JC Stylles Social Hub

There are a handful of certainties in life and they are death, taxes and the groove of JC Stylles!   Brent Black / www.criticaljazz.com   JC Stylles is a Big Apple fixture and I mean that in the best possible light. The exponential growth of Stylles since his last release in 2011 should have critics heads snapping in his direction in short order. While the previous release embraced the swing hard or go home sound of the more traditional organ trio, Blakey Grease features an expanded lineup showcasing the incredible depth and range of one of the finest guitarists that New York has to offer.   An artist is only creative as he or she feels however the dare to different presentation of Stylles shows an incredibly harmonic flip side to the foot to the floor swing which could have easily branded Stylles as a one trick pony. What has remained consistent are the clean linear solos, a fluid and methodical zen like attack where no notes are wasted. JC Stylles gets in and gets out without every getting in his own way. The front line is rounded out with alto saxophonist David Lee Jones and tenor saxophonist Troy Roberts. Jones and Roberts offer up a unique dichotomy of sound and counterpoint while Stylles remains firmly grounded in the middle. The rhythm section is completed with the in the pocket finesses of Lawrence Leathers on drums and the strength of Kyle Koehler on Hammond B3. The odd metered minor key blues infusion of the Lee Morgan tune "Yama" takes a ballad to a more soulful place with rising star organ wiz Kyle Kohler. The reharm of the Hank Mobley number "Hipsippy Blues" is a delightfully syncopated romp that is the classic Stylles swing laid down in the more traditional working band type sound. The Claire Fischer tune "Pensativa" an elegant tune with a strong lyrical sense of purpose. Negatives? Nothing to grind on here although it is worth mentioning half the tunes are Wayne Shorter compositions and they are banged out with panache and style!   If you are not hip to JC Stylles, get hip. If you already are then Blakey Grease should make your musical back leg shake...I love it when that happens!” - Brent Black

Critical Jazz

About Us     GBK Productions Presented the Best and Latest in Gifting Luxury Products and Brands During the 60th Annual Grammy Awards Gwendolyn QuinnFebruary 12, 2018 at 10:33 am February 13, 2018 Gwendolyn Quinn with Amara Skype, owner of Amara Skype Designs, and granddaughter of Whoopi Goldberg at the GBK Productions Pre-Grammy Celebrity Gifting Suite. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Gwendolyn Quinn *One of the most enjoyable experiences during Grammy Week is the celebrity gift suites. GBK Productions, one of the leading lifestyle and special event companies, presented its annual pre-Grammy gifting lounge at Philippe Chow in New York City on January 27. Hosted on both levels of the elegant Upper East Side restaurant, Philippe Chow is best known for its Beijing styled cuisine and its signature Peking Duck. While talent and tastemakers mingled and previewed the latest in technology, lifestyle, fashion, and travel, world-renowned Chef Philippe Chow and his culinary team served up an array of tasty delights including chicken and beef satay, chicken and steamed vegetable dumplings, and many other chef favorites. Founded by Gavin Keilly in 2000, GBK Productions is widely known for its marketing integration of products, brands, and services and offers its clients a platform to promote to a wide range of high-profile personalities and influencers. On the eve of music’s biggest night, guests were gifted with numerous items including many that have become my favorites. JC Stylles Opulears Headphones: Signature Series (Walnut). Photo Credit: Courtesy of JC Stylles Opulears Headphones Gwendolyn Quinn sporting JC Stylles Opulears Headphones with (c) Asa Lovechild, and (r) JC Stylles, founder of JC Stylles Opulears Headphones. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Gwendolyn Quinn Jazz artist JC Stylles was on hand to present his trademarked JC Stylles Opulears headphones that are made for the quintessential music connoisseur. The guitarist says his brand is designed for supreme comfort for discerning listeners. The luxury headphones are designed in Cherrywood and Walnut, with a value ranging from $349 to $399.   GBK Productions presented a memorable, quality luxury experience!   Gwendolyn Quinn Gwendolyn Quinn is an award-winning media strategist and consultant with a career spanning more than 25 years. She is a contributor to NBCNews.com/NBCBLK.com, BlackEnterprise.com, HuffPost, and Medium.com, among others. Quinn is also a contributor to Souls Revealed and Handle Your Entertainment Business. RepublishReprint UR Review: The ‘Black Panther’ Film Really is ALL THAT and More! February 14, 2018 Goapele Concert Review: She had Audience Stsha Green is Walking in her Purpose Despite Losing Her Limbs February 13, 2018 o Focus Retriever” - Gwendolyn Quinn

