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Pieces of a Dream

Pieces of a Dream emerged out of Philadelphia’s music scene in 1976. Keyboardist James Lloyd, drummer Curtis Harmon and former bassist Cedric Napoleon, were (and still are) managed by the drummer’s father and uncle, Danny and Bill Harmon, respectively. The group based their name on Pieces of Dreams, a cover tune by Stanley Turrentine that the group performed. Pieces of a Dream first started playing throughout the Tri-State area, and were soon featured on Temple University’s pioneering jazz radio station, WRTI-FM. Long before the “Young Lions” era of Wynton Marsalis, Lloyd and Harmon were swinging so hard as teenagers that the great Count Basie once proclaimed them “a tough act to follow.” But it was another jazz legend, the late Grover Washington Jr., the sax man who made Philadelphia his home, who helped Pieces of a Dream become the internationally known stars they are today. 

After quickly becoming popular around Philadelphia, the trio landed a spot as the house band for a local television show called City Lights. Their experience widened as they played backup on the broadcasts to a wide variety of artists, and that’s where Washington first heard them. One day while the teenagers were playing at the Bijou (where Grover had recorded his Live at the Bijou album), he sat in with them to play “Mr. Magic.” Soon Washington announced that he was starting a production company and that Pieces of a Dream would be his first act. Lloyd was only a senior in high school when his first record came out. From 1981 to 1984, 

Pieces of a Dream built their reputation with three albums on Elektra that would come to define the musical essence of the smooth jazz radio explosion: Pieces of a Dream, We Are One and Imagine This. Those seminal records yielded some of their earliest hits, including “Warm Weather,” “Mount Airy Groove” and “Fo Fi Fo.” Soon after completing Joyride, their last effort for Elektra, Pieces of a Dream moved to EMI/Blue Note and went on to record seven more albums. During this period, the group amicably parted ways with long time friend Cedric Napoleon. 

In 2001, Pieces of a Dream signed with Heads Up International and celebrated their 25th anniversary with what was undoubtedly their best album in years, Acquainted with the Night. The group’s silver anniversary release featured guitarist Ronny Jordan, vocalist Maysa Leak, and saxophonists Gerald Albright and Kenny Blake.


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3
Album Review

Pieces of a Dream: Just Funkin' Around

Read "Just Funkin' Around" reviewed by Jeff Winbush


It would be the easiest thing to say about the new Pieces of A Dream record, “If you already like Pieces of A Dream, you'll probably like this. If you don't, you won't." That would be real easy. It would also be real accurate. I road-tested Just Funkin' Around with a bunch of 20-somethings I was transporting from home back to college. I put it on and waited. Waited for them to say “Turn it up" or “turn ...

376
Album Review

Pieces of a Dream: Soul Intent

Read "Soul Intent" reviewed by Woodrow Wilkins


Some artists go back to their old favorites, either revisiting past recordings or covering someone else's music. Pieces of a Dream goes back to making music the way they did almost 30 years ago. Keyboardist James K. Lloyd and drummer Curtis Harmon Jr. founded the group, associating closely with Grover Washington Jr. during the early years. In recent years, they've relied on long-distance recording with a heavy dose of programming. However, with Soul Intent, they go back to ...

320
Album Review

Pieces of a Dream: Pillow Talk

Read "Pillow Talk" reviewed by Woodrow Wilkins


In a way, Pieces of a Dream is the Steely Dan of smooth jazz. For most of its existence, “The Dan was Donald Fagen, Walter Becker and an ever-changing assortment of session musicians. Pieces of a Dream is James K. Lloyd and Curtis Harmon. And like Steely Dan, Pieces of a Dream employs a variable mix of session musicians and vocalists for its studio releases. This holds true with Pillow Talk. The group took its name from ...

119
Album Review

Pieces of a Dream: Coming at You from All Sides

Read "Coming at You from All Sides" reviewed by Dave Nathan


This instrumental group has used pretty much the same formula for years, and quite successfully. It involves mixing up the play list with a variety of musical genre, contemporary R & B, Latin, contemporary pop, even including some real jazz now and then, throw in some background vocal wailing and whining as the occasion permits and make sure the plug doesn't fall out of the wall to assure that the electronic instruments are operating on all cylinders. But the group ...

213
Album Review

Pieces of a Dream: The Best of Pieces of a Dream

Read "The Best of Pieces of a Dream" reviewed by AAJ Staff


This much underrated quartet has released a collection of their greatest hits which will probably go unnoticed like much of this quality music. Prodigies of Grover Washington Jr. who started playing together as a group in the early eighties. There claim to fame started with the dance floor filler “Fo-Fi-Fo" from their “Imagine this" set from 1981 featuring those sultans of smooch “SASS" a.k.a. Marilyn Ashford and Charlene Jones. This album features a broad mixture of contemporary, urban, ...

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Performance / Tour

New Year's Eve Jazz: Sculler's in Boston Featuring Pieces of a Dream

New Year's Eve Jazz: Sculler's in Boston Featuring Pieces of a Dream

Source: MassJazz: Jazz in Massachusetts

Sculler's Jazz Club at the Doubletree Guest Suites-Boston is hosting a New Year's Eve celebration featuring Pieces of a Dream on Friday, December 31, 2010 at 8:00 p.m.. Formed in Philadelphia in 1976, Pieces of a Dream is a storied jazz ensemble known for its innovation and authentic jazz roots. It takes its name from a Stanley Turrentine tune. The Early Party Package to the show includes a four-course gourmet dinner in the Green Room (dinner reservations from 5:30-6:30 p.m.) ...

100
Performance / Tour

Pieces of a Dream Strikes the Band at the Cape May Jazz Festival

Pieces of a Dream Strikes the Band at  the Cape May Jazz Festival

Source: All About Jazz

On Saturday November 8th, 2008, the Cape May Jazz Festival held in Cape May, New Jersey will be hosting its 30th festival in 15 years and presenting a line-up of some of the greatest jazz artists alive. Back by popular demand, Pieces of a Dream-with some of their greatest hits including “Warm Weather,” “Mount Airy Groove” and “Fo Fi Fo”- are ready to bring out their brilliant beats at this 15th annual Cape May Jazz Festival. Pieces of a Dream ...

Photos

Concerts

Dec 13 Sat

Tickets

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Just Funkin' Around

Shanachie Records
2017

buy

Soul Intent

Heads Up International
2009

buy

Pillow Talk

Heads Up International
2006

buy

Love's Silhouette

A&M Records
2002

buy

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