HEATWAVE
2002

I want to thank all the musicians who contributed their talents to take my songs up to the next level. Especially Kirk Whalum, Dave Koz, Mike O'Neill, Mel Brown, John Lewis, Will Kennedy, John Leftwich, Nick Lane, JV Collier, Rick Braun, Ricardo Silveira, Luis Conte and Andy Suzuki. The first airplay single was "Your Sweet Smile" featuring Mike O'Neill and Paul Jackson Jr. on guitars, Mel Brown on bass and me on acoustic piano and grooves. Next  is "Riverside Drive" with the Heatwave Horns and Rick Braun. Please feel free to call your local radio request line and ask for it.

On "Heatwave", and all my projects, I always try to keep the first or second "takes", the spontaneous ideas and solos, so I record everything I play using minidiscs and the new Disklavier DC7 Pro Grand. I let myself be very loose and creative with my late night improvisations, blurring the line between melody and soloing but always focusing on the piano. If there's a little mistake or "slippery" phrase here or there, "it's cool", I'll just leave it in. A good melody is worth everything and I trusted my instincts and worked hard to stay true to the original inspiration, or vibe, of each song.

When I write a song, I know immediately who the best player is for each specific part. As usual, on the songs with live drums, I record as much of the track as I can "live" with the whole rhythm section. The programmed tunes need some overdubbing, but even though I may know just what kind of parts I want from the other musicians, I always just roll tape and press "record" without saying anything and capture their reaction to the music at that moment. I'm open to new ideas, which can sometimes steer us into unexpected directions, but it's cool; as long as they support the song."

Hey all, 

Now I know the official release date of "Heatwave" was listed as Oct 22, but I never thought it would really be on the shelves and there'd be such an immediate reaction by people who ran out to get it on its first day of release!!!

I've already gotten a few nice emails and a fan wrote me about this Music Forum and I thought I'd drop in and see what he was talking about...... 

"Hey Gregg, Check out the message board at www.contemporaryjazz.com - you'll see some great comments on "Heatwave" already (search the archive for Karukas / 'Heatwave')! And while you're there, why not add a post. We love to hear from the artists there.  Chuck K."

So I check it out, and all I can say is: this internet is very cool. Some say "impersonal" but I say the opposite. After spending the better part of 2002 writing, recording and mixing Heatwave, it is a special thing when I can "tune in" and get instant feedback from serious listeners who really care about the artists and their latest offerings. Except for my family, Ron B., and a couple of people at the label, you guys are really the first to hear the music......today! This is the next best thing to playing a sold out concert!

You can imagine that over the last months I have been so "close" to the stuff that I wondered from time to time if it is any good or not. I deliberately took a couple of breaks to get my perspective back and make sure I still liked the songs - I actually wrote and/or recorded about 17 songs and there are 12 on the CD.

Gregg

home | news | music | bio | media | tour | contact | extras | forum