Top Jazz Albums of July 9, 1983

Let's take a look at what was topping the various jazz album charts on July 9, 1983.

	Billboard	Cash Box	Radio & Records
1	Jarreau Al Jarreau	In Your Eyes George Benson	Low Ride Earl Klugh
2	Low Ride Earl Klugh	Travels Pat Metheny Group	In Your Eyes George Benson
3	The Hunter Joe Sample	Jarreau Al Jarreau	Jarreau Al Jarreau
4	Star People Miles Davis	The Genie Bob James	Journey to a Rainbow Chuck Mangione
5	The Genie Bob James	Low Ride Earl Klugh	The Genie Bob James
6	Friends Larry Carlton	Star People Miles Davis	Les Fleurs Ramsey Lewis
7	Autumn George Winston	Friends Larry Carlton	Friends Larry Carlton
8	Mirage a Trois Yellowjackets	The Hunter Joe Sample	Mirage a Trois Yellowjackets
9	Dave Grusin and the New York/L.A. Dream Band	Mirage a Trois Yellowjackets	Travels Pat Metheny Group
10	In Your Eyes George Benson	Journey to a Rainbow Chuck Mangione	The Hunter Joe Sample

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Exclusive MFD meta-analysis of the above charts:

1. Jarreau (26 points)
2. Low Ride (25 pts)
3. In Your Eyes (20 pts)
4. The Genie (19 pts)
5. Friends (14 pts)
6. (tie) The Hunter and Star People (12 pts)
8. Travels (11 pts)
9. (tie) Mirage a Trois and Journey to a Rainbow (8 pts)
11. Les Fleurs (5 pts)
12. Autumn (4 pts)
13. Dave Grusin and the New York/L.A. Dream Band (2 pts)

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Listen to selected tracks from the above albums and other 1983 releases, courtesy of Dr. Smooth:

Top 50 Jazz Albums of 1983

According to the December 24, 1983 edition of Billboard magazine. Chart peaks are from that publication's jazz, pop, and R&B album charts, respectively. If the album was released in a year prior to 1983, that information is noted following the album title.

	Album	Artist	Jazz	Pop	R&B
1	Two of a Kind ('82)	Bob James & Earl Klugh	1	44	23
2	Jarreau	Al Jarreau	1	13	4
3	As We Speak ('82)	David Sanborn	1	70	32
4	Offramp ('82)	Pat Metheny Group	1	50	43
5	In Your Eyes	George Benson	1	27	6
6	Breakin' Away ('81)	Al Jarreau	1	9	1
7	December ('82)	George Winston	2	54
8	Incognito ('82)	Spyro Gyra	2	46	39
9	The Best is Yet to Come ('82)	Grover Washington, Jr.	2	50	8
10	Winter into Spring ('82)	George Winston	7	127
11	Casino Lights ('82)	Various Artists	1	63	32
12	Hands Down ('82)	Bob James	3	72
13	George Benson Collection ('81)	George Benson	1	14	5
14	Low Ride	Earl Klugh	2	38	27
15	Dave Grusin & The NY/LA Dream Band ('82)	Dave Grusin & The NY/LA Dream Band	4	181	54
16	Autumn ('80)	George Winston	7	139
17	The Hunter ('82)	Joe Sample	3	125	44
18	Rit/2 ('82)	Lee Ritenour	5	99	53
19	Off the Top ('82)	Jimmy Smith	5
20	Procession	Weather Report	3	96	46
21	Quartet ('81)	Herbie Hancock	5	202
22	Touchstone ('82)	Chick Corea	9	207
23	Star People	Miles Davis	4	136
24	Friends	Larry Carlton	6	126
25	Travels	Pat Metheny Group	3	62

	Album	Artist	Jazz	Pop	R&B
26	The Genie	Bob James	5	77	43
27	Mirage a Trois	Yellowjackets	7	145
28	We are One ('82)	Pieces of a Dream	4	114	22
29	Think of One	Wynton Marsalis	1	102
30	Learning to Love ('82)	Rodney Franklin	9	190	45
31	Live at The Plugged Nickel ('82)	Miles Davis	16
32	Dreams of Tomorrow	Lonnie Liston Smith	11	193	46
33	Desire ('82)	Tom Scott	5	164
34	Gentle Fire	Wilton Felder	8		55
35	Kenny G ('82)	Kenny G	10
36	Tour de Force - Live ('82)	Al Di Meola	8	165
37	Journey to a Rainbow	Chuck Mangione	10	154
38	Les Fleurs	Ramsey Lewis	10	206
39	Havana Moon	Carlos Santana	13	31	55
40	Finesse	John Klemmer	10
41	Out of the Shadows ('82)	Dave Grusin	4	88
42	Home Again ('82)	Stanley Turrentine	11
43	City Kids	Spyro Gyra	2	66
44	Steps Ahead	Steps Ahead	24
45	Passion, Grace & Fire	John McLaughlin, Al Di Meola & Paco de Lucía	9	171
46	California Here I Come ('82)	Bill Evans	12
47	Winelight ('80)	Grover Washington, Jr.	1	5	2
48	Mr. Nice Guy	Ronnie Laws	6	98	24
49	Crazy and Mixed Up ('82)	Sarah Vaughan	22
50	Crazy for You ('81)	Earl Klugh	2	53	14

