''Live at Tonic'' is a three-disc album by bassist

Christian McBride Christian McBride (born May 31, 1972) is an American jazz bassist, composer and arranger. He has appeared on more than 300 recordings as a sideman, and is an eight-time Grammy Award winner. McBride has performed and recorded with a number of j ...

, recorded at Tonic in New York on January 10–11, 2005. The album was released on May 2, 2006 by

Ropeadope Records Ropeadope Records is an American record label known for recordings in a variety of genres including jazz, hip hop, gospel, and electronic music. The label, now led by Louis Marks, was founded in 1999 by Andy HurwitzAndy Hurwitz"Ropeadope carves i ...

. Tonic was a music venue located at 107 Norfolk Street, New York City, which opened in the spring of 1998 and closed in April 2007.

Reception

John Fordham John Fordham (died 1425) was Bishop of Durham and Bishop of Ely. Fordham was keeper of the privy seal of Prince Richard from 1376 to 1377 and Dean of Wells before being named Lord Privy Seal in June 1377. He held that office until December 1381 ...

, writing for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' commented: "McBride's roots lie in R&B, funk and Philly soul as much as bebop. This triple live album is an impressive commitment to the primacy of groove-based music, freedom, jazz and dance." Will Layman of ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

'' commented "That the Christian McBride Band is already a get-you-to-your-feet live act is without question. But are they a thoughtful jazz group that is moving the music forward? Maybe that's not what this two-night stand was about. But, after sticking with it and even enjoying it for its three-disc length, you probably have the right to expect more the next time out. We'll see." ''

The Buffalo News ''The Buffalo News'' is the daily newspaper of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area, located in downtown Buffalo, New York. It recently sold its headquarters to Uniland Development Corp. It was for decades the only paper fully owned by W ...

'' review by Jeff Simon noted, "There's no use anyone pretending to weep and wail over McBride's abandonment of Charles Mingus Way for an aerie on the path begun by the late Jaco Pastorius. McBride is a large, lusty jazz spirit and definitely his own infectious kind of bandleader." Scott Yanow of

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

stated: "Live at Tonic is a three-CD set that contains highlights from his opening sets during two nights at Tonic on the first disc, and his complete second sets on discs two and three. It is clear, after hearing the first couple of numbers, that McBride loves funk and stretching out. The first disc has his regular quartet with tenor-saxophonist Ron Blake, keyboardist Geoff Keezer, and drummer Terreon Gully digging into eight numbers, including Weather Report's "Boogie Woogie Waltz" and some straight-ahead jamming. The second disc has the group augmented by guest pianist Jason Moran, violinist Jenny Scheinman, and guitarist Charlie Hunter, while the third has guests on trumpet, guitar, boom box, and turntables. Unfortunately, the songs (particularly on the second and third CDs) are not of very high quality and the funk seems to go on forever, particularly on the 29-minute "See Jam, Hear Jam, Feel Jam" ... There are some good moments along the way and the musicians are great, but some editing and common sense should have gone into this production."

Track listing

Disc 1

Disc 2

Disc 3

Personnel

;Christian McBride Band *

(acoustic and electric bass) *

Geoffrey Keezer Geoffrey Keezer (born November 20, 1970) is an American jazz pianist. Keezer was playing in jazz clubs as a teenager, playing piano for Art Blakey at age 18 and touring with Joshua Redman, Benny Golson and Ray Brown in his 20s. He has toured w ...

(keyboards) *

Terreon Gully Terreon Deautri Gully (born December 28, 1972) is an American drummer from East St. Louis, Illinois. Career Gully has performed with various musicians and genres, including the Christian McBride Band, saxophonist Ron Blake, vibraphonist Stefo ...

(drums) *

Ron Blake Ron Blake (born September 7, 1965) is an American saxophonist, band leader, composer, and music educator. Born in the Virgin Islands, he attended Northwestern University, and now lives in New York City. Blake began studying guitar at 8 and tur ...

(tenor, soprano, baritone saxophones, flute) ;Additional musicians *

Charlie Hunter Charlie Hunter (born May 23, 1967) is an American guitarist, composer, and bandleader. First coming to prominence in the early 1990s, Hunter plays custom-made seven- and eight-string guitars on which he simultaneously plays bass lines, chords, a ...

(guitar) *

Jason Moran Jason Moran may refer to: * Jason Moran (criminal) (1967–2003), Australian mobster * Jason Moran (musician) Jason Moran (born January 21, 1975) is an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator involved in multimedia art and theatrical inst ...

(piano) *

Jenny Scheinman Jenny Scheinman is a jazz violinist. She has produced several critically acclaimed solo albums, including ''12 Songs'', named one of the Top Ten Albums of 2005 by ''The New York Times''. She has played with Linda Perry, Norah Jones, Nels Cline ...

(violin) *

DJ Logic DJ Logic (born 1972 as Jason Kibler) is an American turntablist active primarily in nu-jazz/ acid jazz and with jam bands. Kibler was born and raised in The Bronx, NY. Because of an early interest in hip hop, Kibler started using the turnta ...

(turntables) * Scratch (beat box) *Eric Krasno (guitars) *

Rashawn Ross Rashawn Ross (born January 16, 1979) is an American trumpeter and arranger from St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. His contributions in the Dave Matthews Band as a touring member have gained him visibility. Ross is an accomplished session musician. R ...

(trumpets)

Chart performance

References

External links

Christian McBride Discography
{{Authority control 2006 live albums Christian McBride albums Ropeadope Records live albums