Pleasures Of The Night

Performer: Will Downing
Artist: Ronnie Foster; Bobby Lyle; Patrice Rushen; Paul Jackson, Jr.; Abraham Laboriel; Jimmy Haslip; Harvey Mason; Luis Conte
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel: Will Downing (vocals); Gerald Albright (soprano, alto & tenor saxophones, flute, alto flute); Paul Jackson Jr. (guitar); Ronnie Foster (acoustic & electric piano, organ, synthesizer); John Beasley, Bobby Lyle, Patrice Rushen (piano); Dave Delhomme (keyboards); Jimmy Haslip (acoustic & electric basses); Tony Dumas, Kenny Wild (acoustic bass); Abraham Laboriel (electric bass); Harvey Mason, Land Richards, John Robinson, Marvin "Smitty" Smith (drums); Luis Conte (percussion); Chris Cameron (string arrangements). Producers: Ronnie Foster, Will Downing, Gerald Albright. Engineers include: Don Murray, Anthony Jeffries, Tommy Vicari. Personnel: Will Downing (vocals, background vocals); Paul Jackson, Jr. (guitar); Gerald Albright (flute, alto flute, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone); Ronnie Foster (organ, keyboards, synthesizer); Patrice Rushen, Bobby Lyle (keyboards); Jimmy Haslip (acoustic bass, bass guitar); Tony Dumas (acoustic bass); John "J.R." Robinson , Harvey Mason, Sr. , Land Richards, Marvin "Smitty" Smith (drums); Luis Conte (percussion). Audio Mixer: Anthony Jeffries. Recording information: Bimmer Studios; Bright Music Studios; Cherokee Studios, Los Angels, CA; O'Henry Studios, North Holl; Thousand Oaks, CA. Photographers: Uwe Ommer; Will Downing. Crossover, thy name is Downing. PLEASURES of the night, a collaboration between vocalist Will Downing and sax/flute wizard Gerald Albright, crosses so many genre lines that its appeal must be unprecedentedly broad. With the able assistance of ace jazz drummer Marvin "Smitty" Smith, pianist Patrice Rushen and others, Downing and Albright combine contemporary R&B, top 40 pop, lite jazz and traditional pop vocal stylings on an album that, for all its stylistic wandering, remains undeniably cohesive. Backed by the warm, fluid filigrees of Albright, Downing turns the Beatles' classic "Michelle" into a jazz tune, turns Sinatra-esque on "The Nearness of You" and makes a convincing R&B loveman on the sensuous "Stop, Look & Listen to Your Heart."

An often-underrated R&B/soul vocalist, Will Downing began his career in the 1980s appearing on various albums by hitmakers of the era, and finally hit an impressive streak of albums for the GRP label, starting in 2002 with SENSUAL JOURNEY. Anchored in a vintage 1970s sound that never feels forced, the Brooklyn-based singer uses his expressive, deep voice to relate intriguing tales of romance. Frequently aiding Downing is smooth-jazz saxophonist Gerald Albright, who has proven to be a perfect foil for the sensitive crooner.

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