First Course
- A "first course" in cookery refers to an entrée.
| First Course | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by Lee Ritenour | ||||
| Released | 1976 | |||
| Recorded | October 3, 1975 - October 15, 1975 at The Sound Labs, Hollywood, California | |||
| Genre | Crossover jazz, jazz pop | |||
| Length | 41:15 | |||
| Label | Epic Records (1976) Columbia Records (1990) |
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| Producer | Skip Drinkwater | |||
| Lee Ritenour chronology | ||||
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First Course is the first studio album released by jazz guitarist Lee Ritenour. The album was released in 1976 on LP by the label Epic Records. It was re-released on CD by Columbia Records in 1990.
Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
The album was made at the time that Ritenour was still a session musician, perhaps considered the best of the time in Los Angeles, California next to Larry Carlton.[2] He drafted friends and peers from Dante's and the Baked Potato club in Studio City, Los Angeles, California to record this "artifact of the early L.A. jazz/funk sound"[3] Ritenour was worried about creating the album, as he has stated "I was still thinking as a "studio musician", and I was very worried about having my own identity on the guitar, because up until that time my job as a studio musician had been to be a "chameleon" ... it wasn’t until several years later that I felt more comfortable with who I was stylistically."[2]
Financially, there were issues with the album, since the "sound perplexed studio executives" who were mainly looking for the next Bitches Brew or Return to Forever.[4] This was melodic rhythm and blues-based jazz that didn't find a home until new wave-type radio stations became mainstream over a decade later.[4]
Track listing
All tracks composed by Lee Ritenour; except where indicated
- "Little Bit of This and a Little Bit of That" — 6:16
- "Sweet Syncopation" — 4:47
- "Theme from Three Days of the Condor" (Dave Grusin) — 4:08
- "Fatback" — 4:18
- "Memories Past" — 1:51
- "Caterpillar" (Dave Grusin) — 4:21
- "Canticle for the Universe" (Jerry Peters) — 6:12
- "Wild Rice" — 5:32
- "Ohla Maria (Amparo)" (Antônio Carlos Jobim) — 3:50
Personnel
- Lee Ritenour — synthesizer, electric guitar, vocals, classical guitar
- Bill Dickinson, Louis Johnson, Chuck Rainey — bass
- Chuck Findley — trumpet
- Dave Green, Ian Underwood — synthesizer
- Ed Greene, Harvey Mason, Sr. — drums
- Dave Grusin — organ, synthesizer, piano, clavinet
- Larry Nash, Michael Omartian, Jerry Peters, Patrice Rushen — keyboards, clavinet
- Jerome Richardson — saxophone (baritone)
- Frank Rosolino — trombone
- Tom Scott — saxophone (tenor), lyricon
- Jerry Steinholtz — percussion, conga
- Ernie Watts — saxophone (tenor)
External links
References
- ↑ Ginell, Richard S.. Lee Ritenour: First Course > Review at AllMusic. Retrieved 08 September 2011.
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