Description
Guru’s Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1, originally released in 1993, is one of the first albums to combine a live jazz band with hip hop production and rapping. Guru had a vision and brought together a diverse group of jazz cats both old and new school; Lonnie Liston Smith, Branford Marsalis, Ronny Jordan (check out his solo on the track “No Time To Play”), Donald Byrd and Roy Ayers and vocalists like Carleen Anderson, N’Dea Davenport (of the Brand New Heavies) and French rapper MC Solaar have cooperated on this classic album.
• 180 GRAM AUDIOPHILE VINYL
• Deluxe sleeve printed on heavy cardboard with linen textured finish blank black inner sleeve.
• GROUNDBREAKING ALBUM COMBINING HIP-HOP AND JAZZ
As labelled on the front sleeve Guru’s Jazzmatazz Vol. 1 is “an experimental fusion of hip-hop and jazz” hosted by Guru (MC and band member of Gang Starr together with DJ Premier). This album was born out of Guru’s love for jazz and was one of the first albums to fuse a live jazz band with Rap and R&B artists backed by Hip-Hop styled beats and production. Members of the band reads like a who’s who of famous musicians and jazz icons, including Donald Byrd, Courtney Pine, Lonnie Liston Smith, Branford Marsalis, Ronny Jordan, Donald Byrd and Roy Ayers. Vocal collaborations are from Carleen Anderson, Brand New Heavies’ singer N’Dea Davenport, Dee C Lee (from The Style Council), French rapper MC Solaar while Guru keeps the project in check with his loose laidback Hip-Hop flow.
When it was released in 1993, Guru’s Jazzmatazz peaked at #24 on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart but had far greater commercial success in Europe.
Unfortunately Guru (real name: Keith Edward Elam) passed away in 2010 but his legacy influenced Hip-Hop artists like Madlib (on his “Shades Of Blue” project), The Roots and many more.
Tracklist:
A1 – Introduction (1:20)
A2 – Loungin’ (4:38)
A3 – When You’re Near (4:02)
A4 – Transit Ride (3:58)
A5 – No Time To Play (4:54)
A6 – Down The Backstreets (4:47)
B1 – Respectful Dedications (0:54)
B2 – Take A Look (At Yourself) (3:59)
B3 – Trust Me (4:27)
B4 – Slicker Than Most (2:36)
B5 – Le Bien, Le Mal (3:21)
B6 – Sights In The City (5:10)
Deluxe sleeve printed on heavy cardboard with linen textured finish and a golden hype sticker. Comes in a resealable poly outer sleeve.
