JANGO
''CLOSER TO HOME''
JULY 11 2000
50:12
1 - Joyful Caravan - Closer To Home 4:32
2 - Under The Influence Of Love 4:37
3 - Soul Casserole 3:43
4 - What Your Heart Tells You To Do 3:36
5 - Diamond Drive 3:33
6 - Tlhe Way Back To Heaven 4:24
7 - Pink Flamingos 4:37
8 - Nightside Express 4:33
9 - The Beard 5:00
10 - Closer To Home 3:04
11 - Maximum Groove 3:55
12 - The Score Part 2 3:32
13 - Soul Casserole (2nd Helping) 1:17
Dave Beyer/Drums, Percussion
Leon Johnson/Bass
Nick Kirgo/Guitar
Steve LeGassick/Keyboards
Steve Nieves/Vocals, Saxophone, Percussion
Charlie Peterson/Flugelhorn
Annas Allaf/Guitar
REVIEW
by William Ruhlmann
Good studio musicians are, by definition, talented players whose occupation requires them to be able to play in a variety of styles. Given the tendency in pop music for any popular success to be followed by a raft of imitations, studio musicians are often called upon to ape other people's signature sounds. Unfortunately, this very versatility can work against them when they try to make their own music; the work of studio musicians turned recording artists in their own right often turns out either faceless or suspiciously similar to something else.
And that brings one to Jango, the group formed by studio musicians Steve Nieves, Steve LeGassick, Nick Kirgo, Leon Johnson, and Dave Beyer. Their intentions were signaled by their signing to Samson Records, the independent label run by Steve Barri, who signed Donald Fagen and Walter Becker to a song publishing contract at ABC Records in the early 1970s and helped them form Steely Dan. And sure enough, Jango's recordings, starting with 1999's Dreamtown, have been unabashed in their imitation of Steely Dan's pop-jazz sound. At a time when their predecessors hadn't made any new music in a long, long time, that was more welcome than it was when Jango's second album, Closer to Home, was released in the wake of Two Against Nature, Steely Dan's return to action. But either way, writing and performing music so close to Steely Dan's sound is simply too distracting to permit independent enjoyment. True, the band takes occasional side trips, launching the album with "Soul Casserole," which is closer to the Meters, and including the ironic folk-rock song "What Your Heart Tells You," its lyric touting independence, while some of the instrumentals constitute anonymous smooth jazz. But the bulk of the material on Closer to Home employs the electric piano/horn interplay characteristic of Steely Dan, while the vocals, slightly smoother than Donald Fagen's, are nevertheless phrased like him and augmented with harmonies noticeably similar to Steely Dan's. In such a context, it is especially noticeable that the lyrics don't come near Fagen and Becker's wry wit.
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Steely Dan should feel very flattered by Jango and Closer to Home. And, in a sense, you've got to hand it to them: While Steely Dan is frequently cited as influential, few musicians have actually tried to play like them, if only because it's so hard. You have to be a really good musician to even begin to approach the band's funky, yet complex style. That said, there was little reason to play this album in the same year that Two Against Nature was current, except perhaps to have fun trying to fool your friends.
BIOGRAPHY
by Alex Henderson
Consisting of Los Angeles-based studio players, Jango is a group that has focused on Steely Dan-influenced soft rock/adult contemporary vocals as well as instrumental NAC/crossover music. The Jango project came about in 1998, when singer/saxophonist Steve Nieves (who had recorded as a leader for the now-defunct JMI label) and keyboardist Steve Le Gassick joined forces with guitarist Nick Kirgo, bassist Leon Johnson and drummer Dave Beyer. All of the musicians had been quite active in the L.A. studio scene. Jango signed with Samson Music in 1998, and its CD Dreamtown came out in early 1999 Closer to Home followed a year later.
''CLOSER TO HOME''
JULY 11 2000
50:12
1 - Joyful Caravan - Closer To Home 4:32
2 - Under The Influence Of Love 4:37
3 - Soul Casserole 3:43
4 - What Your Heart Tells You To Do 3:36
5 - Diamond Drive 3:33
6 - Tlhe Way Back To Heaven 4:24
7 - Pink Flamingos 4:37
8 - Nightside Express 4:33
9 - The Beard 5:00
10 - Closer To Home 3:04
11 - Maximum Groove 3:55
12 - The Score Part 2 3:32
13 - Soul Casserole (2nd Helping) 1:17
Dave Beyer/Drums, Percussion
Leon Johnson/Bass
Nick Kirgo/Guitar
Steve LeGassick/Keyboards
Steve Nieves/Vocals, Saxophone, Percussion
Charlie Peterson/Flugelhorn
Annas Allaf/Guitar
REVIEW
by William Ruhlmann
Good studio musicians are, by definition, talented players whose occupation requires them to be able to play in a variety of styles. Given the tendency in pop music for any popular success to be followed by a raft of imitations, studio musicians are often called upon to ape other people's signature sounds. Unfortunately, this very versatility can work against them when they try to make their own music; the work of studio musicians turned recording artists in their own right often turns out either faceless or suspiciously similar to something else.
And that brings one to Jango, the group formed by studio musicians Steve Nieves, Steve LeGassick, Nick Kirgo, Leon Johnson, and Dave Beyer. Their intentions were signaled by their signing to Samson Records, the independent label run by Steve Barri, who signed Donald Fagen and Walter Becker to a song publishing contract at ABC Records in the early 1970s and helped them form Steely Dan. And sure enough, Jango's recordings, starting with 1999's Dreamtown, have been unabashed in their imitation of Steely Dan's pop-jazz sound. At a time when their predecessors hadn't made any new music in a long, long time, that was more welcome than it was when Jango's second album, Closer to Home, was released in the wake of Two Against Nature, Steely Dan's return to action. But either way, writing and performing music so close to Steely Dan's sound is simply too distracting to permit independent enjoyment. True, the band takes occasional side trips, launching the album with "Soul Casserole," which is closer to the Meters, and including the ironic folk-rock song "What Your Heart Tells You," its lyric touting independence, while some of the instrumentals constitute anonymous smooth jazz. But the bulk of the material on Closer to Home employs the electric piano/horn interplay characteristic of Steely Dan, while the vocals, slightly smoother than Donald Fagen's, are nevertheless phrased like him and augmented with harmonies noticeably similar to Steely Dan's. In such a context, it is especially noticeable that the lyrics don't come near Fagen and Becker's wry wit.
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Steely Dan should feel very flattered by Jango and Closer to Home. And, in a sense, you've got to hand it to them: While Steely Dan is frequently cited as influential, few musicians have actually tried to play like them, if only because it's so hard. You have to be a really good musician to even begin to approach the band's funky, yet complex style. That said, there was little reason to play this album in the same year that Two Against Nature was current, except perhaps to have fun trying to fool your friends.
BIOGRAPHY
by Alex Henderson
Consisting of Los Angeles-based studio players, Jango is a group that has focused on Steely Dan-influenced soft rock/adult contemporary vocals as well as instrumental NAC/crossover music. The Jango project came about in 1998, when singer/saxophonist Steve Nieves (who had recorded as a leader for the now-defunct JMI label) and keyboardist Steve Le Gassick joined forces with guitarist Nick Kirgo, bassist Leon Johnson and drummer Dave Beyer. All of the musicians had been quite active in the L.A. studio scene. Jango signed with Samson Music in 1998, and its CD Dreamtown came out in early 1999 Closer to Home followed a year later.