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LA JAZZ SCENE REVIEW
Home For The Holidays
/ Nightowl Records
Many contemporary jazz artists are criticized for
their lack of inventiveness and lack of
improvisation that marks a true jazz player, but
even as keyboard whiz Gregg Karukas has topped the
pop/jazz charts, his skill with improv and harmonic
surprises has never ceased to amaze.Those looking
for more of Karukas' jazz roots will find them on
this lush, glorious holiday treat, which strips away
the synthesizer and other electric appliances for a
tender yet energetic trio date that truly captures
the warmth and intimacy of the season, plus a softer
side of Karukas his Positive albums only hint at.
Eased along by the rhythm section of John Leftwich
and Joel Taylor, Karukas weaves freshness into
well-worn standards, offering a Vince Guaraldi-like
treatment of "Oh Tannenbaum," simplifying
"White Christmas" to haunting effect, and
saving his most spirited improvs for a swinging,
mind boggingly speedy tour through "Winter
Wonderland." His acoustic piano touch has never
been sweeter, crisper or more emotional than these
interpretations. The ultimate in "Unplugged!"Adding
passionate drama to this gem are the breathy,
poignant vocal stylings of longtime cohort Shelby
Flint, who displays her well-revered jazz scatting
abilities on "Winter Wonderland," but
shows a more restrained (though no less emotional )
side on "Have Yourself..." She also makes
the four originals here (three of which she wrote or
co-wrote) sound like standards we've heard for
years. Perhaps one day they will be.All in all, a
beautiful holiday treat for all, a jazz collection
even those who favor pop can treasure. - Jonathan
Widran
JAZZIZ Review: Home
for the Holidays ....is definitely a
disc worth reviewing, worth buying, worth listening
to again and again, Christmas after
Christmas.Pianist/producer/composer Gregg Karukas is
joined by vocalist Shelby Flint, bassist John
Leftwich, and drummer Joel Taylor on this
superlative recording. This is nothing less than
great straight ahead piano trio jazz with one of my
favorite singers in the world. Karukas' arrangements
of the seasonal standards are anything but standard:
he manages to find that kernel of jazz truth in the
melodic line and treat it as great music, not merely
as holiday ornament.
Flint, whether singing in a whisper or a wail,
brings incredible depth of expression to her
readings of half the dozen tunes. She also
contributes three of her own compositions, each of
which is like a gift from the magi. - Wayne Lee
JAZZIZ
AMAZON FAN REVIEWS
My Favorite Christmas Recording,
December 25, 2005
I first heard this CD during the 1995
Christmas season. I fell in love with it
instantly--and it has remained the favorite
in our home ever since--this being our
eleventh year enjoying Home For The
Holidays.
Besides Gregg's unparalleled piano mastery
(he doesn't "play" the piano--it
is an extension of his heart!), Shelby Flint
offers flawless vocals. John Leftwich and
Joel Taylor provide stellar performances on
bass and drums.
My wife and I have enjoyed several of
Gregg's Christmas concerts in the San
Fernando Valley over the years. Our 2005
experience was special beyond compare. We
arrived for the late (10:30 pm) show on a
weeknight at the La Ve Lee jazz club. When
the first show audience cleared out (around
11:00 pm), my wife and two daughters and I
were the only patrons left. Not to worry,
Gregg, John, Joel and new vocalist Christine
Day put on a whole show for the four of us!
They played and sang as though the place was
packed to the rafters--just for us. You'll
never get to experience that--but listen to
this CD in front of the fireplace and it
will be the next best thing!
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Fresh Christmas Cheer!, January 11,
2005
What A great holiday disc! Fresh and
listenable versions of holiday classics.
Gregg Karukas definately has the Midas
touch. I don't think the guy can produce
anything but a great piece of work.
"Christmas Song" and "White
Christmas" are outstanding versions of
the classics, but then again, so is
everything on the disc. You can't go wrong
with this one! |
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SHELBY FLINT
 "I
started out copying a girl named Shelby Flint."
Joni Mitchell / Mirabella Magazine
On Home
for the Holidays, singer/songwriter
Shelby Flint's soulful, airy voice captures all the
warmth of the season and brings new life to well
known standards. Shelby has reemerged from relative
obscurity since her debut as one of the original
singer/songwriters in the early 60's ( "Angel
on my Shoulder", "Cast Your Fate to the
Wind") and her popularity following the release
of her 1982 solo project "You've Been on My
Mind", a perennial hit on the now defunct Jazz
radio station KKGO. Artist such as Joni Mitchell and
Al Jarreau have named Shelby as an early influence,
and many baby boomers are amazed to rediscover her
incredible talents in the Smooth Jazz music field
today. Shelby Flint is one of few musicians to
experiment with a myriad of musical directions and
then focus on a deeply personal yet accessible
style.Flint's first accomplishments came as a
teenage folk singer/songwriter. This portion of her
career culminated when her first record on the
Valiant label, "Angel On My Shoulder"
reached Number One in the early 60's.
