Moving Forward [PA]

Performer: Bernie Williams
Artist: Jon Secada
Engineer: Hector Ivan Rosa; Gabriel Pena; Mike Ferretti; Peter Denenberg; Talley Sherwood; Wayman Tisdale
Producer: Loren Harriet
Distributor: Alternative Dis. Alliance

Notes: Personnel: Bernie Williams (acoustic guitar, electric guitar); Bruce Springsteen (vocals, acoustic guitar); Jon Secada (vocals, background vocals); Tim Pierce (acoustic guitar); Michael Landou, Jeff Golub, Mike Stern (electric guitar); Christian Nieves (cuatro); Chris Clark, David Sancious (strings, piano, keyboards); David Sanchez , Richie Cannata (saxophone); Dave Koz (soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone); Luis Bonilla (trombone); Matt Rollings (piano); Leland Sklar (bass guitar); Dave Weckl, Kenny Aronoff, Shawn Pelton (drums); Giovanni Hidalgo (congas); Patti Scialfa (tambourine, background vocals); Luis Conte, Bashiri Johnson , Fred Walcott (percussion). Audio Mixer: Mike Alvarez. Recording information: Alfa Recordings; Avatar Studios, New York, NY; Bob Sheppard's House; Crescent Moon Studios; Eagle Music Studios; Glen Cove Studios; Goldmine Studios 2; Ken Wallace Studios; Rascalball Studios; Scott Henderson's House; Scrappy B Studios; SUNY Purchase Recording Studios; The Barber Ship Studios; The Blue room; Tisway Studios. Introduction by: Bob Sheppard. Strains of baseball past remain and abound on MOVING FORWARD, Bernie Williams's first post-Yankee release (and second overall). The disc's most sublime moment comes on a mellow and downright otherworldly version of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," the song re-imagined as a lullaby opened by the Yankees nonagenarian PA announcer Bob Sheppard. Bruce Springsteen posits that "Bernie may be old for baseball but he's a spring chicken for rock `n' roll. There's plenty o' time for that" on a live duet of the Boss's 1985 baseball-touting hit, "Glory Days." While the song's a fitting cover, Williams would still garner acclaim for his Latin-flecked jazz guitar even without his all-star past. From the Afro-beat charm of the title track to the raucous splendor of his cover of Jon Secada's "Just Another Day" (again the original artist joins in), Williams continues to mingle the light touch of Grant Green with elements of Marsalis-style pop. Because this second album by the former New York Yankee outfielder was released a month before the passing of NBA Star-turned-popular jazz bassist Wayman Tisdale, there are bound to be some comparisons made. It's a logical starting point, because both were shining lights in two very different fields who launched their musical careers while they were still popular athletes, and part of Tisdale's friendship with Bernie Williams was mentoring the center fielder/classically trained guitarist on how to make a successful transition. Tisdale's plucky contribution to the jangling, soaring, opening title track is also one of his last recorded performances. The connection is there, but stylistically, the two took very different approaches. While Tisdale's playful lead bass vibe found a great niche in smooth urban jazz and stayed there his whole musical career, the wild worldbeat and deep jazz versatility Williams displays on Moving Forward affords him many more genre options. He draws on his Puerto Rican heritage to stir up some zesty and playful, percussive Latin energy on "Ritmo de Otono" (with Dave Koz) and a sizzling, improvisation-heavy romp through P�rez Prado's "Que Rico el Mambo." There's also a Latin connection with Cuban-born pop singer Jon Secada, who jams with Williams on English and Spanish covers of his trademark '90s hit "Just Another Day." The guitarist also has fun with the tracking, seeing no discordance in following the seductive exotica of "African Blues" (complementing his own acoustic lines with the electricity of Spyro Gyra's Julio Fernandez) with the sweet, strumming acoustic pop gem "Chillin in the West" (which revs into a rocker courtesy of Jeff Golub) and then a tender, emotional take on a song near and dear to him, "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." Williams also leans from pop instrumental towards the expansive jazz fusion side in a single bound on "Go for It," with the help of electric guitar great Mike Stern. Williams saves his biggest superstar surprise for last, tacking on a live recording of him playing acoustic with Bruce Springsteen as the rocker exults in his (and Williams' "Glory Days"). This dynamic, unusually eclectic set proves that while the four-time World Series champ's glory days are behind him as a ballplayer, he's Moving Forward towards a stellar career in music. ~ Jonathan Widran

JazzTimes (p.88) - "The Puerto Rico native's sophomore effort is just as spirited and engaging as his debut CD from 2003, THE JOURNEY WITHIN....'Chillin' in the West' sounds exactly like it was discovered in the Acoustic Alchemy vaults." Billboard (p.30) - "[H]e serves up a pleasant mix of light jazz and pop numbers, including a remake of Jon Secada's 1992 hit 'Just Another Day'..."

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