With JVC midwifing again for the insatiable jazz fans of Japan, Ritenour aims to please -- this time with a series of live-in-the-studio tracks that were recorded with a supermarket of audiophile processes (direct to disk, direct to digital, direct to analog tape).
The analog tape version is the one that Elektra/Musician put out in the U.S.
later in 1983 -- and it's a rather slight piece of L.A.
electric-jazz work, not worth the extra engineering effort.
Perhaps they were inhibited by the direct-to-whatever conditions, but then perhaps not, for they're all battle-tested session pros (Ernie Watts, Dave and Don Grusin, Harvey Mason, Nathan East, Anthony Jackson, Greg Mathiesen, Steve Forman, Lenny Castro and Rit himself).
The real power failure lies in the ordinary material, which no synthesizer growls or Rit's versatile technique can enliven for long (though "Dolphin Dreams" has some pretty moments).
Ambition rears its head when "The Rit Variations" are launched by a neobaroque theme by Spanish composer Federico Mompou, but the track soon slips into the land of cliché.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Rit VariationsLee Ritenour | Lee Ritenour | Play | 06:07 | 14 MB | 35 MB |
| 2 | On the LineLee Ritenour | Lee Ritenour | Play | 04:13 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 3 | TushMichael Lang, Harvey Mason, Sr. | Lee Ritenour | Play | 04:29 | 10 MB | 21 MB |
| 4 | California RollDave Grusin | Lee Ritenour | Play | 04:21 | 9 MB | 25 MB |
| 5 | Heavenly BodiesLee Ritenour | Lee Ritenour | Play | 05:25 | 12 MB | 27 MB |
| 6 | PedestrianLee Ritenour | Lee Ritenour | Play | 05:01 | 11 MB | 29 MB |
| 7 | Dolphin DreamsLee Ritenour | Lee Ritenour | Play | 05:10 | 11 MB | 27 MB |
| 34 mins | 79 MB | |||||
| 34 mins | 195 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Almost Music | Producer |
| 2 | Andy Baltimore | Creative Director, Design |
| 3 | Lenny Castro | Guest Artist, Percussion |
| 4 | Nathan East | Bass, Synthesizer Bass |
| 5 | Greg Edmonson | Production Assistant |
| 6 | Steve Forman | Guest Artist, Percussion |
| 7 | Humberto Gatica | Engineer, Mixing |
| 8 | Dave Grusin | Arranger, Composer, Guest Artist, Keyboards |
| 9 | Don Grusin | Guest Artist, Keyboards |
| 10 | Anthony Jackson | Bass, Guest Artist, Guitar (Bass) |
| 11 | Michael Lang | Composer |
| 12 | Peter Lopez | Production Coordination |
| 13 | Harvey Mason, Sr. | Composer, Drums, Guest Artist |
| 14 | Greg Mathieson | Keyboards |
| 15 | Takashi Misu | Production Coordination |
| 16 | Don Murray | Engineer, Mixing |
| 17 | Lee Ritenour | Arranger, Composer, Guitar, Liner Notes, Primary Artist, Producer, Synthesizer, Vocals |
| 18 | Dan Serrano | Design |
| 19 | Akira Taguchi | Photography, Production Coordination |
| 20 | Wally Traugott | Disc Cutting |
| 21 | Ernie Watts | Guest Artist, Sax (Soprano), Saxophone, Synthesizer 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). |