BLUE NOTE

ALL-STAR SEPTET FEATURES MUSICAL DIRECTOR BILL CHARLAP WITH NICHOLAS PAYTON, RAVI COLTRANE, STEVE WILSON, PETER BERNSTEIN, PETER WASHINGTON AND LEWIS NASH

On January 13, Blue Note Records will commemorate the label's 70th anniversary with the release of Mosaic: A Celebration of Blue Note Records, an eight-song collection of classic Blue Note repertoire re-envisioned by The Blue Note 7, an all-star septet comprising pianist, musical director, and current Blue Note recording artist Bill Charlap with trumpeter Nicholas Payton, tenor saxophonist Ravi Coltrane, alto saxophonist/flutist Steve Wilson, guitarist Peter Bernstein, bassist Peter Washington and drummer Lewis Nash. The album is produced by Charlap, Michael Cuscuna and Eli Wolf, and executive produced by Danny Melnick, founder of the event production company Absolutely Live Entertainment, which will be producing The Blue Note 7's extensive 51-city North American tour launching January 7.

Charlap says, "The music that Blue Note recorded is so vast and historically important that there was no way we could be comprehensive in covering the contributions of so many major musicians. We chose to record compositions that would honor the label and its key players, whittling it down to eight of our favorites from Blue Note’s wide-ranging and extensive catalog." Charlap hails the wisdom of Blue Note founder Alfred Lion, who launched the label in 1939, for "creating a forum for composers to write music. He trusted them to go ahead and do what they do best."

"The Blue Note 7 is a true collaboration, an all-star band comprised of the next generation of major players, all leaders in their own right," says Bruce Lundvall, President of Blue Note Records, who is also celebrating 25 years since he relaunched the label in 1984 after a hiatus. "They are also the A-list of accomplished arrangers and composers, steeped in the Blue Note tradition, re-imagining this time-honored repertoire in a fresh way."

Charlap notes that each tune on Mosaic is arranged by a band member with the exception of two tracks arranged by pianist Renee Rosnes: McCoy Tyner's "Search for Peace" and Herbie Hancock's "Dolphin Dance." Other tracks include Cedar Walton's "Mosaic," written for Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and arranged by Nash; Joe Henderson's "Inner Urge," arranged by Payton; Bobby Hutcherson's "Little B's Poem" and Thelonious Monk's "Criss Cross," both arranged by Wilson; Duke Pearson's "Idle Moments," written for guitarist Grant Green and arranged by Bernstein; and Horace Silver's "The Outlaw," arranged by Charlap.

Charlap points out that song choice was determined by the band's desire to cover diverse tunes with different moods and arranging approaches. “Although each player is a leader in his own right, it’s the chemistry between these musicians that makes the band. We're relatively young guys who have a lot of experience collectively, and we've had the opportunity to perform with many of the major Blue Note artists.”

Charlap salutes the work of Melnick and Jack Randall, a booking agent at Ted Kurland Associates, for coming up with the concept. He says, “This is an unusual example of an intelligent promotional idea with a very artistic result.” Melnick credits Randall for giving the project its jump-start. “Jack approached me and together we made our list of possible players,” he says. “Then we went to Blue Note, and everyone there loved the idea.” As for promoters who have booked the show, he says, “They're happy with presenting the Blue Note songbook with all new arrangements performed by a great band that understands and respects jazz history. This will be a true celebration of Blue Note.”

More arrangements of songs from the Blue Note library will be created for The Blue Note 7 tour, which begins on January 7 in Yakima, Washington, and continues with concerts at universities and concert halls in 50 cities across North America. The tour will culminate in a six-night run in mid-April at Birdland in New York. European dates will also be announced for Fall 2009.