new tune

[paddy jordan]

hi johnny just wondering what new songs your working on for us here you know we that your choices re always on the beat !

[john]

Yes, I was on a roll for a while there but got into some busy projects that took me away from that…
I have a funky one by Bill Withers who did Ain’t No Sunshine, called Use Me (till you use me up)
and I have an awesome version of Stevie Wonder’s Sign Sealed Delivered done by King Curtis, all instrumentals with a cool horn section that surpasses Stevie’s version… for us sax players anyway!
I have them almost ready but need time to get them finalized and up on the site etc.
Will let you know.

[Michael]

Oh wow–both of those songs are going to sound terrific on the Saxophone! I checked out on youtube King Curtis playing “Sign Sealed Delivered” and it’s going to be right up there with the Watermelon Man as my favorite Saxophone song of yours 🙂 Really looking forward to these releases. Speaking of King Curtis, have you thought about doing his version of “Green Onions”? Was also thinking about “Walking with Mr.Lee” by Lee Allen, fabulous stuff in those songs. Thanks SO MUCH for making this terrific music available for us Johnny, we can’t get it anywhere else! 🙂

[john]

Yes, would like to do those when I can for sure. I have all King Curtis’ stuff and everytime I listen I wanna play it.

[Michael]

Here’s the video I found on youtube of King Curtis playing this song; the way he hits those Altissimo notes is incredible! I love to listen to modern jazz and R&B on the Saxophone, but to me there’s something about today’s modern Saxophone music that, while is still awesome, is missing an “element” I guess you could say that players like King Curtis captured. It’s so distinct of that time/era. I just wish I could travel back through time and have went to one of his concerts! LOL
http://youtu.be/rZGOf7zhR8I
Here in about a month, I was going to start collecting the “Honkers and Screamers” collection on CD. Getting around to getting your CDs on cdbaby.com too. When I went to CD baby and clicked on your CDs and listened to “samples” of the songs; the songs you and your band played sounds a lot like late 1940-1950 era of music; TERRIFIC stuff! It makes me think of the kind of music that these Saxophone players who would stay out all night in the clubs, playing all night long till the sun came up.

[john]

Oh crap! Michael I said the wrong tune! That’s a cool one too but the one I have been working on is “I was made to love here”
It’s also a Stevie Wonder song but when I was answering the post I was multi-tasking on my computer and totally wrote down the wrong song.
This is what I’m talking about: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0FaVbZvkrU
So cool, check it out.

Most of the stuff I have on CD is swing and roots rock which is totally reminiscent of the very early rock and roll era where sax was king and the bands could swing! That’s my favorite groove…I have all the Honkers and Bar Walkers CD’s (is that what you meant?)…there’s also another compilation called “The Big Horn”

[Michael]

LOL No worries, with 4 kids, 4 cats, 4 dogs and being married…..I know exactly what you mean about multi-tasking 🙂 I am very, very thankful though for having such a beautiful family and they all accomodate to me and the Saxophone. I think I did mention our youngest daughter is taking an interest in the Saxophone too and our youngest son is interested in the drums. It’s a mad house around here but that’s okay 🙂 I don’t think I could have married another woman who would put up with me like my wife does, learning the Saxophone, the noise that comes with it at inconvenient times LOL. She said she would forgive me by learning/playing “Just The Way You Are”……I have learned about 1/2 of it. As soon as you released it SHE went and bought it and brought it to me LOL
Yes, that’s a gorgeous Saxophone song too! When I was young, my parents used to play his records all the time so I remember this song very well 🙂 Those Stevie Wonder songs are terrific on the Saxophone, never even thought about his music on the Saxophone. It amazes me how King Curtis is able to take these songs, or a song like the Green Onions, and play it in a way that while we are familiar with it, it also seems like a song we’ve never heard before! I just wish I could have seen him play live in person. Maybe the above song “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Your’s” is one to put on your list? How can someone not like hearing it? Amazing!

[Author]

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