Paradise (Grover Washington Jr. album)

Paradise is an album by jazz musician Grover Washington Jr. Released in 1979, it was Washington's first album on Elektra Records.

Paradise
Studio album by
Released1979
Recorded1979
StudioAlpha International Recording Studios, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
GenreJazz
Length40:58
LabelElektra
ProducerGrover Washington Jr.
Grover Washington Jr. chronology
Reed Seed
(1978)
Paradise
(1979)
Skylarkin'
(1980)

Critical reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [1]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings    [3]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide     [2]

The Bay State Banner wrote that "Washington has let the abysmal vocalists go and gone back to robust, rough alto and soprano sax blowing."[4]

Track listing edit

All tracks composed by Grover Washington Jr.; except where indicated.

  1. "Paradise" (John Blake) - 7:55
  2. "Icey" (Millard Vinson) - 3:48
  3. "The Answer in Your Eyes" (Washington, Richard Steacker) - 8:24
  4. "Asia's Theme" (James Simmons) - 5:03
  5. "Shana" - 5:06
  6. "Tell Me About It Now" - 5:27
  7. "Feel It Comin'" (Richard Steacker) - 5:15

Personnel edit

  • Grover Washington Jr. – soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, flute, arrangements (3, 5, 6, 7), electric piano (7)
  • James "Sid" Simmons – acoustic piano, electric piano, arrangements (2, 4)
  • Richard Lee Steacker – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, arrangements (3)
  • Tyrone Brown – acoustic bass, electric bass
  • Millard "Pete" Vinson – drums, Syndrums
  • Leonard "Doc" Gibbs – assorted percussions
  • John Blake Jr. – violin, arrangements (1)

Production edit

  • Grover Washington, Jr. – producer
  • Fred Galletti – engineer
  • Al Alberts, Jr. – assistant engineer
  • Frank Bernardini – assistant engineer
  • Mike Bonghi – assistant engineer
  • Jerry Williamson – assistant engineer
  • Rudy Van Gelder – mastering at Van Gelder Studios (Englewood Cliffs, NJ).
  • Ron Coro – art direction
  • Johnny Lee – art direction
  • John Collier – illustration
  • Paul Wilson – photography

Charts edit

Chart (1979) Peak
position
Billboard Pop Albums[5] 24
Billboard Top Soul Albums[5] 15
Billboard Top Jazz Albums[5] 2

Singles edit

Year Single Chart positions[6]
US
R&B
1979 "Tell Me All About it" 57

References edit

  1. ^ Yanow, Scott. Grover Washington Jr.: Paradise > Review at AllMusic. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
  2. ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 203. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
  3. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1468. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
  4. ^ Lane, George (26 Apr 1979). "Shades of Blue". Bay State Banner. No. 29. p. 17.
  5. ^ a b c "Grover Washington Jr. US albums chart history". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
  6. ^ "Grover Washington Jr. US singles chart history". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-08-26.

External links edit