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Speaking of jazz albums from 1983, why don't you give Dr. Smooth's flashback a listen:

Top Jazz Albums on January 8, 1983

Let's take a look at what was topping the various jazz album charts for the week of January 8, 1983.

	Billboard	CashBox	Radio & Records
1	Two of a Kind Earl Klugh & Bob James	Two of a Kind Earl Klugh & Bob James	Two of a Kind Earl Klugh & Bob James
2	Incognito Spyro Gyra	Casino Lights Various Artists	The Best is Yet to Come Grover Washington, Jr.
3	Offramp Pat Metheny Group	The Best is Yet to Come Grover Washington, Jr.	Incognito Spyro Gyra
4	Casino Lights Various Artists	Rit/2 Lee Ritenour	Home Again Stanley Turrentine
5	As We Speak David Sanborn	Incognito Spyro Gyra	Casino Lights Various Artists
6	Rit/2 Lee Ritenour	Offramp Pat Metheny Group	Chance Encounter Ramsey Lewis
7	We are One Pieces of a Dream	Tour de Force - Live Al DiMeola	Touch the Feeling Stix Hooper
8	Tour de Force - Live Al DiMeola	As We Speak David Sanborn	Kenny G Kenny G
9	Touchstone Chick Corea	Learning to Love Rodney Franklin	Rit/2 Lee Ritenour
10	Kenny G Kenny G	Home Again Stanley Turrentine	Learning to Love Rodney Franklin

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Exclusive MFD meta-analysis of the above charts:

1. Two of a Kind (30 pts)
2. Incognito (23 pts)
3. Casino Lights (22 pts)
4. The Best is Yet to Come (17 pts)
5. Rit/2 (14 pts)
6. Offramp (13 pts)
7. As We Speak (9 pts)
8. Home Again (8 pts)
9. Tour de Force - Live (7 pts)
10. Chance Encounter (5 pts)
11. (tie) We are One, Kenny G, and Touch the Feeling (4 pts)
14. Learning to Love (3 pts)
15. Touchstone (2 pts)

Billboard's Top Jazz Artists 1976-85

Not sure if they still do it, but years ago Billboard would list its top jazz artists in its year-end issues, based on album sales for that year. Here's a sample list from 1982:

I'm guessing the results were based on both chart peak as well as the number of weeks the artists' albums spent on the charts. Regardless, I took the results of the 10 lists from the years 1976-85 and ran them through a simple algorithm. Here's a countdown of the top ten jazz artists for the decade along with albums that placed on the Billboard Jazz Album charts during those years:

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CHUCK MANGIONE

Album	Jazz Chart
Bellavia	7
Encore	24
Main Squeeze	4
Chase the Clouds Away	30
Land of Make Believe	21
Feels So Good	1
The Best of Chuck Mangione	23
Children of Sanchez	1
Live at the Hollywood Bowl	5
Fun and Games	1
Tarantella	10
Love Notes	8
70 Miles Young	19
Journey to a Rainbow	10
Disguise	26

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DAVID SANBORN

Album	Jazz Chart
Taking Off	19
Sanborn	10
Promise Me the Moon	27
Heart to Heart	16
Hideaway	2
Voyeur	1
As We Speak	1
Backstreet	1
Straight to the Heart	1

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SPYRO GYRA

 

Album	Jazz Chart
Spyro Gyra	14
Morning Dance	2
Catching the Sun	1
Carnaval	2
Freetime	1
Incognito	2
City Kids	2
Access All Areas	1
Alternating Currents	3

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BOB JAMES

Album	Jazz Chart
Three	2
BJ4	3
Heads	1
Touchdown	1
Lucky Seven	3
"H"	3
All Around the Town	3
Sign of the Times	2
Hands Down	3
The Genie	5
Foxie	3
12	5

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THE CRUSADERS

Album	Jazz Chart
Chain Reaction	1
Those Southern Knights	2
The Best of The Crusaders	18
Free as the Wind	1
Images	1
Street Life	1
Rhapsody and Blues	1
Standing Tall	2
Royal Jam	5
Ghetto Blaster	3

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AL JARREAU

Album	Jazz Chart
Glow	9
Look to the Rainbow	5
All Fly Home	2
This Time	1
Breakin' Away	1
Jarreau	1
High Crime	2
In London	10

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PAT METHENY

Album	Jazz Chart
Bright Size Life	28
Watercolors	28
Pat Metheny Group	5
New Chautauqua	3
American Garage	1
80/81	4
As Falls Wichita...	1
Offramp	1
Travels	3
Rejoicing	4
First Circle	2

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EARL KLUGH

Album	Jazz Chart
Earl Klugh	16
Living Inside Your Love	8
Finger Paintings	6
Magic in Your Eyes	4
Heart String	2
Dream Come True	4
Late Night Guitar	4
Crazy for You	2
Low Ride	2
Wishful Thinking	1
Nightsongs	4
Soda Fountain Shuffle	3
Key Notes	30

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GROVER WASHINGTON, JR.

Album	Jazz Chart
Mister Magic	1
Feels So Good	1
A Secret Place	1
Live at The Bijou	1
Reed Seed	1
Paradise	2
Skylarkin'	1
Baddest	5
Winelight	1
Anthology (Motown)	11
Come Morning	1
The Best is Yet to Come	2
Inside Moves	3
Anthology (Elektra)	37

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GEORGE BENSON

Album	Jazz Chart
Breezin'	1
Good King Bad	3
The Other Side of Abbey Road	28
Blue Benson	23
In Flight	1
In concert - Carnegie Hall	6
Weekend in L.A.	1
Livin' Inside Your Love	1
Give Me the Night	1
The George Benson Collection	1
In Your Eyes	1
20/20	3

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Promo posters as seen on "WKRP in Cincinnati" #57

Album: Ultravox - Vienna (Chrysalis, 1980), Eric Clapton - Just One Night (RSO, 1980), The Charlie Daniels Band. Best guess for the poster below Clapton: Joe Jackson - Beat Crazy (A&M, 1980).
Episode:  Season 3, Episode 9, "The Painting"
Original air date: Saturday, January 10, 1981

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Dr. Fever is holding the August 23, 1980 issue of Billboard, with an ad for the album How to Beat the High Cost of Living on the back cover.

MFD Random Five #48

In which I shuffle through some music files and listen to the first five songs from 1980 that randomly pop up.

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1. "Sweet Rum and Starlight" by Earl Klugh (1980, EMI)
   Tropical-meets-country in this smooth jazz tune from the acoustic guitar legend's sixth album, Dream Come True. If that sounds like a strange mix, it's because it is. Not my favorite Klugh tune, but I've always felt any Klugh is good Klugh.


2. "The Story of a Man and a Woman
   Part 1: She Thought I Was Stanley Clarke
   Part 2: A Fool Again
   Part 3: I Nearly Went Crazy (Until I Realized What Had Occurred)"
   by Stanley Clarke (1980, Epic)
   An adventurous three-part, eleven minute suite that closes out the album, Rocks, Pebbles and Sand.  Not much melody to be had in Parts 1 or 3, but Part 2 has a good groove and nice keyboard solo (Chick Corea, maybe?). Clarke's vocals are thin, but points for trying.


3. "Love Him, Love Her" by Seawind (1980, A&M)
   More jazz - 3 in a row! While this Hawaiian group is generally considered to be in the smooth jazz genre, this tune is squarely in the yacht rock category. Pauline Wilson has a great voice and the Michael McDonald-ish feel is much appreciated around this house.


4. "Have a Drink On Me" by AC/DC (1980, Atlantic)
   Now that's an abrupt change of gears. Typical tune from the Back in Black album - meaning great guitar riff, hooks a'plenty in the chorus, gravelly vocals, and the mandatory guitar solo. Great effort, but sometimes overlooked because on its place on the album immediately following both "Back in Black" and "You Shook Me All Night Long."
   
   [Note: the next 1980 song to shuffle around was Dolly Parton's "9 to 5" which previously appeared on Random Five #46.]
   


5. "Coming Up" by Paul McCartney (1980, Columbia)
   The studio version from McCartney II. I liked the live version so much, I bought the 45 single not realizing which side of the single was which. In any case, while this studio take is fine, I much prefer the live version, without the vocal manipulation. FWIW, I got this version on the UK version of McCartney's All the Best! compilation (1987).

Top 50 Jazz Albums of 1979

According to the December 22, 1979 edition of Billboard magazine. Chart peaks are from that publication's jazz, pop, and R&B album charts, respectively. If the album was released in a year prior to 1979, that information is noted following the album title.

