, was Stanley Turrentine's final album for CTI. Cut in 1973, features lush orchestral scores by Bob James, who also plays the hip acoustic piano solo on the title track. Ron Carter, Idris Muhammad, Rubens Bassini and Eric Gale are in the rhythm section, with more jazz heavyweights such as Joe Farrell, Pepper Adams, Jerry Dodgion & Randy Brecker among the horn players.Besides the four tracks in the original vinyl release, the sessions yielded more tracks like a lovely version of Michel Legrand's "Pieces of Dreams," later included in the out-takes compilation "The Sugar Man." The problem was that the track was completely remixed for the first CD reissues of "Don't Mess With Mr. T", and Richard Tee's annoying organ performance (deleted by Creed Taylor from the original analog mix done at Rudy Van Gelder Studio) was resurrected, affecting the final results and specially Harold Mabern's perfect Fender Rhodes solo.
I truly hope that, this time, Sony decides to use the original Van Gelder mixes of all tracks, restoring "Pieces of Dreams" to its original aesthetic as heard on "The Sugar Man."
Freddie Hubbard's second album for CTI, "Straight Life," recorded in a single day session on November 16, 1970, followed "Red Clay" with another stellar cast: Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Jack DeJohnette, George Benson, Richard "Pablo" Landrum, and Weldon Irvine (who wrote the acid-jazz anthem "Mr. Clean," revisited by the 2009 incarnation of the CTI All Stars during their European tour that year and on the "Montreux Jazz Festival" DVD.) Hubbard's title track is outstanding too, and there's a pretty version of the standard "Here's That Rainy Day" performed only by the leader on flugelhorn, Carter on bass and Benson on the guitar.
Hubert Laws' "In The Beginning" (from February 1974) originally came out as a 2-LP set, being later available on two separate albums retitled "Then There Was Light." Oddly, a couple of months ago, it re-appeared on vinyl format in separate LPs under the title "In The Beginning Vols. 1 and 2." Anyway, the musical content is excellent, with great contributions by Clare Fischer, Rodgers Grant, Bob James, Ron Carter, Steve Gadd, Airto Moreira, Gene Bertoncini, Dave Friedman and Ronnie Laws, plus a string trio on Satie's "Gymnopedie #1." My personal favorite tracks are Sonny Rollin's "Airegin" (a terrific duo performance by Laws and Gadd!), Rodgers Grant's misterioso "Reconciliation" and Laws' own descarga "Mean Lene."
Since the time of its original release, George Benson's "Body Talk" never placed among my favorites. Actually, I considered it very disappointing, an inferior album in both Benson and CTI discographies, specially if compared to such works as "White Rabbit" and "Bad Benson." Recorded in July 1973, the project paired Benson with arranger Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis (of James Brown fame), featuring Harold Mabern, Ron Carter, Gary King, Jack DeJohnette, Mobuto, Earl Klugh, and a horn section with Jon Faddis, John Gatchell, Waymon Reed (Sarah Vaughan's then husband), Gerald Chamberlain, Dick Griffin & Frank Foster. More funky riffs than soul, except in a unaffected & unadorned version of Donny Hatthaway/Gene McDaniel's "When Love Has Grown."These new reissues are produced by Richard Seidel, mastered by Mark Wilder, and packaged in eco-friendly softpack sleeves that replicate the original gatefold LP design (by CTI's legendary art director, Bob Ciano) and their iconic covers most with photos by Pete Turner, except on "Don't Mess With Mr. T" that brings a fantastic cover shot of Stanley by the great NY-based Irish photographer Alen MacWeeney.
3 comments:
I love "Body Talk". Benson's skill is at his peak ; for me it matters more than arrangement which is better on White Rabbit.One thing about this I cannot understand. Track "Dance" on vinyl (which length is 8.27)and on this release differs from 1989 release (which is 10.32 and begins at 4.55 of vinyl version). Why is this made? Neither on this nor on 1989 release can we hear full take which is about 13 mins. I see only one reason :the tempo changed very much during the tune .
The 1989 U.S. CD reissue of "Body Talk" (issued as CBS 45222), produced by Didier Deutsch, was entirely remixed - by Larry Keyes @ CBS Studios, NYC - from the multi-track tapes. Didier also changed the track-sequence, opening with the tracks from the Side B of the 1973 vinyl release. An alternate take of the title track was added as well.
Now, the 2011 CD reissue (produced by Richard Seidel) uses the original two-track tapes recorded & mixed by Rudy Van Gelder. That's why the new CD sounds like the original LP version. The remastering was done by Mark Wilder & Maria Triana @ Battery Studios, NYC. The only track not mixed by Van Gelder is the alternate take of "Body Talk," track 6 of the CD - Seidel decided to use the same mix done by Larry Keyes in 1989. But all other 5 tracks sound exactly like the original LP.
This same "problem" you have noticed on "Body Talk" happened in many other CTI CDs reissued in the U.S. by CBS between 1987 and 1990, since Didier decided to ignore the original Van Gelder mixes and remix everything. That's why the CD reissues of such albums as Freddie Hubbard's "Sky Dive" and Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Stone Flower" sound very different from the original albums and different from the Japanese reissues which used Van Gelder's two-track mixed tapes. Some tracks were extended, like "Povo" (from "Sky Dive") on which Keith Jarrett's Fender Rhodes solo had been edited (shortned) on the vinyl LP, but can be heard on its entirety. A similar case happened on "Brazil" (from Jobim's "Stone Flower").
I personally would love to hear all the original CTI multi-track tapes digitally remixed by Van Gelder, something that never happened yet...(RVG remastered a series of 20 CTI CDs released in Japan in 2009, but used the original two-track mixes because neither him or King Records had access to the multi-track masters that now belong to Sony.)
The 1989 U.S. CD reissue of "Body Talk" (issued as CBS 45222), produced by Didier Deutsch, was entirely remixed - by Larry Keyes @ CBS Studios, NYC - from the multi-track tapes. Didier also changed the track-sequence, opening with the tracks from the Side B of the 1973 vinyl release. An alternate take of the title track was added as well.
Now, the 2011 CD reissue (produced by Richard Seidel) uses the original two-track tapes recorded & mixed by Rudy Van Gelder. That's why the new CD sounds like the original LP version. The remastering was done by Mark Wilder & Maria Triana @ Battery Studios, NYC. The only track not mixed by Van Gelder is the alternate take of "Body Talk," track 6 of the CD - Seidel decided to use the same mix done by Larry Keyes in 1989, although Larry is uncredited on this new CD reissue. But all other 5 tracks sound exactly like the original LP.
This same "problem" you have noticed on "Body Talk" happened in many other CTI CDs reissued in the U.S. by CBS between 1987 and 1990, since Didier decided to ignore the original Van Gelder mixes and remixed everything. That's why the CD reissues of such albums as Freddie Hubbard's "Sky Dive" and Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Stone Flower" sound very different from the original albums and different from the Japanese reissues which used Van Gelder's two-track mixed tapes. Some tracks were extended, like "Povo" (from "Sky Dive") on which Keith Jarrett's Fender Rhodes solo had been edited (shortned) on the vinyl LP, but can be heard on its entirety on the CD. A similar case happened on "Brazil" (from Jobim's "Stone Flower").
I personally would love to hear all the original CTI multi-track tapes digitally remixed by Van Gelder, something that never happened yet...(RVG remastered a series of 20 CTI CDs released in Japan in 2009, but used the original two-track mixes because neither him or King Records had access to the multi-track masters that now belong to Sony.)
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