Electronic Urban Report EURWEB

On the US Radio Jazz Charts top 50 for 12 consecutive weeks!!!   And then virtually out of nowhere, came a monster of a jazz guitar player, 4 stars! -          Jeff Simon/Buffalo News   What can you say about this guitar man other than “fugedaboudit!?  - Chris Spector/Midwest Records It seems like everything that Stylles’ delivers is capable of evoking a state of euphoria! -          Dan Bilawsky/AllAboutJazz   “Stylles alters the landscape with a highly charged state of musical pleasure” -Ed Blanco AAJ    Stylles comes out of the gate blazing with the mighty facility akin to a George Benson or Pat Martino…this group means serious jazz business…head boppin’, finger-snappin’ swing, grounded in the blues, grits-and-gravy grooves. The result is joy and happiness. -Greg Thomas/NY DailyNews Stylles has a gift for redoing vocal material with instrumental panache…put’s the “S” in smouldering! - Doug Simpson/Audio Audition   Guitarist J.C. Stylles is helping to keep alive a venerable jazz tradition… the organ trio… there is lots of exhilaration here… Stylles is a fine ballad player, but he plainly lives for uptempo burners,… There is not a single weak track on this very impressive album! Rick Anderson-All Music Review   JC Stylles is a shining star and while the stock market may continue on shaky ground, Stylles musical stock seems to be an arrow pointing straight up! 5 stars! Swing hard or go home! One of the years very best! Brent Black-Critical Jazz   Full press transcripts are available below!  ”

— Press Highlights!

JC Stylles Exhilaration & Other States Motema 2011 JC Stylles music comes from a gutteral place, deep from within. This is not music taught, its something felt and the translation of "style" touches the soul and sets your hair on fire all at the same time. This is good. One of the most impressive debut releases of the year finds guitarist JC Stylles crushing a fascinating mix of tunes that range from Stevie Wonder and R. Kelly to Cole Porter and Billie Holiday. Organ trios and slightly larger organ ensembles have been turning out some stellar releases this year but Stylles firmly establishes himself as the leader with Pat Bianchi on organ and Lawrence Leathers on drums. The trio swings hard but with just the right amount of soul to keep things interesting. Chemistry bleeds through your speakers as this trio plays and blends as one harmonious musical train of thought. The release opens with a blistering "Knucklebean" showcasing Stylles and organ phenom Pat Bianchi while drummer Leathers rides the groove comfortably in the pocket for all its worth. A more straight ahead version of Stevie Wonder's "I Cant Help It" which gained popularity from the Michael Jackson "Off The Wall" album displays Stylles ability to shift musical gears effortlessly. Bianchi is the perfect partner throughout the recording while Leathers swings like a beast. Dialing the intesity back just a touch, Stylles creates a blues infused soulful expression on the Billy Eckstine classic, "I Want To Talk About You." The trio kicks back into high gear with a scorching version of Cole Porter's "Love For Sale." Make no mistake, this is as old school as it gets and it has never sounded better. It is however the wonderful if not slightly eclectic mix of tunes that fit these three musicians perfectly and allow the release to take flight. Comparisons are made to the guitar styles of George Benson, Pat Martino and perhaps Tal Farlow and while fair and valid make no mistake, Stylles is his own man and swings his own way with an energy that is infectious. Technically proficient and artistically gifted, JC Stylles is a shining star and while the stock market may continue on shaky ground, Stylles musical stock seems to be an arrow pointing straight up! 5 stars! Swing hard or go home! One of the years very best! ” - Brent Black

Critical Jazz

Review by Rick Anderson Guitarist J.C. Stylles is helping to keep alive a venerable jazz tradition, one that for a while seemed in danger of fading away: the organ trio. Although he leads this group and his solos are the focal point, it's the sound of Pat Bianchi's Hammond B-3 organ that really defines the character of the ensemble. Since jazz organists provide their own basslines (using the organ pedals), the only other member of the trio is the exquisitely tasteful drummer Laurence Leathers; while everyone swings mightily, it's Leathers who quietly creates the rhythmic structure against which their swing pushes, and who makes possible both Stylles' and Bianchi's exhilarating flights of musical fancy. And as the title suggests, there is lots of exhilaration here: Stylles is a fine ballad player, but he plainly lives for uptempo burners, and those are the highlights on this album: a scorching version of "Love for Sale" (which notably features a frantic-sounding but actually tightly controlled organ solo), a delightful arrangement of Stevie Wonder's "I Can't Help It," and an equally fun version of "Knucklebean." Stylles demonstrates his facility with unusual arrangements by adapting R. Kelly's "It Seems Like You're Ready" as a ballad, and by taking the chord changes from John Coltrane's whole-tone-scale-based "Giant Steps" and writing a new melody in samba style over them, calling the result "Samba Steps." There is not a single weak track on this very impressive album.” - Rick Anderson

