TY STEPHENS: Press

Regular long-time readers of Soul Express will be familiar with Ty Stephens. My good colleague, Kimmo, was rightly impressed with the superb "Deeper In Fantasy" set and no prizes for coming to the assumption that he will also like this set. This CD is best described as a joyful kaleidoscope of sounds gelled together with a bohemian spirit and a whole lotta soul. I am very impressed with this set for many reasons. It is a musical statement and a testament to the enormous pool of ability and talent that Ty has within him. I know that he worked some time on this set and as the old saying goes '‘if its worthwhile, its worth waiting for'’ "Aquarian Mind" – a telling title if ever there was one of the direction of this artist – was definitely worth the waiting. My only fear – as I have seen expressed elsewhere – is that in an age of conveyer belt music and fad this set will criminally fall by the wayside. Let’s make sure this is not so. Ty shares a lot of his soul, and I think this is what makes this CD rather above bar. It certainly comes from within and not from some marketing ploy. The album erupts in such a joyful way that it automatically starts lifting the mood. As I play and write this piece, a neighbour’s 18 month year old has wondered in and grinned. He then started swaying to the music. Bless his heart! "Waiting" is infused with some salsa flavours, seriously infectious brass, heady percussion and funky slap bass. Ty’s vocals soar above this amalgam like an eagle. It’s a real joy to listen to. Imagine this done live! Truly a magnificent effort. A more uptempo programmed number is the delicacy that is "What Does Your Heart Say?". There is plenty of room atop the beats for feathery guitar and tasty keyboard riffs, and Ty’s vocals would definitely be placed in the ‘old school’ bag. Kicking back for a moment is the sultry and essential "What Can I Do For You?". This is soulful jazzy music at its best, and all the instruments are REAL! For me these aforementioned songs make this an essential release. However, the best was yet to hit me. You may recall that I am not a lover of live recordings, though Jon Lucien’s essential "Live in NYC" set soon trounced that! Two songs here were recorded live at the Soul Café in NYC on Ty’s birthday – 29th January 2003. These songs are so brilliant they have to be heard to be believed. This is straight back to REAL songs, real musicianship that we best hark for in the mid 70s. "Skydance" is a real jazz fusion feast of all the best things you can think of 70s jazz-fusion. I hear Ramsey Lewis, Eddie Russ, Earth Wind & Fire and Charles Earland all in one…MAGNIFICENT! This is followed by the luscious ballad "All The Love". Ty is a real talent and his abilities should be made wider knowledge by law as far as I am concerned. The fact that such artists are unknown to the vast majority of the public is an affront to good taste. The very least you can do is grab as much of this CD as you can because that isn’t it…check out the upbeat and jazzy "I Never Liked You"…a perfect end to an incredible musical journey. Sheer class.

*(to be translated soon)August 03, 2006
Tonight Is Ty Night: Philip Woo & New York All Stars Final
【フィリップ・ウー＆ニューヨーク・オールスターズ・ファイナル】


寂しい。


昼間、タワーレコードＳ氏より「今日フィリップに行こうとおもったのですが、お店にかけたら立ち見でぎゅうぎゅうとのこと。来月もあるので、来月にしようかと思っていますが、アドヴァイスをください」とのメール。来月のコットンのとはメンバーが違って、今日のメンバーは今日が最後だから見たほうがいいですよ、と連絡。結局、来ることになった。


もともとは、シンガー、タイ・スティーブンスとキーボードのフィリップ・ウーのふたりか3人のアコースティックセットで行うはずだったこの日のライヴ。タイ自身がどうしてもバンドでやりたいということで、結局、いつもと同じ「ニューヨーク・オールスターズ」が勢ぞろいした。フィリップとオールスターズの最後のライヴ。彼らはご存知のように、久保田利伸のバックバンドで来日中。しかし、久保田ライヴもあと2本、8月6日で終了する。そして彼らは7日には帰国の途につく。


30人も入れば満席の四谷メビウス。立ち見も含め超満員。60人以上集まったのではないか。3セット、16曲、たっぷり楽しませてもらった。


今回初めて聴いたのは、ファーストセットの6曲目。「ウィズ・ユー・アイム・ボーン・アゲイン」。タイとフェリシアのデュエットは見事だった。まるで、ソープオペラを見ているようなドラマティックなパフォーマンス。しかも、これ、今日2人でやるのは初めてだという。いやあ、まいった。


