AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Fourplay

Artist:Fourplay f/El DeBarge
Song:After The Dance
Album:The Best Of Fourplay





I'm sure El DeBarge fans are looking for his cover of the Marvin Gaye classic After The Dance and can't seem to find it on one of his CDs. That's because he didn't record it as part of DeBarge or as a solo artist. He recorded it as a guest vocalist on the 1991 debut album by the all star jazz group Fourplay. It was tacked on to one of his CDs later but it's out of print. The leader of Fourplay is jazz pianist Bob James. James is best known for composing the theme for the TV series Taxi. But he's been around since the early 70s and is considered to be one of the architects of Smooth Jazz. And his music is frequently sampled by hip hop guys. The formation of Fourplay came out of the sessions for James' 1990 album Grand Piano Canyon. Guitarist Lee Ritenour, bassist Nathan East and drummer Harvey Mason Sr. all played on that album. Ritenour has been a best selling jazz artist since the mid-70s but he also plays a lot of sessions. East and Mason are session musicians who have played with a who's who of the music business. Mason recorded one album as a leader in 1975 and East has never recorded as a leader. So these guys already knew each other very well. James approached his record company Warner Bros. about recording Fourplay. The 1991 debut album topped the jazz album chart. After The Dance was released as a single and reached #2 on the R & B Singles chart. It helped that El DeBarge was still a big star at the time. Marvin Gaye and Leon Ware wrote After The Dance and Gaye recorded it on the 1976 album I Want You. DeBarge has said he always wanted to cover a Marvin Gaye song. After The Dance was added to the 1992 El DeBarge CD In The Storm. It is out of print but you can get After The Storm on this Fourplay comp which is available as a budget CD. It is also on the El DeBarge Ultimate Collection CD but the Fourplay CD is cheaper. Ritenour left Fourplay in 1997 and was replaced by Larry Carlton. Carlton was replaced by Chuck Loeb in 2010. Fourplay recorded six albums for Warner Bros. and have also recorded for Bluebird and Heads Up. It looks like they have signed with Concord and should have a new CD out this year. So if you were looking for this lost El DeBarge song, here is the video for After The Dance by Fourplay featuring El DeBarge.