I Shouldn't Be Telling You This

by Jeff Goldblum, Jeff Goldblum & the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra

Overview

A year after issuing his debut album, The Capitol Studios Sessions, Jeff Goldblum returns to the piano and his band the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra with 2019's I Shouldn't Be Telling You This. The acclaimed actor brings a level of street cred to his musical endeavors that many celebrity-turned-musicians lack. A longtime jazz pianist, Goldblum actually started out playing gigs years before he embarked on his Hollywood career and has continued to moonlight as a pianist, regularly playing shows around Los Angeles and New York. While he displays a knack for straight-ahead jazz sophistication, it doesn't hurt that he surrounds himself with a bevy of top-notch pros, including Hammond B-3 specialist Joe Bagg who carries a lion's share of the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra's sound throughout the album. Also contributing are bassist Alex Frank, guitarist John Stone, drummer Kenny Elliott, and saxophonists James King and Scott Gilman. Together, they play a brightly attenuated brand of '60s-influenced jazz that brings to mind the groovy hard bop of Horace Silver crossed with the urbane soulfulness of Ramsey Lewis. As on The Capitol Studios Sessions, here Goldblum also features a handful of guest performers, including indie singer/songwriter Sharon Van Etten, who acquits herself nicely on a dusky version of "Let's Face the Music and Dance." Similarly, Fiona Apple evokes Shirley Bassey's feline swagger on "Don't Worry 'Bout Me." One of Goldblum's more interesting choices on the album is to create unexpected mash-ups, as with his wryly swinging combination of Lee Morgan's "The Sidewinder" and Sonny Bono's "The Beat Goes On" featuring singer Inara George. Also surprisingly effective is his arrangement of Wes Montgomery's "Four on Six" weaved together with Marianne Faithfull's "Broken English" and helmed with Weimar cabaret swagger by singer Anna Calvi. Somewhat less effective is Miley Cyrus' rendition of Ray Henderson and Lew Brown's standard "The Thrill Is Gone" paired with John Lewis' "Django," which while proving Cyrus has more vocal chops than she's often given credit for, trades the song's yearning subtlety for a Broadway-level theatricality that feels forced. Nonetheless, Goldblum's skill at showcasing other performers is clearly a part of his charm, and here it extends beyond pop artists as he brings on San Diego trumpeter Gilbert Castellanos for several tasty solos, spotlights L.A. jazz chanteuse Gina Saputo on an impressive vocalese version of "If I Knew Then," and communes with Grammy-winning vocalist Gregory Porter over a warm reading of "Make Someone Happy." While Goldblum's smiling charisma is the main selling point to I Shouldn't Be Telling You This, he often takes a backseat, even waiting until the very last song to spotlight his own lyrical vocal skills on the intimately rendered "Little Man, You've Had a Busy Day." It's an admirable choice given the high level of talent displayed by his guests and the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra. That said, Goldblum sounds good, and his fans probably wouldn't mind hearing more of him and less of his friends. ~ Matt Collar

Product Details

Release Date:	11/01/2019
Label:	Decca
UPC:	0602508060526

Tracks

1. Let's Face the Music and Dance
2. The Sidewinder/The Beat Goes On
3. Driftin'
4. The Thrill Is Gone/Django
5. The Kicker
6. Don't Worry 'Bout Me
7. The Cat
8. Four on Six/Broken English
9. If I Knew Then
10. Make Someone Happy
11. Little Man You've Had a Busy Day

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Jeff Goldblum & the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra   Primary Artist
Jeff Goldblum   Primary Artist,Piano
Anna Calvi   Primary Artist,Featured Artist,Guitar (Electric)
Inara George   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Gina Saputo   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Miley Cyrus   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Sharon Van Etten   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Gregory Porter   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Fiona Apple   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Kenny Elliott   Drums
Alex Frank   Bass
John Storie   Guitar
James King   Alto,Soloist,Tenor (Vocal),Sax (Baritone)
John Mastro   Musical Direction
MSO Men's Chorus   Vocals (Background)
Joe Bagg   Organ
Gilbert Castellanos   Trumpet
Scott Gilman   Soloist,Sax (Tenor)

Technical Credits

Al Hoffman   Composer
Bryan Cook   Mixing,Engineer,Producer
Herbie Hancock   Composer
Andrew Wyatt   Vocal Engineer
Joe Mavety   Composer
Philip Terence Stannard   Composer
David Stephen York   Composer
Kenny Elliott   Group Member
Paul Norris   Vocal Engineer
Tim Fox   Creative Director
Stephen David York   Composer
Alex Frank   Arranger,Group Member
Dale Becker   Mastering
John Storie   Arranger,Group Member
Ryan Lytle   Assistant Engineer
Lee Morgan   Composer
Hector Vega   Mastering Assistant
Brian Rajaratnam   Assistant Engineer
John Mastro   Coordination
Sela Sheloni   Photography
Troy Miller   Vocal Engineer
Sonny Bono   Composer
Betty Comden   Composer
Irving Berlin   Composer
Joe Bagg   Arranger,Group Member
Barry Reynolds   Composer
Joe Henderson   Composer
Rube Bloom   Composer
Eddy Howard   Composer
Lew Brown   Composer
Jeff Goldblum   Group Member
Wes Montgomery   Composer
Dick Jurgens   Composer
Jule Styne   Composer
Maurice Sigler   Composer
Rick Ward   Composer
Ray Henderson   Composer
John Lewis   Composer
Adolph Green   Composer
Dave Way   Vocal Engineer
Marianne Faithfull   Composer
Terry Stannard   Composer
Ted Koehler   Composer
Lalo Schifrin   Composer
Mabel Wayne   Composer
Gina Saputo   Arranger