David Sanborn - Inside (1999)

Not the strongest Sanborn collaboration with multi-instrumentalist/writer/producer Marcus Miller, but it certainly has its moments. I think the album tries to cover a bit from all phases of Sanborn's multi-faceted career: '80s instrumental pop, Night Music, R&B/soul Sanborn, and the more straight ahead attempts of the Elektra-era (1991-99). So the album isn't cohesive, especially when four different vocalists appear for tracks with a definite late-'90s adult contemporary sheen.

What ultimately holds it back for me are the scattered choices of material and arrangements. There are some questionable drum programming and looping decisions. However, the musicianship is consistently good, Sanborn sounds like Sanborn, and the album won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Performance. Despite multiple nominations, that win was the only one for Sanborn in that particular Grammy category, which was awarded between the years 1992-2011. 

Ratings/reviews:

• Hi-Fi World: "Not half bad at all."
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★½

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• Billboard Contemporary Jazz: #2

Tracks: The highlights for me are the remake of Lisa (originally appeared on Sanborn's 1980 album, Hideaway) and Brother Ray, a tribute to Ray Charles. Skip track 3, Trance. As for the vocal tracks, Cassandra Wilson on a cover of Aretha Franklin's Day Dreaming is a good idea. Lalah Hathaway and Eric Benét on When I'm With You makes musical sense, but it's almost too slick and radio ready. And Sting on a cover of the Bill Withers hit Ain't No Sunshine is... well, that's very 1999.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:

Original Album Series (2010)	A Change of Heart (1987)
Timeagain (2003)	Double Vision (1986)
Love Songs (1995)	Straight To The Heart (1984)
The Best of (1994)	Backstreet (1983)
Hearsay (1994)	As We Speak (1982)
Upfront (1992)	Voyeur (1981)
Another Hand (1991)	Beck & Sanborn (1975)
Close-Up (1988)

David Sanborn - Close-Up (1988)

Note: this release was originally purchased as a CD which was either sold, stolen, traded or lost, then replaced by another CD.

I will gladly listen to any Sanborn collaboration with bassist/composer/producer Marcus Miller, but I think this album is the weakest of that bunch. Admittedly, I must be in the minority because the critics liked it and the album won the Grammy award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group Or Soloist). The aggressive synth drums forward in the mix really don't do much for me and have greatly dated the album, unfortunately. So the better tracks are the slower, laid back pieces with a real drummer as opposed to the upbeat funk-lite offerings.

Close-Up was Sanborn's only album released on the Reprise label.

Ratings/reviews:

• Billboard: "return to form"
• CashBox: "Should sell like hotcakes."
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★★½

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #59
• Billboard Top Compact Discs - Pop: #13
• Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz: #1
• Billboard R&B: #38
• CashBox Top 200: #42
• CashBox Jazz: #1
• Rolling Stone: #26

Tracks: My picks are J.T., Lesley Ann, and a tasty cover of the Philly soul classic, You Are Everything. There's a definite lull in the middle of the album that includes a lackluster cover of Randy Newman's Same Girl. As mentioned in the above advertisement, Slam was the lead single. It is one of the aforementioned funk-lite tunes and peaked at #50 on the Billboard R&B singles chart.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:

Original Album Series (2010)	A Change of Heart (1987)
Timeagain (2003)	Double Vision (1986)
Love Songs (1995)	Straight To The Heart (1984)
The Best of (1994)	Backstreet (1983)
Hearsay (1994)	As We Speak (1982)
Upfront (1992)	Voyeur (1981)
Another Hand (1991)	Beck & Sanborn (1975)

Bob James & David Sanborn - Double Vision (1986)

Note: this release was originally purchased as a LP, later replaced by a CD.

In 1986, I would have purchased an album of David Sanborn playing children's music on a plastic recorder. I had seen him in concert twice by then and considered myself a full-on fan. And Jarreau's on this thing, too? Sign me up! Probably purchased in the late summer of '86, this LP got a lot of playing time during my junior year of college and for more than a full year after its release. Most of these tracks wouldn't have been out of place on Sanborn's Backstreet album and that's fine with me.

Billboard, May 31, 1986, p. 60

"...both players' sizable followings..." That's was certainly me in 1986 and not much has changed since then on that front.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #50
• Billboard Pop CD: #10
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• Billboard R&B: #16
• CashBox Jazz: #1
• CashBox CD: #11
• Rolling Stone: #27

Tracks: Let's rank 'em!

