This Is Brian Jackson

Composer and multi-instrumentalist Brian Jackson will go down in history for the nine albums he cut with Gil Scott-Heron between 1971 and 1980 as his writing partner, musical director, and sonic architect. After their split, he worked with Bobbi Humphrey, Kool & the Gang, Phyllis Hyman, Will Downing, Gwen Guthrie, and Roy Ayers, among others. In 2000 he released the wonderful, little-known solo offering Gotta Play. In mid-2018, he met the Phenomenal Handclap Bands Daniel Collás and they began working together in the latters Brooklyn studio. They completed most of these tunes before Jackson teamed up with Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad for Brian Jackson JID008. This Is Brian Jackson is the logical, soul-drenched follow-up to Gotta Play. While none of this music has been previously released, not all of it is new. Some cuts were drawn from 1976 demos, theres a lost soundtrack contribution, and two tunes were cut with Malcolm Cecil in the early 80s. All are re-visioned, newly arranged, and re-recorded. Some of his collaborators include guitarist Binky Brice, drummer Moussa Fadera, and singers Juliet Swango and Monika Heideman. Over its eight cuts, the music showcases Jacksons prodigious gifts as a creative composer, conscious lyricist, and generous arranger. "All Talk" opens with elegant funk. Jacksons grooving flute engages in interplay with Brice and a synth bassline framed by drums and handclaps. Jackson is in fine voice as he exhorts citizens to see through the lies of politicians and corporations. The breezy, poignant "Force of Will" commences with Collas congas bubbling Afro-Cuban style under Rhodes, flute, acoustic guitar, bass, and synth before Jacksons lyrics of hard-won self-actualization come down hard. "Nomad" employs his piano in a trio with drums and guitar. Its lyric reflects on inner discipline as the trio engage in gorgeous, syncopated interplay poignantly illumined by chamber strings. At over nine minutes, "Mami Wata" is the sets longest cut. A bubbling, trancey exercise, it melds jazz-funk, African juju music, and Afrobeat. Jackson plays organ, clavinet, kalimba, and flute, framing Domenica Fossatis alto flute and synth, backing singers, roiling percussion, guitar, and sitar. The lyric is a syncopated chant held aloft by intoxicating polyrhythms and intricate modal melodies. "Hold On" is an exotic take on 70s disco, offering a monster groove driving Jacksons deep, resonant vocal. Closer "Little Orphan Boy" offers bumping, jazz-funk driven by drummer Harvey Mason. The groove is massive, recalling both Stevie Wonders mid-70s records and the propulsive funk of Herons and Jacksons Secrets. The retro go-go-style percussion during the final third takes the jam to an entirely different level. When the artist and Collás began recording, their goal was to create a 21st century Brian Jackson record that he might have made during the late 70s. They succeeded. This Is Brian Jacksons music is timeless, a musical montage reflecting his multi-disciplinary immersion in jazz, funk, soul, and hip-hop, without sacrificing the focus, generosity, inspiration, and openness that have been at the very heart of his music all along. ~ Thom Jurek