Here we go: "Roy Allan" is the first track of Royalty for Real (to be released on February 16th, 2024). Feel free to like and share!
So here I was, in February 2022, recording with a couple of my very favourite musicians... It's a beautiful composition by Roy Hargrove, dedicated to his father and it was released on his album Family in 1995.
Why did I choose this tune? Let me try to describe. I heard it many times in concert. It was not only Roy Hargrove himself who played beautifully but also his band. A couple of musicians of his band I probably heard the most thoughout the years are Gregory Hutchinson, Karriem Riggins, Dwayne Burno, Stephen Scott, Ron Blake, and later Sherman Irby, Larry Willis, Gerald Cannon and Willie Jones III, playing this great mix between hardbop, modal jazz and always keeping it soulful.
In musical terms: Roy Allan is all about the minor 6th chord, and in the bridge we get shortly into modal, to return, with a hinch of soul, back to the minor 6th chords. To me it is fascinating, how short the tune is, like a poem, yet having this endless quality that makes it sounds like a vibe you want to stay in, without wasting a lot of notes. If you know me well you know I love it when notes aren't wasted... The use of the minor 6th chord sounds a bit melancholic but also warm, and then the modal chords lift it up and when going back, the turnaround at the end of the bridge makes the following minor 6th chords a bit more light, cheering up...
I managed to record with Cannon and Jones III, Hargrove's rhythm section for many years, together with another Hargrove contemporary: James Hurt on piano. Hurt and Hargrove were around in New York at the same time, both active on the live scene. And there's another connection: Sherman Irby, James Hurt and Gerald Cannon played together a lot, and of course Cannon and Jones III still playing together a lot for more than 25 years... So glad I met these gentlemen in the 90's and we made this project work out.
What do you see in the video? Can you guess the locations where we filmed?
My latest mix is now online. Venus Tunes Sessions is a monthly mix by Susanne Alt on Freak31, aired every first Sunday of the month at 19:00h. In addition, earlier Venus Tunes Sessions shows are repeated every Friday between 20:00-21:00 and Tuesday 21:00-22:00.Freak 31 has around 250 daily listeners (less during the week, more in the weekend) and a total of +10.000 listeners every month. In addition to Mixcloud and Hearthis, all mixes are also available as podcasts on Deezer and iTunes.It was in 2015 when I had my first official dj gig and since 2016 I started to perform regularly. This took place in Amsterdam's Skyybar, Floor17 and The Harbourclub Zuid... bit by bit, other places like Momo and W Amsterdam followed, leading to club bookings as a dj and festival bookings with Venus Tunes Live in the Netherlands and abroad. All of this in addition to my normal life as a musician. I love dj'ing as it adds another facet to my musicianship.Listen to all editions of the Venus Tunes Sessions where you like; choose your platform: Venus Tunes Sessions is a monthly guest mix by Susanne Alt on Freak31, aired every first Sunday of the month at 1900h. Streaming Dance, straight from Amsterdam. - Here we go: Roy Allan is the first track of Royalty for Real (to be released on February 16th, 2024). Feel free to like and share!So here I was, in February 2022, recording with a couple of my very favourite musicians...It's a beautiful composition by Roy Hargrove, dedicated to his father and it was released on his album Family in 1995.Why did I choose this tune?Let me try to describe. I heard it many times in concert. It was not only Roy Hargrove himself who played beautifully but also his band. A couple of musicians of his band I probably heard the most thoughout the years are Gregory Hutchinson, Karriem Riggins, Dwayne Burno, Stephen Scott, Ron Blake, and later Sherman Irby, Larry Willis, Gerald Cannon and Willie Jones III, playing this great mix between hardbop, modal jazz and always keeping it soulful.In musical terms: Roy Allan is all about the minor 6th chord, and in the bridge we get shortly into modal, to return, with a hinch of soul, back to the minor 6th chords. To me it is fascinating, how short the tune is, like a poem, yet having this endless quality that makes it sounds like a vibe you want to stay in, without wasting a lot of notes. If you know me well you know I love it when notes aren't wasted... The use of the minor 6th chord sounds a bit melancholic but also warm, and then the modal chords lift it up and when going back, the turnaround at the end of the bridge makes the following minor 6th chords a bit more light, cheering up...I managed to record with Cannon and Jones III, Hargrove's rhythm section for many years, together with another Hargrove contemporary: James Hurt on piano. Hurt and Hargrove were around in New York at the same time, both active on the live scene. And there's another connection: Sherman Irby, James Hurt and Gerald Cannon played together a lot, and of course Cannon and Jones III still playing together a lot for more than 25 years... So glad I met these gentlemen in the 90's and we made this project work out. What do you see in the video?Can you guess the locations where we filmed?
