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Chris
Conway - |
vocals, piano, keyboards, nylon string guitar, electric & acoustic 9 string
guitars, tin and low Irish whistles, bamboo flute, theremin, kalimba, samples,
loops, electronic and acoustic percussion |  | Neil
Segrott - | fretless
bass | Zorpinda
Zorpin - | percussion,
temple bells | +
special guests - Ithamara
Koorax - Thiago
De Mello- | track
7
vocals
acoustic
percussion |
| |
downloads
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(USA only)
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hear
a whole track over at
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Conway's myspace
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| background |
| at
the time | Three
years in the making, chocolate
bossa is Chris Conway's amazing musical love letter
to Brazil. Featuring guest artists Brazilian
jazz diva Ithamara Koorax and percussion master Thiago DeMello (recorded in Brazil)
on one track, this album has all the remarkable Conway hallmarks - the lush instrumentation,
the cool arrangements and wonderful varied compositions including influences from
his unparalleled musical experience in many genres.
Latin
music is a thread that can be traced through much of CCs music over the years,
something he puts down to his earliest influence - "When I was 10, I had
hippy older brothers - one was at Woodstock (though he can't remember much about
it!) - I picked up a lot of music that was floating around the house. My first
4 albums I bought were Santana albums - from there I heard Flora Purim & Airto,
Chick Corea and more recently Marcos Valle and Ithamara Koorax. Like Celtic music
and jazz, Latin music got in my bloodstream."
Ithamara Koorax
chocolate
bossa was conceived 3 years ago when CC wrote a song The Answer
for Ithamara Koorax, and sent it to her in Brazil. She loved it and recorded
her vocal part in Rio bringing percussion master
Thiago de Mello to the recording session. Ithamara says of The Answer -
"Each time I listen to that tune I like it more. It's very charming, sophisticated,
and enchanting. Few times I like so much my singing in a track the way I do with
The Answer."
Thiago
DeMello
CC
chose in his liner notes to chocolate bossa to dedicate
each track to an artist or friend who influenced some aspect of the track as a
thank-you. Whatever the influence, the tracks are all classic Conway creations.
Well known artists receiving a dedication include Flora & Airto, sax player
Paul Winter, thereminist Barbara Buchholz, jazz singer Leon Thomas, sax guru Pharaoh
Sanders, Carlos Santana, Ithamara Koorax of course, bossa master Marcos Valle,
plus harmony giants Brian Wilson, Jimmy Webb and the Dedricks from group The Free
Design.
chocolate bossa is released
on CCs Oblong Music label for now on a "you want to buy one, we'll burn you
one" basis. The plan is to look to hawk it round to specialist bossa labels
to see if they will release it. | |
influences | Marcos
Valle, Ithamara Koorax, Paul Winter, Flora Purim, Airto Moreira, George Duke,
Chick Corea, Bebel Gilberto, Sergio Mendes, Leon Thomas, Pharoah Sanders, Carlos
Santana, Barbara Buchholz, The Free Design, Brian Wilson, Jimmy Webb |
| technical | recorded
digitally at Oblong Studios and Jazz Station Studios, Rio, Brazil. |
| hits | we
shall see... | | CC's
fave track | Still
Believe In The Masterplan | |
retrospect | we
shall see... | | |
if
you like this album
you might also like...
Chris
Conway- River of Life
The
Chris Conway Band - Breathtaking
|
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| track
by track |
1.
Starting Over
A funky but smooth electro beat song gets the album off
to a great chillout start. CC dedicated this song to Flora Purim & Airto Moreira
- "I could just imagine Flora singing this - especially the bridge"
CC
- vocals, organ, keyboards, electric 9 string guitar, samples, loops
Neil
Segrott - fretless bass | | 2.
Tiny Sparrow
Amazingly this is CCs adaptation of an old folk tune. "I
first heard it sung by Peter Paul & Mary and I thought right away what a good
bossa tune it would make. My jazz group has been playing it like this for quite
a while". CC dedicated this to sax player Paul Winter - a bossa and new age
pioneer.
CC
- vocals, nylon string guitar, piano, keyboards, loops, samples
Neil Segrott
- fretless bass
Zorpinda Zorpin - percussion
|
3.
Deep Space Bossa
CC had to get space and the theremin into it somehow.
This interlude piece is dedicated to thereminist Barbara Buchholz whose style
influenced his theremin playing on this piece.
