Royal Garden Blues | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1986 | |||
Studio | RCA Studio A (New York City, New York)
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Genre | Jazz | |||
Label | Columbia[1] | |||
Producer | Delfeayo Marsalis | |||
Branford Marsalis chronology | ||||
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Royal Garden Blues is an album by the American saxophonist Branford Marsalis, released in 1986.[2][3] Marsalis promoted it with a North American tour.[4]
The album was nominated for a Grammy Award for "Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist".[5] It peaked at No. 2 on Billboard's Traditional Jazz Albums chart.[6]
Royal Garden Blues was produced by Delfeayo Marsalis.[7] Ron Carter and Herbie Hancock contributed to the album.[8]
The title track is a cover of the jazz standard.[9] Its video was directed by Spike Lee.[10] "Strike Up the Band" is a version of the song composed by George Gershwin.[11] "Emanon" was written by Wynton Marsalis.[12] "Shadows was written by Larry Willis.[13] Ellis Marsalis Sr. played piano on "Swingin' at the Haven", which he also wrote.[14] "The Wrath of Tain", a tribute to drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts, was written by Branford.[15]
Robert Christgau labeled Marsalis the "more fun" member of the family, but determined that "his artistic personality is still unformed."[17] The Los Angeles Times noted that "despite having been bitten by the rhythm-and-blues bug and stung by Sting, the saxophonist-leader leaves no doubt that jazz is his home turf."[12] The Sun-Sentinel stated that the music "is played very conservatively, without any hint of modern musical forms, instrumentation or rhythms."[22]
The Chicago Tribune concluded: "Formerly inclined to summon up as much heat as possible, Marsalis seems to have realized that he is not a passionate, ecstatic player but a coolheaded, technically agile craftsman."[23] The New York Times wrote that the album is "steeped in the songful, harmonically complex style of the mid-1960's Miles Davis quintet and of the Blue Note Records stable."[24] The Sunday Times considered the title track "a serious, unflinching improvisation."[25]
AllMusic deemed Royal Garden Blues "one of Branford's more playful albums."[16]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Swingin' at the Haven" | Ellis Marsalis Jr. | 6:11 |
2. | "Dienda" | Kenny Kirkland | 7:13 |
3. | "Strike Up the Band" | George Gershwin | 4:19 |
4. | "Emanon" | Wynton Marsalis | 7:23 |
5. | "Royal Garden Blues" | Clarence Williams, Spencer Williams | 7:04 |
6. | "Shadows" | Larry Willis | 9:29 |
7. | "The Wrath of Tain" | Branford Marsalis | 8:57 |