1. Since I Fell For You, a 1945 standard with the aforementioned Al Jarreau on vocals. #1 in a landslide. Peaked at #10 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart after appearing on the Moonlighting soundtrack album.
2. It's You, written by Sanborn.
3. You Don't Know Me, cover of a 1956 Eddy Arnold tune
4. Never Enough, written by James & Sanborn.
5. Maputo, written by bassist Marcus Miller
6. More Than Friends, written by Miller
7. Moon Tune, written by James & Sanborn

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Like many college students, I had a minimum wage manual labor job in the summers. In the summer of '87, my main job was re-glazing and painting window frames. Most days, I was completely alone except for a water jug and my Walkman or radio. I must have sung Since I Fell For You about 100 times that summer. At the top of my lungs. With no complaints from the neighbors. (No record contract offers, either, but that's neither here nor there.)

And I'll probably listen to that track at least three more times before taking this disc out of the tray.

Previously revisited for the blog:

David Sanborn	Bob James
Original Album Series (2010)	Playin' Hooky (1997)
Timeagain (2003)	Rameau (1984)
Love Songs (1995)	Two of a Kind (1982)
The Best of (1994)
Hearsay (1994)
Upfront (1992)
Another Hand (1991)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Straight To The Heart (1984)
Backstreet (1983)
As We Speak (1982)
Voyeur (1981)
Beck & Sanborn (1975)

David Sanborn - Another Hand (1991)

Apropos to its title, this album, Sanborn's first on the Elektra label, marked a departure from the instrumental pop he produced earlier for Warner Bros. and moves into more serious jazz, surrounding himself with heavy hitters like Bill Frisell, Charlie Haden and Jack DeJohnette. Sometimes it works, sometimes it don't. Bottom line: it's an adventurous departure and good on him for the move, but I prefer the instrumental pop stuff.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard Top 200: #170
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• CashBox: #142

Tracks: The better attempts here are the more traditional tracks: Come To Me Nina, Dukes & Counts, and the title track. The Velvet Underground's Jesus is an interesting choice for a cover, but I think it works.

There's three tunes here that are arrangements of TV and film scores from shows such as The Twilight Zone, One Step Beyond, and The Devil At Four O'Clock. Not sure what they're aiming for, but I'll pass.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None.

Previously revisited for the blog:

Original Album Series (2010)	A Change of Heart (1987)
Timeagain (2003)	Straight To The Heart (1984)
Love Songs (1995)	Backstreet (1983)
The Best of (1994)	As We Speak (1982)
Hearsay (1994)	Voyeur (1981)
Upfront (1992)	Beck & Sanborn (1975)

David Sanborn - Hearsay (1994)

Not the best Sanborn album, but he was still collaborating with bassist/composer/producer/ Marcus Miller, so it can't be too bad. I realize it's unfair to compare this to albums released ten years earlier, but I just can't help myself. Still, if you like any of his '80s output, there's something here for you.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #116
• Billboard Contemporary Jazz: #2
• Billboard R&B: #39
• CashBox Jazz: #3

Tracks: My picks are The Long Goodbye, Little Face, and Back to Memphis. Even though it's not very original, I dig the cover of Got To Give It Up simply because I like the song. Skip the terribly dated track Big Foot.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None. It seems like I would have had this upon release but since I was willfully unemployed in '94, maybe I just didn't have the money to spend. I picked it up much later.

Previously revisited for the blog:

Original Album Series (2010)	Straight To The Heart (1984)
Timeagain (2003)	Backstreet (1983)
Love Songs (1995)	As We Speak (1982)
The Best of (1994)	Voyeur (1981)
Upfront (1992)	Beck & Sanborn (1975)
A Change of Heart (1987)

David Sanborn - Original Album Series (2010)

A repackaged reissue of Sanborn's five albums for Warner Bros., 1975-1980. The set inexplicably does not include the 1977 album titled Promise Me The Moon, but this box was a good way to fill in some gaps in my collection.

---

TAKING OFF (1975)
9 tracks, 37 minutes

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #208
• Billboard Jazz: #19

Sanborn hadn't quite found his R&B smooth jazz consistency on this release, his major label solo debut. It's very similar to the Brecker Brothers (who backup Sanborn here) and then there's some mess with poorly arranged strings on what was side two. However, Sanborn sounds like Sanborn throughout, meaning his sound was amazingly fully developed already. Most of the compositions and arrangements are by keyboardist David Matthews (no, not that Dave Matthews). Other noteworthy session musicians include Steve Gadd, Ralph MacDonald, Steve Khan, Buzzy Feiten, and Joe Beck.

