The Phat Pack

Gordon Goodwin | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 13, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Immergent
• ASIN: B000FIHJJ2
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,819 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #52 in Music > Jazz > Swing Jazz > Contemporary Big Band
  • #56 in Music > Jazz > Swing Jazz > Classic Big Band

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band, an 18-piece jazz ensemble, celebrates and personifies the best of the big band tradition with a very contemporary and original sound. Through the writing genius of Gordon Goodwin, SRO audiences have enjoyed one of the most craftsman-like hard swinging large jazz ensembles comprised of L.A.’s finest musicians. Gordon’s witty and insightful arrangements propel the listener on a journey through a myriad of styles: latin, blues, swing, classical, hard-hitting jazz, and even an homage to Looney Tunes (!).

Product Description

The latest disc from Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band, The Phat Pack showcases more of the hot licks that fans have come to know and love. In addition to the playful jazz of such tracks as "Whodunnit?" and "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes" , the Big Phat Band teams up with guest vocalist Dianne Reeves, fresh from winning a Grammy for her work on the soundtrack to the Oscar winning film "Good Night and Good Luck." In true "Rat Pack" fashion, Dianne tackles a sexy arrangement of the timeless Frank Sinatra classic "Too Close for Comfort" that is sure to become a classic in its own right. Her energy is as infectious as her vocal stylization, and if anything rings true for the Big Phat band, it’s consistent energy-timeless and classic. Gordon Goodwin comments about this vibe that ran through the creation and recording of the Phat Pack: "We in the Big Phat Band have similar aspirations as the original Rat Pack:! To bring to our audience a form of timeless, creative music that remains significant. We try to play this music with energy, passion and abandon, and with the same sense of fun that Frank, Sammy and Dean had. We just do it without the tuxedos and the martinis and the cigarettes and the gambling and the guys named Jilly and the showgirls….

…Showgirls. Hmm. Now there’s a thought".

CD:

• Complete album in stereo

BONUS DVD:

• Complete album in 5.1 surround sound
• New concert videos and recording session videos
• Big Phat Band Photo Gallery
• Big Phat Solo Transcriptions
• Bios of each member of the Big Phat Band
• The Big Phat Band Tivia Game featuring a special BONUS audio track
• Make your own mix of a Big Phat Band track
• Audio Commentary Gordon Goodwin discusses each track on The Phat Pack
• Bonus Big Phat Band interviews available with purchases via DVD Launcher
• Video Linear Notes
• Portable music files and bonus ROM content

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Phat Pack, August 7, 2006

By 

Sandy Shore (Monterey, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Phat Pack (Audio CD)

This album is so much fun that you shouldn't be able to buy it over-the-counter. It needs to be in a locked cabinet where not just anybody can get their hands on it. You should have to register as a qualified jazz and extreme big band music investor before you can add it to your library. Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band is a total hoot, and this disc, THE PHAT PACK, is outrageously awesome, from the ever-so-tasty version of "Too Close for Comfort" featuring Dianne Reeves to the sizzling version of the AWB hit "Play That Funky Music," featuring David Sanborn to Take 6's exciting new spin on Sinatra's anthem, "It Was a Very Good Year." I personally don't think music gets any more satisfying and exciting than a tight, powerful big band, and that's what Mr. Goodwin's got here, with 18 top-of-the-line L.A. players and his Grammy winning compositions and charts. This is not your father's big band music! It's today's contemporary big band, featuring a synthesis of the classic big band style with much more contemporary jazz, pop, and R&B material. And it works big time, with dynamics, energy, hipness, and a sense of humor, too. Goodwin does not "dumb" his music down, but instead endeavors to make it uplifting. He says, "When you go see the Big Phat Band, I want you to leave feeling better than when you came in." Hey, it works exactly the same way when you listen to THE PHAT PACK CD! ~SCOTT O'BRIEN

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Hottest Big Band on the Planet, June 26, 2006

By 

Jim Newsom (Norfolk, VA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Phat Pack (Audio CD)

This one came to me from out of the blue and it has blown me away. Grammy and Emmy winner Goodwin calls this a tribute to Frank, Sammy and Dean, but really it's a tour de force that transcends such a narrow description. Most of the thirteen tracks are originals, with guest stars stepping in on the cover tunes--David Sanborn's alto sax taking the lead on "Play That Funky Music," Dianne Reeves reprising "Too Close For Comfort" in a gorgeous arrangement, the unmistakable vocal blend of Take 6 on a swingin' ride through Sinatra's "It Was a Very Good Year." Surprisingly, though, it's those instrumental originals that will really knock you out. There's cartoon humor in "Hunting Wabbits 2" and "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes," Latin fun on "La Almeia Pequiena," and `60s TV nostalgia on the title track and "Whodunnit?" And one cookin' band throughout. Who says big bands are dead? --Jim Newsom

Originally published in Port Folio Weekly, 6/20/06.
Copyright 2006 Port Folio Weekly. All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission.

14 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars More of the same..., June 30, 2006

By 

D. Hallberg "Geek of all Trades" (Goshen, IN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Phat Pack (Audio CD)

I'm not gonna knock the playing on this cd, it's phenominal as usual. I'm not gonna knock the mix, it's good. I'm sure if this is the first Big Phat Band cd you've heard that you think it's one of the most amazing cd's you've ever heard. This, however, is not the case for me. I've listened to "Swingin' for the Fences" and "XXL" up and down, and even played a lot of tracks from them (even Count Bubba's Revenge from this most recent album) and this cd just seems just like the last two albums. Thats not a bad thing considering that these guys are the next big thing in big band, but I was hoping for something new, and a cd that includes 2 sequels on it is not that.

I loved the Eddie Daniels track, "Under the Wire," possibly the best bop tune these guys have done, but the rest is the same as there other songs. In the case of the swing tunes, intro by a small ensemble of instruments, usually woodwinds but not necessarily, followed by the adding in of most of the rest of the ensemble, if there's a soli then it comes in after that, solo section, breakdown section, return of the theme, but with more energy, end. In the more funk songs it's the same but with a guitar lick that gets stuck in your head at the beginning (see "Jazz Police" from XXL for more info). I'm probably being too harsh, but I have high standards for these people and have mostly been listening to Kenton and Herman lately, so Gordo has to compete with them, but for me, it was good, probably as good as the others, but the unoriginality hurt it.