Maceo Parker - "Roots and Grooves"
(Heads Up Records)

While James Brown is generally credited with redefining and re-energizing R&B and soul music in the 1960s, turning that revolutionary vision into a reality would not have been possible without the help of his creative collaborator, stage foil and right-hand man, saxophonist Maceo Parker. Like no other sax player before him, Parker stretched the potential of his instrument to unprecedented limits, exhibiting an uncanny ability to alternate the saxophone from a melodic instrument to a percussive one, and then back again, in the span of just a couple of beats, often less.

For perhaps the first time, the breadth and scope of Parker's musical prowess is fully realized in a new recording that positions him front and center in a fully orchestrated setting. Roots & Grooves (HUCD 3134), a two-disc set scheduled for release on Heads Up International on February 12, 2008, unites this brilliant sax innovator with Germany's renowned WDR Big Band. The album is both a tribute to R&B/soul legend Ray Charles and a showcase for Parker's own fiery hybrid of R&B, soul and funk.

www.maceo.com