After Releasing "After All" in December, I began to hone in on a track that had been sitting around the studio since late 2012.
One of My Best Friends, Engineer & Fellow Studio 'Cabbage Head' Jerry Thompson had doodled with a groove in my home studio and came up with something that was hauntingly funky. We really didn't know where to go with it, until Jerry kept repeating the word "Selah." While I began to hone in on the rhythm and beat, Jerry went to work on the lyrics.
Taking a cue from the book of Psalms where King David would say something profound to The Lord, he'd put a musical cue in there for the Worship Leader to take a Selah - pause, reflect and think. So using that as a foundation, Jerry wrote from the perspective of the Busyness of Life and how Important it is for Us All to do the same. The funk just sat there for weeks. I kept tweaking the drums, experimenting with 103 different bass sounds and kept adding sounds to represent an attitude of 'Infectious Serenity'. Soon Jerry went into the Vocal Booth and began to Mumble out a Melody loosely based upon his Lyrics.
We didn't know who we wanted to sing it - if anyone - or if it would remain an Instrumental, in spite of the fact that Lyrics were ready.
In Summer of 2013, we were scheduled to play the Unity Fest in New Castle PA. Our dear friend Angel Lopez (who recorded the guitar on "Inspire" and our New Remix of "Meant2B") dropped by to introduce us to his nephew, flutist Jeremy De Jesus the day before the show. He jammed with us and we invited him to gig with us the next day. Forget the description, Jeremy tore it up and somewhere in my vault is the funkiest version of "YoYo" featuring a soaring flute solo that I must dig out!
Since he would be here for a few more days, I decided to snag him into the studio and he graciously put down flute lines on "Meant2B" and this Selah Thing that was occupying studio space. His contribution became the catalyst for breathing life into the tune. Listening to the Melodic Mumbling Jerry had done gave him a basis to bring the full Melody to Life - it became sensational again. I stripped down the drum track and began again. I tried as much as possible to center my newly formed bass line and percussion sequences around Jeremy's vibe. It became a Pseudo Middle Eastern - Latino Flavored Undercurrent. Jerry built on that by adding Hubert Clardy's tasteful piano in the middle of the flute solos. I was going to have Jeremy cut the Verses but Jerry's Lyrics were the right contrast needed. So we had to find a singer.
Young Sheldon Grayson is a dynamic Worship Leader at the Liberty Campus of Victory Christian Center. His soft spoken tenor hides a power and finesse that can be summoned in the blink of an eye. Drawing from the foundations of Phillip Bailey, we urged Sheldon to experiment with phrasings outside of his comfort zone and got far more than we expected. Jerry's wife Bea, and sisters Darla & Felicia West rounded out the vocal space.
We dropped previews via Social Media on February 12th and the response was overwhelming. The sound is different and doesn't fit the mold of traditional Soul, R&B or Jazz. We are Explorers at heart and wish to maintain Complete Originality with every offering. "Selah" certainly fits that bill.
In March, we partnered with author Gregory Trent, who released a book of the same title.
One of My Best Friends, Engineer & Fellow Studio 'Cabbage Head' Jerry Thompson had doodled with a groove in my home studio and came up with something that was hauntingly funky. We really didn't know where to go with it, until Jerry kept repeating the word "Selah." While I began to hone in on the rhythm and beat, Jerry went to work on the lyrics.
Taking a cue from the book of Psalms where King David would say something profound to The Lord, he'd put a musical cue in there for the Worship Leader to take a Selah - pause, reflect and think. So using that as a foundation, Jerry wrote from the perspective of the Busyness of Life and how Important it is for Us All to do the same. The funk just sat there for weeks. I kept tweaking the drums, experimenting with 103 different bass sounds and kept adding sounds to represent an attitude of 'Infectious Serenity'. Soon Jerry went into the Vocal Booth and began to Mumble out a Melody loosely based upon his Lyrics.
We didn't know who we wanted to sing it - if anyone - or if it would remain an Instrumental, in spite of the fact that Lyrics were ready.
In Summer of 2013, we were scheduled to play the Unity Fest in New Castle PA. Our dear friend Angel Lopez (who recorded the guitar on "Inspire" and our New Remix of "Meant2B") dropped by to introduce us to his nephew, flutist Jeremy De Jesus the day before the show. He jammed with us and we invited him to gig with us the next day. Forget the description, Jeremy tore it up and somewhere in my vault is the funkiest version of "YoYo" featuring a soaring flute solo that I must dig out!
Since he would be here for a few more days, I decided to snag him into the studio and he graciously put down flute lines on "Meant2B" and this Selah Thing that was occupying studio space. His contribution became the catalyst for breathing life into the tune. Listening to the Melodic Mumbling Jerry had done gave him a basis to bring the full Melody to Life - it became sensational again. I stripped down the drum track and began again. I tried as much as possible to center my newly formed bass line and percussion sequences around Jeremy's vibe. It became a Pseudo Middle Eastern - Latino Flavored Undercurrent. Jerry built on that by adding Hubert Clardy's tasteful piano in the middle of the flute solos. I was going to have Jeremy cut the Verses but Jerry's Lyrics were the right contrast needed. So we had to find a singer.
Young Sheldon Grayson is a dynamic Worship Leader at the Liberty Campus of Victory Christian Center. His soft spoken tenor hides a power and finesse that can be summoned in the blink of an eye. Drawing from the foundations of Phillip Bailey, we urged Sheldon to experiment with phrasings outside of his comfort zone and got far more than we expected. Jerry's wife Bea, and sisters Darla & Felicia West rounded out the vocal space.
We dropped previews via Social Media on February 12th and the response was overwhelming. The sound is different and doesn't fit the mold of traditional Soul, R&B or Jazz. We are Explorers at heart and wish to maintain Complete Originality with every offering. "Selah" certainly fits that bill.
In March, we partnered with author Gregory Trent, who released a book of the same title.