I lean more toward the fusion side of jazz, but that may vary depending on how the genre is broken up on any given day.
Many of these tracks started out as something else, then morphed into some kind of jazz/fusion hot mess. They are posted here
in the order they were created so you can see my progression in music-making, for what its worth.
Half Past
Released 4 August 2021 | 3:45
Here's a bluesy concoction, a bit of funk that turned out better than expected. It's mostly commercial
loops and samples, but it got me closer to the stuff I was hankering to make.
Now I Get It <best of>
Released 8 August 2021 | 4:24
This was an experiment to see how close I could get to actually "performing" music—that is, instead of
piecing together clips, samples and loops, I created the music from the ground up. With the exception of the background chords, every note
and drumbeat in this piece was painstakingly assembled one at a time. It's seriously tedious, but the results are more satisfying.
The track is far from perfect, but it was nevertheless an enjoyable learning experience, and
it was used in a music video for a cartoon series.
Quarter To <best of>
Released 9 August 2021 | 6:13
A friend of mine who belonged to a band in his youth really liked "Half Past," and asked for more. A slow jazz fusion
thing, "Quarter To" benefits from "Now I Get It" in that most everything is original; the only items I didn't
fully render are a few drum licks and the electric piano chords. I'd originally wanted to make it sax-driven, but I didn't even get
three notes into it when I bailed and switched to piano, my comfort zone for the time being. That's when I hit upon a simple melody
with a vague town hall clock chime vibe, which fit the mood perfectly. As I've learned from some of my favorite new age composers,
simple is oftentimes better.
Would If I Could
Released 12 August 2021 | 3:20
I learned quite a lot making this track. One thing was to have more patience. I had a musical image in
my mind, but it just wasn't materializing. So I went and did something else, and came back to it days later. Slowly, very slowly,
it finally began to take shape. I had grand plans for it—10-20 minutes of variations and riffs... but when I added a short, bold
vocal clip in the middle, I suddenly realized that, when the vocals ended, I had nothing else to say musically; anything more would
be forced, and I didn't want to overstay my welcome. The lesson here was that, sometimes, the music will tell you when it's done.
Probably Not
Released 14 August 2021 | 3:26
This is another "scratchbuilt" tune. Every note and sound was programmed one at a time by
hand—no canned loops, riffs or chords. Like many tunes, it started out as something else, then morphed—three times—into its current form.
It was an enjoyable and educational trip, and one that helped move me closer to my musical goal. Note that somewhere along the line I
screwed up and lost some source files and couldn't re-mix it. So, I added some effects to make it sound as though it was ripped from
an old cassette tape. Some producers of old LPs of classic jazz used whatever they could get their hands on, so it was common to find
tracks like this.
Check, Please
Released 19 January 2022 | 5:06
for quite a few tunes, I envisioned an obscure jazz band at a smoky bar finally winding down, but still not quite ready to pack up.
The drummer taps out a slow, lazy beat, and the rest of the band follows suit—as best they can, anyway, given how much
booze they've consumed that night. As I was experimenting with non-music effects, I made this track sound as though it was
ripped from an old LP.
Maybe Later
Released 7 February 2022 | 3:26
Take an original bass line, add some semi-original drums and electric piano riffs, toss in a couple
of stock loops, and stir until well-blended. Then sit back and sip slowly. By the way, the bass carries the melody on this one,
so if you're listening to it on your phone, fuhgeddaboudit. Also note that my band isn't the world's best, so if you notice the occasional
missed drumbeat or slightly off note, you're not imagining things—I enjoy working in little flaws to make the music sound more "real";
it's actually much easier to make "perfect" music. I made this tune sound as though it was recorded "live."
Good Question
Released 11 March 2022 | 3:14
It was a long, difficult road to this track. After a week of failures, I transformed it into the upbeat
dance tune. But I was bound and determined to master the beast. What ultimately brought
success was stripping it all the way down to a simple trio: piano, bass and drums. The result is the closest I've come
to "traditional" jazz to date. To hide the abundant flaws—in particular, the less-than-ideal piano samples—I
buried the tune in the noise and poor acoustics of a "live" recording.
