Marcus

Marcus Miller | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 4, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Concord Records
• ASIN: B0012OTVN0
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #40,195 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Blast

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

Marcus is the Concord debut for this Grammy winning artist. Features guest vocalists Corinne Bailey Rae, Keb' Mo', Shihan the Poet, Taraji Henson [bonus track], & Lalah Hathaway. Marcus has scored over 20 movies including Boomerang and This Christmas. He was also responsible for writing the party song "Da Butt" for Spike Lee's film School Daze and has scored music for Chris Rock's hit TV show Everybody Hates Chris

Product Description

Marcus, the new album from critically-acclaimed and Grammy-winning artist Marcus Miller, features guest appearances by Corinne Bailey Rae, Lalah Hathaway, Keb' Mo' and more. The 13-track album finds Marcus serving up his own signature funk-jazz music and sees him cover some classics including Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground," Miles Davis' "Jean Pierre" and Tower of Power's "What is Hip?"

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Smooth As Butta!, April 9, 2008

By 

Charles L. Hubbert "of Urban-Reviews.com" (Milwaukee, WI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Marcus (Audio CD)

The electric bass guitar never sounded so good. Anybody that is a sucker for it should know the name Marcus Miller. With more than 30 years in the business and a portfolio that includes extensive work with people like Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis, and David Sanborn, Marcus Miller has also managed a formidable solo career that spans the last 20+ years as well. And his latest release, simply titled Marcus, is a welcome addition to his discography. The brazen yet groovy flow of the album opener "Blast!" will certainly get the party going if it's not already. "Funk Joint" is a carefully-timed offering that serves up a slightly bouncy rhythm to nod your head to. The prominence of Corinne Bailey Rae's singing coupled with David Sanborn's brilliance on the sax prove to be the right mix on the cover of Deniece Williams' "Free." He continues his journey to the past with a thumping rendition of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground." Bluesman Keb Mo' does his thing with "Milky Way," while the interlude "Pluck" runs like an actual track. Lalah Hathaway lends her vocals for the jazz cover of Robin Thicke's "Lost Without You," a great attempt at drawing in today's younger generation. The spoken word version of the song closes the album and features actress Taraji P. Henson. Speaking of spoken word, Marcus enlists Russell Simmons' Def Poetry's own Shihan the Poet for the track "Cause I Love You." Lalah Hathaway shows up again for the smoothed out melody "Ooh." He goes full instrumentation on the stirring ballad "When I Fall In Love," the melodic "Strum," and the subdued Miles Davis cover "Jean Pierre." He closes with his interpretation of Tower of Power's "What Is Hip?" featuring David Sanborn and the aforementioned spoken word version of "Lost Without You." If you're a newcomer to the musical offerings of this Grammy Award-winning artist, Marcus is a good starting point.

22 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Zzzzz...Marcus has officially put me to sleep., April 26, 2008

By 

20to20K (Maryland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Marcus (Audio CD)

Obviously I'm going to be in the minority here but it's my opinion and I'm gonna express it.

Marcus Miller is one of my favorite musicians of all-time. That perhaps explains why I'm so hard on him. My expectations of him is so high that when he puts out this unrelentless stream of cookie-cutter funk jams CD's I just wince in discomfort.

Hard to believe that this guy was the architect behind the best works of Sanborn, Luther, Cheryl Lynn, Joe Sample and the last decent music made by Aretha and Miles.

His first solo CD, The Sun Don't Lie was outstanding, the next two (Tales
and M-squared) were flawed, but good overall. His last two, Silver Rain and this snooze fest has him falling off the table completely. Even with his so-so CD's...his playing was always engaging. Now I'm even starting to find his bass playing boring and repetitive.

Track 4 is nice and the take on "What is Hip" is excellent (however that's more because of Sanborns playing than Marcus') but overall this CD is completely forgettable. Same stuff can be heard on his previous disks. In fact I have to listen really hard to tell the difference.

Sorry Marcus. You my homey from Queens and all...but I'm just not feelin' your music lately.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thriller Miller on the rebound..., April 3, 2008

By 

Richard T. Hall "catboyzee" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Marcus (Audio CD)

Marcus had to have known that 'Silver Rain' was a subpar record, 'cause he's come back strong with this self-titled disc. He seems to be using the same concept he used for M2. Let me be the first to say, this formula is working quite well thank you. Marcus has always had one of the more identifiable and unique voices among slap-style bassists, hence his popularity among bass players and artists like Luther Vandross and Miles Davis.

While Marcus has always been great bassist, to me this record sheds more light on his somewhat underrated abilities as a multi-instrumentalist and producer. With this record he goes deeper into a melodic neo-soul idiom while managing to keep his bass playing in the leading-but-disciplined role. Quite a feat to accomplish in this era of bland, play-it-safe smooth jazzers and over-the-top progressive power-noodlers. Marcus' bullwhip slapping propels this record without overpowering it.

I do like the fresh treatment he gives to cover tunes like Free, When I Fall in Love, What is Hip?, and especially the oft-covered Stevie Wonder classic Higher Ground(this tune has that old-school R&B shuffle that you can't help but bop your head to). I had to deduct a star though, because Marcus included a cover of 'Lost Without You'. My significant other loves Robin Thicke and I don't. Hater in the house...lol! And is it me, or does it seem that Marcus is poking a little fun at that slap-and-pluck speed demon Victor Wooten on 'Jean Pierre'?

Marcus' session musicians perform wonderfully also, especially newcomer harmonica player Gregoire Maret. Marcus obviously learned his lessons from Miles Davis on choosing sidemen well. And why it took Marcus so long to reunite with his old boss David Sanborn is beyond me, but I'm glad they finally did. Let's hope its not the last time. With this disc Marcus should at least merit a nomination from the Grammies, this record is that good.