Track Listing

1. Smoke N' Mirrors
2. Capetown
3. Southwest Passage
4. Waterz Edge
5. Blue Days
6. Spellbinder
7. Memeza
8. Povo
9. Lovely Day
10. Township
11. Forget Me Nots
12. Stone Cool
13. Motherland
14. 4 1/2 Storm

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #51869 in Music
• Brand: Lee
• Released on: 2006-08-22
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .24 pounds

Amazon.com
As comfortable as guitarist Lee Ritenour has always been in the smooth jazz format, he has strived to go beyond it with his embrace of world music and serious jazz stylists including Wes Montgomery. Smoke 'N' Mirrors is a characteristic production in gathering up a sizable cast of contemporary cronies including Patrice Rushen, Dave Grusin, Richard Bona and Abraham Laboriel, but Ritenour's involvement in South African and Brazilian music and his emphasis on acoustic guitar give it a fresh identity. The wistful "Blue Days (Dias Azuis)," written and arranged by Daniel Jobim, son of Antonio Carlos, and featuring the singer Joyce, is one of the album's highlights. The young South African vocalist Zamajobe, featured on three songs, is a real discovery. You may wish Ritenour had stayed on ethnic turf and saved the more familiar, keyboard-sweetened fare for another album. Or you may enjoy the variety of Smoke 'N' Mirrors, which ranges percussively from Sheila E.'s congas to Satnam Ramgotra's Indian tablas. --Lloyd Sachs

Customer Reviews

Completely different, completely fantasic!
The latest CD by Rit, "Smoke n' Mirrors," is a musical journey from which you don't want to leave! Influenced by his recent trips to South Afica, and by his son's interest in percussion instruments, this album cooks from beginning to end. Unlike many guitarists who deconstruct songs so that the melody is lost, there are times I think Rit is a song-writer like Burt Bacharach - but with a guitar. The album has a little of everything without losing continuity. The title track sets the tone. The hand-clapping toward the end is pulsating! Then, Capetown begins with a James Taylor-like acoustic guitar intro and morphs into a South Afican vibe with a splash of funk. Rit cranks of the volume; the scorching octave volume on "Spellbinder"; the electric volume on "Motherland" (which would be awesome music set to highlights of, say, the Tour de France; and the Al Di Meola-like volume on "4 1/2 Storm" with bassist Richard Bona adding scat vocals! Want to joyfully journey back to the 80s? "Forget Me Nots" does just that!

Buy this and be happily fulfilled!

Lee in 2006
I've been listening to Lee Ritenour since the early 80's and love most everything he has done. This CD brings back some memories of older days which frankly I prefer and the sound quality is amazing. Several of the songs are dashboard banging upbeat tunes that are very unique, uplifting and infectous. Highly recomend. My only question to Lee is when are you going to tour again??

American Eagle : Cool Jazz
This was my first Ritenour CD and I found it to be fantastic. The arrangements are top notch professionally done. The moods flow from South African rythems to a flavorful Brazilian beat. The title track Smoke and Mirrors and my favorite,Forget Me Nots are rooted in American jazz and soul music. This rich blend of sounds makes this CD a true listening experience. I highly recommend this CD to add to your jazz collection.