Paul Hardcastle redefined his career with 1993's Jazzmasters, turning himself into a smooth jazz musician.
He expands on that approach on Hardcastle 1, hiring a large cast of vocalists -- not just Jazzmasters veteran Helen Rogers, but Caroline Dayley, Steve Menzies, Imani, and Jaki Graham -- while adding a new pair of reeds players, Chris Davis and Philip Todd.
Since Hardcastle still handles the majority of the instruments, Hardcastle 1 has about as much breathing room as Jazzmasters I, but the main difference is that this finds him jazzing up his smooth jazz with worldbeat influences, typified by the breakthrough single "Rainforest." Ultimately, the music is still likely to slip into the background, but it's pleasing and illustrates that his talents as a jazz musician are beginning to deepen.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Can't Stop Now | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 06:12 | 0 MB | 47 MB |
| 2 | Driftin' Away | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 05:18 | 0 MB | 41 MB |
| 3 | Never Let You Go | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 05:56 | 0 MB | 46 MB |
| 4 | Forever Dreamin'Paul Hardcastle | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 04:47 | 0 MB | 35 MB |
| 5 | You May Be GonePaul Hardcastle, Helen Rogers | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 06:46 | 0 MB | 52 MB |
| 6 | Feel the BreezePaul Hardcastle | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 05:20 | 0 MB | 40 MB |
| 7 | The Only One | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 04:51 | 0 MB | 37 MB |
| 8 | Lazy DaysPaul Hardcastle | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 06:07 | 0 MB | 46 MB |
| 9 | Do It Again | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 06:12 | 0 MB | 46 MB |
| 10 | Don't Be Shy | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 05:51 | 0 MB | 45 MB |
| 11 | It Must Be LovePaul Hardcastle | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 05:36 | 0 MB | 45 MB |
| 12 | Rainforest (original version) | Paul Hardcastle | Play | 04:19 | 0 MB | 34 MB |
| 0 mins | 0 MB | |||||
| 67 mins | 518 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mario Castellanos | Photography |
| 2 | Chris Davis | Flute, Saxophone |
| 3 | Caroline Dayley | Vocals |
| 4 | Jaki Graham | Vocals |
| 5 | Paul Hardcastle | Composer, Engineer, Mixing, Multi Instruments, Primary Artist, Producer |
| 6 | Kevin Hosmann | Art Direction |
| 7 | Imani | Vocals |
| 8 | Steve Menzies | Vocals |
| 9 | Helen Rogers | Composer, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 10 | Lori Stoll | Photography |
| 11 | Philip Todd | Flute, Saxophone |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |