Anthology

Smooth Jazz producer, artist, sound engineer and double Grammy winner, PAUL BROWN pairs with saxophonist Jackiem Joyner for an unforgettable evening of contemporary jazz.

Before guitarist-composer Paul Brown released his debut album, “Up Front,” his highly successful career as a producer-engineer had Brown producing hits for the best of contemporary jazz artists including George Benson, Larry Carlton and Boney James. Along the way, he has been responsible for steering more than 50 songs to the #1 position on the charts. After universal critical acclaim and months on Billboard and R & R’s Contemporary Jazz charts, his debut, “Up Front” made Brown a star in his own right. Four releases have followed with Brown continuing to collaborate with some of the best musicians in the genre, including a duet album with French guitarist, Marc Antoine. His latest, “Love You Found Me,” has been on the charts since its release in 2010.

This past year, Brown performed his first European shows, including appearances with Antoine at Pizza Express in London and a set at the 2011 Smooth Jazz Festival Augsberg (Germany), which featured guest appearances from Jessy J, Gerald Albright and keyboardist Jonathan Fritzen. Stateside, Brown headlined numerous gigs with saxophonist Darren Rahn, a successful genre producer who has scored multiple hits for artists like Eric Darius, Dave Koz and the late Wayman Tisdale. “The Producers” tour found Brown and Rahn playing each other’s songs as well as hits they produced for other artists. The two will be performing more dates together in 2012.

JACKIEM JOYNER is ready for his Hollywood close-up. It’s already been a big year for the multidimensional sax player both professionally and personally. Dramatic events offstage have inspired his work in the spotlight while his passion for movies has influenced the songs, sounds and textures used in the creation of his third album, a self-titled disc that arrives as Joyner is poised to become a top-of-the-marquee smooth jazz star.

Jackiem Joyner arrives hot on the heels of Joyner’s 2008 sophomore release, Lil’ Man Soul, which spawned two #1 singles. Topping the smooth jazz radio charts for an incredible 12 weeks, “I’m Waiting For You” was the longest-running #1 single in 2009 and is up for Song of the Year at the inaugural American Smooth Jazz Awards. In 2010 the album’s “Take Me There” climbed to the summit position and setup camp. Babysoul, Joyner’s first album, debuted at #15 on the Billboard chart in 2007 led by the single “Stay With Me Tonight,” a duet with iconic smooth jazz guitarist Peter White. While both albums were warmly received at smooth jazz-Smooth Jazz News named Joyner the Debut Artist of the Year-they were essentially urban jazz collections.

Around the time Joyner launched his solo career, he became a featured musician in keyboardist Keiko Matsui’s touring band and continues to tour internationally with her, for whom he plays sax and flute.