DAN SIEGEL PROJECT - Fables (CD)

Nearly 30 years into one of contemporary jazz’s most dynamic, groundbreaking careers, composer and keyboardist Dan Siegel takes a break from his regular commercial release schedule for a fond look back at and re-imagining of the prolific three-year recording period that preceded Northern Nights, his 1987 breakthrough album that redefined the instrumental landscape of the time.

Credited as a side endeavor to The Dan Siegel Project, Fables finds Siegel refashioning for the modern era 11 tracks culled from three of his most esoteric releases: Another Time, Another Place (1984), On The Edge (1985) and Short Stories (1986). Originally on vinyl, these three classics were released on CD by Sony for a few years in the early 90s but have long been out of print. His idea wasn’t simply to re-introduce some of his favorite songs to a new generation of listeners, but to take them to a deeper creative level using the all-digital technology we now take for granted.

The original versions, recorded in 24-track analog format, hold up melodically and rhythmically but use many of the now dated electronic sounds that were popular in that era. Using today’s software instead of yesterday’s hardware, the keyboardist creates vibrant, sonically full and richly textured recordings with the help of a handful of longtime musician friends who also happen to be some of today’s best known jazz greats: Michael Lington (saxophone), Tony Guerrero (trumpet), Allen Hinds (guitar), Abraham Laboriel (bass), Charlie Bisharat (violin) and Adam Glasser (harmonica).

Siegel, whose string of hit albums in the 2000s include his critically acclaimed releases Inside Out (2004) and Departure (2006) and the hit singles “In Your Eyes” and “Street Talk,” complements these new twists on classic songs with two new pieces — “Peace Of Mind” and “Behind The Shadow.”

In addition to chill electronica flavored tracks like “Dark Star”, the Americana soundscape of “A Day In The Country” and gently romantic gestures like the piano and guitar driven “Solitary,” Siegel harkens back to his 1995 world music/contemporary jazz masterpiece Hemispheres on the mystical, Eastern influenced “Concrete Jungle” (a brassy Latin-Indian hybrid), “Fugitives” (featuring the mantra vocals of Bulgarian born Nadia Freeman and the wistful flute of Pedro Eustache) and the dramatic orchestra-enhanced rock fusion tune “The Last Waltz.” Eustache also plays the duduk while Alex Galas contributes bouzouki. Siegel also works with two sitar players and oboe, piccolo and bass clarinetist John Riley.

“Adding these world music elements made Fables somewhat reminiscent of Hemispheres,” Siegel says, “but these tracks are a bit more edgy and cinematic. I thought it might be interesting to add more excitement and sonic variety to the mix. When I first conceived the project and began working on these tracks, I decided to embellish the music with organic elements that brought a fuller musical humanity to the songs. The most enjoyable part of telling these Fables again was bringing in all these world musicians to join the traditional instrumentation and trying to explain my arrangements to them. They all did an amazing job, and it’s really one of the most unique projects I’ve ever worked on.”