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "Moods move from pure jazz to disco to Latin to an almost classical feel."
• Downbeat (★★★): "a polished, toe-tappin', finger-poppin', jazz-flavored rhythm and blues outing, infectious in nature."
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★½
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★

The better tracks are Butterfat, The Whisperer, and It Took A Long Time.

---

SANBORN (1976)
8 tracks, 41 minutes

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #125
• Billboard Jazz: #10
• Billboard R&B: #55
• CashBox: #122
• CashBox Jazz: #6
• Record World Jazz: #18

For this album, Sanborn teamed up with pop/rock producer Phil Ramone, who brought along his buddy Paul Simon to help out on a few tracks, giving this a definite New York vibe. While the starred ratings below are identical to the previous album, I think this one is more enjoyable - better tunes and more energetic performances, particularly from guitarist Hiram Bullock and bassist Herb Bushler.

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "Hard hitting soprano and tenor sax work sets the pace for this driving, crossover brand of jazz" [Note: Sanborn plays alto saxophone]
• Downbeat (★★★): "Sanborn is engaging stuff, and its namesake certainly has one of the classiest, most distinctive alto tones around."
• Rolling Stone: "What's missing is a choice of colors"
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★

My top tracks are Smile (which squeaked onto the R&B singles chart at #98), Herbs, Concrete Boogie, Sophisticated Squaw, and the cover of Simon's I Do It For Your Love.

---

HEART TO HEART (1978)
7 tracks, 40 minutes

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #151
• Billboard Jazz: #16
• CashBox: #147
• CashBox Jazz: #14
• Record World Jazz: #16

I didn't have this album prior to purchasing this box set, but I was familiar with most of the cuts because of their inclusion on various compilations and live albums. Familiar names among the session players: Brecker Bros., Ralph MacDonald, Steve Gadd, Mike Mainieri, Hugh McCracken, and Richard Tee. Plus, on the track Short Visit, Sanborn is backed by the Gil Evans orchestra. No shortage of good musicianship and good tunes. My previous interest in Sanborn's back catalog inexplicably stopped with Voyeur. I should have gone back to at least this album. Coulda woulda shoulda, better late than never, etc, etc.

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "Sanborn blows a potful of horn but, as yet, has not developed a distinctive, personal sound" [note: wha????]
• Downbeat (★★★★): "the album his longtime admirers have been waiting for"
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★½
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★

The best cuts are Solo, Short Visit, and Lotus Blossom, but there's nothing to skip on this disc. And if Sunrise Gospel doesn't make you think of the end of Saturday Night Live episodes, then you're not paying attention (yes, Sanborn was an original member of the SNL band).

I'll take a slight break from the music to mention the box set packaging. While I appreciate the fact that Rhino gives us an album replica cardboard sleeve for each CD, would it be too much to ask for some large print supplemental liner notes I could actually read? How's an old man supposed to focus on this?

Even my trusty Sherlock Holmes magnifying glass doesn't help much.

---

HIDEAWAY (1980)
8 tracks, 38 minutes

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #63
  
• Billboard Jazz: #2
• Billboard R&B: #33
• CashBox: #56
• CashBox Jazz: #4
• Record World Jazz: #3

This is the album where Sanborn fully owns the sound that would be his signature for the subsequent decade. Sanborn writes many of his own tunes here, including co-writing two tracks with Michael McDonald. The album also sees Sanborn playing with bassist Marcus Miller, who would go on to be a very close collaborator. The Billboard review (below) calls this "hip swaggering music" but I'd call it "swaggeringly hip music."

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "a flowing program of modernly orchestrated songs."
• Downbeat (★★★½): "he is not as good as he sounds"
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★

All the tracks here are winners. My favorites are Hideaway, Anything You Want, and Again An Again (which is unmistakable Michael McDonald). My least favorite track is Creeper, but not so much that I'd skip it. Giorgio Moroder's love theme from the movie American Gigolo (The Seduction), wasn't on the original release but after its peak on the pop charts at #28 (credited to James Last Band), it was later added.

---

VOYEUR (1981)
7 tracks, 30 minutes

This CD has already appeared on the blog (click here for that post) and I don't mind having two copies on my shelves.

