Chris Botti - Night Sessions Live (DVD)

...solo artist on the tour Chris Botti rented a house in the Hollywood Hills to write and record his "Night Sessions" album, 4 weeks to write and 6 weeks to record and mix.

With this short period of time Chris said, " he felt energized by the challenge" he asked his friend Kipper (who won a Grammy for his production on Sting's album Brand New Day) to co-write and produce, they stated to write and at the end of the ...
...On December the 3rd 2001 Chris Botti took to the stage of the "EL REY" theatre in L.A. to celebrate the release of the "Night Sessions" album, his first release for the Columbia label (the musical home of jazz legend Miles Davis), this DVD is a record of their performance, a report in the L.A. times said of the show "trumpeter Chris Botti's performance, was an impressive step forward for a performer who seems to possess all ... more

During a 10-week lay- off while on tour with Sting for his "Brand new Day" album, the featured solo artist on the tour Chris Botti rented a house in the Hollywood Hills to write and record his "Night Sessions" album, 4 weeks to write and 6 weeks to record and mix.

With this short period of time Chris said, " he felt energized by the challenge" he asked his friend Kipper (who won a Grammy for his production on Sting's album Brand New Day) to co-write and produce, they stated to write and at the end of the writing sessions only recorded the material as the lights of the L.A. basin began to glow and as the sun set and only stopped when the sun came back up the next morning.

On December the 3rd 2001 Chris Botti took to the stage of the "EL REY" theatre in L.A. to celebrate the release of the "Night Sessions" album, his first release for the Columbia label (the musical home of jazz legend Miles Davis), this DVD is a record of their performance, a report in the L.A. times said of the show "trumpeter Chris Botti's performance, was an impressive step forward for a performer who seems to possess all the qualities of a breakout musical star, visually charismatic, musically engaging, appealing personable".

His band for the show was as follows: - Shane Fontayne (guitar) Harvey Jones (keyboards) Jon Ossman (bass) Karen Teperberg (drums) Everett Bradley (percussion) and sitting in on a couple of tracks on keyboards Jason Rebello and guest vocalists Sting on a couple of songs and Shawn Colvin adding her vocal magic on 2 tracks.

The interactive main menu for this disc is as follows: -

1. Play Concert

2. Set List (like scene select in a film)

3. Audio mix (choice of PCM stereo or Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound)

4. Bonus features are as follows a photo gallery of 10 poses taken by fashion photographer Fabrizo Ferri (a mix of colour and black and white shots)

Interviews with Chris Botti (2) Sting (talks about Chris) and Shawn Colvin (who also gives her thoughts on Mr Botti)

A video profile (this is where Chris talks about the album and his approach to music and how he used Kipper because he liked the sound he got on Sting's album "Brand new Day")

Also included is a 5.1 mix of the track "through an open window" to give you a taste of the sound that appears on the SACD version of the "Night Sessions" album.
To finish the bonus features is a biography (which is a short paragraph about the "Night Sessions" album and it's aims).

The Show

The concert starts with an announcer telling you, "from L.A. join us for a special evening of music, it's Chris Botti and friends featuring Sting and Shawn Colvin.
The first thing to notice is that the stage has been made to look like a European café by the use of large silk covered cushions placed in front of the back line speakers (these are the small speakers placed at the front of the stage so that the performers can hear them selves play) so as too disguise them from the audience near the front of the stage who are all sitting at small tables with little lamps in the middle just like the a restaurant setting giving the performance an intimate feel.

The music starts with the opening instrumental track on the album called "Lisa", the sensual sound of Botti's trumpet plays against Latin flavoured percussion and the 4/4 playing on the drums which is given more power and presence by the funky bass this is inter-cut with the sound of the wah-wah guitar, with the gentle sound of the keyboards that add ambience and texture.

For a change of pace the atmospheric opening is replaced by a more up-tempo slab of jazz funk called "Streets Ahead" this is where Botti's trumpet underlines the groove and then takes the lead, this gives way to a wall of bass and percussion that leads into the sound of the keyboards, this followed by the rhythm section punching out the main theme as this happens Botti's starts to copy the sound of the bass track, which he plays off the drums.

