Players - 1987 "Players"

One of the greatest Jazz/fussion ever made, with Jeff Berlin, Scott Henderson, T.Lavitz and Steve Smith...amazing compositions and performance, 8 tracks of gold!! Totally recommended for good Jazz - fussion lovers.

Recorded live at Hop Sing's by the Record Plant, Los Angeles, mobile unit # 3 on Jan. 19, 1986.

Scott Henderson (born August 26, 1954) is an American jazz fusion and blues guitarist best known for his work with the band Tribal Tech.
Born in West Palm Beach, Florida, United States, Scott Henderson began playing guitar at an early age. His formative musical years were spent listening to rock, blues, funk, and soul, while his interest in jazz developed later on, thanks to the music of John Coltrane, Miles Davis, and others. He still professes to being a blues player at heart.

After graduating from Florida Atlantic University, Henderson moved to Los Angeles and began his career in earnest, playing rock with Twilight, a four-piece cover band that included Alice Long on bass and vocals. Soon, Henderson was recording with violinist Jean-Luc Ponty, bassist Jeff Berlin and "Players", and Weather Report's Joe Zawinul. Henderson first began receiving serious attention as the original guitarist for the Chick Corea Elektric Band together with Carlos Rios. But he stayed only six months with Corea and left after a disagreement.

http://jazz-rock-fusion-guitar.blogspot.com/search?q=scott+henderson

Terry "T" Lavitz (April 16, 1956 – October 7, 2010) was an American jazz-rock/fusion keyboardist, composer and producer. He is best known for his work with the Dixie Dregs and Jazz Is Dead.
Born on April 16, 1956, Lavitz grew up in New Jersey. He started taking piano lessons at the age of seven and was offered a scholarship at the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan where he studied keyboard and saxophone. After high school he attended University of Miami's School of Music. In his senior year at the UM he was asked to join the Dixie Dregs. He accepted the invitation and played his first show in January 1980. 'Dregs of the Earth', released in 1980, was the first Dregs album he could be heard on. In 1981 he won the 'Best New Talent' category of Keyboard Magazine's Annual Readers Poll.

The Dregs broke up in January 1983 and T Lavitz, Rod Morgenstein and Andy West went on tour with former Little Feat guitarist/singer Paul Barrere. 'Extended Play', a five song EP, was released in 1984. The album also featured future Dregs and Steve Morse Band bass player Dave LaRue. In 1985 Lavitz joined the Bluesbusters, a blues-rock quintet also featuring Paul Barrere, guitarist/singer Catfish Hodge, bass player Freebo (Bonnie Raitt) and drummer Larry Zack. They released two albums and toured extensively. His first solo album 'Storytime' was released in 1986. The critically acclaimed 'Players' album with Jeff Berlin, Steve Smith and Scott Henderson was released in 1987.

Jeffrey Arthur Berlin (born January 17, 1953) is an American jazz fusion bassist.
Berlin was born in Queens, New York, on January 17, 1953. He studied violin for ten years until he was 14, when he was inspired to play bass after seeing the Beatles. He then attended Berklee College of Music to study bass. Berlin's playing style has been compared to that of Jaco Pastorius; however, Berlin has repeatedly stated his distaste for Jaco-imitators.
On August 30 2013, he married Gabriela Sinagra, a jazz singer and vocal coach from Rosario, Argentina.

Steven Bruce "Steve" Smith (born August 21, 1954) is an American drummer best known as a member of the rock band Journey, rejoining the group for the third time in 2015.[1] Modern Drummer magazine readers have voted him the #1 All-Around Drummer five years in a row. In 2001, the publication named Smith one of the Top 25 Drummers of All Time, and in 2002 he was voted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Journey on April 7, 2017.

Smith received his first drum kit at age two and in 1963 he began taking formal lessons with local Boston area drum teacher Bill Flanagan, who played in big bands in the swing era. Smith got his first “real” drum set when he was 12 years old. On many nights, Steve could be heard practicing in a small shed in the backyard of his Harvard Street home. Smith performed in the usual school band program and garage bands while in his teens, including Clyde, a South Shore sensation, but also began to broaden his performing experience by playing in a professional concert band and the big band at local Bridgewater State College.

Smith's first “paid gig” was with a garage band. He graduated from high school in 1972, and at 19 joined the 'Lin Biviano Big Band' playing with them for two years. After high school, Smith attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts studying with Alan Dawson.

He has worked as a session musician for pop artists including Mariah Carey, Andrea Bocelli, Elisa, Vasco Rossi, Zucchero, Savage Garden, Bryan Adams, as well as world musicians Zakir Hussain and Sandip Burman. Additionally, he has played with well-known jazz artists including Mike Mainieri's Steps Ahead, Wadada Leo Smith, Tom Coster, Ahmad Jamal, Dave Liebman, Larry Coryell, Victor Wooten, Mike Stern, Randy Brecker, Scott Henderson, Frank Gambale, Stuart Hamm, Dweezil Zappa, Anthony Jackson, Aydın Esen, Torsten de Winkel, George Brooks, Michael Zilber, Steve Marcus, Andy Fusco, Kai Eckhardt, Lee Musiker, Howard Levy, Oteil Burbridge, Jerry Goodman, Tony MacAlpine and Bill Evans. Smith has led his own jazz group, Vital Information since 1977.
In the early 1990s, Smith studied with Freddie Gruber and as a result, his playing style completely changed.

http://jazz-rock-fusion-guitar.blogspot.com/search?q=steve+smith

I know this cd is out of print long time ago, but if you are lucky to have this cd, you know what i`m talking about. This is the super cd by super fusion group led by Scott Henderson, Steve Smith, Jeff Berlin and T. Lavitz. One of the best fusion albums from 80`s!

Track listing:

1. Crystal (T Lavitz) - 4:23
2. Valentine (Scott Henderson) - 5:28
3. 50/50 (Dave Wilczewski, Steve Smith) - 4:36
4. Vehicle (T Lavitz) - 4:18
5. Freight Train Shuffle (Jeff Berlin) - 5:26
6. Between Coming And Going (T Lavitz) - 5:25
7. The Creeping Terror (Scott Henderson) - 5:44
8. 20,000 Players (Jeff Berlin) - 6:39

Total Time: 41:56

Personnel:

T Lavitz - keyboards
Jeff Berlin - bass
Steve Smith - drums
Scott Henderson - guitar