Stefon Harris (born 1973) is an American jazz vibraphonist. In 1999, the Los Angeles Times called him "one of the most important young artists in jazz" who is "at the forefront of new New York music" and "much in demand as a star sideman" Harris has played with several jazz luminaries including Kenny Barron, Steve Turre, Kurt Elling, and Charlie Hunter, in addition to releasing several of his own critically well-regarded albums. Harris is a resident of Newark, New Jersey. A 1991 graduate of Albany High School, Harris earned his bachelor's (in 1995) and master's (in 1997) from Manhattan School of Music in New York City. He credited his teachers in High School with recognizing his "passion for music early on and offered lessons and the chance to bring home instruments to practice." He has stated that "Music education and performance in ensembles, like the Empire State Youth Orchestra, exposed me to me to other cultures and genres." He also was the captain of the high school wrestling team. Of Manhattan School of Music he has said: "The School gave me the opportunity to explore the diversity of both classical and jazz music and find the direction I wanted to go artistically."The GRAMMY-nominated musician has been hailed as “one of the most important young artists in jazz” (Los Angeles Times), and is widely recognized by both peers and critics alike for his innovative compositions, blazing new paths on the vibraphone and marimba. On Urbanus, Stefon Harris and Blackout display a deeper group rapport as well as a more expansive sonic palette as Marc Cary complements the acoustic piano with Fender Rhodes and alto saxophonist Casey Benjamin lends his captivating vocoder work to the proceeding. Harris’ brilliance at broadening textures and colors comes to play with his sensational woodwind and string arrangements on a few of the compositions as well.
“One of the biggest indicators of our growth as a band is the level of contribution from all the members of the ensemble,” Harris enthuses. “The music not only incorporates all of our writing but everyone’s cultural backgrounds as well.”
To illustrate this point, he points to the disc’s opening track, “Gone,” which bounces to the pulsating polyrhythm of go-go, a sound indicative to Washington, D.C.’s urban landscape. Both bassist Ben Williams and Cary hail from Washington, D.C. It doesn’t hurt also that Harris is a big go-go fan. “How can you not like go-go? It’s so funky,” Harris says. Blackout is rounded out by longtime Harris drummer, Terreon Gully.
The delicate “For You” provides the perfect example of how Blackout balances the worlds of the acoustic with the electric co-written by Benjamin and Sameer Gupta. Before Harris recorded it, “For You” was a favorite on Benjamin’s Myspace page and has since undergone several incarnations. Harris first heard the tune when the band was rehearsing in San Francisco. Cary had just recorded the song for another date and shared it with the band. “We checked it out then decided to play the tune,” Harris recalls. “That evening we went over it and actually played “For You” in the concert. It was a perfect vehicle for the chemistry in our band. Casey later added a bridge and we continued to expand on the composition.”
The album also includes a fantastic makeover of Stevie Wonder’s early-’70s song “They Won’t Go (When I Go)” from Wonder’s 1974 LP, Fullfillingness’ First Finale. Urbanus closes with the spellbinding ballad “Langston’s Lullaby,” which is dedicated to Harris’ newborn infant, Langston.
Recorded just a few days before the historic presidential inauguration of Barack Obama, Urbanus sparkles with optimism, ingenuity and emotional immediacy. “How could it not?” Harris says when asked if the anticipating for the inauguration had an impact on the sessions. “Being in the studio, knowing that we were getting ready for the inauguration of the first African-American president – how could that not change my life? I was extremely inspired and that created a great feeling of audacity and some fantastic energy.”
Tracklist:
01. Gone 06:08
02. Christina 06:39
03. Tanktified 07:01
04. Shake It For Me 03:01
05. Minor March 03:35
06. They Won't Go (When I Go) 07:38
07. The Afterthought 05:00
08. For You 06:06
09. Blues For Denial 02:19
10. Langston's Lullaby 07:56
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