Track Listing

1. Modern Art
2. Paris Groove
3. Black Book
4. Pastels On Canvas
5. One Step Closer
6. I Still Believe
7. Body Art
8. Age Of Reason
9. Sweet Lullaby
10. Jet Set
11. Love Story

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2104 in Music
• Released on: 2009-03-10
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Album Description
When you think about contemporary music, there are very few bands that have had the lasting impression and impact that the Rippingtons featuring Russ Freeman have had. For over 20 years this band has been delighting audiences all over the world with their distinct, signature sound. Now with their 17th album, Russ Freeman has once again demonstrated why he is one of the true musical innovators in the contemporary jazz genre with Modern Art. Featuring a familiar "cast of characters", Modern Art once again showcases a unique musical style that was created many years ago and still sounds as fresh and new today as it did when they started. Soaring horns, melodic keyboards and driving percussion are all anchored by the intricate guitar styling of Freeman.

Customer Reviews

Radio friendly, enjoyable and current.
Russ Freeman's Smooth Jazz iconic group celebrate almost 25 years recording with this archetypal Rippingtons offering.
This is their 17th album.
Having followed Russ Freeman & his Rippingtons since the beginning, I must admit that I miss the 'good old days'. This band practically invented the smooth jazz genre but after some stunning albums, they ran out of steam and their brilliant signature texturing and soudscaping with the album "Sahara".
More albums followed but they all lacked memorable and significant catchy melodies.
Although some of the participants have changed through the years -- former members include Dave Koz and David Benoit -- guitarist/keyboardist Freeman has remained a constant as the heart and soul of the band.
The current composition of the Rippingtons includes drummer Dave Karasony, bassist Rico Belled, Bill Heller on keyboards and accordion, and Jeff Kashiwa on sax and EWI. Smooth jazz trumpet star Rick Braun also shows up on one track, "Love Story," one of many on the album that reflect the group's strong roots in the genre.
"Modern Art" will delight their legion of Smooth Jazz fans with easy on the ear grooves like "Paris Groove" and "Modern Art".
The atmospheric 'Black Book' has a Soul feel, whilst the funkier "One Step Closer" and "Body Art" are pleasing slice of very smooth Jazz. "Age Of Reason" and "Jet Set" are also strong grooves.
This is the group's best set in several years.
The mix of smooth grooves, Jazz, R'n'B and West Coast rock remains with cuts like "One Step Close" and "Age Of Reason".
I have been playing it continously for a week now.
I am never tired of it.
This is a 'must' have CD if you're a dedicated Rippingtons' fan.
It's not edgy. It is not a ground breaking album, but it is current, radio friendly and enjoyable, without saccharine aftertaste.
And this is not a small feat.
The album debuts at # 2 of the Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz charts.
Issue date: 2009-03-28
Sahara

Consistent but not brilliant
OK, Rippingtons fans - what does this new CD, "Modern Art", sound like with the return of one-time sax/wind player Jeff Kashiwa, the absence of long-time bassist Kim Stone, and the departure of percussion effects/congas/etc. completely?

The answer is not bad. Kashiwa brings his "A" game, blowing the heck out of the sax and really grooving. And some of Russ Freeman's guitar work interplays well with Kashiwa. There's also some nice piano/keyboard lines from Bill Heller, although some of it is definitely dated in the 80s. The bass/drums are mixed extremely well and really bring a lot of thump to the tracks, but the bass lines are not at all distinctive like you could expect from Stone. And, typical of latter-day Rippingtons work, the keyboards add a feel of rhythm with looped effects.

However, the songs are not really distinctive. The lack of percussion helps bring a sameness to the sound, although Kahiwa alleviates this some by changing the sax type (soprano, alto, etc.). The sameness to the songs is both good and bad. There aren't any throwaway songs that make me want to fall asleep or skip the songs, but there also aren't any of those "wow" songs I expect from the Ripps. It's all very pleasant, but it reminds me of the last two Steely Dan albums - comfortable and not challenging, so nice but not near the standards expected by the group.

Another phoned-in effort
I have been a fan of Russ Freeman's guitar playing since his "Nocturnal Playground" album in 1985, and a Ripps fan since their debut disc, "Moonlighting", came out in 1987. I have acquired every one of their CDs since; so this review is somewhat painful for me to write.

Their last few albums, sad to say, seem like throw-away afforts from this fine player, who has proven that he has the chops to equal the elite of modern jazz guitarists. This new effort, "Modern Art", falls into the same trap as their last three albums. It tries so hard to play it safe (for the sake of radio airplay, perhaps), that it dares not tread into more spirited, uptempo territory with high-flying guitar solos and terrific interplay with the horn player (in this case, Jeff Kashiwa, returning to the band after an absence of several albums). It would have been great to hear some new tracks of THAT type of Rippingtons music.

I'm of the opinion that artists are right to go for as much airplay as possible, and that's a tough nut to crack in an age when there are so few radio stations that embrace this type of music. But, as a serious fan, I hope that, once I get the disc home, there will be a few gems that are too adventurous for radio on it, but which show what a musician or a band can really do when they "let it rip". Unfortunately, such is not the case here.

Fans yearning for a signature Ripps tune, like "Tourist in Paradise" or "Curves Ahead", will find slim pickings here. New listeners who hear this disc as their first exposure to the group are hardly likely to think of this music as cutting-edge fusion or contemporary jazz, the way fans of the '80's and '90s's versions of the group think of them. What lies inside the cover of this disc is more smoooooooth jazz, without any desire to get any more adventurous than that.