The tempo changes again with the romantic sounding "Miami Overnight", this has at it's heart is a retro sounding jazz guitar which sounds all smooth and sexy, Botti takes the lead playing the main theme which blends in with the guitar, bass, drums and the softy played percussion, this gives the sensual sound of the trumpet a soundscape to play against.
The guitar sound is all echoes that bounce off the sound of the bass and percussive section with Botti still playing the main theme, the sound of the keyboards add another dimension giving the piece it's overall feeling of romance.

While there is a natural gap in the performance Chris Botti takes the opportunity to make an announcement, "Please welcome onto the stage Sting the sound of big cheers go up, Sting makes his way to the stage, Botti starts to play the intro to the jazz standard (made famous by Frank Sintra) "In the Wee Small hours". There is a studio version of this track on Chris Botti album from 1999 called "Slowing down the World" catalogue number 547 301-2 on the Universal label.
I personally prefer this version to the Sintra interpretation as I find his to have a very overwhelming sounding arrangement by Nelson Riddle that is all horn sections and the big band style that I am not a fan of, Botti's arrangement allows Sting the space to breathe and to sing the song and not have to shout over a loud sounding band that sounds like it's trying to impress with it's sheer volume.
With Botti's band the song is given a fresh twist with it's stripped back style that gives both Sting's singing and Botti's trumpet playing ample room to do no more than is required to communicate to the audience the loneliness and longing that the song is about which makes it for me more memorable and have a greater impact.

After Chris thanks Sting for his superb performance with a shake of his hand and a big hug, Sting leaves the stage.
Botti makes his way to the microphone to announce that the next track is a Sting composition called "All would Envy" and here to sing it tonight is the great Shawn Colvin, cheers form the crowd Shawn also sings this track on the "Night Sessions" album on the Columbia label catalogue number 504498 2.

The Brazilian influenced song begins with the sound of wind chimes and Hissss on the hi-hats and Shawn delivers the opening line "Old enough to be her Dad, but the young men where just mad, they nursed their grievances, she was flattered by his charms, wouldn't do her any harm, they'd all have their chances" the song appears to me to about a rich man who sees everything and everybody as a possession and just wants the young woman in the song just to impress his friends.
He keeps her in a house on a hill, with a warm and smooth croon that works perfectly with the effortlessly played trumpet of Botti that gives the croon style of Colvin a perfect foil, the sinister tale of a woman as a man possession and then just ignored once he had her is conveyed by the melancholic theme played on the trumpet and enforced by the keyboards, this all tied up with a pretty arrangement to make the subject matter more palatable.
A tale to make you watch out where your intimate romantic encounters led too.
For me this duet between Colvin and Botti is one of the many highlights of this live performance.

To continue the tragic romantic atmosphere the track "Alone in the City" from Botti's 1997 album "Midnight without You" on the Verve forecast label catalogue number 537 132-2, begins this laid back instrumental was written after Botti' girlfriend dumped him, this track is all textures and ambience where Botti shows his skill with his instrument, his trumpet leads the sound of the track, which gives his assembled players a chance to all show their abilities and the sheer joy they have in playing together, as the piece ends Botti calls out the drummer Karen Teperberg name as the featured soloist.

For a change in pace another instrumental from the same album, "Regrooveable" starts with a rock-sounding guitar intro, which is played against a funky rhythm section of Teperberg and Ossman, Botti plays in-between the guitar and bass and keyboards where the previous track was all tragic and sad this piece is all full of the joys of life and showcases Botti's ability to capture and change a mood in a few moments of time another thing to watch out for during this part of the show is the duel between the 5 string bass and guitar which ends with a superb bass solo and the crescendo of the track is the trumpet which stops dead and as the crowd are still clapping the keyboard plays the first few chords of the Blue Nile track "Easter parade" from their debut album "A walk across the Rooftops" from 1984 on the Linn label through Virgin catalogue number LKHCD1, where the Blue Nile version is a vocal track Botti has taken away the lyrics and just used the music to create a soundscape that reminds me of the themes used by Botti on his hard to find soundtrack for the film "Caught" on the Verve forecast label catalogue number 533 095-2 (yes I have a copy) with just the sound of trumpet and piano Botti plays a incredible version of the track that ends the Night Sessions CD the prefect end to the album.