	Album	Artist	Jazz	Pop	R&B
1	Street Life	The Crusaders	1	18	3
2	Livin' Inside Your Love	George Benson	1	7	4
3	Touchdown ('78)	Bob James	1	37
4	Reed Seed ('78)	Grover Washington, Jr.	1	35	7
5	Pat Metheny Group ('78)	Pat Metheny Group	5	123
6	Carmel	Joe Sample	1	56	25
7	Children of Sanchez ('78)	Chuck Mangione	1	14	37
8	Mr. Gone ('78)	Weather Report	1	52
9	Flame ('78)	Ronnie Laws	1	51	16
10	Morning Dance	Spyro Gyra	2	27	33
11	Angie	Angela Bofill	5	47	20
12	All Fly Home	Al Jarreau	2	78	27
13	Paradise	Grover Washington, Jr.	2	24	15
14	Feets Don't Fail Me Now	Herbie Hancock	2	38	16
15	Heart String	Earl Klugh	2	49	32
16	Feels So Good ('77)	Chuck Mangione	1	2
17	New Chautaqua	Pat Metheny	3	44
18	Cosmic Messenger ('78)	Jean-Luc Ponty	2	36
19	Patrice ('78)	Patrice Rushen	5	98	27
20	Secrets ('78)	Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson	4	61	10
21	Intimate Strangers ('78)	Tom Scott	6	123
22	Fever	Roy Ayers	6	67	25
23	You Send Me ('78)	Roy Ayers	4	48	16
24	Images ('78)	The Crusaders	1	34	18
25	Follow the Rainbow	George Duke	3	56	17

	Album	Artist	Jazz	Pop	R&B
26	Together	McCoy Tyner	5	66
27	In Concert	Milestone Jazzstars	12	122
28	Carnival ('78)	Maynard Ferguson	9	113
29	Brazilia	John Klemmer	5	172
30	We All Have a Star ('78)	Wilton Felder	11	173	33
31	Tiger in the Rain	Michael Franks	6	68
32	Before the Rain ('78)	Lee Oskar	10	86	29
33	Live at the Hollywood Bowl	Chuck Mangione	5	27
34	Manhattan Symphonie ('78)	Dexter Gordon Quartet	11
35	Land of Passion	Hubert Laws	6	93	48
36	Awakening	Narada Michael Walden	9	103	15
37	Magic in Your Eyes ('78)	Earl Klugh	4	139
38	Mingus	Joni Mitchell	3	17
39	Exotic Memories	Lonnie Liston Smith	3	123	50
40	I Wanna Play for You	Stanley Clarke	5	62	36
41	Soft Space	Jeff Lorber Fusion	13
42	Hot Dawg	David Grisman	14
43	Light the Light	Seawind	8	143
44	Live	Jean-Luc Ponty	8	68
45	Legacy ('78)	Ramsey Lewis	10	149
46	Browne Sugar	Tom Browne	6	147	50
47	Secret Agent ('78)	Chick Corea	7
48	Part of You	Eric Gale	11	154
49	The Joy of Flying	Tony Williams	13	113
50	Groovin' You	Harvey Mason	11	149	48

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Speaking of jazz albums from 1979, why don't you give Dr. Smooth's flashback a listen:

MFD Random Five #44

In which I click the shuffle icon on the iTunes app and listen to the first five songs that pop up from the years 1976-85.

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1. "Mirabella" by Earl Klugh (1980, Liberty)
   A busy yet relaxing solo acoustic piece from the wonderful Late Night Guitar album. Although Klugh is considered a jazz artist, there's not much improvisation here, but it's so good you'll hardly notice. 


2. "The Long Honeymoon" by Elvis Costello (1982, Columbia)
   It's okay but its no "Beyond Belief." This bossa/cocktail piano crossover has its moments, such as the chord progression in the chorus, but the rest doesn't speak to me. 


3. "Raspberry Beret" by Prince (1985, Paisley Park)
   I loved this psychedlic thing from the get go. In fact, Around the World in a Day was the first Prince album I purchased myself instead of dubbing friend's albums. And that was because of this lead single. The winding cello line, and man-oh-man that middle eight.  Off the top of my head, I'd call this a top five Prince tune along with "1999," "U Got the Look," "Dirty Mind," and "Kiss."


4. "I Don't Know Where to Start" by Eddie Rabbitt (1982, Elektra)
   I don't remember this tune from '82, when it reached #35 on the pop chart. It's a pleasant enough crossover ballad, the guitar accompaniment is interesting but the banal chorus melody hurts. Rabbitt's final Top 40 tune as a solo act.


5. "I Like Dreamin'" by Kenny Nolan (1976, 20th Century Fox)
   Speaking of Top 40, this song spent 20 weeks there, peaking at #3. A classic soft rock single complete with strings, harps, female background singers, and not one but three upward modulations near the end. Barry Manilow would be jealous.