Today I'll answer the question of whether an album that won a couple of Grammys can be underappreciated.
Spoiler: Yes. But the devil is in the details — in the glorious details of Al Jarreau and George Benson's delightful 2006 collaboration, "Givin' It Up." Despite critical acclaim, the album peaked at 56 on the pop charts then quickly disappeared.
But what audiences missed...
Take two masters who love their craft and who have been around long enough that they don't have anything to prove. Mix them up with seasoned producer-players like Patti Austin, Marcus Miller, and Larry Williams. Throw in talented artists like Herbie Hancock on piano, Stanley Clarke on bass guitar, Patrice Rushen on keys and Rhodes, and Marion Meadows on sax. Hell, give Paul McCartney a ring, and maybe he'll lend his vocals to a track.
Shake them all up with some killer songs. They can cover some old stuff like Sam Cooke's "Bring It On Home to Me" and maybe even Billie Holiday's "God Bless the Child." Throw in some new songs from John Legend, will.i.am, and Freddie Ravel.
"You know what?" somebody must have thought. "Let's do something seriously unexpected. Maybe Jarreau can whip up a lyric for that Bobby Womack instrumental, 'Breezin',' that landed Benson on the pop charts back in '76."
I don't know who came up with this crazy idea but between Jarreau's lyrics/singing and Benson's guitar — which they both scat along with in harmony — this one's pure joy.
Maybe I'm just partial to that one because "Breezin'" was my introduction to Benson back in second or third grade. Mom had the album, and when I saw Benson on the cover — in that '70s tux! — I thought he was the coolest guy I'd ever seen. Then I heard the album and I knew it.A few years later, I can guarantee you I was the only kid in sixth grade spending his own money on Benson's "Give Me The Night," and it was worth every penny.
Another unexpected joy was Benson & Jarreau wiping the dust off of "Summer Breeze" — yes, the Seals & Crofts soft rock classic.
Who saw that one coming? The first time I listened to the album, I did what I always try to do on the first listen and ignored the track listing and the liner notes. About six seconds in I was like, "Summer effing BREEZE? Are you kidding me?"
Previously for Our VIPs: Underappreciated Albums: 'March'
Written by Darryl Hall and first recorded by Hall & Oates in 1980, "Everytime You Go Away" didn't become famous until 1985 when Paul Young covered it. But the song is made better (so much better) by Jarreau and Benson.
So is it fair to ask the youth-obsessed buyers who determine pop charts to spend their attention and money on a 56-year-old jazz-soul guitarist and a 59-year-old jazz-soul vocalist recording covers of songs that young buyers are only dimly aware of, if at all?
Of course, it isn't fair to ask them that. But I can lament it all the same.
I can't expect young listeners to have ever heard a Billie Holiday recording of "God Bless The Child." I wouldn't even ask them to sit still long enough to listen to Blood Sweat & Tears' mind-blowing rock-jazz version. But hardly anybody bought a copy of "Givin' It Up" to discover the wonder of Benson and Jarreau getting together with Jill Scott to make it fresh all over again.
It starts off semi-acapella with Jarreau and Scott accompanied by just the perfect touch of Benson's guitar. They sneak in some more orchestration as the song progresses but, by that point, you're so sucked in that you barely notice.
If there's a broader lament here, it's what happened after video killed the radio star.
Frank Sinatra always had a beautiful voice and impeccable phrasing, but I don't think he became truly great until after his marriage to Ava Gardner went down in flames. That's when he retreated to the studio to record the first modern album (as we'd come to think of them), "In The Wee Small Hours." Sinatra was 40, or nearly so, at the time. His pain is real in a way you rarely hear in younger artists because they haven't lived and lost enough yet.
With video's emphasis on youth and looks, few popular artists have the time to mature before they're forgotten. What a damn shame that for most people under 60, Benson and Jarreau never even got a chance to be forgotten before they'd recorded "Givin' It Up."
"Givin' It Up" is available for streaming in CD-quality lossless on Apple Music and in a bandwidth-friendly compressed presentation on Spotify.
Previously for Our VIPs: Underappreciated Albums: 'Sinatra & Swingin' Brass'
