Dreambox Media/Encounter Records
JEF LEE JOHNSON: "The SINGULARITY" (EAR-1037)
The extraordinary guitarist's first release for us is A SONIC ASSAULT ON YOUR EARS, with many tracks recorded April 17th & 23rd, 1999 at the Knitting Factory (NYC) with Charles Baldwin (bass) and Ted Thomas Jr. (drums). 16 originals (and an Al Green cover):
"Little Science" / "Ain't Seen Irene" / "Nobody Sees Us" / "Suspicious" / "Love and Happiness" / "How True Are You" / "Little Victories" / "COMMUNION" / "Circle and Sound" / "Total Surrender" / "jungle" / "Pledge" / "Big Science" / "The Singularity" / "All Woman" / "TALK, TALK" / "Phat Matter"
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What the critics say:
"In a world where jazz players are in a rush to rummage licks from dead icons, there is Philadelphia guitarist, bassist and vocalist Jef Lee Johnson, a man without a genre. Johnson plays too much funk to be consigned to the jazz bins. He sounds at times like Stevie Wonder, but he's earthier, more dangerous and less commercial.
...But that's too limiting a description of this often-slammin' CD, some of it recorded live at New York's Knitting Factory, a hothouse for new ideas.
...it's consistently entertaining. Johnson isn't afraid to be singularly himself."
- Philadelphia Inquirer
"Close your eyes on 'Ain't Seen Irene' and you'll swear you're listening to a Jimi Hendrix blues outtake. Jazzy, funky, rocking, soulful and just plain out there...Imagine Stevie Wonder as a Knitting Factory badass instead of an inner visionary, or an R&B crooner who stopped making booty calls and started taking guitar lessons from John McLaughlin, and you're not even halfway into Johnson's singular bag."
- City Paper
"...a high-energy recording of his original compositions influenced as much by rock and blues as by jazz. And certainly not by smooth jazz.
...witty and straightforward lyrics based upon real-world experiences, exciting guitar work, faked-out endings, crashing and forceful drum back-up, and an unforced blues sensibility that infuses all of the tracks.
As Johnson finally emerges from the shadows of the sideman, his audiences will find a guitarist / composer who has developed his own style - one that communicates intuitively without compromise or dishonesty...to form a personalized statement."
- Jazz News
"...psychedelic blues-rock'n'funk-rolling end phrase scrambled/freaked/boho-ed (live/studio) into something one step-ahead, waiting-for-y'all-to-catch-up. Transcendental moment: Johnson's snarly metal feedback conversations throughout "jungle."
- JazzTimes
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"jungle" (621 KB)
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