セカンドとサードで、タイは自身のアルバム『アクエリアン・マインド』から2曲、オリジナルを披露した。「ファウンド」と「オール・ザ・ラヴ」。ともに観客から喝采を浴びた。


タイの歌う姿を見ていて思った。彼の歌声や歌い方が今は亡きカール・アンダーソンを思い出させる、と。横から見る風貌なども近いのかもしれない。カールや、あるいは、アル・ジャロウ、また、ジョージ・ベンソン的な雰囲気も醸し出す。


サードセットのトップは、「ムーン・ダンス」という曲で、僕は知らなかった。今日、同行Ｓ氏が、ヴァン・モリソンの曲で、ボビー・マクファーリンやアニタ・ベイカーのヴァージョンもありますよ、と教えてくれた。さすが。僕はやはりこのあたりの「白人系」は弱い。(笑)　(調べてみると、アニタのヴァージョンは、『ラプチャー～ライヴ』に収録。ほかに、フィリップ・ベイリー、ラムゼイ・ルイスなどもやっていた）　


今夜の圧巻は、やはり最後の最後になったサードセットでのタイの「サムデイ・ウィル・オール・ビー・フリー」とフェリシア、ユリ、タイによるアレサ・フランクリンの「ナチュラル・ウーマン」だろう。タイは本当にダニーものが似合う。ダニーがいたら、きっとこんな風に歌うのではないかとさえ思ってしまう。タイとフランク・マッコムのコラボを見てみたいな。サードセットが始まる前にフェリシアに「今日は『エイント・ノー・ウエイ』を歌わないの」と尋ねると、喉の調子があんまりよくないので、今日は『ナチュラル・ウーマン』にしておくわ」との答え。彼女にとっては「エイント・ノー・ウエイ」より「ナチュラル・ウーマン」のほうがイージーらしい。それにしても、3人の「ナチュラル・ウーマン」は見事だった。


こういう小さい店で目の前でライヴをやってくれるとほんとに、身近に音楽がある感じがする。彼らも楽しみでやって、それをお客さんもエンジョイできる。いい雰囲気だ。こういう店におけるしっかりしたライヴが多数あれば、もっともっと音楽人口も増えるような気がするのだが・・・。


これにて、ニューヨーク・オールスターズのライヴはしばしおあずけ。フィリップがさかんに「寂しい、寂しい」を連発していた。それはみんな同じ思いだ。


■フィリップ・ウー・ライヴ予定　（「ソウル・サーチン・ザ・セッション」でおなじみシャンティーとフィリップのコラボが実現！）


◎フィリップ・ウー＆シャンティー
2006年8月18日（金）、19日（土）
丸の内コットンクラブ　

フィリップ・ウー・バンド・フィーチャリング・シャンティ
8.18.friのみ
Philip Woo(key,hca), Shanti(vo), 石成正人(g), Clifford Archer(b), Tommy Campbell(ds)
8.19.satのみ
Philip Woo(key,hca), Shanti(vo), 'Hank' Nishiyama (g), Clifford Archer(b), Jay Stixx(ds)
4200円　7時と9時半の２ステージ

予約・お問い合せ03-3215-1555受付時間 (11:00 a.m.～11:00 p.m.)


◎フィリップ・ウー＆ブレンダ・ヴォーン・デュオ
2006年9月3日(日）　開場6時、演奏6時半、8時（２ステージ）
下北沢　ラカーナ(La Cana)
03-3410-0505 チャージ2500円　プラス1ドリンク500円

◎フィリップ・ウー・オフィシャル・サイト
http://www.k5.dion.ne.jp/~p.woo/index.html
■メンバー Members


Philip Woo (Keyboard)
Nishiyama "Hankoya" Fumio (Guitar)
Ralph Rolle (Drums)
Carlos Henderson (Bass)
Felicia Graham (Vocal)
Ty Stephens (Vocal)
Kamino Yuri (Vocal)

■Setlist ( )=singers, [ ]=original artist

First Set
show started 20:09
1. Sunshine Alley (Instrumental) [Stanley Turrentine]
2. That Girl (Ty) [Stevie Wonder]
3. Dindi (Ty) [Antonio Carlos Jobim]
4. Let's Stay Together (Ralph) [Al Green]
5. I'm Going Down (Felicia) [Rose Royce]
6. With You I'm Born Again (Felicia & Ty duet) [Syreeta & Billy Preston]
show ended 20:50