---

Personal Memory Associated with these CDs: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
Timeagain (2003)
Love Songs (1995)
The Best of (1994)
Upfront (1992)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Straight To The Heart (1984)
Backstreet (1983)
As We Speak (1982)
Voyeur (1981)
Beck & Sanborn (1975)

Joe Beck, David Sanborn - Beck & Sanborn (1975)

This album was originally released under the name Beck with the following cover art:

It was later reissued and renamed to capitalize on Sanborn's rising popularity. This CD reissue contains 2 bonus tracks. It's got both players trading licks over some funk-lite grooves from first-rate session pros and I'm digging it. I wish they had done more recordings together as this is every bit as good as Sanborn's peak albums (IMO) of the '80s.

Billboard, May 31, 1975

I would imagine that some of those buyers that were expecting Jeff Beck were pleasantly surprised when they gave this one a spin. It's more mellow than say, Blow By Blow, but it's in the same fusion vein.

Special mention of Don Grolnick, who plays a mean Fender Rhodes throughout. I recently dug this out of a used bin; I'd never heard of the album before then and I considered myself to be a Sanborn fan. I was completely unfamiliar with Joe Beck who has a fine sound in the style of Larry Coryell and Larry Carlton. I probably wouldn't have liked this in 1975 when I was 9, but if I had heard it in the early '80s when I was discovering Sanborn, it would have been a welcome addition to my collection. Shame I had to wait all this time. Chalk this one up to my continuing music education.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #140
• Billboard Jazz: #14
• CashBox: #187

Tracks: Nothing to skip here. My favorites this time around are Cactus, Red Eye, and Cafe Black Rose.

The two bonus tracks, Ain't It Good and Spoon's Theme, are very much along the same lines except they aren't quite as well-written as the others. In other words, they picked the right songs to put on the album.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Previously revisited for the blog:
Timeagain (2003)
Love Songs (1995)
The Best of (1994)
Upfront (1992)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Straight To The Heart (1984)
Backstreet (1983)
As We Speak (1982)
Voyeur (1981)

David Sanborn - Straight To The Heart (1984)

A strange compilation, but it works for the most part. Recorded live in studio in front of a small crowd, this mixes some songs from Sanborn's earlier albums along with a few covers. It works because the band made up of NYC studio cats is incredible and also because these live versions often surpass the studio versions. I think Sanborn was playing in Letterman's band on Friday nights and in the SNL band on Saturday nights back in these days. Sanborn's work with Marcus Miller in the early '80s simply can't be beat and both Miller and Sanborn (and the rest of the band, for that matter) are in top form here. Winner of the Grammy for Best Jazz Fusion Performance.

Press of the time:

• Downbeat (★★★★): "may not be great art, but at least it's good music"
• CashBox: "Sanborn is in perfect form on this hits package"
• Stereo Review: "another satisfactory effort"

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #64
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• Billboard R&B: #31
• CashBox: #62
• CashBox Jazz: #1
• Radio & Records Jazz Radio National Airplay: #1

Tracks:  All of what was side 1 (tracks 1-4) was right in my wheelhouse in 1984 and it's still a fun listen, especially the gospel-infused intro of Smile which turns into an all-out improv frenzy between Sanborn and guitarist Hiram Bullock. Side two (tracks 5-8) are hit and miss. Lisa has never been one of my favorite Sanborn tunes and the cover of Al Green's Love & Happiness with vocal by Hamish Stuart (Average White Band) just doesn't work. The album recovers with the beautiful Lotus Blossom and a harmless cover of One Hundred Ways (originally from The Dude).

Personal Memory Associated with this CD:  Surprisingly, I didn't buy this one in '84, instead I waited a year until a college buddy, Buffalo Tom, bought a used LP copy and I dubbed a cassette of that. I saw Sanborn (opening for Al Jarreau) not long after the release of this album with the same band and the same energy. Good stuff, even though I got my first speeding ticket on the way home from the show.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Timeagain (2003)
Love Songs (1995)
The Best of (1994)
Upfront (1992)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Backstreet (1983)
As We Speak (1982)
Voyeur (1981)

David Sanborn - Love Songs (1995)

This compilation may be one of the best make-out albums released since Al Green's Greatest Hits. We get 11 instrumentals and one vocal track (featuring Linda Ronstadt) from albums released in the years 1976-1988.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did Not Chart

