OK – are you ready for FOURPLAY? Gotta start right off with the fact that they came up with this little . . . thing: a song called FOURPLAY, from an album called FOURPLAY, by a group called FOURPLAY!!! Yes, I love it! The aforementioned album, FOURPLAY (1991) was their debut recording. The founding members were Bob James (piano), Nathan East (bass), Harvey Mason (drums), and Lee Ritenour (guitar). Ritenour left in 1997 and was replaced by Larry Carlton who, in turn, was replaced by Chuck Loeb in 2010 when Carlton left the group. Sadly, Chuck Loeb passed away on July 31, 2017. During Loeb’s illness, Kirk Whalum (saxophone) stepped up to assist with their live performances.
Despite their tragic loss and various personnel changes, FOURPLAY has had nothing but success upon success. In 1991, their debut album sold over a million units, reached number one on Billboard’s chart for contemporary jazz, and remained there for thirty-three (33) weeks. The second album, Between The Sheets (1993), reached number one, obtained gold status, and received a Grammy nomination. Their third album, Elixir (1995), reached number one, attained gold status, and remained on the charts for ninety (90) weeks. FOURPLAY celebrated its twenty-fifth (25th) anniversary in 2015 with the release of their album Silver. At the time of this post (and since 2017), they have been on an indefinite hiatus. With the key word being “hiatus”, and past performance creating a pattern, something tells me that it’s not over yet! I’ve put together a playlist that highlights some of their most memorable hits. Time to hit that button. Enjoy.
Jazz, jazz, and nothing but jazz.
copyright 2023 jblackstarr for SMOOTHE.
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