[EP] Blessed – Melvin Smith
Gospel Jazz Music is a burgeoning genre consisting of the improvisational and African American influences of the sacred, Gospel music, and secular, Jazz. Melvin Smith is a master at both. A consummate saxman, his talent has placed him on stages with artists such as Kirk Whalum, Jonathan Butler, Oleta Adams, Norman Connors, Fred Hammond, BeBe Winans, Israel Houghton and Byron Cage. A skilled musician, who was a performer at the famed Montreux Jazz Festival â at the age of thirteen, Melvin is a graduate of Berklee College of Music and the City of New York â Queens College. Now he is taking his education and experience and pouring it into his first Gospel Jazz project, Blessed. Available now on digital media outlets everywhere, Blessed is a collage of Gospel music favorites.
A five-song EP, Blessed, features the Fred Hammond hit, âWeâre Blessed.â A long-time fan of the urban praise and worship icon, Smithâs remake is a unique take on the church classic. Pulling from the musical influences of Washington, DC, he infused Go-Go into the song, providing the listener with an African-inspired praise experience. âWeâre Blessedâ holds a special place in the musicianâs heart. âThis song has reverberated in my soul from the first time I heard it in 1998,â Melvin said. ââWeâre Blessedâ is a song I live by, and itâs a song that inspires me to this day.â
Smith features other well-known Gospel tunes on the record as well, including Lamar Campbellâs âMore Than Anythingâ, Mary Maryâs âWalkingâ and Vashawn Mitchellâs âNobody Greaterâ. Flowing from one familiar cut to another, Smithâs saxophone tells a story with each song on the newly released EP. His tone, interpretation and execution make listening to Blessed a memorable musical experience. As a matter of fact, Edward Blanco of EJazz News calls Smith âone of the finest reed man in the jazz business today.â Bill Milkowski of Jazz Times calls Melvin âa proficient saxophonist with a knack for writing catchy tunes.â John Barron at AllAboutJazz.com says, âMelvin Smith is equally adept in both genres [Gospel and Jazz]. Smith is able to successfully blur the lines between the tradition of the spiritual and the inventiveness of jazz; demonstrating the obvious connections missing from the sounds of so many contemporary improvisers.â
Itâs no surprise that Melvin is known as a virtuoso on the saxophone. He started playing as a youth. An expert with wind instruments, the Jacksonville, FL, native took to the instrument after learning the clarinet and the flute. He was encouraged to play by his parents, who were also Gospel music lovers. Growing up in church, he used his musical gifts there, singing, playing instruments and performing in church plays. Later, he completed his education at Berklee and CUNY and spent 20 years in New York, honing his craft, performing regularly and recording several jazz projects. A former member of the musical staff of the renowned Christian Cultural Center in New York, Melvin Smith currently teaches music to middle and high school students in Jacksonville.
