Sensual Journey

Performer: Will Downing
Artist: Gerald Albright; Will Kennedy; Russell Malone; Stefon Harris; Luis Conte; Marcus Miller; Paulinho Da Costa; Phil Perry
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel includes: Will Downing (vocals); Vinx (scat vocals); Lee Ritenour (guitar, keyboards); Blake English, Michael Thompson, Russell Malone (guitar); Hubert Laws (flute); Gerald Albright, Boney James (saxophone); Ray Brown (trumpet); John Beasley (piano); Kowan Paul (keyboards, bass, programming); Ronnie Foster, Rex Rideout (keyboards); Stefon Harris (vibraphone); Ronnie Garrett, Marcus Miller (bass); John "J.R." Robinson, Will Kennedy (drums); Paulinho Da Costa, Luis Conte (percussion); Lisa Vaughan, Phil Perry, Vesta Williams, Darcy Aldridge (background vocals). Producers include: Will Downing, Lee Ritenour, Kashif, Sandy Stein, Rex Rideout. Engineers include: Don Murray, Blake English, Michael Thompson. Personnel: Will Downing (vocals, background vocals); Darcy Aldridge (vocals, background vocals); Marc Antoine (guitar, electric guitar); Kashif (guitar, keyboards, drums, background vocals); Lee Ritenour (guitar, keyboards); Tariqh Akoni, Michael Hart Thompson , Rohn Lawrence, Russell Malone, Kevin Chokan, Blake English (guitar); Yergenia Strenger, Jung Sun Yoo, Fiona Simon, Gary Levinson, Elizabeth Lim, Karen Marx, Sandra Park, Lisa Kim (strings); Hubert Laws (flute); Gerald Albright, Boney James (saxophone); Ray Brown (trumpet); John Beasley (piano, keyboards); Ronnie Foster (organ, keyboards); Jochem van der Saag (keyboards, talk box, drums, drum programming, percussion programming, sampler, background vocals); Kowan "Q" Paul (keyboards, drum programming); Sandy Stein, Rex Rideout (keyboards); Stefon Harris (vibraphone); James Genus (acoustic bass); John "J.R." Robinson , Gregory Hutchinson, Michael White , Will Kennedy (drums); Luis Conte, Paulinho Da Costa, Bashiri Johnson (percussion); Mika Lett, Phil Jackson, Ronnie Garrett, Vesta Williams, Vinx (background vocals). Audio Mixers: Don Murray ; Erik Zobler. Recording information: Bimmer Music Studio; Blimmer Music Studio; Infusion Studio; Kampo Studio; Kar Studio; Sear Sound Studios, New York, NY; Shelter Island Studios; Staag St. Studio; Tyrell Studio; Will Down Sound. Photographer: Marc Baptiste. Arrangers: Jochem van der Saag; Lee Ritenour . The fact that R&B crooner Will Downing's SENSUAL JOURNEY is delivered to us via a jazz label should be a clue that the singer, obviously no jazz artist, has a sophisticated, mature musical message to impart. Downing's style manages to sound completely contemporary without ever delving into the prefabricated, hip-hop-influenced style of so many other R&B ballad specialists. SENSUAL JOURNEY is a personal, intimate recording. There's no phalanx of producers and programmers at work here; instead Downing is appropriately accompanied by such smooth-jazz legends as Boney James and Lee Ritenour, and even straight-ahead jazz vibes master Stefon Harris. Downing's warm, liquid voice moves organically through these arrangements, with emotional communication clearly its first priority. That's what ultimately makes SENSUAL JOURNEY a success on its own terms.

JazzTimes (7-8/02, p.123) - "...Makes appealing stops with subtle, jazzier material that allows his vocals to stretch and soar..."

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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