Tracks:

Song	Album	Year
All I Need Is You (edit)	Voyeur	1981
Straight To The Heart	As We Speak	1982
One In A Million	Voyeur	1981
It's You	Double Vision	1986
The Seduction	Hideaway	1980
Imogene	A Change Of Heart	1987
You Don't Know Me	Double Vision	1986
You Are Everything	Close-Up	1988
I Do It For Your Love	Sanborn	1976
When You Smile At Me	Backstreet	1983
Lisa	Hideaway	1980
The Water Is Wide	previously unreleased	1985

I've already raved about All I Need Is You from the 1981 album Voyeur. I love that tune (warning: you get a 3:38 edited version on this album compared to 5:47 on Voyeur). Also good are Straight To The Heart, One In A Million, It's You, and Lisa. My least favorite tune is Imogene. I'm also not wild about the inclusion of The Water Is Wide featuring Linda Ronstadt. It's a beautiful song based on a traditional British folk song, Ronstadt's vocals are characteristically fantastic, it just doesn't fit with the rest of the album. And while it is a love song, the lyrics tell the tale of a love gone sour: "but love grows old and waxes cold and fades away like the morning dew." Is that how you really want to end an album of love songs?

Personal Memory Associated with this CD:  Track 5, The Seduction, was the "Love Theme" from the Richard Gere movie American Gigolo. It was a minor Top 40 hit in 1980 (it peaked at #28), but I was drawn to it and bought the 45 single. Perhaps that was my first purchase in the smooth jazz genre. If I remember correctly, the flip side was an instrumental version of Blondie's Call Me, another track from the movie. Man, I wished I had kept all my vinyl.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Timeagain (2003)
The Best of (1994)
Upfront (1992)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Backstreet (1983)
As We Speak (1982)
Voyeur (1981)

David Sanborn - Timeagain (2003)

One of the best saxophonists in smooth jazz makes his debut on Verve Records. This CD features a top notch backing band, including one of my favorite drummers, Steve Gadd, and vibraphonist Mike Manieri, with whom I am familiar because of his participation with Steps Ahead. The disc starts off with 7 covers of standards and pop tunes and ends with 3 originals.

The album was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of Best Contemporary Jazz Album, eventually losing to 34th N Lex by Randy Brecker.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #177 (June 21, 2003)

Tracks: Of the covers, my favorites are Comin' Home Baby and Tequila. I was unfamiliar with Joni Mitchell's Man From Mars, but the cover here is one of the better songs on the album; it wouldn't be out of place on one of Sanborn's 80's albums like Backstreet. I can appreciate that the band is trying to put its mark on these tunes, but I don't particularly care for the arrangements of Harlem Nocturne and Isn't She Lovely. The three original tunes fit in well with Harlem Nocturne vibe, with the best of these three being Little Flower.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD:  None

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Best of (1994)
Upfront (1992)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Backstreet (1983)
As We Speak (1982)
Voyeur (1981)

David Sanborn - Upfront (1992)

Note: this release was originally purchased as a cassette tape, later replaced by a CD.

This album was rare for its time: a smooth jazz release with "real" instruments. A real drummer instead of a LinnDrum. Real horns instead of synths. And, most importantly in my book, some sweet Hammond B-3 playing from Ricky Peterson. Sanborn is here with his most important collaborator, Marcus Miller and they produce music that wouldn't be out of place on their '70s/'80s releases (and that's a good thing). Overall, the music here is more funky, loud, up-tempo, and in-your-face than Sanborn's usual fare, but still very enjoyable.

The album was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of Best Contemporary Jazz Performance (Instrumental), eventually losing to Secret Story by Pat Metheny.

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #107
• Billboard R&B: #60
• Billboard Contemporary Jazz: #1
• CashBox Jazz: #1

Tracks: By this time in my life, I had lost track of Sanborn, but was re-introduced to him when Bang Bang was released as a crossover single. Not typical Sanborn, but a fun party Latin-flavored track. It got some airplay on a Houston radio station, where I heard it, liked it, bought the cassette. The single reached #36 on the pop charts, not bad for a (mostly) instrumental crossover hit back then. In addition to Bang Bang, the better tracks here are Benny, Full House (with the obligatory celebrity walk-on solo from Eric Clapton), Hey, and Sanborn's take on the King Curtis classic, Soul Serenade. I'm not wild about the last two tracks.

