Kenny Wright Experience
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Kenny Wright Experience

Baltimore, Maryland, United States | INDIE

Baltimore, Maryland, United States | INDIE
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"Kenny Wright"

Kenny Wright is a six-string electric bass guitarist apparently from around the Baltimore area. His eclectic heroes are Mingus, Monk, Miles, Motown, Hendrix, and Sly Stone, as listed on the front cover. Mixed among his writings are a Temptations medley featuring trum­peter Shepherd and a respectable cover of Herbie Hancock’s touch­stone “Dolphin Dance.” Also present is a vocal track spotlighting Debbie Poole singing corresponding lines with the bass on Wright’s “Satisfy My Love” which, along with the thumb-popping tribute to the late Waymon Tisdale, could easily fit snugly into the playlist of some Smooth Jazz station. As the photograph on the front and back covers both attest, this program is probably best appreciated in a live context _Larry Hollis Cadense Magazine
George Coleman ©David Spitzer - Cadence Magazine


"Kenny Wright"

KENNY WRIGHT
My Roots
Knee Deep Records

Here’s a man on a mission with an aim to change the current musical blandness sometimes associated with Smooth Jazz into a new vibrant and melodic format. MY ROOTS, the new album by composer/bassist Kenny Wright does just that. From very humble beginnings with influences as diverse as Mingus, Monk, Miles, Motown, Hendrix and Sly you can expect something special and special is exactly what you get. Nine great tracks of bass-driven, articulated fusion funk with skillful musicianship and a real freshness and originality about them. Favorites include the mellow “Dolphin Dance,“ the sexy, slow burning “Lula,“ the smooth “Satisfy My Love” and Kenny’s gracious tribute to the late Waymon Tisdale, “Tisdale.“ MY ROOTS is a mature and definitive piece of work from this 30+ year music-career veteran, nationally recognized bandleader, innovator and jazz orchestrator who has performed with legends such as Stevie Wonder, The Whispers, The Temptations and jazz violinist Michael White. Experience Kenny Wright! ~STEWART COXHEAD Smoothjazz.com

- Smoothjazz.com


"Star Portrait"

Kenny Wright Experience : My Roots

Bass player Kenny Wright has been for a long time, an in-demand musician in the music business. His solo albums are Fresh Focus (1993), Comin' at Ya (1995), Bottle of Wine (1998), Herbie, Miles and me (2006) and My Roots (2010).
He has performed with such legends as Stevie Wonder, The Whispers, Michael White, The Temptation's Review, Supremes, Bobbi Humphrey and others. Kenny and his backup band 'Experience have been busy performing withs such acts as Gladys Knight, Kim Waters, Walter Beasley, Vickie Winans, Roy Ayers , Bela Fleck, Buckwheat Zydeco and others.
He recently explained in an interview his motifs, his biography and influences quite openly. Characteristic for this independent artist are these sentences: "If You have money, you can buy a producer, hire excellent sidemen and pay for promotion. I have never had any of those luxuries. But I am confident that I have created some things musically that will outlive me, and for me that's what I set out to do."
Here you have the rare opportunity to meet a truthful musician, who stands by his restricted opportunities and still releases his music against all odds. Kenny recorded his new album with fellow musicians like Charlie Etzel (keyboards), Wendall Shepherd (trumpet), Maynard Parker (guitar), Eric Kennedy (drums), Debbie Poole (vocals), Robert Rucks (strings), Jacob Yoffe (sax), and Kevin Porter (guitar).. Kenny plays on this album six string bass, does most of the guitar work, percussion and drum programming.
Spirit Never Dies just jumps right to the end of the line that Kenny Wright's idols, (Mingus, Monk, Miles, Motown, Hendrix and Sly) left behind. Welcome back to the funk. Herbie Hancock's Dolphin Dance is a jazz classic, standing for quick modal changes. This version features Kenny Wright and Jacob Yoffe walking on the path of the great master.
D Poo features Wendall Shepherd on trumpet. The best notes come on last. The mellow and moderate attitude continues on 'Lula,. melodious but with a jazzy twist. You will certainly remember Just My Imagination of the Temptations (1971). Kenny Wright says Hello to this song.
Hans-Bernd Hulsmann Smooth & Soul www.smoothjazz.de
- SmoothJazz.de


Discography

1.My Roots (2010)
2.Herbie, Miles and me (2006)
3.Bottle of Wine (1998
4.Comin' at Ya (1995)
5.Fresh Focus (1993)

Photos

Bio

The smooth sounds of The Kenny Wright Experience have long been among the mainstay "must hear" jazz sounds in the mid-Atlantic region, drawing ordinary fans and aficionados alike for over 30 years. A nationally recognized bandleader, innovator, and jazz orchestrator whose R &B musical roots date back to the late '60s, composer Kenny Wright also just happens to be one of the most gifted bass players in the world. His unique ability to play 'chord melody' on bass allows him to expand the range of not only his instrument but also the harmony it's self as low chords that did not exist before him are now heard blending with keyboard and guitar chords.His syle is best described as 'flamenco bassplaying.

Kenny Wright has performed with such legends as Stevie Wonder, The Whispers, jazz violinist Michael White, The Temptation Review and Supremes. Flutist Bobbi Humphrey, and others.