Second Set
show started 21:25
1. Shadows (Instrumental) [Dean Brown]
2. Flying Easy (Ty) [Donny Hathaway]
3. Found (Ty) [Ty Stephens]
4. I Can't Stand The Rain (Yuri) [Ann Peebles]
5. Closer I Get To You (Yuri & Ty) [Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway]
show ended 22:05

Third Set
show started 22:42
1. Moon Dance (Ty) [Van Morrison]
2. All The Love (Ty) [Ty Stephens]
3. Someday We'll All Be Free (Ty) [Donny Hathaway]
4. You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman (Felicia, Yuri, Ty) [Aretha Franklin]
5. Superstition (Felicia, Yuri, Ty) [Stevie Wonder]
show ended 23:27

(2006年8月2日水曜、四谷メビウス＝フィリップ・ウー・ウィズ・ニューヨーク・オールスターズ）

ENT>MUSIC>LIVE>Woo, Philip & New York All Stars
2006-150


投稿者 yoshioka : 04:35 AM | コメント (0)

(*A REVIEW OF A LIVE HIT WE DID HERE IN JAPAN!)
July 20, 2006
Philip Woo & New York Allstars: Don't Leave Me This Way
[ ENT>MUSIC>LIVE>]
(Note; Musicians want me to write in English, so I try. Japanese version will be appearing on tomorrow's blog, here.) （簡単な日本語版、明日ご紹介します）


【Found Tons Of Soul, Not Only A Piece Of Soul】n
Addicted.

One thing The Soul Searcher would like to say to the musicians is "You guys, move to Japan and live here".

If you know the music of 70s and 80s, just read the following setlist, you could imagine and enjoy them.

The back up band for Japanese singer Kubota Toshinobu, they call themselves Philip Woo & The New York Allstars, has been doing few gigs around Tokyo area just for fun. I had traveling all the way from Tokyo to Kichijouji last Wednesday. But it was worth it. They are incredible band, tight unit, great singers, all the musicians have tons of soul which The Soul Searcher really enjoyed.

Their another performance today was once again more than 20 miles away from my home but I know it would be worth it. Even if it's in the rain.

Musicians happened to read my last blog wrote about performance Cha Cha House in Kichijouji which was written in Japanese but thank God some of their friend translated to them. So I try to write in English, this time.

When I arrived there, they has just ended "Tell Me Something Good". As I sit, Philip called Yuri and she started sing "I Can't Stand The Rain". That reminded me that last Wednesday was also rain. Deep voice. If I would do "Soul Searchin': The Session: Memphis Soul" or something, I will delicately call her.

Then came Ty. He sings the song which I missed last week. Stevie's "Knocks Me Off My Feet" later covered by no other than Luther. Is his version is Stevie's rendition or Luther's rendition? No, it's Ty's rendition! He should come and sing this on July 1st at "Soul Searchin': The Session, A Tribute To Luther Vandross". I should know him earlier.

I found Kaleb James and Shanti in the audience and said hi to them while on the intermission.

Second set kicked off with very funky War's "Slippin' Into Darkness" which was sung by talented drummer/singer Ralph, who could also sing Al Green among others, besides Philip on harmonica.

Philip called Felicia again and she started to sing awesome "Ain't No Way", my favorite. Every audience gazed at her. She could be Aretha, she could be Chaka, but she is standing her own right. If I would do "Soul Searchin: Aretha", she'll be the first singer on my list. Philip decided to play another Aretha song which was sung by Yuri called "Day Dreamin'".

Then Philip said "I'd like to do some unplugged with Ty" and made others left the stage and started to touch keyboards on acoustic piano from high note to down low. Here comes Donny. Ty must have been singing this song thousand times. This is perfect 10 version.

On the last song, they started to play "Boogie Oogie Oogie", but soon the song went into "Boogie Nights", then came strings of soul hits spontaneously which every audience has been really enjoyed. Sometimes, Ralph start to play some song and others followed, or as singer started to sing something, other musicians followed. Very spontaneous. Pumpin' bass by Carlos Henderson whose favorite bass player is Ray Brown, is alive and kicking. Real musicians could play anything easily. On encore, singers in the audience such as Brenda Vaughn, Shanti, Kaleb came on the stage and jammed with "I'm Every Woman".

