Fatherhood has put saxophonist
Jackiem Joyner in a funky mood
The spirited first single from the “Main Street Beat” album is named for his daughter, Trinity.
SHERMAN OAKS (8 May 2017): Delivering on his promise to “Evolve,” the title of Jackiem Joyner’s
last soul-jazz album, the saxophonist became a father since his 2014
release, an elation-inducing experience that informs the music he wrote
and produced for his new Artistry Music set, “Main Street Beat,” due June 30.
The first single from the funky, dance inspiring, Motown-influenced
session that will be shipped to radio this month is the exultant
“Trinity,” named for Joyner’s first child whose presence on the track is
voiced by Steve Oliver’s incandescent acoustic guitar.
Joyner
approached crafting “Main Street Beat” with a three-pronged purpose. “I
wanted to create something upbeat, fun to listen to and something to
dance to. ‘Main Street Beat’ originally started off as a straight funk
record that eventually became some of that, but a whole lot more as I
allowed the creative process to have its way with me,” said Joyner, a Billboard
chart-topper who plays tenor, alto, soprano and baritone saxophone on
the date, often enriching the tracks by laying layer upon layer of horns
to form a powerhouse sax section.
The
exuberant album opener, “Main Street,” exemplifies the mighty
wall-of-horns approach with Joyner playing lead harmonies on alto
reinforced by his sax section. Instead of tracking individually, Joyner
brought the band – drummer Raymond Johnson, bassist Darryl Williams, electric guitarist Kyle Bolden and piano player Carnell Harrell - into the studio to record six tracks old-school style, including “Back To Motown.” Nick Colionne
guests on “When You Smile” to flash his cool electric jazz guitar on
the infectious mid-tempo R&B cut. Taking his alto sax chops out for a
strut, Joyner cranks up the band for a fiery funk romp down “Southside
Boulevard,” one of three tunes that adds Nikolai Egorov’s
trombone muscle to the horn section. On a pair of urban joints – “That
Good Thing” and “Don’t Make Her Wait” – Joyner plays soprano sax. He
takes full command on the stormy “Addicted,” playing every instrument
heard on the moody number. “Think James Brown on tenor sax” is how Joyner describes the super funky “Get Down Street.” A pair of high-energy pop-R&B covers – Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop The Feeling” and Bruno Mars’
“Treasure” – complete the outing, songs Joyner elected to record based
upon their buoyant, positive nature, which he says mirrors his young
offspring’s personality.
“My
little girl played a huge role in inspiring this album. Having Trinity
around during the writing process sparked an enormous font of creativity
and really kicked my writing into high gear. The first single, named
after her, really captures the excitement and joy of being a dad as well
as the exciting little girl that she is. Trinity was right there in the
studio during a lot of the writing process. Her jumpy and bouncy upbeat
little self is really reflected on this album,” said Joyner, who will
launch the record with June concerts in Cincinnati (June 9 at A Celebration of Black Music), Birmingham (June 11 at Jazz in the Park), San Diego (June 25 at Mediterranean’s Jazz and Supper Club) and Philadelphia (June 29 at South).
The
release of “Main Street Beat,” Joyner’s sixth album, coincides with his
tenth anniversary as a recording artist. His 2007 debut “Babysoul” earned Debut Artist of the Year honors from Smooth Jazz News. Two years later, his sophomore set, “Lil Man Soul,” spawned two No. 1 singles on the Billboard chart and won the Song of the Year trophy for “I’m Waiting For You” from the American Smooth Jazz Awards.
His self-titled 2010 album solidified his position as a consistent
hit-maker. Revisiting his non-secular roots, Joyner issued the
gospel-jazz “Church Boy” in 2012. “Evolve” placed his infectious
melodies amidst futuristic electronic sonicscapes. Joyner’s music isn’t
his only creative effort that ventured into extraterrestrial territory.
Last year, the Norfolk, Virginia native who resides near Los Angeles
authored his first book, the science fiction novel “Zarya: Cydnus Final Hope (Book 1). For more information, please visit www.JackiemJoyner.com.
“Main Street Beat” contains the following songs:
“Main Street”
“Back To Motown”
“Can’t Stop The Feeling”
“Trinity”
“When You Smile”
“Southside Boulevard”
“That Good Thing”
“Treasure”
“Addicted”
“Don’t Make Her Wait”
“Get Down Street”