Shelby had been studying
classical piano and voice since the age of six, and
as a young adult had been influenced by the pop and
folk music so dominant at that time.She then took
time off to raise two daughters and do occasional
studio work until the late 70's when her next
creative period began. Having worked in the company
of artists such as Chick Corea, Tom Scott, and Al
Jarreau, Ms. Flint's own compositions and
arrangements began to reflect the influences of
jazz, latin, and R & B. In 1981, her work in the
L.A. studios on albums, soundtracks such as Charlie
Brown TV specials and films such as "The
Rescuers", and commercials earned her a NARAS
"Most Valuable Player" nomination. The
following year she released " You've Been on My
Mind" (1982) featuring saxophonist Jerry
Peterson (Kim Carnes, Billy Vera ), keyboardist Red
Young , bassist Bill Bodine, drummer Denny Siewell
(Paul McCartney & Wings), Jerry Steinholtz on
percussion, and Flint herself on Fender-Rhodes.
Although limited in it's distribution, "You've
Been on My Mind" continually sold out in record
stores and the title cut as well as the hit
"Mercury" were radio staples for years.
In addition to her own projects,
Shelby has been successful in combining her talents
with many other artists including Gregg Karukas and
Tim Weston (Wishful Thinking, Dr. Strut). Shelby and
Gregg's hit "I Keep it to Myself", from
Gregg's release "Sound of Emotion"
(1992), was featured on the Wave-Aid 6
compilation release which has sold over 80,000
copies nationwide. The next year, Shelby again
collaborated with Gregg on "Spinning
Dreams" from Gregg's "Summerhouse" CD
which reached #1 on the Gavin National Adult
Alternative Radio Chart.
Shelby and Gregg's next release, "Home
for the Holidays" is an all acoustic
project that immediately gained massive air play on
both Mainstream, and Contemporary Jazz formats upon
its initial release in late �93. It features
Gregg's innovative trio arrangements of holiday
classics, and four originals written or co-written
by Shelby.
"Home ......should become a
Christmas Jazz classic..and establish Shelby Flint
as a singer and songwriter of the highest
order". (Wayne Lee/Seasons JAZZIZ)."�
a lush glorious holiday treat�the ultimate in
unplugged." (Jonathan Widran LA Jazz
Scene)Shelby and Tim Weston (Wishful Thinking) also
released "Providence" on Soul Coast/Nova
records which features Peter Erskine, John Patitucci,
Mitchell Forman, and John Beasley among others.
With rave notices from her appearances at festivals
from Monterey to Catalina Island, and a planned
European tour, this year promises to open the world
to the voice and talent of "everyone's favorite
singer/songwriter", Shelby Flint.
PIANIST TUNES IN TO
FAMILY AND FRIENDS
Gregg Karukas' album is about being Home
for the Holidays with his loved ones.
--By Zan Stewart, Special to the Times
For pianist Gregg Karukas, the year-end holiday
season has long been focused on two things; family
gatherings and taking stock. "I don't have that
strong a religious feeling about Christmas,' said
Karukas, 37. "The most important aspect is
being with family and friends. And it's the time
when I tend to think back, and measure my life by
the quality of my interpersonal relationships."
Last June, Karukas decide to further document his
feelings for the winter festival by recording Home
for the Holidays on his own Nightowl
Records. "The thrust behind the record is about
trying to touch, and retouch, the feelings of being
with family, or being home at this time of
year," he said.
The album spotlights singer Shelby Flint, bassist
John Leftwich and drummer Joel Taylor delivering a
zesty program of seasonal favorites, such as
"White Christmas," "The Christmas
Song" and "We Three Kings" (done as a
vigorous jazz waltz), and originals such as the
title track and Flint's "Greetings of the
Season." Saturday and Sunday, Karukas, Flint,
Leftwich, and Taylor will perform the album, and
other material, at Le Café in Sherman Oaks.