New York Allstars, except Philip who resides in Japan, will be leaving on August 7th after 4 months stay in Japan. This Motion Blue Night was said to be the last gig of their own. Their band sound is so addicted to me. Don't leave me this way. Such a great band. When can I see them again?

Tonight, The Soul Searcher found tons of soul, not only a piece of soul.

[Written by Yoshioka Masaharu--The Soul Searcher]

(Philip and Hanko-ya san and Ty Stephens will have a gig at small Mebius on August 2nd)

■メンバー Members

Philip Woo (Keyboard)
Nishiyama "Hankoya" Fumio (Guitar)
Ralph Rolle (Drums)
Carlos Henderson (Bass)
Felicia Graham (Vocal)
Ty Stephens (Vocal)
Kamino Yuri (Vocal)

++Guests

Kaleb James
Shanti
Brenda Vaughn
DJ Scott


Setlist ( )denotes lead singer. [ ] denotes original artist.

01. Shadows (Instrumental)
02. I Know You, I Live You [Chaka Khan]
03. If You Really Love Me [Stevie Wonder]
04. It's A Shame [Spinners]
05. Tell Me Something Good [Rufus/Chaka Khan]
(19:19)
06. I Can't Stand The Rain (Yuri) [Ann Peebles, Tina Turner, Graham Central Station]
07. Knocks Me Off My Feet (Ty) [Stevie Wonder, Luther Vandross]
show ended 19:34

Second set

show started 20:34
01. Slippin' Into Darkness (Ralph on vocal, Philip on harmonica) [War]
02. Ain't No Way (Felicia) [Aretha Franklin]
03. Day Dreaming (Yuri) [Aretha Franklin]
04. A Song For You (Ty) [Leon Russell, Donny Hathaway, Carpenters]
05. Let's Stay Together (Ralph, Brenda Vaughn) [Al Green]
06. Fingertips (Part 1 & 2) (Felicia on lead vocal, Kaleb on keys, Philip on harmonica) [Stevie Wonder]
07. I'm Going Down (Felicia) [Rose Royce]
08. Soul Jam Medley: Boogie Woogie Oogie (everybody) [A Taste Of Honey]
--Boogie Nights [Heatwave]
--Papa Was A Rolling Stone [Temptations]
--Boogie Nights [Heatwave]
--Shake Your Body Down To The Ground [Jacksons]
--Wanna Be Startin' Something [Michael Jackson]
--Supersition [Stevie Wonder]
--Billie Jean (intro riff) [Michael Jackson]
--Thank You [Sly & Family Stone]
--Rhythm Nation (riff) [Janet Jackson]
--Goodtimes/Rappers Delight [Chic / Sugarhill Gang]
--We Are Family [Sister Sledge]
09. Higher Ground [Stevie Wonder]
Enc. I'm Every Woman [Chaka Khan, Whitney Houston]
show ended 22:07

（2006年7月19日水曜、横浜モーションブルー＝フィリップ・ウー＆ニューヨーク・オールスターズ・ライヴ）

July 13, 2006
Philip Woo Band: So Tight, So Funky

It was a very tight band.

I arrived at the Cha-Cha House around 8:30 pm. Initially I thought there would be three sessions, with the second one starting around 8:30 pm. To my surprise, they only had two stages, one from 7:45 pm and the other from 9:45 pm. So when I got there, the first session was already halfway through.

This is the band where Philip is the bandmaster. All key members are established musicians who are currently touring with Toshinobu Kubota. Immediately after I entered the joint, they sang “Superstar.” Then, they did “Slippin’ Into Darkness,” the huge hit by War. It was amazing. The band was so cool. It’s unmistakably a soulful, funky band. I was impressed by the level of soulfulness and funkiness coming from musicians based in Japan. But then I later learned that all members, except for Philip and Nishiyama, were from New York (New Jersey). The band had a fairly complete sound and their performance was really groovy. I was really happy I could enjoy see an incredible band in a regular live house like this one.

Next up was a female singer by the name of Felicia Graham. Her first number was “Ain’t No Way” by Aretha Franklin. It really wowed me. The combination of this tight, soulful band and her soulful voice was a knockout. I would love to see her do Aretha’s numbers in “Soul Searchin’ The Session.” Another impressive performer was Ty Stephens who was doing the back chorus. What a voice! I would really love to hear him do the chorus for Felicia again. Each song moved me a great deal. Why don’t they move to Japan? Anyway, the band seemed really tight and the members looked comfortable with one another. No surprise there. They have done three concert tours with Kubota already. Kubota must have had hell of a good time singing with this band.

