SuperBlue: The Iridescent Spree
2x GRAMMY® Award-winner Kurt Elling is without question today’s preeminent male jazz vocalist, renowned worldwide for his unparalleled virtuosity and flair for trailblazing artistic exploration. From his stunning reinvention of timeless standards to his own captivating original songcraft, the Chicago-based musician has fused his dazzling talents across a panoply of musical approaches, emblazoning each with signature imagination, insight, and emotional intelligence.
Where many male jazz vocalists at this stage in a much vaunted career have tended to stick to the tried and true, Elling seems to be growing more ambitious and experimental with the passing of time, a tendency evidenced by his stunning new LP, SuperBlue: The Iridescent Spree (Edition Records). The followup to 2021’s remarkable SuperBlue, the album once again sees Elling joining forces with producer/guitarist Charlie Hunter and multi-instrumentalist duo drummer Corey Fonville and bassist-keyboardist DJ Harrison (of Richmond, VA-based jazz-funk fusion quintet Butcher Brown) for a kaleidoscopic collection of new songs, surprising covers, and dynamic reinventions.
Edition Records | 2023
Personnel
Kurt Elling – Voice
Charlie Hunter – Hybrid Guitar
DJ Harrison – Keyboards
Corey Fonville – Drums
Huntertones Horns on “Naughty Number Nine”, “Bounce It” and “Not Here / Not Now”:
Jon Lampley – Trumpet
Dan White – Saxophone & Horn Arrangements
Chris Ott – Trombone
Elena Pinderhughes – Flute (on “Black Crow”)
Produced by Kurt Elling, Charlie Hunter, Corey Fonville & DJ Harrison
Executive Producer: Bryan Farina, Dave Stapleton
Recorded at Montrose Studios Richmond, VA February 2022 by Adrian Olsen & Curtis Fye
Vocals for ‘Not Here/Not Now, recorded at Transient Sound Studios in Chicago, IL by Vijay Tellis-Nayak
Mixed by Adrian Olsen at Montrose Studios
Mastered by Dave McNair at Dave McNair Mastering
Album artwork & Art Direction by Oli Bentley, Split
Photography by Angus McDonald