Jazz-Rock Review: Project Grand Slam-The PGS Experience

Release Date: June 30, 2017

Label: Cakewalk Records

Website

Project Grand Slam, who will be referred to as PGS from this point forward, has a new album coming out just before we celebrate the independence of our nation.

The PGS Experience is their latest installment of jazz-rock-pop fusion. I have always enjoyed their recordings and the all colors they paint with their sounds.

What you get with PGS is precision musicianship and a taste of the diverse array of music they can deliver. They even cut it lose on live cuts like “Gorilla,” which is appropriately titled. It is like a full-bodied cup of coffee that holds its taste to the last drop. Man, they just kill it live. As a matter of fact, I could take an entire album of live cuts like that, however you get four in total with five in the studio.  So pretty much an equal measure of both presentations. They have instrumental tracks, two with Ms. Mindi Abair on sax, and several with some outstanding vocals. They keep it going by jumping from one style to the next.

PGS knows how to give their listeners the entire spectrum of their musical cannon and man do they ever fire away! “The Queens Carnival” is excellent. It clocks in close to five minutes and they just cook right along. The sax drives the entire song. They also do some interesting covers of “I’m So Glad,” “Fire” and “You Really Got Me.” The vocals are what give the tracks some recognition for what fans are familiar with and they add their own stamp with a helping of fusion that transforms each classic tune into a funky jazz-rock workout.

If spice is the variety of life, then PGS is living it to the fullest. So, if you’re looking for something, fresh, diverse and full of energy then you need to check out The PGS Experience. It sure stoked my inner fires and left me wanting more. When it comes to enjoying music that is all anyone could possibly ask for.

5/5 Stars

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

June 23, 2017

Founder of:

MuzikMan Productions

MuzikMan Reviews

Write A Music Review

Prog Rock Music Talk

New Age Music Reviews

Rate The Tracks

Review Provided By Write A Music Review

Tracks: 
1. Metro Shuffle (feat. Mindi Abair)
2. Free
3. Fishin' (feat. Mindi Abair)
4. Hollywood
5. I'm So Glad
6. Gorilla (Live)
7. You Really Got Me (Live)
8. The Queen's Carnival (Live)
9. Fire (Live)

FEATURED TRACK: Project Grand Slam -"Fishin" (feat. Mindi Abair)

Project Grand Slam or PGS, is Robert Miller's inspiration and driving force. I have heard consistently good music come from the vaults of their recorded works over the years.

A new release is due at the end of the month and we are giving you a sneak peak of what to expect. The PGS Experience will be sure to delight listeners and once you hear "Fishin," I think you will agree there is a lot to look forward to.

The video provided is a beautiful take on the island experience. The music is a blend of jazz and reggae and it sets the stage up quite nicely. Smooth jazz with an island sound and all the images to go along with it...I am ready to go!

Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck


More About Project Grand Slam:

http://projectgrandslam.com

The brainchild of acclaimed bassist/composer Robert Miller, Project Grand Slam is a Jazz Rock Fusion band with a twist of Classic Rock and Latin, which has earned over one million video views while defying genres, languages and geographic boundaries. Gashouse Radio says: “Robert Miller’s Project Grand Slam deserves mentioning as among the best musical acts produced by American culture in the last quarter century!”  READ MORE

Featured Track: Project Grand Slam-The Queen's Carnival

Project Grand Slam is like an old friend coming back to visit me. I am very familiar with their output and have always enjoyed it.

The new single release "The Queens Carnival" is our feature this time around for the band. It is also the title track off their latest release.

Get ready for a literal carnival of upbeat jazz inflected sounds complete with a buzzing crowd in the background. It is the perfect combination of energy and music.

Check it out now with the provided stream!

Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck


Meet The Band:

http://projectgrandslam.com

Project Grand Slam is an acclaimed Fusion band, led by bassist/leader/composer Robert Miller, combining the power and beat of rock with the complexity and improvisation of jazz, with a jam band sensibility...READ MORE...

Featured Stream: Project Grand Slam -You Really Got Me (feat. Lucy Woodward)

Project Grand Slam has a new album out titled
The Queen's Carnival.  One of the classic cover tracks is The Kinks  "You Really Got Me" featuring the expressive sultry vocals of Lucy Woodward.

The track starts off with their jazz influences making it sound like it was their own song and then a razor's edge guitar enters giving it that definitive rock influence. With that element it still sounds like their own creation giving you no indication of the original with the exception of the lyrics.

For this listener that is what makes a good cover tune great! I appreciate jazz rock fusion as well so that helps if you have an ear bent for that genre. So turn it on and give it a listen.

Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck


More About Project Grand Slam:

http://projectgrandslam.com

 Project Grand Slam is an acclaimed jazz rock fusion band, led by bassist/leader/composer Robert Miller, combining the power and beat of rock with the complexity and improvisation of jazz, with a jam band sensibility. The band plays Robert’s original compositions plus selected unique covers of classic rock songs that Robert has reimagined...READ MORE

Jazz Fusion Review: Project Grand Slam-Made In New York

Release Date: October 16, 2015

Label: Cakewalk Records

Website

There is nothing like a good jazz album to give you a renewed appreciation for the art and fascination that music can bring. With that thought Project Grand Slam seems to always come through for me.

Their new release Made In New York is a diverse outing giving the listener a good look at all the facets of their talent in one recording. If you like jazz with or without vocals it is all here on this one album and some live cuts to close the curtain and sweeten the pot as well.

“New York City Groove (Instrumental)” illustrates the broad strokes this band can paint on the musical canvas. The opening track is the vocal version featuring Kat Robichaud and the closer being the instrumental. PGS makes sure that their audience gets the best of what they have to offer and it is not illustrated any better than on that particular track.

“Fire,” a Jimi Hendrix classic for the ages, is transformed (see the steamy video provided with Kat on vocals) and was also featured on the Rate The Tracks site for your streaming pleasure. There are some listeners that will think otherwise I am sure but the band puts it all together and makes the track their own. Putting your own stamp on a time tested classic is not an easy task. This is why I believe this band has the talent and range to do just about anything.

“Boston Common” is a superb instrumental jazz track; it just does not get much better. This is modern jazz that takes the foundation laid down by the forefathers of the genre and cranks up the heat to take it all to another level. It reminds me of why I was spell bound by this music when I first discovered it.

Made In New York is not only a testament to the great talent in the band, it is a tribute to jazz that all music lovers will find an appreciation for. Music like this has soul, character and culture all wrapped up into one tight package that is hard to resist.

4/5 Stars

Key Tracks: Fire, Boston Common, New York City Groove (Instrumental)

Tracks: 
1.New York City Groove (feat. Kat Robichaud)
2.The Winner
3.Around the Horn
4.The Gift (Juliet's Song)
5.Fire (feat. Kat Robichaud)
6.Boston Common
7.Because She Said So (Recorded "Live" At the Blue Note Nyc)
8.Cakewalk for Debra (Recorded "Live" At the Blue Note Nyc)
9.New York City Groove (Instrumental)

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck-Write A Music Review Founder

October 14, 2015

Review Provided By Write A Music

Featured Stream: Project Grand Slam-Fire

With the release of Made In New York Project Grand Slam released a very unique single. Jimi Hendrix's "Fire" has an entirely new vibe to it now. The vocal duties are handled by Kat Robichaud who is frequent guest on their projects.

The band takes a rock classic and turns it into their own jazz take with some pizzazz and flair that only PGS can muster.

Not only do we have the stream for you to listen to we have the steamy video for your eyes to absorb making the trip all that more interesting and thought  provoking. I somehow have the feeling that if Hendrix were alive today he would approve!

Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck 





More About Project Grand Slam:

http://projectgrandslam.com

My love for Hendrix began when, as a teenager, I wandered into the Cafe Wha? in Greenwich Village NYC one evening, and a guy named Jimi Hendrix happened to be on the bill. A mind blowing experience. Fast forward a couple decades and we are covering "Fire" with the amazing Kat Robichaud.

In the late ‘60s and early ‘70s jazz experienced a renaissance as Miles Davis led jazz into a period that came to be known as “Fusion” – one that melded jazz sensitivities and improvisation with the beat and power of rock music. Groups like Weather Report, Mahavishnu Orchestra, and Return To Forever blazed an exciting and dynamic path in Fusion, captivating the public in the process and enlarging jazz’s traditional audience exponentially.

But musical styles sometimes go in and out of favor, and this happened with Fusion. Starting in the ‘80s jazz took a step back, as Fusion began to morph into Smooth Jazz, which is very tame and safe in comparison. However, some musicians kept Fusion alive.

One such musician is Robert Miller, leader, bassist and composer for Project Grand Slam (PGS). Born into a musical family, Miller had no choice but to start playing music while in grade school. Piano lessons gave way to the trumpet, and by the time The Beatles rocked the world on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964 rock and roll had become the young musician’s obsession. It was in 1970, at the age of 19, however, that Miller’s fate as a jazz performer was sealed when he was fortunate enough to be assigned, though a school music program, to private studies with Jimmy Garrison, John Coltrane’s bassist.

“Jimmy opened my eyes to jazz. He taught me how to “walk” on the bass among so many other things. He was a great gentleman too”, says Miller.

