Sounds great Russ! I will make myself available whenever you find the time.
BTW, wee have a little informal "miniJam" that sorta developed for tomorrow. Joe Lee Richards is coming in from Arkansas. HankB, Billy Ledbetter www.billyledbetter.com
from Monroe, LA, Dean Mathis http://www.geocities.com/corkino/newbeats.htm
and a couple more guys from around here are all coming to the club I work. Always FUN in Louisiana!
DonM

Russ, this is tough for me because I don't know what your aim was with this composition. By that, I mean that I would rate it differently depending on whether you intended it as a jazz composition, jazz-fusion composition, or a commercial composition written for a specific project.

For starters, the musicianship and professionalism is obvious so we can quickly dispense with that. I can send you a list of detailed comments but I'll have to go back for a 3rd or 4th listen. Top of the head, here are some likes and dislikes.

LIKES:
Horns (a lot)
Solos (especially guitar, no suprise there)
Structure (conventional, but that's okay)
Chord changes (sophisticated enough for interesting solos)
Drums and Percussion (really nice groove and well suited to the tune)

DISLIKES:
'Rhodes' slightly too 'TINE-Y', as in bright or shrill, for my taste. I'd use a softer, less agressive 'Rhodes', but with the same attack.

Organ - didn't like the choice of registrations; sounded 'out of place' with the rest of the instrumentation. Organ, yes, but perhaps a lighter, more modern, resgistration (I realize that that is so subjective - it was just a gut reaction kind of thing).

OVERALL:
I really like those horn parts; I'm partial to them anyway, as they make great 'hooks' for solos. Use them more if you plan to use this in a jazz venue. If I absolutely had to rate it:

Composition - as jazz, 7; as jazz fusion, 8-8.5; as 'commercial', probably 9.5.

Performance - 9

Recording - 8.5 (I know it hasn't been final-mixed or mastered)

Well, you asked.

chas

Thanks a lot, Chas. This is just the beginning of a major project-a rough which is presented to the client (an automobile manufacturer) as a music bed direction for a film I produced which was shown to financial analysists and employees.

It was all done in an hour or so, using whatever was lying around...mostly an old Yamaha tone generator, and Alesis drum machine. etc.

After approval of the storyboards and music rough, it goes to final; a real production with real B-3, guitar, horns, real percussion, etc. Can't be busy...would fight with the voice-over. No attempt at this point to do anything but get approval for a direction. No attempt to get acceptible final tones. It's the equivalent of the storyboard detailing footage, V/O's, etc.

Generally, the score is only 10% of the final production on a very tight timeline. Pay is great, and we're the only ones around this area providing original music. The President of the company has input. He loves acid jazz and fusion.

Can't get permission to share finals, which are owned by the client(s). Just posted because of repeated requests, but isn't a final production. Sound scores constitute about 1% of our annual business.

Appreciate your comments, because your opinion matters to me!

Thanks,


Russ