Gary Criss - "Rio De Janeiro" 1978

Okay, I'm all over the map now with this one...I know this blog is called "Little Jazzarium", but believe it or not there is a certain "bossa-nova" feel to this CD, however, it's genre is classified as "Disco".  This CD is 'out-of-print' and is a hard-one to come by.  I got this one on eBay, and the seller was in Russia.  I almost bought this LP when it was originally released in 1978, but never did, and am very happy that I have secured a copy now.  I've always been a fan of the various covers of Jobim's timeless  "The Girl From Ipanema" and Gary Criss does a nice job with his version.  My favorite tracks are "Rio De Janeiro" and "Girl From Ipanema/Brazilian Nights" and "Calm Before The Storm".  Don't dismiss this album too quickly, give it a listen, you may be surprised??

Arranged By, Conductor - John Davis (5)
Backing Vocals - Carolyn Mitchell , Venice Thomas*
Bass - Vince Fay
Drums - Grant MacAvoy , Jimmy Young
Guitar - Craig Snyder
Horns, Strings - Don Renaldo Horns And Strings, The
Keyboards, Flute - John Davis (5)
Percussion - Jimmy Walker* , Larry Washington , Nick D'Amico

John Handy - "Carnival" 1977

It seems that much of  John Handy's repertoire is available on CD and digital download, with the exception of the years spanning 1976~1978.  There were three albums that were never released on CD, this one and "Where The Boats Go" and "Handy Dandy".  These albums are infused with the 70's jazz-funk style and other bloggers have made posts on these other 2 LP's.  I have not found a good quality archival of "Carnival", so here it is.  Most notable tracks are "Alvina" and the haunting "I Will Leave You" and the fanciful "Love's Rejoycing"...I hope you enjoy the Alto Sax sounds from JH.

Backing Vocals - E. Edwards* (tracks: B2) , John Handy (tracks: A3, B2) Bass - James Jameson, Sr.* (tracks: B1) , Rudy Coleman (tracks: A) , Vincent Jefferson* (tracks: B2, B4) Congas - Eddie "Bongo" Brown (tracks: A1, B1) , Paulo DaCosta* (tracks: B2, B4) , Tom Nicholas (tracks: A2 to A4) Drums - Harold Jones (tracks: B2, B4) , James Gadson (tracks: A1, A3, B1) , John Handy IV (tracks: A2, A4) Guitar - Larry Carlton (tracks: B1) , Lee Ritenour (tracks: A1) , Mike Hoffmann (tracks: A2 to A4) Keyboards - George Spencer (tracks: A3) , Reginald "Sonny" Burke* (tracks: A1, A2, A4, B1,) Keyboards, Synthesizer [Arp] - Lee Ritenour (tracks: B2, B4) Percussion - E. Edwards* (tracks: A1, A4, B1) , John Handy (tracks: A2) Piano - Reginald "Sonny" Burke* (tracks: B2) Producer - Esmond Edwards Saxophone [Alto] - John Handy Synthesizer [Arp] - Reginald "Sonny" Burke* (tracks: A2, A4, B1) Vocals - John Handy (tracks: A4) Written-By - John Handy , Oscar Hammerstein* (tracks: B3)

Dexter Wansel - "Life On Mars" 1976

In it's day, I really did not appreciate the music from this LP, but as I go back and listen to it with more mature ears, I really dig this LP, and I hope you will too.  Dexter Wansel is keyboardist and main composer for this LP, and recognized by many as his best work.  Sure there are some touches of Disco-esque sound in this LP, but hey it was produced in 1976!  Dexter Wansel was a major influence to the popular Soul group of MFSB.  This PL was released the same time the Voyager Space probe was to explore the surface of Mars (hence the name).  Interestingly, the liner notes mentions that "why should we be searching for life on other planets, when we have not mastered life on Earth...".  This LP was released on CD but since has gone out of print, so I present my best attempt at a LP digital archival of this fantastic work from DW and the "photo-shopped" attempt to clean up the LP scan...so please enjoy!
P.S.  Found out that this LP was re-leased on CD as double CD along with another great DW LP, so I am going to purchase the CD version to get the cleanest sound available.  Sorry, link removed...but get the CD, "no regrets"!

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Backing Vocals - Barbara Ingram , Carla Benson , Evette Benton
Bass - Derrick Graves
Drums, Percussion - Darryl Brown
Engineer - Jay Mark , Jim Gallagher
Guitar - Calvin Harris (3)
Producer, Written-By, Arranged By, Keyboards, Synthesizer, Vocals - Dexter Wansel
Saxophone, Flute - Bobby Malach*
Trumpet, Flugelhorn - Al Harrison