Positivity (album)
| Positivity | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1993 | |||
| Studio |
| |||
| Genre | Acid jazz | |||
| Length | 66:27 | |||
| Label | Talkin' Loud Verve Forecast | |||
| Producer |
| |||
| Incognito chronology | ||||
| ||||
Positivity is an album by the British band Incognito, released in 1993.[1][2] The band supported the album with a North American tour.[3]
The album peaked at No. 55 on the UK Albums Chart.[4] The album peaked at No. 2 on the US Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart.[5] It has sold more than 350,000 copies in the United States.[6]
Production
[edit]The album was produced by band leader Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick.[7] He was chiefly inspired by Stevie Wonder's Talking Book and Innervisions.[8]
Critical reception
[edit]| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [9] |
| Calgary Herald | B[10] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [7] |
| MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide |  [11] |
| USA Today | [12] |
The Washington Post wrote that "the band mines familiar funk grooves with more than enough imagination and horn power to keep things fresh."[13] The Calgary Herald praised the "free flowing numbers that eschew harder edge riffs for music suited more for spliffs."[10] USA Today stated that "the commercially oriented backbeats and vocals (more singing than on their previous two albums) are counterbalanced by a tight horn section and jazzy, crisp arrangements."[12]
The Orange County Register opined that "the strength lies in vocalists Maysa Leak and Mark Anthoni, whose rich-sounding voices glide through each track as easily as a hot spoon through ice cream."[14] The Atlanta Journal-Constitution listed Positivity as one of the best R&B albums of 1994.[15]
AllMusic wrote that "group leader Jean-Paul 'Bluey' Maunick's vision of intertwine various genres of music (bebop, soul, classical, dance, etc.) into one incomparable sound is exemplary."[9] MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide called "Deep Waters" a "landmark acid-jazz track."[11]
Track listing
[edit]| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Step into My Life" | Jean-Paul Maunick, Richard Bull, Peter Hinds | 4:13 |
| 2. | "Still a Friend of Mine" | Maunick, Bull | 5:37 |
| 3. | "Smiling Faces" | Maunick, Graham Harvey, Ray Hayden | 5:09 |
| 4. | "Where Do We Go from Here" | Maunick, Hayden | 5:21 |
| 5. | "Positivity" | Maunick, Bull, Randy Hope-Taylor | 3:51 |
| 6. | "Inversions" | Maunick, Max Beesley | 5:54 |
| 7. | "Givin' It Up" | Maunick, Bull | 5:08 |
| 8. | "Talkin' Loud" | Maunick, Bull, Harvey | 3:28 |
| 9. | "Deep Waters" | Maunick, Bull | 6:37 |
| 10. | "Do Right" | Maunick, Harvey, Hayden | 5:29 |
| 11. | "Pieces of a Dream" | Maunick, Bull | 4:19 |
| 12. | "Thinking 'Bout Tomorrow" | Maunick, Bull, Fayyaz Virji | 5:53 |
| 13. | "Keep the Fires Burning" | Maunick, Hayden | 5:20 |
| Total length: | 66:27 | ||
Personnel
[edit]Incognito
- Mark Anthoni – lead vocals, backing vocals
- Maysa Leak – lead vocals, backing vocals
- Graham Harvey – keyboards, vocoder keyboard, synth bass
- Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick – keyboards, vocoder voice, guitars, drum and percussion programming
- Peter Hinds – keyboards
- Randy Hope-Taylor – bass
- Richard Bailey – drums
- Thomas Dyani – percussion
- Patrick Clahar – soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone
- Fayyaz Virji – trombone
- Kevin Robinson – trumpet, flugelhorn
- Sarah Brown – backing vocals
Additional musicians
- Richard Bull – keyboards, guitars, bass programming, drum and percussion programming
- Joel "Tyrell" LeBlanc – programming (2, 4)
- Max Beesley – additional keyboards (5)
- Ray Hayden – bass programming, drum and percussion programming, backing vocals (10, 13)
- Paul "Tubbs" Williams – bass (5)
- Bud Beadle – baritone saxophone, flute
Production
[edit]- Guy Eckstein – A&R direction (USA)
- Gilles Peterson – A&R direction
- Jean-Paul Maunick – producer, mixing (1, 3-9, 11, 12)
- Richard Bull – co-producer (1-3, 5, 7-9, 11, 12), recording, mixing (1, 3, 4, 7-9, 11, 12)
- Ray Hayden – co-producer (4, 10, 13), recording, mixing (10, 13)
- Ron Aslan – recording, mixing (6)
- Simon Catsworth – recording, mixing (1, 3, 4, 7-9, 11, 12)
- Joel "Tyrell" LeBlanc – mixing (3, 5)
- Goetz Botzenhardt – assistant engineer
- Ruadhri Cushnan – assistant engineer
- Doug Cook – assistant engineer
- Kevin Jacobs – assistant engineer
- Matt Sime – assistant engineer
- Geoff Pesche – mastering at The Town House (London, UK)
- Fiona Grimshaw – product manager (UK)
- Ben Mundy – product manager (USA)
- Chris Maguire – release production (USA)
- Green Ink – art direction
- Swifty Typographics – sleeve design
- Richard Croft – photography
Charts
[edit]| Chart (1993) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[16] | 108 |
| US Top R&B Albums (Billboard) | 53 |
| US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard) | 13 |
| US Top Contemporary Jazz Albums (Billboard) | 2 |
| UK Pop Albums (Official Charts) | 55 |
References
[edit]- ^ "Incognito Biography & History". AllMusic.
- ^ Smith, Andrew (2 June 1995). "Still rising after all these years: Andrew Smith talks to Bluey Maunick, the Mr Consistency of jazz fusion". Features. The Guardian. p. 18.
- ^ Stoute, Lenny (19 May 1994). "Incognito came to the Palladium with a rep as acid-jazz veterans...". Toronto Star. p. J11.
- ^ "Incognito Full Official Chart History". www.officialcharts.com.
- ^ "Top Contemporary Jazz Albums". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 28. 15 July 1995. p. 36.
- ^ Thompson, Dave (August 19, 2001). Funk. Hal Leonard Corporation – via Google Books.
- ^ a b Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 4. MUZE. p. 468.
- ^ Murray, Sonia (6 May 1994). "Acid jazz: Hard to define, easy on the ears". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. P9.
- ^ a b "Positivity". AllMusic.
- ^ a b Muretich, James (1 May 1994). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. C2.
- ^ a b MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 281.
- ^ a b Jones IV, James T. (20 Apr 1994). "A trio of jazz funk crowd-pleasers". USA Today. p. 6D. ProQuest 306694647.
- ^ Joyce, Mike (13 May 1994). "Inventive Incognito". The Washington Post. p. N16.
- ^ Montero, David (April 22, 1994). "Galliano, Incognito albums blend a heap of influences". Show. Orange County Register. p. 48.
- ^ Murray, Sonia (25 Dec 1994). "The Year's Best". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. p. K14.
- ^ "Incognito ARIA chart history to 2024". ARIA. Retrieved 21 July 2024 – via Imgur.com. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.