Rating:
Genre: Jazz
Release Date: 06/24/2008

Cynics who don't get smooth jazz--and wonder why thousands of passionate genre fans spend their hard earned money every year on the genre's many festivals and cruises--just listen to the radio too much. No matter how catchy the songs are, the airwaves just don't capture the potential magic and fire of a live performance. That goes for most of the format's big artists, but few have been as compelling onstage as the multi-talented Steve Oliver, whose soulful vocals and snappy guitar lines are just the beginning of what is essentially a one man orchestra capable of numerous sonic delights; these include wild and crazy vocal percussion, breezy wordless vocal joys, and as we see and hear on the "Guitar Demonstration" of this exciting live CD/DVD package, a synth guitar that can simulate everything from a grand piano to bass, flute and orchestrated strings. In the economic climate of the late 2000s, a dual package like this seemed like a calculated commercial risk. But as wildly compelling as Oliver's instantly infectious songs are on the ears, the visual entertainment he provides and the way his grateful audience responds (at any of his 200 plus performances annually) makes a DVD of one of his classic performances (at the State Theatre in Modesto, CA) a must. Oliver doesn't go crazy finding new twists on instrumental hits like "Magic World" and "Chips and Salsa," but they are still some of smooth jazz's best songs and are always fun to listen to. On classics like "I Know" and new tunes like "Fearless," he also shows his penchant for romantic lead vocals. The title of one of the package's later uptempo tracks, the breezy top down "Feeling Good" sums up the charms Oliver offers throughout. Beyond the thirteen live performances, the guitarist adds two new studio tunes, the catchy vocal "This Fire" and a cheerful new instrumental "On The Upside" which is just that. The DVD features a behind the scenes segment and a lighthearted explanation of the artist's "guitar orchestra" that shows his truly "Radiant" personality one more time. If this blisteringly happy disc doesn't make you feel all Disneyland, no music released in 2008 will.

~Jonathan Widran, All Music Guide

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George Landress - Mixing

In This Life
    Kirk Whalum / CD / 1995
Caravan of Dreams
    Peter White / CD / 1996
Love's Melody
    Kim Waters / CD / 1998
From the Redwoods to the Rockies
    Russ Freeman & Craig Chaquico / CD / 1998
Decisions
    Wayman Tisdale / CD / 1998
Urban Knights III
    Urban Knights / CD / 2000

Release Date: 06/24/2008
Genre: jazz