Vocalist, trumpet and flugelhorn player Shannon Marshall’s latest CD, treats listeners to a spine chilling experience of soul music, re-contextualised within a creative and colourful jazz sensibility. Celebrating the roots of hard gospel and rhythm and blues music, even paying tribute to Ray Charles the ‘inventor’ of soul music on the last track with an authentic version of I Got a Woman.

Shannon is backed by an impressive band, appropriately titled the Souls Almighty. Featuring the legendary Australian jazz-fusion guitarist Jim Kelly, Dale Rabic on Hammond organ/bass pedals and piano (cooking!) with the almighty Paul Hudson on drums.

Shannon Marshall’s original tune on track 2 titled I can’t Be your everything, begins with a dark sounding hook played by Jim Kelly on guitar, setting the mood for this bluesy ballad that is sure to find empathy even in the most lyrically challenged of listeners. His unique sounding guitar riffs and chords continue throughout this tune, sounding somewhat reminiscent of the crossfire days but provide a nice dimension to Shannon’s work. Shannon’s inventive flugelhorn solos provides an example of a fine jazz artist at play, with his nicely articulated blend of staccato and legato notes providing dynamics through tension & release.  

Track 3 is a very tasteful interpretation of Sunny, which explores every nuance of this great standard. A phaser effect on keys evokes a dream-like introduction to the head, then crescendos into the excitement of solo sections before subtly returning to the closing head of the tune. Shannon beautifully incorporates the melody into his solo maintaining the expression and characteristics of the song throughout. This track would have to be one of my favourites and one of the best versions I’ve heard of this tune.

The Borgia Stick on track 6 sets the tempo up to showcase some well informed and artistic jazz improvisation skills from across the band. If it swung just a hemi-demi-semi quaver more, I would then say it was an authentic interpretation of this classic hard-bop tune. While faced with the daunting task of performing in the shadows of the master guitarist George Benson, Jim Kelly delivers some skilful octave phrases and fluid melodic lines. Dale Rabic’s performance however, is definitely the outstanding feature on this track and is a testament to his stature as one of the countries fine jazz Hammond organ players.

Overall this album is must have for all soul/jazz music lovers and is already held in high regard locally, finding its way onto the iPods and Cd players of their jazz contemporaries.

Shannon Marshall and the Souls Almighty Live
SMM002
Review by Jim Budd

More info: www.shannonmarshall.com

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