Joe Armon-Jones - Starting Today (2018) [Official Digital Download]

2018 debut album, by prodigious keys player, composer and producer Joe Armon-Jones, is buoyant, celebratory and welcoming. With a background in jazz, he draws from influences in dub, hip-hop and soul. Different traditions are infused and commingled together. Soulful brass arrangements are colored with carefully-tuned atmospherics; individual flashes of brilliance are bound into the album's bigger picture. He's part of London's young, jazz-influenced music scene. Drawn from that same close-knit circle, the album features the likes of Moses Boyd, Nubya Garcia and Oscar Jerome. It's playing with those - along with Ezra Collective, which he co-founded, and touring with the likes of Ata Kak and Pharoahe Monch - which has honed his playing and grown his ideas. It's made for a record with an unmistakable depth. He draws on deep musical understanding, making music which is warm and has a feeling of joy. A document of his vision for bringing together his different influences, it's also a testament to hard-earned, head-turning musical virtuosity.



Tracklist:
1. Starting Today (feat. Asheber) 09:03
2. Almost Went Too Far 06:24
3. Mollison Dub 10:15
4. London's Face (feat. Oscar Jerome) 09:48
5. Ragify (feat. Big Sharer) 09:48
6. Outro (Fornow) 01:23

Personnel:
Armon-Jones: Wurlitzer (tracks 1-5), piano (track 6), vocals (track 2); Nubya Garcia: tenor saxophone (tracks 1, 3-5); James Mollison: tenor saxophone (tracks 3-5); Dylan Jones: trumpet (tracks 1, 3-5); Oscar Jerome: guitar (tracks 2-6), vocals (track 4); David Mrakpor: bass (tracks 2, 3, 5, 6); Mutale Chashi: bass (tracks 1, 4); Moses Boyd: drums; Kwake Bass: drums (tracks 1, 4); Maxwell Owin: effects (tracks 4, 6); Asheber: vocals (track 1); Ego Ella May: vocals (tracks 2, 5, 6); Big Sharer: vocals (tracks 5, 6).