With the end of the track "Easter parade" Chris Botti take the chance to introduce a change in keyboard player "Please welcome on to the stage Jason Rebello" and with that another instrumental track from the album "Slowing down the World" starts, "Why Not" which is another slice of jazz funk with a hint of rock which is served up with great gusto from the band, with the rock sounding guitar played against the jazzy sounding keyboards that cascade along and provide a wall of sound that percussion and drums play against all coming together in a free form that might not be to everyone's taste, but it does again show is a group of players that are very comfortable playing together and every so often Botti's trumpet bring the band back from their musical tangent to the original theme of the track and as quietly as the track started it ends with a great blast on the trumpet.

To provide a rest bite from the "free form" jazz Botti introduces Shawn Colvin to the stage again this time playing one of her own songs, from her 1996 album "A few small Repairs" on the Columbia label catalogue number 4843277 2.
(Chris Botti appears on the album on the track "You and the Mona Lisa")

Shawn Colvin takes to the centre of the stage this time she is sporting a guitar to play along to her song "The facts about Jimmy" this track shows to me the skill level of this assembled band they go from the jazz funk with a twist of rock of the previous tracks to the folky singer song writer style of Ms Colvin with a great deal of ease, they under play their instruments so as not too drown the delicate strumming guitar sound of Shawn and to underline the chorus Botti plays his silky sounding trumpet which makes this version different from the album track, for me another highlight of the live show.

Now comes a part of the show for the ladies, to bring home the delicate touch Chris can play his trumpet with he leaves the stage and finds a pretty woman to serenade with his instrument, as the rest of the band play the intro to a track from his "Midnight without You" album called "The steps of Positano" Botti takes position beside his chosen target he looks into her eyes as he plays, the guitar has a retro sound to it the drums play gentle fills with the bass adding warm to the fills, all the while the keyboards add atmosphere the most intimate of tracks which Botti pulls off with ease as the lady he was playing too gives him a huge embrace after he finishes.

Botti makes his way back to the stage and says, "so once again Jason Rebello" "and please welcome one more time Sting".

The sound of high hats and trumpet plays the opening section of the Sting track from his debut solo album "Dream of the blue Turtles" from 1985 "Moon over Bourbon street", Sting sings with a great deal of fun in his voice it's during the second verse he starts to sing in Louie Armstrong style and then back to his own style during the middle 8 section of this track Botti holds a note that seems to go off into infinity, back to Sting who sings the rest of the track superbly he starts to gently hold the note on the word street at the end of the song as the band follow the vocal the song comes to close with Sting howling like a wolf to end the performance.

To finish this evening of musical delights Botti and his band play a track from the "Night Sessions" album called "Blue Horizon" this instrumental piece gives all the members of the band a chance at a solo and an excuse to flex their musical chops, Botti spends most of his time in front of the drum kit bobbing his head up and down in a approval of the drummer's skill and style, she proceeds to play an excellent solo which is followed by Botti playing the main theme of the track which is followed by a solo by the percussionist on African talking drum, at one point he drops the drum but he still keeps on going, Botti announces "Everett Bradley on the percussion" then the guitar makes it's presence felt as he does so Botti begins a musical duel with the guitar as this goes on the credits start to roll the music comes to a close and Botti name checks all the band and his guests and bids you goodnight a powerful performance that lasts about 77 minutes.

If you include the bonus features the approximate total running time of this DVD is 85 minutes

This excellent DVD from 2002 is unfortunately only available from America so the disc is a region 1, which means you will need a multi-region player to watch it and make sure your TV can play NTSC and not just PAL, I got my copy from the Amazon market place for £6.30 including postage and packing from Florida a bit of a result I think as I am a fan of all parties involved.
You may find if you see this some of the material a little challenging and may need some work on your part, all I can say is listen with an open mind and the rewards are great, music not just to listen too but think about as well.
 

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