That night, there were three singers. Felicia, Ty, and Yuri (Yuri Kamino), a Japanese singer based in New York. Yuri stunned me with her powerful vocal. She sang “I Can’t Stand The Rain” by Ann Peebles. Her soulful, deep voice was fantastic. I was expecting Ann’s version, but as I learned later, she had heard of the arrangement by Larry Graham and Graham Central Station and sang their version.

At one point, Philip cued the band for a twosome with Ty. Ty sang “A Song For You” the Donny Hathaway version. I later learned that they had no rehearsal and played the song by the ear. Philip said, “Ty is an encyclopedia of music. He knows the lyric and melody of every song, so I can play anything with him right away.” It was beautiful. At the end of the first session, Ty sang “Some Day We’ll All Be Free.” It was one enthusiastic performance.

Personally, I was most delighted by the live performance of “Happiness Is Just Around The Bend” by Main Ingredient. Hats off to Philip Woo for choosing this song. I’ve never had a chance to hear this song played live in front of me. Philip’s keyboard arrangement was excellent. I recommend this band to anyone who loves 70’s soul music.
■ Philip Woo Band will perform one more time at Motion Blue Yokohama next Wednesday.
July 19, 2006 (Wed) ▼Soul / R&B
PHILIP WOO(key) / 'HANK' NISHIYAMA(g) with NEW YORK ALLSTARS
Philip Woo(key), 'HANK' Nishiyama(g), Ralph Rolle(ds), Carlos Henderson(b), Felicia(vo)
charge:4,200(tax included)
※Showtimes_6:30pm & 8:30pm (open_5:00pm)
Motion Blue Yokohama 045-226-1919

■Members

Philip Woo (Keyboard)
Nishiyama "Hankoya" Fumio (Guitar)
Ralph Rolle (Drums)
Carlos Henderson (Bass)
Felicia Graham (Vocal)
Ty Stephens (Vocal)
Kamino Yuri (Vocal)

Ty Stephens – Aquarian Mind http://www.tystephensmusic.com/





Info: - SOME BIO INFO...

“I was mesmerized by dance shows, like SoulTrain and American Bandstand; Variety Television shows and Movie Musicals. I knew all the latest dances, and created productions in my mind and performed shows for my family with my sister, brothers and cousins, singing---not lip-synching---to the latest records. My parents saw this creativity in me and I was fortunate to have a Mom who followed-through on what she saw by enrolling me in a Summer Fine Art Program when I was 13, and a Summer Youth Theatrewhen I was 14. And, the rest, they say, is history!”.

Born and raised in Philadelphia, TY STEPHENS, started his journey in the entertainment business majoring in Fine Art and performing in school productions at Overbrook High School (the same school as famed alum Will Smith, but years earlier), and studying theatre and dance with the Philadelphia Youth Theatre at Society Hill Playhouse. He went on to Temple University’s Stella Elkins Tyler School of Art, only to quit in his sophmore year to pursue dance full time, dancing with John Hines’ Dance Theatre of Philadelphia until his move to New York City to join the Rod Rodgers Dance Co., and study at the Alvin Ailey
School, sharpening his skills as a dancer.

After 2 years on the concert dance scene, he began to audition for and perform in musical theatre, with touring shows like “SATIN SWEET” and “THE WIZ”, before landing his 2 Broadway shows: the original casts of “SOPHISTICATED LADIES” (with Gregory Hines, Phyllis Hyman and Judith Jamison) and “MARILYN, AN AMERICAN FABLE” (with Scott Bakula and Allison Reed). While on Broadway, Ty began performing in local piano bars and night clubs, finally focusing on his voice and, subsequently, his songwriting.

“It was a difficult transition for me to make in the theatre world . I had to eliminate or minimize my dance background in order to be taken seriously as a vocalist and songwriter. So, I spent a lot of time away from the Broadway scene as part of that “re-invention”. I continued to write and sing in clubs, and you could find my voice on so many demos, it wasn’t funny! I had no formal voice training, but my natural talents carried me far. I had really studied the recordings I listened to, and it showed when I went up to sing. I learned from Donny Hathaway; Stevie Wonder; Roberta Flack; Al Jarreau; Jeffrey Osborne; Chaka Khan; James Taylor; Joni Mitchell, and Nat “King” Cole, to name a few.”