Home for the Holidays is
Karukas' first completely acoustic album -- his four
previous releases, including
"Summerhouse," issued last spring have all
featured some synthesizer work and have been
extensively produced. "This was a change for me
to get back to my acoustic piano roots," said
Karukas from a hotel in Chicago, where he was
performing last week. "I haven't played
(acoustic) piano in public that much, but I have
spent a lot of time both practicing and listening to
acoustic pianists like Ahmad Jamal and Les McCann,
two guys I love because they can play pretty and
funky."
Karukas said he feels a kinship with McCann, and
Otis Redding, Herbie Hancock and Stevie Wonder,
artists whose music has often been called
"soulful" or "funky." He fell in
love with their recordings as a kid growing up in
Baltimore, where he started piano lessons at the age
of 6. "That music feels like me," he said.
"It gets across. I'm not trying to play music
that will impress people. Rather, I'm trying to
touch them in an emotional way." Karukas' four
previous albums were done in a style that he
described as "Melodic R&B jazz that also
includes Brazilian jazz." Those albums took
about two months each to complete, "Home for
the Holidays" was done in less than a week last
June. "I did the arrangements two days before
the session, and when we recorded, we did it all
live, without over-dubs," Karukas said.
The album was another opportunity for Karukas to
work with Flint, a longtime associate with whom he
performed with just after he moved to Los Angeles in
1982. "Shelby's the most creative songwriter I
have ever worked with," Karukas said.
"People think of her as having this fantastic
voice, but she also has a lot of musical
depth."
Karukas career is taking off. He has played with sax
man Eric Marienthal, guitarist/composer Dori Caymmi
and the Rippingtons, and has traveled to the East
and Midwest with his own band once a year. His
current tour was topped, he said, by an appearance
before a packed house at the S.O.B's. nightspot in
New York. "It's the best feeling in the world
to come into a city you've never played and have
people you've never met come up and tell you how
much they like your music," he said.
|
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Still - By
Gregg Karukas and Shelby Flint
Intro:
Bbmaj7 / /
Bbmaj7 Cm7 Dm7 Ebmaj7 / / Bb / / C / / C7 / / Cm7 /
/ Cm7sus(F bass)
Bbmaj7
/ /
Bbmaj7 Cm7 Dm7 Ebmaj7
/ /
Abmaj7 /
/
Verse 1:
Still,
qui - et
and deep
on a winter night
Bbmaj7
/ /
Bb Bb7
Gm7 Eb
/ /
Cm7 /
/
The
Earth
turns in
her sleep under
starry light
Gm7
/ /
Dm7 /
/ Eb
/ /
Gm7 /
/
Cradled
in dreams,
drifting it
seems
Cm7
/
/ Cm7
/ /
Cm7 /
/
Safe
on a starry
sea
Bbmaj7
/ /
Bbmaj7 Cm7 Dm7 Ebmaj7
/ /
Abmaj7 /
/
Verse 2:
And here,
watch - ing you sleep
by the fireside
Bbmaj7
/ /
Bb Bb7 Gm7
Eb
/
/
Cm7 /
/
A
sweet
vi - gil
I'll keep
while the night arrives
Gm7 /
/ Dm7
/ /
Eb /
/ Gm7
/ /
Angels
above
tending our
love
Cm7
/
/ Cm7
/ /
Cm7 /
/
Smiling
on you
and me.
G
/ /
Em7 /
/
Am /
/ D7
/
/
Bridge:
Into the
silence
my memories come tumbling
G
/ /
Em /
/ Cm7
/ /
Dm7 /
/
Laughing
and stumbling, foolish and wise
Em7
/
/
Bm7 /
/
C /
/ G
/ /
Every
step we have
taken
we walked hand in hand
Cm7
/
/ Gm7
/ /
Ebmaj7 /
/ Cm7
/ /
And
I see through the dark
by the light in
your eyes
Bbmaj7
/ /
Bbmaj7 Cm7 Dm7 Ebmaj7
/ /
Abmaj7 /
/
Verses 3/4: Hush,
here comes the dawn
of another day
Bbmaj7
/ /
Bb Bb7 Gm7
Eb /
/ Cm7
/
/
And
time
has to move
on, but I
want to say
Gm7
/ /
Dm7 /
/ Eb
/
/
Gm7 /
/
Here
in my heart,
you
hold/(are) the part
Ebmaj7
/ /
Ebmaj7 /
/ Cm7
/ /
Cm7 /
/
Nobody
else could
fill
Ebmaj7
/ /
Ebmaj7 /
/ Bbma7
/ /
Quiet
and deep
and Still
Dm Eb
Fm6 Eb
/ /
Gm7 /
/ Cm7
/
Abmaj7
Ending:
Quiet and strong and deep
and Still
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