Exclusive CD longbox photos courtesy of
Dirk Digglinator of the Hambonian Archives.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: This album was originally purchased upon its release when I was in my mid-20's. I had a beautiful wife, good job, a mortgage, a country club membership, credit card debt, etc. I was an official adult. I acted like I knew what I was doing. Society treated me like I knew what I was doing. At my teaching job, my colleagues, my students, and their parents all thought I knew what I was doing. I had no idea what I was doing.

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Best of (1994)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Backstreet (1983)
As We Speak (1982)
Voyeur (1981)

David Sanborn - As We Speak (1982)

While not a Christmas CD, I was thinking of this album the other day because it contains a song titled Rain On Christmas, which, if current weather patterns hold, is a distinct possibility here this year. Although this music is more like instrumental pop music, Sanborn is considered a smooth jazz artist, wailing over R&B and funk rhythms from a fantastic set of studio musicians, anchored by Marcus Miller on bass and Omar Hakim on drums. One of my favorite Sanborn albums, mainly because it was part of my teenage introduction to this type of music.

Interesting note: I was over at the Amazon website to check out the current price of this CD. I was expecting the cost to be about $8, but it was $13.98. I mistakenly thought maybe the CD had been reissued with bonus tracks, but a little more reading found the following:

"This product is manufactured on demand using CD-R recordable media."

Never seen that before. The music is not available for download, so it looks like CD-R is the only option for now. That's a step backwards, isn't it?

Press of the time:

• Stereo Review: "will sing to you as exquisitely as any vocalist."
• DownBeat (★★★½): "more than just good"
• Billboard: "After two consecutive number one jazz LPs...a strong shot at three for three."
• Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide (1985): ★★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #70
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• Billboard R&B: #32
• CashBox: #75
• CashBox Jazz: #1
• Radio & Records Jazz Radio National Airplay: #1

Tracks: The best song on the disc is Straight To The Heart. Other favorites are Port Of Call, Over And Over, the title track, and the aforementioned Rain On Christmas. Two poppish songs, Back Again and Love Will Come Someday, feature vocals by Michael Sembello who you may remember from his 1983 hit, Maniac. Sembello also wrote three songs on this album. I'm so used to listening to this thing straight through I normally don't skip tracks. However, I'm not terribly fond of Better Believe It or Rush Hour.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: In high school, I dubbed a copy of this album from a LP borrowed from one of my band directors. That cassette had this album on one side, Voyeur on the other. That tape got a lot of playing time.

The simplistic cover art has always appealed to me. For about 18 months during college, I lived in small house that had several album covers that had been reproduced on the walls by previous tenants. This album cover was one of them. Having cover art reproduced on your walls sounds like a fun, wacky idea until you realize that you are stuck with an 8 foot amateurish reproduction on your bedroom wall and it's the first thing you see everyday.

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Best of (1994)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Backstreet (1983)
Voyeur (1981)

David Sanborn - Backstreet (1983)

Note: this release was originally purchased as a cassette tape, later replaced by a CD.

In the early to mid '80s, I was a big Sanborn fan. I'll still pick up his stuff if I see it, but I'm not as compulsive about the latest releases as I once was. In any case, because I listened to him often in high school, I always think that particular period of his career, when he teamed up with Marcus Miller, was his best. Whether that's actually true or not is another discussion entirely. Anyway, this release fits into that era. If you edit out 2 of the weaker tracks, this is a great late-night album.

Reviews/ratings:

• DownBeat: ★★★★
• Billboard: "straightforward pop and soul melodies framed by taut rhythm work and lush keyboard and vocal as foils for Sanborn's signature alto sax phrases"
• Stereo Review: "expert but too long"
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #81
• Billboard R&B: #21
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• CashBox: #76
• CashBox: #1
• Radio & Records Jazz Radio National Airplay: #1

Tracks: I like 6 of the 8 tracks. The only ones I'll usually skip are Believer and Blue Beach. Highlights are I Told U So, A Tear For Crystal, and a cover of the Gladys Knight hit, Neither One Of Us.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: This cassette got a lot of playing time in late '83 & '84 on the Pioneer deck in the Markmobile. And with other members of the high school jazz band, I saw Sanborn in support of this album in October 1983 at the Kool Jazz Festival in Jones Hall, Houston. In total, ten of us attended. I think we just all piled into Dr. Johnston's station wagon and flew down the Southwest Freeway on our way to downtown Houston. Check out the price on the ticket stub below: $12.50! That wouldn't even cover Ticketmaster's "convenience charge" these days.

