New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ PRA Records) Randy Crawford and
Joe Sample have been making music together in one form or another for nearly 36 years. From their first hit together in 1979, "
Street Life" (which Randy sang with Joe and The Crusaders) to "One Day I'll Fly Away," "When Your Life Was Low" and "Last Night at Danceland," to their recent duo collaborations on the GRAMMY -nominated CDs
Feeling Good (2006) and No Regrets (2008), they've made music that people remember. They remember the songs. They remember the melodies. But above all, they remember Randy's incredible voice - and Randy's voice is truly one of the most memorable of all the singers today.
To hear Randy's voice "live in concert" is another thing all together. "For years people have asked me why I don't release a live recording," says Randy. "I'm not sure myself. But I've got one now, and I hope you are as thrilled as I am to hear it."
Recorded on tour in
Europe with Joe on the piano joined by his son Nicklas Sample on upright bass and the incomparable Steve Gadd on drums, Live is a true gem. The album contains Randy's and Joe's classics "Street Life," "Almaz" and "One Day I'll Fly Away," as well as choice tracks from their recent duo studio releases
Feeling Good and No Regrets - "Everyday I Have the Blues," "Me, Myself and I" and Randy's rendition of the Edith Piaf classic "No Regrets."
Randy shows - without a doubt - that she is one of today's premier song stylists, and clearly stakes her claim as a jazz singer. Joe furthers his reputation as one of today's most exciting piano players, knowing exactly when to accompany and when to make the keys dance.
The recordings are live exactly as they happened (across
Europe over their last couple of tours together). Live music with live people.
Born in Macon, Georgia, raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, Randy started singing in the choir loft of her neighborhood church. As a teenager she established a reputation on the mid-western club circuit. By age 21, she had worked with
Quincy Jones, recorded with Cannonball Adderley and regularly touring with
George Benson. She signed to Warner Brothers Records in 1976 for her debut,
Everything Must Change. She is loved all over the world for her incredible voice and uncanny choice of songs.
Joe Sample was born and raised in Houston, Texas. He formed the seminal group the Jazz Crusaders, later known as The Crusaders, as a teenager in the early `50s with neighborhood buddies Wilton Felder, Stix Hooper, and Wayne Henderson. The group became one of the all-time leading jazz ensembles and pioneered the way for the sound of contemporary jazz. Joe's solo recordings
Rainbow Seeker (1978) and Carmel (1979) became classic pop jazz albums before anyone knew what "pop jazz" was. He continues today as a legendary figure in contemporary jazz music.
