Coming of age

Description

Second album by bassist Ben Williams. Continuing to draw on the jazz, hip-hop, rock, and soul elements he has accustomed us to, with this album the young leader embarks on a bolder new journey through personal compositions that reflect the new perspectives of his musical maturity. For Williams, at thirty, Coming of Age means the possibility of playing an even more active role among his peers as well as a vital role in the broader musical universe. Praised by the Washington Post for successfully translating the musical pulse of his time into jazz, Williams surrounded himself with a host of guests for this project: - the famous trumpeter Christian Scott participates in his cover of Lianne La Havas's melancholic track, Lost & Found, wrapped in a string quartet; - Stefon Harris on vibraphone makes an appearance on the original composition The Color of My Dreams; - and poet/MC W. Ellington Felton guides the listener through these Toy Soldiers (cover). Williams also reunites with American soul singer Goapele for a second collaboration, this time with the essential anthem Voice of Freedom (for Mandela). To complete this vision, we find Ben Williams's own orchestra, the Sound Effect group, which includes Marcus Strickland (tenor and soprano saxophones), Matthew Stevens (guitar), Christian Sands (piano and Fender Rhodes), Masayuki Big Yuki Hirano (synths, Fender Rhodes), John Davis (drums), and Etienne Charles (percussion).