ProJazz.net

“Sample’s passing last year was another sad loss, making it all the harder to listen again to his music without nostalgia. It’s intriguing to re-hear his music from the late 1980s on these Warners reissues. These simple soothing sounds held much of the music world in their thrall, bringing together easy listening, gentle funk and R&B into a vibe all of their own. It’s down to Sample’s impeccable taste that he transcends the saccharine: the clarity with which he elicits the melody on the opening title track of Ashes To Ashes or the those so soulful, so brief right hand runs on ‘The Load Less Travelled’ somehow catch the light where others would sound bland. It helps of course to have the likes of Marcus Miller pinning it all down, against a heavenly wash of strings. OK, we’re a long way from The Jazz Crusaders or indeed later European projects with the NDR. But within their own terms, these recordings are as much part of the Sample heritage as those heady days with the Crusaders.” – Andy Robson/JAZZWISE.

Track listing:

1 Ashes To Ashes
Composed By – Joe Sample
4:56
2 The Road Less Traveled
Composed By – Marcus Miller
5:28
3 Mother’s Eyes
Composed By – Joe Sample
4:45
4 The Last Child
Composed By – Joe Sample
6:00
5 Born In Trouble
Composed By – Joe Sample
5:37
6 Strike Two
Composed By – Marcus Miller
5:50
7 I’ll Love You
Composed By – Joe Sample
5:36
8 Born To Be Bad
Composed By – Joe Sample
5:33
9 Phoenix
Composed By – Joe Sample
6:23

Personnel:
Arranged By, Flugelhorn, Trumpet – Jerry Hey
Arranged By, Flute, Saxophone – Larry Williams
Arranged By, Piano, Synthesizer – Joe Sample
Arranged By, Synthesizer, Sequenced By – Ricky Peterson
Bass – Marcus Miller
Drums – Omar Hakim
Guitar – Michael Landau, St. Paul
Percussion – Lenny Castro
________________________

Label: Warner Bros. Records – 9 26318-2
Format:
CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 1990