Step on Step, Charles Stepney
Por um escritor misterioso
Last updated 21 setembro 2024
International Anthem is proud to present 'Step on Step', a double LP collection of home recordings marking the de-facto eponymous debut album by enigmatic producer, arranger, and composer Charles Stepney (1931-1976). The music that makes up Step on Step was created by Stepney alone, in the basement of his home on the Southside of Chicago, sometime in the late 1960s and early 1970s, before his untimely death in 1976.
A Chicago born and bred arranger, producer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, Stepney is known for his work with Earth, Wind & Fire, Deniece Williams, and Ramsey Lewis, and as a staff producer for Chess Records in the 1960s, where he was an essential creative force behind seminal recordings by Rotary Connection, Minnie Riperton, Marlena Shaw, Muddy Waters, Howlin Wolf, Terry Callier, The Dells, The Emotions, and many more. In the decades since his passing, the presence of his name in liner notes and on vinyl labels has become a seal of quality for record collectors, music historians, and aficionados, while his sound has been used by countless samplers in the hip-hop world including Kanye West, A Tribe Called Quest, The Fugees, MF Doom, and Madlib. But in comparison to the post-mortem renown of his sound, or the music he created and the artists he supported while he was alive, Stepney is a greatly underappreciated figure… a genius relegated to the shadows.
One of the signature elements of his “baroque soul” sound is the epic, expansive, orchestral expression of his horn and string arrangements (in many cases brought to life by members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra), as heard on Minnie Riperton’s “Les Fleurs,” or Marlena Shaw’s “California Soul,” or Terry Callier’s “What Color Is Love.” Hence making it even more special that his de-facto debut LP Step on Step, which sees its first wide release nearly five decades after his death, is a collection of stripped-down 4-track tape recordings featuring Stepney, alone, performing all instruments with minimal means. It is, as said by Chicago culture historian (and author of Step on Step liner notes) Ayana Contreras, “the uncut funk,” an unprecedented depiction of an imbued composer imagining and conceiving music (some of which would eventually become massive studio productions) in its primal state.
Step on Step features 23 tracks, most of which are original compositions by Stepney that were never again recorded by him or any other artist. It also features prototypical, seedling-style demos of Stepney compositions for Earth, Wind & Fire, including “That’s The Way of The World,” “Imagination,” and “On Your Face,” as well as the original version of “Black Gold,” which would eventually be recorded by Rotary Connection (as “I Am The Black Gold of The Sun,” with lyrics by Richard Rudolph). And in addition to the wordless croons of Stepney original and early single “Daddy’s Diddies,” Stepney’s actual voice is heard on a couple occasions across the album, testing microphones and inputs on his tape machine.
All of the otherwise unrecorded, previously unnamed original compositions contained on Step on Step were given their titles by Stepney’s daughters Eibur, Charlene, and Chanté Stepney, whose voices are also heard throughout the album, telling stories and sharing memories about their father. The Stepney Sisters, who produced this album over many years, have long been engaged in efforts to celebrate their father’s legacy and bring his work into brighter light. They’ve cherished the tape reels left behind by their father in the basement of their home, transferring the audio on multiple occasions, and originally compiling the recordings for an ultra-limited CD on their own DIY label (The Charles Stepney Masters) in the early 2010s. “We always talk about how we were trying to develop this and would go to different people and they would go ‘what is this raw stuff…’ It was just the first level of something that became something really great,” says Chanté. “To get this type of intimate look into an artist’s process is really unknown and unheard of… so I just really appreciate the opportunity to give this. I am very happy for my Dad that we’re able to share this with the world in this way, with this amount of respect.”
This new double LP collection on International Anthem presents “a genuine, beautiful, deeply emotional and personal effort by three women to reconnect with their father and validate their own memories of his passion and brilliance,” says label co-founder Scott McNiece. And it’s a long-overdue fulfillment of Stepney’s unsatiated plan to release a solo album – which he once vowed to his daughters that he would do, and that he would name it: “Step on Step.”
Step on Step, Charles Stepney
Charles Stepney
Charles Stepney
Summer of Stepney
A Sketchbook in Sound, Ted Reichman
Step On Step - Stepney, Charles (#789993992584) - Omega Music
Step on Step, Charles Stepney
Charles Stepney - Step on Step – Eligo Audio Culture
Step on Step, Charles Stepney
Charles Stepney on TIDAL
Episode 3 of 'Charles Stepney: Out of the Shadows' docu-series on Wax Poetics +++ new 'Step on Step' episode of International Anthem podcast OUT NOW — International Anthem
Breaks, Beats with Strings Attached – Music of the Unseen
Charles Stepney - Step On Step (Limited Color Vinyl Gatefold Edition)(2LP)
SHOWS – Charles Stepney「Step on Step」 リリース記念 スペシャルリスニング&トークイベント(22.9.10)
That's The Way Of The World
Recomendado para você
-
The Littlest Chess Champions - The New York Times21 setembro 2024
-
FlyOrDie Board Games21 setembro 2024
-
Ism, Junius Paul21 setembro 2024
-
Dice Wars: Co-op Tactics Board Game with 28 Jumbo Unit Dice by Brybelly — Kickstarter21 setembro 2024
-
ChessBase Fashion Collection 202321 setembro 2024
-
Top Gun: How fighter jet pilots withstand high G21 setembro 2024
-
Leadership Lessons from Chess: How Each Chess Piece Mirrors a Leadership Style21 setembro 2024
-
2022 Kansas Fishing Regulations Summary by Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks - Issuu21 setembro 2024
-
Home Ela Area Public Library21 setembro 2024
-
Every Game In My Delta Airplane Seat, Reviewed21 setembro 2024
você pode gostar
-
Auto refuel fueling tanker for jetpacks and such : r/CreateMod21 setembro 2024
-
Como fazer um Relógio de papel- Como ensinar as horas para crianças21 setembro 2024
-
Konoha Shinden (Versão em Mangá) 🇧🇷 – Leitor de Mangás & Novels // uma extensão da Boruto Explorer21 setembro 2024
-
Meet Maia Chess21 setembro 2024
-
Vestido Princesinha Sofia21 setembro 2024
-
DANNY DÁVALOS: IRT GAZE AIDAR DE XADREZ BLITZ21 setembro 2024
-
Good Grief (English Edition) eBook : Pastor, Brianna: : Livros21 setembro 2024
-
ChessBase 13 - Das Startpaket, DVD-ROM / Nejlevnější knihy21 setembro 2024
-
Programa Internacional de Certificação de Pesca e Aquicultura21 setembro 2024
-
Lords Of Dogtown' TV Series Based On Movie In Works At IMDb TV From Kat Candler, Shawn Ryan & Sony TV – Deadline21 setembro 2024