Mister Magic

For other uses, see Mister Magic (disambiguation).
Mister Magic
Studio album by
Grover Washington Jr.
ReleasedFebruary 7, 1975
RecordedNovember 1974
StudioVan Gelder, Englewood Cliffs
GenreJazz funk[1]
Length32:51
LabelKudu Records
ProducerCreed Taylor
Grover Washington Jr. chronology
Soul Box
(1973) 		Mister Magic
(1975) 		Feels So Good
(1975)
Alternative cover
Motown Jazz reissue

Mister Magic is the fourth album by jazz saxophonist Grover Washington Jr., released in February 1975. The album topped both the soul and jazz albums chart and peaked at number ten on the pop chart.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Christgau's Record GuideB−[3]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings[5]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide[4]

Reviewing for The Village Voice in 1975, Robert Christgau found the album "functional" and satisfactory for a commercially successful jazz album: "Washington plays a warm tenor in the pop jazz tradition of Gene Ammons, but the rhythm section percolates danceably, and the result is sexy background music only superficially marred by Bob James's strings."[6]

In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Scott Yanow said that it is "one of Grover Washington Jr.'s best-loved recordings and considered a classic of r&bish jazz." He found Washington to be in "particularly creative form" and called James' arrangements "colorful if somewhat commercial".[2]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Earth Tones"Bob James12:20
2."Passion Flower"Billy Strayhorn, Milt Raskin5:30
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Mister Magic"Ralph MacDonald8:58
2."Black Frost"Bob James, Grover Washington Jr.6:03
Total length:32:51

Personnel

Brass and Reed Section

String Section

Production

  • Creed Taylor – producer
  • Rudy Van Gelder – engineer
  • Bob Ciano – album design
  • Alen MacWeeney – photography
  • Doug Ramsey – liner notes

Charts

Chart (1975) Peak
position
Billboard Pop Albums[7] 10
Billboard Top Soul Albums[7] 1
Billboard Top Jazz Albums[7] 1

Singles

Year Single Chart positions[8]
US
Pop 		US
R&B
1975 "Mister Magic" 54 16

References

  1. ^ Maclaren, Trevor (July 13, 2004). "Grover Washington Jr.: Mister Magic". All About Jazz. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
  2. ^ a b Yanow, Scott. "Mister Magic – Grover Washington Jr". AllMusic. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
  3. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: W". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 22, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  4. ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 203. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
  5. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 1468. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
  6. ^ Christgau, Robert (June 16, 1975). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
  7. ^ a b c "Grover Washington Jr. US albums chart history". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
  8. ^ "Grover Washington Jr. US singles chart history". allmusic.com. Retrieved 2011-10-24.