I remenber Kenny G from years ago and liked most of his stuff, then he wnt into this classical/covers thing, I've only heard Sax-a-Loco once and it reminded me of his Havana #, personally i prefer David Sanborn, Boney James and of course Jay Beckenstein more originality.

Garyg / UK
ps no relation to Kenny

I tend to agree that Kenny hasn't reached me the way the others have, probably in the order of Jay Beckenstein, then David Sanborn, and then Boney James, and then Kenny G. I'd have to throw Jeff Kashiwa in there before Kenny, maybe with Boney James given his Ripps work and some of his solo pieces. Plus his work with the Sax Pack is great stuff-- and I put Paul Taylor in there with Jeff and Boney -- Steppin' Out was a great CD from Paul.

For me, I dig his live recording shows much better than most of his studio recordings. It's what the band does live that supports him. I Can't be mad at him for his sense and opportunity of marketalbility.

Okay;

I'll be the first to say it - speaking as a professional DJ of 35+ years, Sax-a-Loco bears the mark of an instant click factor. I find the tune annoying and it will not make it to my collection nor to my broadcast. That being said, I am a fan of the G-man and my bride would have divorced me if I didn't get Songbird. I'm not bashing the G, I'm responding to the question. Just one humble old man's opinion. Pass the Geritol...

What do you mean by an "instant click factor"?

Billy G:

What do you mean by an "instant click factor"?

Sorry for the delay in responding. Trying to catch up after a few days.

Click factor?

It's that one thing, what ever it is, that turns a person off whether it's another person, an automobile, a tv show, or a recording. Something about Sax-a-loco just turns me off. Hence; click factor. It's not the artist, it's the song.

I guess the "sharp" thing is similar to some neo-soul vocalists who seem to sing slightly off the note on purpose and some female vocalists who seem to sound purposefully childlike (modern day Marilyn Monroes?). It annoys me but they get marketed and therefore people buy them.

The thing that I noticed most about Sax-o-loco was the total lack of dynamics. He's playing in a monotone all the way through. Probably purposefully because format driven music is supposed to be unnoticable.

Well said!

Mike

Hmmm...an old thread brought back to life. Well since I last responded I've been involved in several in depth conversations with Vail Johnson (bassist for Kenny G). He also provided my wife and I free tickets and backstage passes for the Hampton Jazz Festival here in Virginia. He actually loves R&B and was standing on the floor right next to fans watching the other artists perform! He was digging Kem big time. I have to say there are many misconceptions about Kenny G. He is extremely loyal to his 'fans' and his bandmates who have been with him over 22 years (except the drummer who is new). The show was amazing and he even gave away a brand new Kenny G signature sax (worth over $2k) to a raffle winner (sounds pretty generous to me). Even had the winner come up on stage and played the sax for her before handing it over! He and Vail left the stage and mingled among their 'fans' throughout the show. Folks actually touching his hair (females only). I went backstage after the show and met Vail and he took a pic with my wife and I. Basically, the live experience in no way reflects the recorded experience and I don't believe the man should be judged based on recordings only. Vail has shared quite a lot of info with me and he takes it to heart whenever Kenny G gets bashed. He actually called Pat Metheny and expressed his thoughts to him! I thought the whole purpose of being an artist is doing what they love to do? He's also an instrumental pop music artist and rightfully so, should not be lumped in the same category as many jazz artists mentioned. Same goes for Dave Koz and Boney James. Unfortunately, for those who don't care, a song like Songbird will make it into the Fake Book (if it's not there already) and will be considered a 'classic' beyond our lifetime.

Just my opinion.