Chicago Soul Jazz Collective to celebrate release of new album with two shows at Winter's Jazz Club

Chicago Soul Jazz Collective to celebrate release of new album with two shows at Winter's Jazz Club

On its new album, "No Wind & No Rain," Chicago Soul Jazz Collective continues to break new musical ground. 

To celebrate the release of the album, Chicago Soul Jazz Collective will perform at 7:30 p.m. April 18 and 5:30 p.m. April 19 at Winter's Jazz Club, 465 N. McClurg Court, Chicago. For tickets, go to wintersjazzclub.com.

I had the chance to talk to Chicago Soul Jazz Collective band leader and saxophone player John Fournier about the new album.

CHICAGO SOUL JAZZ COLLECTIVE – NO WIND & NO RAIN

“No Wind & No Rain” is the fourth album by this seven-piece ensemble from the Windy City. The group has been delivering an energetic mix of jazz, blues, soul, funk and gospel for years. Perhaps the ever-present wind in Chicago is the reason the city produces so many outstanding horn sections. The opening ‘The Laughing Heart’ immediately hits the mark: a catchy groove and a wonderful saxophone solo by founder, composer and bandleader John Fournier, before guitarist Larry Bown Jr. gets his moment. From the very first minute, the Chicago Soul Jazz Collective storms through the speakers. Dee Alexander’s powerful, raw vocals are impossible to ignore.

CSJC returns with No Wind & No Rain

CSJC returns with No Wind & No Rain

Chicago Soul Jazz Collective returns with No Wind & No Rain, Chicago Soul Jazz Collective returns with No Wind & No Rain, their fourth album and most fully realized artistic statement to date. A seven-piece ensemble led by saxophonist John Fournier and featuring the acclaimed vocalist Dee Alexander, CSJC has spent years seeking that elusive sweet spot where Chicago soul and jazz converge with blues, gospel, and folk to create a sound that echoes throughout the history and the present moment of the Windy City. Under the expert production of guitarist Larry Brown Jr., they’ve crafted a record that is as sophisticated as it is gritty, as gripping as it is grooving—just like the city they call home.

Chicago Soul Jazz Collective Wants To Lift Up Your Spirits

Soul jazz: The title alone suggests a magical but somehow elusive genre. Is it heard in Herbie Hancock’s funky piano on songs like “Watermelon Man,” the ragged guitar and free-form vocals of James “Blood” Ulmer or the saxophone grooves on Cannonball Adderley’s “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy”? Although it can’t be strictly defined in words, when you hear the Chicago Soul Jazz Collective’s blend of New Orleans horns, funky rhythms and gospel-tinged, shout-it-out vocals, your ears give you the answer.

On the Way to Be Free: Chicago Soul Jazz Collective Meets Dee Alexander

…Fournier’s gifts as a lyricist should be emphasized. This disc brings back memories of the days when we’d purchase a soul or pop album to be inspired by the accessible yet challenging musicianship we knew we’d find, then open the gatefold and read along, equally inspired by the poetry of the lyrics. Yes, “Nothing Good Ever Goes Away”—and some good things deserve to be brought back to stay.

Chicago Soul Jazz Collective, On the Way To Be Free (JMarq)

The Chicago Soul Jazz Collective, co-led by saxophonist John Fournier and trumpeter Marques Carroll, team up with vocalist Dee Alexander on their third album, On the Way To Be Free. Released on April 13, they record nine hopeful and uplifting compositions imbued with the fight for freedom and a search for solace, eight of which were composed by Fournier.

The Jazz All Stars - Vol. 2 Chicago Soul Jazz Collective - On the Way to Be Free (JMarq)

“Though assembled from veterans of Chicago’s thriving jazz and soul scenes, the Chicago Soul Jazz Collective has a much more focused mission than the Jazz All Stars. The band’s third album On the Way to Be Free states it most plainly in the title track. “I want my freedom!” asserts guest vocalist and AACM trouper Dee Alexander, and the rest of the record makes sure she gets it…”