Conversations with Christian
Studio album by
Christian McBride
ReleasedNovember 8, 2011 (2011-11-08)
StudioAvatar, New York City
Chicago Recording Company, Chicago
LeGonks (West), Los Angeles
MSR Studios, NYC
GenreJazz
Length76:21
LabelMack Avenue MAC 1050
ProducerChristian McBride
Christian McBride chronology
The Good Feeling
(2011)		 Conversations with Christian
(2011)		 People Music
(2013)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
All About Jazz[1]
AllMusic[2]
The Buffalo News[3]
The Guardian[4]
Jazzwise[5]
Tom HullB+[6]

Conversations with Christian is a studio album by American jazz bassist Christian McBride. It was released on November 8, 2011 via Mack Avenue label.[7][8]

Background

This is the tenth album by McBride as a leader.[9] The album is special because it consists of 13 tracks—each recorded as a duet with various popular musicians. The project began as podcasts in 2009, when McBride started interviewing his musical companions as well as playing some compositions meanwhile. The podcast eventually led to the bassist’s popular Sirius-XM radio show, The Lowdown: Conversations With Christian.[10][11]

Reception

Ken Dryden of AllMusic noted "Conversations with Christian is an unusual release, as it features the veteran bassist playing duets with a number of good friends. The vocal meetings include Angélique Kidjo, Sting, and Dee Dee Bridgewater (the latter with a hilarious, funky cover of The Isley Brothers' signature song "It's Your Thing"). The pairings with musicians of McBride's generation (trumpeter Roy Hargrove, tenor saxophonist Ron Blake, and guitarist Russell Malone) all exceed expectations. There are several enjoyable duets with pianists, one featuring Latin jazz master Eddie Palmieri, a duo improvised tango by Chick Corea and the leader, plus an all too rare acoustic outing by the talented George Duke (who tears up the keyboard with his hard-charging "McDukey Blues")".[2]

Chris Barton of Los Angeles Times stated "This year marks another active one for McBride with September's rambunctious big-band album "The Good Feeling" and this month's "Conversations With Christian," a collection of duets that rose out of a 2009 podcast series of the same name. Full of loosely intimate interplay, the results sometimes recall the try-anything spirit of McBride's guest-heavy 2006 live album "Live at Tonic".[12] The Buffalo News review by Jeff Simon stated, "There's almost as much art on all this showing off as there is entertainment. It's a consistent delight -- though of several different kinds before it's over."[3]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Afirika" (feat. Angélique Kidjo)Jean Hébrail, Angélique Kidjo4:21
2."Fat Bach and Greens" (feat. Regina Carter)Johann Sebastian Bach4:40
3."Consider Me Gone" (feat. Sting)Sting4:19
4."Guajeo y Tumbao" (feat. Eddie Palmieri)Eddie Palmieri6:18
5."Baubles, Bangles and Beads" (feat. Roy Hargrove)George Forrest, Robert Wright5:21
6."Spiritual" (feat. Billy Taylor)Billy Taylor7:07
7."It's Your Thing" (feat. Dee Dee Bridgewater)O'Kelly Isley, Ronald Isley, Rudolph Isley5:09
8."Alone Together" (feat. Hank Jones)Howard Dietz, Arthur Schwartz5:32
9."McDukey Blues" (feat. George Duke)Christian McBride5:34
10."Tango Improvisation #1" (feat. Chick Corea)Chick Corea, Christian McBride9:06
11."Sister Rosa" (feat. Russell Malone)Christian McBride6:39
12."Shake 'n Blake" (feat. Ron Blake)Christian McBride5:36
13."Chitlins and Gefiltefish" (feat. Gina Gershon)Christian McBride6:39
Total length:76:21

Personnel

Band
  • Christian McBride – primary artist, producer
Production
  • Randall Kennedy – creative director
  • André Kimo Stone Guess – associate producer
  • Mat Lejeune – engineer
  • Fernando Lodeiro – assistant engineer

Chart performance

Chart (2011) Peak
position
US Jazz Albums (Billboard)[13] 23

References

  1. ↑ Bilawsky, Dan (November 11, 2011). "Christian McBride: Conversations with Christian". All About Jazz. allaboutjazz.com. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Christian McBride: Conversations with Christian". Allmusic. allmusic.com. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  3. 1 2 Simon, Jeff (December 2, 2011). "Discs". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  4. ↑ Fordham, John (February 20, 2012). "Christian McBride – review". The Guardian. theguardian.com. Retrieved 23 May 2018.
  5. ↑ Robson, Andy (February 2012). "Review". Jazzwise. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  6. ↑ "Tom Hull: Grade List: Christian McBride". Tom Hull. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  7. ↑ "Christian McBride Conversations With Christian". Mack Avenue Records. mackavenue.com. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  8. ↑ "Christian McBride – Conversations With Christian". Discogs. discogs.com. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  9. ↑ Milkowski, Bill (March 1, 2012). "Christian McBride: Conversations with Christian". The Absolute Sound. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  10. ↑ Johnson, Kevin (November 10, 2011). "Christian McBride Releases Conversations with Christian". notreble.com. notreble.com. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  11. ↑ Scheinin, Richard (September 13, 2016). "CONVERSATIONS WITH CHRISTIAN". SFJAZZ Center. sfjazz.org. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  12. ↑ Barton, Chris (November 10, 2011). "Album review: Christian McBride's 'Conversations With Christian'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  13. ↑ "CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE: CHART HISTORY". Billboard. billboard.com. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
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