All Music Review

Philosopher Susanne Langer argued that art expresses human feeling within form. If that's true, then exhilaration is truly one of the sentiments rendered by the JC Stylles organ trio on this date.Stylles comes out of the gate blazing with the mighty facility akin to a George Benson or Pat Martino on "Knucklebean," accompanied by the furry glove fit of his bandmates, Hammond B3 organist Pat Bianchi, and drummer Lawrence Leathers. As Leathers drives the ensemble, Stylles and Bianchi engage in the fun leap-frog game of trading choruses. It's clear that this group means serious jazz business, swingin' the Stevie Wonder tune "I Can't Help It" with controlled abandon. Some argue that pop songs of today are more difficult to render in a jazz style; Stylles' trio offers several exceptions to such a rule. For the R. Kelly song "It Seems Like You're Ready," Stylles sings the melody on guitar, interspersing Wes Montgomery-style octaves with ease. Several other ballads — "Don't Explain" and "I Want to Talk About You" — explore the intimate, late-night side of the trio's simpatico. But unabashed, no-holds-barred swing is the main thrust, as they hit the sweet spot of the jazz tradition on Cole Porter's "Love for Sale," Wayne Shorter's "Pinnochio" and a Stylles original, "Samba Steps," based on the classic "Giant Steps" by John Coltrane. Stylles gives us plenty of organ trio jazz, with head bobbin', finger-snapping swing, grounded in the blues, and grits-and-gravy grooves. The result is joy and happiness.” - Greg Thomas

NY Daily News

                  JC Stylles – Exhilaration and Other States – Motema MTM-68, 48:17 ***1/2:(JC Stylles – guitar; Pat Bianchi – Hammond B-3 organ; Lawrence Leathers – drums)A little bit modern and a little bit retro, that’s the sound of guitarist JC Stylles. The Australian-born and current NYC-based musician has garnered a reputation in the land Down Under and among Big Apple soul-jazz enthusiasts who love the classic guitar/B-3/drums trio format. While Stylles is a new alias, older fans know Stylles by his given name, Jason Campbell. But due to a prolific amount of media and Internet information related to an NFL player with the same name, JC Stylles became Campbell’s nom de jazz.The aptly-titled Exhilaration and Other States marks Stylles’ debut (although as Campbell he released two previous albums) as well as his first for the Motema label. The nine tracks – one original and eight well-chosen covers – are partial to muscle and groove but don’t skimp on slower-burning material. On the CD’s artwork, Stylles looks like someone steeped in early rock and roll or retro-rockabilly. Truthfully he has studied his jazz heroes closely, which can be heard on the opener, a fast-paced run-through of Bobby Hutcherson’s oft-sampled swinger, “Knucklebean,” from Hutcherson’s 1977 LP of the same name, issued in 2007 as part of a Mosaic Select boxed set. This blues-tinted piece is an excellent trio intro, showcasing Stylles’ George Benson-inflected playing, Hammond B-3 organist Pat Bianchi’s soulful keyboard stabs and drummer Lawrence Leathers’ in-the-pocket groove. This probably goes down well on stage.A contemporary number definitely developed for live performance is Stevie Wonder’s “I Can’t Help It,” a Michael Jackson hit. The inspiration came when Stylles and his trio were doing a gig the day Jackson’s death was reported and a club-goer requested the band musically pay respect. A week later “I Can’t Help It” was added to the set list. Stylles keeps the arrangement upbeat and straightforward and trades solos with Bianchi, pushing the melody aside at times in favor of strutting improvisation. Another modern R&B piece which gets reinterpreted in a jazz mode is R. Kelly’s moody romantic ballad “It Seems Like You’re Ready,” where Stylles gently shimmers on guitar and really illustrates his Benson influence and Leathers manipulates his sticks and cymbals with a slow ticking pulse.Jazz fans, though, undoubtedly will lean toward cuts made famous by Billie Holiday, Wayne Shorter and John Coltrane. Holiday’s standard “Don’t Explain” – the longest track – exploits the trio’s restraint, fronted by Stylles’ voice-like chord phrases and Leathers’ softly-rendered brushes. Bianchi amps up the proceedings a tad when he solos. This version won’t replace those recorded by other artists but does prove Stylles has a gift for redoing vocal material with instrumental panache. Although numerous musicians have recorded Billy Eckstine’s classic “I Want to Talk About You,” Stylles is one of many listeners mesmerized by Coltrane’s take. Here, Stylles utilizes the full sustain of his custom Palen archtop guitar (the same shown on the cover art no doubt) to craft smoothly shifting notes which put the “S” in smoldering. On the flip side, the threesome turns Shorter’s “Pinocchio” (misspelled as “Pinnochio”) into an animated highlight. It does not appear anyone has ever switched this tribute to the Disney character into a vigorous and soulful organ/guitar/drums feature, so kudos to Stylles for bringing a fresh viewpoint to this boppish tune previously done by Miles Davis, Weather Report and others. Stylles ends with his own work, the energetic “Samba Steps,” based on the chordal progression of Coltrane’s “Giant Steps.” While not stellar, hopefully Stylles will attempt similar offerings in the future.   ” - Doug Simpson

Audio Audition

MOTEMA J.C. STYLES/Exhilaration and Other States: What can you say about this guitar man other than ‘fugedaboudit!'? He thinks this is an organ trio and he plays guitar. And he plays and leads in classic 60s organ trio fashion with loads of swing and style but no old man dust. Simply a classic burner, this is just one of those killer dates that more fun to listen to than read about. Killer stuff that stings like a king b (3, of course). If this classic sound is up your alley, there's nothing here to disappoint. Jump on it. 68 ” - Chris Spector

— Midwest Records