CC
- theremin, keyboards, loops, samples | 4.
Time To Talk
This is a new bossa treatment of a song CC sang and recorded
with The Storm Thieves on their Up To The Sun album. It is dedicated to them.
CC
- vocals, nylon string guitar, synthesizer, samples, electronic percussion
Neil
Segrott - fretless bass
Zorpinda Zorpin - hand percussion
|
5.
Still Believe In The Masterplan
This track is dedicated to Leon Thomas
& Pharoah Sanders & Carlos Santana. It is CCs response and tribute to
LT & PS's classic "The Creator Has A Masterplan". The Carlos dedication
is down to CCs electric guitar playing. CCs 1st 4 albums he bought as a 10yr old
kid were Santana albums which started his love of Latin music.
CC
- electric 9 string guitar, electric piano, organ, tin whistle, bamboo flute,
vocals, samples, electronic percussion
Zorpinda Zorpin - wind chimes, percussion,
bells
| 6.
Cactus Cafe
CC has played at Mexican Restaurant The Cactus Cafe for over
15 years. This tune was once recorded on an early cassette album in a guitar duo
with Neil "Tiny" Segrott (who plays bass on it here)
CC
- nylon string guitar, keyboards, samples, loops Neil Segrott - fretless bass
Zorpinda Zorpin - percussion |
7.
The Answer
This sumptuous jazz ballad features the stunning guest vocals
of Ithamara Koorax and classic percussion of Thiago DeMello. Ithamara says of
the song " Each time I listen to that tune I like it more. It's very charming,
sophisticated, and enchanting. Few times I like so much my singing in a track
the way I do with The Answer." This song was written especially for and dedicated
to Ithamara.
Ithamara Koorax
- vocals
Thiago De Mello - acoustic percussion
Neil Segrott - fretless
bass
CC - vocals, piano, keyboards, nylon string guitar, electric 9 string
guitar, theremin, electronic percussion
| 8.
Love At First Light
A big breezy piece that covers a ot of ground, changing
from fast to slow twice. It ends on a cascading canon of voices. CC dedicated
it to great vocal arrangers Brian Wilson & Jimmy Webb, and The Dedricks (from
The Free Design)
CC
- nylon string guitar, vocals, lead synthesizer, keyboards, electronic percussion
Neil Segrott - fretless bass
Zorpinda Zorpin - electronic & acoustic
percussion |
9.
Vanita's Groove
This track is a funky retro reworking of one of CCs tunes
he wrote fro Jazz Orient - Vanita's Dance from the Bird Dancer album. It is dedicated
to his JO colleagues Linda Shanovitch & Baluji Shrivastav.
CC
- electric piano, organ, electric 9 string guitar, tin whistle, bamboo flute,
samples, electronic percussion
Zorpinda Zorpin - electronic percussion | 10.
The Missing Years
This track CC has been playing for years. It was on
his 1st cassette album "4am" and gets a mention in 3/4 time in the middle
of "You'll Never Know" from his Breathtaking jazz album. Dedicated to
sax player Andy Nicholls who has played this piece with CC many times and was
on that first recording.
CC
- vocals, nylon string guitar, electric piano, low whistle, samples, loops
Neil
Segrott - fretless bass
|
11.
Chocolate Bossa
Another theremin outing. Until the sparkly synth cmes
in in the outro tho whole chordal backing comes from one of CCs solo flights for
theremin and effects. This track CC dedicated to himself - " a treat for
me - as chocolates should be!" .
CC
- theremin, vocals, effects, samples & loops
Zorpinda Zorpin - samples
| 12.
Samba 66
A fun retro samba dedicated to Marcos Valle, tho Sergio Mendes
could've been mentioned too as it feels like a slice out of Brazil 66.
CC
- nylon string guitar, keyboards, tin whistle, vocals, samples, percussion
Zorpinda
Zorpin - shakers |
|
13.The
End
This lush atmospheric piece wraps the album up beautifully. From
slow hypnotic beat the pace picks up for the guitar solo and after the vocals
return there is an almost oriental peace as it closes - "Feel the sound of
love dancing in your heart."
CC
- vocals, nylon string guitar, acoustic 9 string guitar, keyboards, electronic
percussion, samples
Neil Segrott - fretless bass
Zorpinda Zorpin - wind
chimes, bells, percussion |
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