Previously revisited for the blog:
The Best of (1994)
A Change of Heart (1987)
Voyeur (1981)

David Sanborn - A Change of Heart (1987)

This was one of the first CDs I ever acquired. In fact, I'd bet next month's paycheck that I got it via a record club with my Sony D-160 purchase:

Because it was one of the few CDs I owned in summer 1988, I listened to this one quite a bit. It's typical of Sanborn's output in the '80s, except it relies heavily on synths. Unfortunately, the synth sounds and drum machines have really dated this music. It's more instrumental pop than jazz, but it's what was selling so you can't blame Sanborn for wanting to make a buck. I liked it at the time and I guess that's all that matters. I'm not listening to this disc much these days unless a random song pops up while I'm shuffling through iTunes.

Ratings:

• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #74
• Billboard Contemporary Jazz: #3
• Billboard Pop CD: #20
• Billboard R&B: #43
• CashBox Jazz: #1
• CashBox Top CD: #12
• R&R Jazz Radio National Airplay: #4

Tracks: I like Chicago Song, High Roller, Tintin, and The Dream. I usually skip Imogene and Breaking Point.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Two thoughts come to mind: early mornings in 1988 at the house on Lee St. (below, in 2002) and student teaching in Richardson.

David Sanborn - The Best of (1994)

GREATEST HITS WEEK (JANUARY 17-23, 2011)

When I bought this in '94, it was one of only 2 Sanborn CDs I owned. I've since replaced many of my LPs and cassettes with CDs, so I have most of the songs included here on other CDs.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks: I'm a big fan, so I like most all the tracks here. I prefer his earlier work as his late '80s material (starting with 1987's A Change of Heart album) hasn't aged particularly well, even though he was working with the fabulous Marcus Miller at that time. If I skipped any tracks, I might skip Slam. My favorites are A Tear For Crystal and Hideaway.

	Song	Album	Year
1	Chicago Song	A Change Of Heart	1987
2	The Dream	A Change Of Heart	1987
3	Let's Just Say Goodbye	Voyeur	1981
4	Slam	Close-Up	1988
5	Lesley Ann	Close-Up	1988
6	Carly's Song	Hideaway	1980
7	Anything You Want	Hideaway	1980
8	A Tear For Crystal	Backstreet	1983
9	Over And Over	As We Speak	1982
10	Rain On Christmas	As We Speak	1982
11	Hideaway	Hideaway	1980
12	It's You	Voyeur	1981
13	As We Speak	As We Speak	1982
14	Lisa	Hideaway	1980
15	Neither One Of Us	Backstreet	1983
16	Lotus Blossom	Heart To Heart	1978

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: I've seen Sanborn live twice. Both times he was an opening act. In October 1983, I saw him open for Spyro Gyra at Houston's Jones Hall and in August 1985, I saw him open for Al Jarreau at the Southern Star Amphitheater at the now defunct Astroworld.

David Sanborn - Voyeur (1981)

This is characteristic early '80s smooth jazz from some great studio musicians: Marcus Miller, Steve Gadd, Tom Scott, Hiram Bullock, et al. Unfortunately, at a total playing time of 29:45, you're not exactly getting the most bang for your buck with this release.

Reviews/ratings:

• Billboard: "uptempo groove again abounds, stretching to a more pointed funk flavor"
• DownBeat (★★★★): "very intense"
• The Rolling Stone Jazz & Blues Album Guide (1999): ★★★
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Jazz (1999): ★★★
• The Penguin Guide to Jazz (5th ed., 2000): ★★★

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #45
• Billboard Jazz: #1
• Billboard R&B: #18
• Billboard Rock: #37
• CashBox: #43
• CashBox Jazz: #2
• Rolling Stone: #48
• Radio & Records Jazz Radio National Airplay: #1

Track: Wake Me When It's Over has not aged well. However, that one song is the only dated music on the record. I enjoy Run for Cover and Just for You, but the cut All I Need is You could be the worth the price of the CD. Great track - it won the 1982 Grammy for Best R&B Instrumental.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: In the summer of 1984, I would go over to my band director's apartment to pick up mail, water the plants, etc. while he was visiting family out of state. I also took the opportunity to borrow his LPs and record them to cassette tapes. This was on one such tape - Voyeur on one side, As We Speak on the other.