Reddit mentions of Feels So Good

Have you ever listened to the Jazz Violin Summit featuring Jean-Luc Ponty and Stephan Grappelli? If you are interested in hearing a founding father of gypsy jazz (Grappelli of the Hot Club) collaborate in a fusion setting, I highly recommend those works. Specifically this record.

Another fusion artist of similar era is Al Di Meola and his record Land of the Midnight Sun. His guitar work was unconventional at the time, using solid body guitar (les paul) with overdrive playing rock phrases inspired by distinctly South-American styles of guitar. A real treat. This record also features Jaco Pastorious on bass guitar.

It would be impossible for me to navigate through a fusion conversation without mentioning Chuck Mangione, but I'll cut straight to the point and say "Feels So Good is the record you've probably heard, but Fun and Games is the one that fusion cats acknowledge". This is probably due to the stellar bassline of "Give it All You Got" (theme of the 1980 Winter Olympics)

Moving into 80's/90's fusion, I have to recommend The Brecker Brothers' "Heavy Metal Be-Bop". It contains some notable tracks like "Some Skunk Funk" and "East River".

Maynard Furgeson's M.F. Horn 3 is a masterclass in ascendancy in brass ensemble composition and unrivaled experimental expression.

Some stuff from the recent era I have been digging is Trioscapes' "Separate Realities". This is a sick trio featuring the bassist of Between the Buried and Me. " Trioscapes started in the summer of 2011 when Dan Briggs contacted Walter Fancourt and Matt Lynch about working up a rendition of the Mahavishnu Orchestra classic Celestial Terrestrial Commuters and messing around with a few original ideas with the intent of playing a one-off s how. After rehearsing the material and playing the show through the group decided the music was so demanding and fun to perform that there should be more of a future for it. A few more songs were written near the end of the summer and a full length album recorded the first week of October with Jamie King in Winston-Salem, NC. " My band got to open for them in Arkansas a few years back, was such a great time.

Nearly anything by Louis Cole. More specifically, the album "Life" by his duo, Knower, is absolute gold and has inspired me to reach new levels in my own work. Absolutely answering with confidence the modern question of "what is jazz right now?"

Shameless band plug: If you're into heavier fusion, check out Becoming Elephants' "Volume 1". Instrumental fusion with extended range guitars and saxophone features.

I hope you enjoy any of these records you get a chance to listen to!

Chuck Mangione - Feels So Good
http://www.amazon.com/Feels-So-Good-Chuck-Mangione/dp/B000002GB6