via Audio Network
James Taylor is known to lay down the funk. Early influences on James’ musical taste came in the form of the film soundtracks of the 60s and 70s from composers like Lalo Schifrin and John Barry. James doesn’t overthink in the studio, knowing that if his four-piece band — the James Taylor Quartet — can tear the roof off of a venue, that same feeling can be accomplished with minimal manipulation.
However, he also knows that the right mix of additional instrumentation can expand the mood of a track across the whole spectrum. James sees the composition process as capturing the spirit of a moment or place and creating vignettes that listeners can then see in their heads.
A bona fide legend of the acid jazz / jazz funk scene, James Taylor returns with a stunning new James Taylor Quartet orchestral record Man in the Hot Seat. A sonic collossus of a record, particularly when listening on vinyl, it ties together the effortless melodic funk of the quartet, the fullness of sound that only an orchestra can bring, with James’ love of classic film soundtracks. Created and recorded with the musicianship and production mastery we have come to expect from JTQ this is undoubtedly one of the best sounding records you’ll hear in 2022.