Better Late Than Never
Released 14 March 2022 | 2:29
An anonymous "guest artist" exercises his sax for a few minutes, with "my band"
behind him. This is a "live" performance. Actually, I'm beginning to like
the live venue sound—it helps disguise a track's cut-and-paste origins, amongst other sins. And the title came from
imagining the scenario where the guest artist shows up at the gig very late, and doesn't have much time...
Take It Or Leave It
Released 14 March 2022 | 4:12
After I found a treasure trove of royalty-free sax solos online, I quickly began building a collection of pieces just begging
to be put to good use. This long, soulful performance by someone identified only as "Mister E" needed nothing more than
a laid-back rhythm track and a dirt-simple bass riff. Lest anyone think it was a simple matter of just slapping three tracks together,
however, the sax solo took quite a bit of finagling to finally work with the new mix, the percussion was mostly pieced together by hand,
and I "auditioned" a dozen bassists before I wound up "playing" it myself (such as it is). All told, it was over a
day to assemble and mix. In terms of my "ownership" of the track, I imagine it this way: when I "host" a "guest
artist," I'm not in control of the artist's performance. The track title hints at this situation—I take what I get.
Thought So
Released 20 March 2022 | 4:08
This track evolved very slowly as I sought to find a way to utilize a nice backing piano loop that
I'd assembled. Then came the soloist: yes, it's another sax, but this time it's different. While prior tracks feature
performances that are more or less intact, I came across a source of tiny little riffs that I could pick apart
and reassemble, a few notes at a time, so it's pretty much a unique performance largely under my control. It was a
lot of work, but well worth it, imperfect though it may be.
Just Forget It
Released 11 April 2022 | 3:26
Whilst tidying up some file folders, I came across this sadly neglected track that I'd never released. Playing it again after who
knows how long, I'd forgotten how hard I worked on those piano riffs. All it needed was a few final touches, some live ambience,
and an ending, and it was all done. Certainly not the best tune I've made, but then, not all jazz bands are great, right?
Don't Go There <best of>
Released 14 April 2022 | 3:58
What started out as a dance track morphed into a jazz tune, one that's of a very different kind for me—a bit more
traditional than my typical stuff. You'll either get it or you won't. And from what I've been hearing, some folks definitely get it.
Sup To You
Released 15 May 2022 | 4:55
It began with a nice piano chord progression I created, but nothing to go with it. Then I accidentally clicked on a sax solo by mistake—which
just happened to be in the right key—and suddenly it started coming together; it just took some slicing and dicing to wrap it up.
Who Knew
Released 16 May 2022 | 5:13
This time I started with a sax solo (by an anonymous player), which I modified to suit my needs, and built simple bass and drum tracks around it,
complete with traditional bass and drum solos. Nice and mellow.
Fat Chance
Released 21 May 2022 | 4:39
I've been wanting to do a muted trumpet tune for quite some time, and I finally found the raw materials for it. With original drum and bass
tracks, and set to an unusual time signature, this represents quite a lot of work.
Way Too Late
Released 21 May 2022 | 5:07
The genesis for this fusion piece was the drum solo from "Fat Chance," which I built first. The addition of an
original bass track and some chopped up funky electric piano riffs was all it needed.
Wasn't Me
Released 23 May 2022 | 6:08
It took a while to finesse the sax solo into a satisfying form, but it was worth the effort. Made it feel
more like it was really "mine," although the title of the track tells the truth.
Take Your Time
Released 12 December 2025 | 8:16
This was one of those unfinished tracks that I finally got around to. Changing the key in the middle
(and again later) kind of takes you by surprise, and there's a long drum solo to wade through, but hopefully,
in spite of being a hot fusion mess, it will find some love out there.
