By Paula Edelstein

For over a decade, Tribal Tech has been offering their fans the very best deal in jazz fusion. Their shows are a premium mindbend of guitars, basses, keyboards, drums and other percussive equipment in the hands of jazz fusion masters. From the moment Scott Henderson steps on stage and picks up his guitars and fires up the amps, or when Kirk Covington gets just the right sound from his drums, or when Scott Kinsey fingers his keyboards, and of course, when Gary Willis walks across the stage to root the rhythmic pace on his bass guitar, the man on the P.A. and other recording gear are in the THICK of it...in the pocket. On their Zebra Records debut, the group takes the components of jazz through brand new fusion territory and let’s it all hang together in a non-rehearsed, totally improvised recording. Tribal Tech signs, seals and delivers raw energy, fusion urgency and awesome originality unlike any jazz fusion group since Weather Report, Chick Corea’s Return To Forever or Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters ruled the ‘70s. In a word, they are the hottest jazz fusion group in the country - guaranteed.

Their Spring 1999 tour across Europe was met with enthusiasm by a generation of brand new jazzoids from Holland to Germany to Italy and “everything in between,” states Willis. “We had a lot of fun.” And it’s time US fans had some of that fun!! After 13 years of working together and eight critically acclaimed albums, Scott Henderson and Gary Willis, have proven they are visionary composers as well as world class players. Scott Henderson has been named the #1 Jazz Guitarist by both Guitar World and Guitar Player’s Annual Reader’s Polls. Bass Player magazine referred to Gary as “one of the most vital bass voices of the 90’s,” while Guitar Player’s Annual Reader’s Poll has listed Willis among the top three bassists in the Jazz Bass category. Rounding out the awesome foursome, is Kirk Covington on drums and the gifted Scott Kinsey on keyboards. In a set at La Ve’ Lee in Studio City, California, Tribal Tech made a special appearance to launch their new CD, THICK after their successful European tour. Their performances were a premium mindbend of jazz fusion that will have folks talking and writing about them for years to come.

Scott Henderson on guitar is the most daring and creative. Whether live or on the latest CD, he can roar through an intensive solo, showcasing a wide variety of jazz fusion improvisation with licks that rival the late great guitarist, Jimi Hendricks, or the great blues guitarist Buddy Guy. Yet throughout this intensity, he communicates a brilliant set to his buddies and his audience. “It’s maybe a lot more us as a group than us as individual composers,”states Scott. On the title track, “Thick” and on “Sheik of Encino,” Scott is dazzling, exploring each guitar solo with an extensive selection of rare and vintage licks. Basically, if you want it, he’s either got it, or can fuse it for you! “Thick,” the title track speaks a language all it’s own, and Scott’s guitar on the anthem to Phil Hartman, “You May Remember Me” will bring tears to your eyes. There’s no denying it, Scott Henderson is great and definitely in demand. He is the consummate professional, whether leading the group in the studio, touring the world or teaching at the internationally renown Musician’s Institute in Hollywood, CA. As the author of several books, two instructional videos and The Scott Henderson Guitar Books, this man is fueled by creative genius!

Gary Willis, on bass, stands out and is flawless. The dynamic bass rhythms that walk across his Zebra Records debut are artistically awesome. He studied composition and improvisation as part of the legendary jazz program at North Texas State University in Denton, Texas. After moving to Los Angeles, he became a course leader at Musician’s Institute in Hollywood and taught at the prestigious California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California. On THICK, Gary’s “independence day” arrived when instead of “basically writing in a little vacuum in our respective home studios, we jammed it all up in the studio...it was definitely time to do something new.” And new it is. Willis lays down the grooves and dictates the mood with rhythmically and harmonically challenging lines on “Jalapeno.” His playing is testament to the spontaneous composition and freedom of experiment that exists on THICK and it’s this definitive vibe the bassist gets through to his audience. Listen to the free form interaction of Gary’s bass with Kirk Covington’s drum currents on “Slick,”and you’ll understand what I’m talking about. Gary Willis “opened that jam blowing over a set of changes that only he knew,” explains Henderson. “We went back and learned the chords that he was playing and then fashioned the tune from it.” The bassman has a Ph.D. in groove!

The thunderous and awesome power of Kirk Covington on drums is enough to call the meteorologist for an update on weather conditions as in, “Should we evacuate?” His skillful drumming will have you running for cover from the torrential beats that pour from his drum solos in a styled honed from his musical roots in Midland, Texas. He began playing at age seven at the encouragement of his brother, Kyle, a guitarist on the Nashville scene and later met Gary Willis while in college. The solid musical compatibility that he displays with the bassist stems from their days together at the North Texas State University jazz program. As a member of Tribal Tech since 1991, Kirk Covington adds a dimension to the group that remains bold, adventurous, exciting and dynamic. His boundless energy charges the group with a force that has propelled him into the spotlight as the animated backbone of Tribal Tech shows worldwide. On “Party At Kinsey’s,” Kirk is quirky and humorous with percussive innovation. He later unleashes on “What Has He Had?” with such a vengeance that anyone sitting down will find the vibrations from his drums rolling right through your chair! Modern Drummer exclaimed and recorded Kirk’s dynamism after the crowd jumped to its feet at the 1995 Drum Festival in Montreal,Canada. Kirk Covington is potent!

Scott Kinsey’s brilliant synth designs embrace the freedom principle--a sonic man full of unique jams and inspired improvisations who is comfortable playing funk to straightahead jazz. On THICK his fusion work is classic improvisation...taking something and spontaneously developing it for an entirely new generation of jazzoids. Kinsey has played keyboards for the group since graduating in 1991 from Berklee College of Music in Boston. There he concentrated on jazz piano absorbing skills from Donald Brown, Ray Santisi, Hal Crook and Ed Tomassi. His melodies on the haunting drama, “You May Remember Me” really say a lot about the influence that the late Phil Hartman’s television character had on him. Scott brings an emotional mindbend to the tune, integrating his own true feelings. Keyboard Magazine described Kinsey’s work on THICK as “deeply grooving comping, vaguely familiar synth pads that suddenly become menacingly unrecognizable, deceptively simple solos that evolve into demonic two-handed jazz blowouts. With impeccable timing and lines at once logical and beautiful, Kinsey’s playing reveals his mastery of the discipline and art of jazz.” “All I want to do is improvise something that has some melodic content,” Kinsey declares. He does just that with remarkable melodic phrasing that’s fresh and in the pocket!

THICK, is jazz fusion excellence and should be one of Tribal Tech’s best-selling CDs. It is a great combination of the creative jazz fusion the group originated along with the perfect blend of commercial elements. The entire collection is awesome, daring and creative. After nearly 13 years of recording and performing, it is no surprise that Tribal Tech has created a tremendous following and are taking the jazz fusion scene by storm with their musical attitude. On THICK, the band delivers a premium mindbend of groovin’ jazz and high energy fusion that you won’t take out of your CD player anytime soon.

Their Fall tour of the United States is just a click away! Stay in touch with Tribal Tech Their websites are: Scott Henderson-http://home.sol.no/~afrimans Gary Willis-http://www.garywillis.com Scott Kinsey-http://home.earthlink.net/~scottkinsey/index.html Kirk Covington-http://www.ejn.it/mus/covington.html