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August 22, 2005 - ALTERNITY RECORDS ANNOUNES THE SEPTEMBER RELEASE OF JASON SMITH’S ‘THINK LIKE THIS’ – A NEW AUDIOPHILE JAZZ MASTERWORK FEATURING PIANIST GARY HUSBAND AND BASSIST DAVE CARPENTER.

San Clemente, CA – August 16, 2005 – Los Angeles based drummer and composer Jason Smith, an uncompromising young talent, has enlisted the support of two jazz luminaries in the support of his first recording as a leader, Think Like This. Smith collaborated with producer Ken Kubernik, who also co-produced the acclaimed 2003 Softworks release, “Abacadabra” (featuring four legendary members of the early 70s UK experimental powerhouse, Soft Machine). Think Like This reveals Smith’s unorthodox compositional skill, contributing five original pieces as well as spirited interpretations of masterworks by Keith Jarrett, Kenny Wheeler and Herbie Hancock. A fiery reading of the Broadway standard, “The Way You Look Tonight,” and the provocative Jazz suite, “Three Lies,” by pianist Gary Husband complete the set.

Smith's career as an LA session musician in recent years has found him increasingly in the spotlight having supported technically dazzling ensembles like that of guitarist Mike Keneally and the acclaimed rock ensemble Five for Fighting. For his debut, Smith recruited one of the most celebrated cross-genre masters in Gary Husband, whose dual-faceted career as a drummer and keyboardist is virtually without precedent. Artists ranging from British pop luminaries Level 42, and guitar legend John Mclaughlin, have featured his stick work while Jack Bruce and Bill Cobham have enlisted his keyboard prowess. Bassist Dave Carpenter has proven to be one of the most versatile and talented musicians in jazz today, having recorded and performed with Herbie Hancock, Branford Marsalis, Mose Allison, Scott Henderson, Peter Erskine and many others. Husband and Carpenter have both worked in one of music’s most demanding rhythm section settings in Allan Holdsworth’s band—however, Think Like This marks Husband’s first major statement as a keyboardist on an American studio release.

In the recording of Think Like This, the production team took extraordinary care in capturing audiophile fidelity and was fortunate to obtain one of the world’s great concert grand pianos for the session, a nine-foot Hamburg Steinway D — complimented by the occasional presence of a classic Moog synth and Fender Rhodes. With a breakout performance by Carpenter on acoustic bass, the trio provides a refreshing and accomplished perspective on great piano jazz. This is music informed by the genre’s historical roots as well as some of the landmark Blue Note and ECM recordings of the 1970s.

Jason Smith’s Think Like This is scheduled for retail release in the U.S. in late September through City Hall Records. Review copies are available by request via e-mail to: info@alternityrecords.com – this release is now commercially available via online order at www.alternityrecords.com