In the early ‘70s Miller moved to Boston where he was front and center in the Fusion movement. His band, called Sagov, had several all-star musicians including Anton Fig, and played all the major clubs in the area including Lennie’s On the Turnpike, Paul’s Mall and Debbie’s, sharing the stage with greats such as Sonny Stitt, Jaki Byard, and Gary Burton. “It was a time of spectacular evolution and creativity in jazz, and I was very lucky to be involved in it,” says Miller.

In the early ‘90s Miller moved back to NYC and put together The Robert Miller Group. The band continued the Fusion vein that Miller loved and Robert began his composing career. Their first release, Child’s Play (1994), featured incredible guest musicians including Randy Brecker, Jon Lucien, Al Foster, Tony “Thunder” Smith, and Miller’s old band mate Anton Fig; 1996 saw a follow up release, Prisoners of Love. The band played widely, including the Telluride Jazz Festival, the San Bernadino Jazz Festival, NYC jazz festival and clubs like The Blue Note and Birdland in NYC.

In the mid-‘90s Miller also formed 32 Records, an independent jazz label. 32 purchased the Muse Records catalog and reissued about 100 CDs over the next five years. In 1999 32 had a major hit with Jazz For A Rainy Afternoon, a compilation CD that sold over 1 million records (which is practically unheard of in jazz), and which in turn spawned an entire “Jazz For…” catalogue. These records became so popular that during one week in April of that year 32 Records had the top four records on the Billboard Jazz Chart, a feat that no other record label had ever accomplished.

In 2007 Miller formed Project Grand Slam, naming the band based upon the James Bond film, “Goldfinger” because he wanted a name that was different and cool. Except that he got the name wrong. Miller learned after naming PGS that in the film the evil Goldfinger’s plot to rob Fort Knox was called Operation Grand Slam, not Project Grand Slam, but he thought still, PGS is a cool name so he kept it.

PGS has been described by Acid Jazz Magazine as “a spectacular mix of jazz, fusion and rock that combines melody, groove and great improvisation.”

With PGS Miller’s writing skills and output increased considerably, and the band continued to play Fusion with an updated feel. PGS’s debut album, Play (Cakewalk Records 2008), was produced by Frank Filipetti (Grammy winner for Record Of The Year for James Taylor’s “Hourglass” CD) and featured the top radio hit “The Captain Of Her Heart”, a cover of the Double song, with internationally renowned guest vocalist Judie Tzuke. In addition, PGS and five of Miller’s tunes from Play were featured in an episode of the hit NBC-TV series, “Lipstick Jungle”, starring Brooke Shields (and Miller had a speaking part). Play received rave reviews.

In 2012 PGS released its follow up album, Spring Dance (Cakewalk Records). The album featured five of Miller’s new compositions, including the title track, which was another top radio hit. This CD also received rave reviews.

In 2014 Miller released Twenty (Cakewalk Records), a compilation CD featuring 16 of Miller’s best compositions recorded over the last twenty years by Project Grand Slam and The Robert Miller Group. He also re-formed Project Grand Slam with four terrific new musicians. The new PGS played its debut show in July 2014 in NYC and has been performing steadily ever since.

As 2015 unfolds Miller and PGS have exciting plans in the works. The band recently recorded four new Miller tunes, including a vocal called “New York City Groove”. This song was created by Miller as a kind of love letter to his NYC home, with iconic images of NYC and a true NYC vibe. Kind of like “MTV meets I LOVE NY”. The track features the robust pipes of 2013 The Voice semi-finalist Kat Robichaud. PGS has also entered into a distribution agreement with CEN/RED Distribution. Summer 2015 will see the release of “Groove” along with Miller’s other new compositions, and the band is organizing a full performance schedule.

PGS consists of the following young, talented musicians in addition to Robert on bass:

Yvette Rovira – vocals
Joel E. Mateo/Willy Rodriguez – drums
Nathan Cepelinski – saxophones
Ben Sher/Yasser Tejeda – guitar
Marcello Casagrandi/Meritxell Neddermann – piano and keyboards

Project Grand Slam-Play Review

Artist: Project Grand Slam
Title: Play
Genre: Jazz
Label: Cakewalk Records
Website
CD Baby Link
Source Link

Project Grand Slam shows why it helps to have veterans together for a recording session on Play...READ MORE...

Project Grand Slam Hits It Out of the Park With Play

Hollywood, CA-October 28, 2008- Project Grand Slam promises to hit plenty of homeruns with the October 28 release of their debut album Play. With five of its thirteen tracks and the band having already been prominently featured on the hit NBC Series “Lipstick Jungle...READ MORE...