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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZSMITH, Lonnie Liston Jr(b 28 December 1940, Richmond VA) Piano, composer; also tuba, trumpet. His father sang with gospel group the Harmonizing Four for decades; two brothers were singers. He played with Betty Carter '63-4, Roland Kirk '65 (albums on Atlantic and Verve), Art Blakey '66-7, Joe Williams '67-8, Pharoah Sanders, Leon Thomas, Gato Barbieri '69-73 (on Flying Dutchman and Impulse; he wrote Sanders's album Jewels Of Thought), with Miles Davis '73-4. His own first albums began with acoustic music and tended towards funk, often with brother Donald singing in a pleasant, high voice, almost falsetto; later settled into a jazz-oriented mood or dance music, always with chops. Some sets on Bob Thiele's labels were later on Signature CDs; they began with Rejuvenation, Cosmic Funk, Expansions, Visions Of A New World, Reflections Of A New Dream '73-6 on Flying Dutchman (the last later on a Bluebird CD as Golden Dreams); Live! '77 was on RCA, as well as another different Visions and Funk Reaction. Loveland '78 was on Columbia. Silhouettes and Rejuvenation '84-5 were on Thiele's Doctor Jazz label, the latter described by one critic as relaxed and introspective; Make Someone Happy and Dreams Of Tomorrow appeared on Signature; Love Goddess (from '89-90, combining trio tracks with Lonnie Plaxico and Doug Nally on bass and drums with combo tracks, guests such as Grover Washington) and Magic Lady were on Startrak. Live! included a track called 'Watercolors', an album of that name reissued on Novus CD. He should not be confused with Hammond B-3 organist and sometime vocalist Lonnie Smith, which see. |