Produced by Shelly Berg and Gregg Field
Pictured in United’s Studio A are (L-R) Gregg Field, co-producer; Don Murray, engineer; Shelly Berg, pianist, arranger, co-producer; recording artist Kari Kirkland; Dean Parks, guitars; and Kevin Axt, bass. Photo by David Goggin.
Jazz recording artist Kari Kirkland has teamed up with four-time Grammy nominee Shelly Berg and multi-Grammy winner and 2010 “Producer of the Year” Gregg Field to cut a new EP at the iconic United Recording in Hollywood. Kirkland, Field and Berg were joined by guitarist Dean Parks and bassist Kevin Axt for the new album, which will be released early summer.
“Kari is a very unique singer coming from a ‘jazz’ background,” explained Field. “She is embracing very contemporary material from artists such as Ludacris and is bringing the material into the Adult Contemporary world. The musicians on the album are Phil Ramone’s rhythm section and it’s always great to come together on a really unique project like this!”
In early 2016, Kirkland met Shelly Berg, world-renowned pianist, composer, arranger and Dean of the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music. “Like a scene in a movie, a fateful, midnight meeting brought us together in Shelly’s living room in Miami,” she recalls. “On the spot, with him accompanying, I sang for him and after we played together for about an hour, he said ‘You’re really, really talented. Let’s do something great together!'”
In Shelly Berg, Kirkland found a musical confidant whose understanding of her as an artist gave her the inspiration and freedom to further express her own distinctive style. The result is a sultry, sensual, lush, and richly textured sound that melds jazz, cabaret, blues and pop into its own authentic genre.
Gregg Field is one of the most versatile and highly sought-after producers, drummers and educators in music and has been voted into Modern Drummer magazine readers’ poll five times. He commented on working on Kirkland’s project in United Recording’s venerable Studio A: “I love studio A at United, especially the drum booth. Hate to pick favorites in town but the best drum sound I get is in that killer space. Also, there is a uniquely organic feel about A and I’ve really grown to love the Focusrite console. It was the perfect room for Kari’s album.”
About United Recording
United Recording was founded in 1957 by the legendary recording engineer and electronics inventor Bill Putnam with the backing of Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. The studios were acquired and renamed Ocean Way Recording in 1977, and after acquisition in 2013 by Hudson Pacific Properties, re-launched under the original name in 2014. United Recording, one of the world’s most recognized music recording studios, with more awards than any other recording enterprise, is responsible for record sales of more than one billion units.
More info: http://www.unitedrecordingstudios.com/