Review;- A very enjoyable, extremely competent and well produced and constructed album. My favourite track is the midtempo What Does Your Heart Say? which allows the vocals to excel over a restrained backing, and to stick in the head with a memorable hook – a top order pop track..



The opener Waiting with its throbbing bass and horn lines kicks off in a very funky way. To put the various styles and nuances together it is interesting to put the tracks together by reference to the producer, or the musicians or the studio. The track that goes with this is What Can I Do For You? which is a slow jazzy ballad, very live feel, sultry and slow.


Found and That Damn Full Moon, Again are acoustic (broadly) and showy type songs. Sucker! starts for me is much better still a ballad but ‘harder’ although there is a tempo change half way and where I nearly lose it.



Skydance and All the Love were recorded live at TH Soul Café in new York, sounds like a very good show which is captured well here. Chaka! Is a homage to well Chaka. Closes on a midtempo I Never Liked You.



There’s no question that this has been put together well, is classy and professional. That said regrettably there are only one or two tracks that are particularly to my liking.


Tracks: 1. Waiting; 2. The Power ;3. What Does Your Heart Say?; 4. Found; 5. That Damn Full Moon, Again; ;6. Sucker!;7. What Can I Do For You?; 8. Skydance; 9. All the Love; 10. Chaka!; 11. Never As Sure (as I Am, Right Now) ;12. Another Thought....; 13. I Never Liked You

Label: Musichameleon Ent.
'Aquarian Mind' Ty Stephens

*(ENGLISH TRANSLATION BELOW)
Spiel ohne Grenzen. Ty Stephens, seines Zeichens ausgewiesener Show-Man und hochgradig unterhaltsamer Spielführer auf den unterschiedlichsten Musik-Bühnen (neben über 20-jähriger Erfahrung innerhalb New York´s Club-Szene, wird er gern auch für Musicals oder Film-Musiken gebucht) gibt mit seiner nunmehr dritten Compact Disc „Aquarian Mind“ eine weiteren Einblick in die universellen und unbeschränkten Möglichkeiten des musikalischen Entertainments. Dazu erweist sich Stephens als warmherziger Soul-Bariton und zudem als Schreiber, Produzent und Arrangeur überaus kurzweiliger Musiken, die geradezu schwerelos-grenzenlos sind und dazu mit unbändiger Spielfreude zum Vortrage kommen. Natürlich bildet Soul die Basis, und wie immer, wenn es richtig gelingen soll, ist der Jazz eine wichtige Komponente im Stephens-Musikkosmos – doch scheut der Mann sich auch nicht vor Pop („What Does Your Heart Say““, triefenden Posen („Found“ und „Never As Sure“), unverbindlichen Karibik-Klängen („That Damn Full Moon Again“), rocktönenden Gitarren („The Power“), dezentem Jazz-Funk („Chaka“) oder einem Ausflug in allerbeste Santana-Zeiten („Skydance“) zurück. Gern nimmt der Herr auch seine Musical-Erfahrungen für seine Background-Arrangements als Grundlage für waghalsige Harmonie- und Tempowechsel („Sucker“)und überhaupt – die Überraschung ist Programm und daher ist es eben nur selbstverständlich, dass Ty Stephens auch seelenvollen Soul-Jazz als Hi-Lites seiner aktuellen Kollektion zum Vortrage bringt – „What Can I Do For You“ oder das live eingespielte „All The Love“ lohnen schon allein die Investition in „Aquarian Mind“.
Bewertung:
[ 8/10 ]

(Über: Kauflink - Info: http://www.tystephensmusic.com)

ENGLISH: Play without borders. Ty Stephens, his indication proven Show One and high-grade unterhaltsamer play leader on the most different music stages (apart from over 20-year old experience within New York ´s club scene, he is booked gladly also for musical or film Musiken) gives now third Compact Disc „ with its; Aquarian Mind“ further view of the universal and unrestricted possibilities of the musical Entertainments. In addition Stephens proves as warmherziger Soul Bariton and besides than writers, producer and Arrangeur extremely kurzweiliger Musiken, which is almost weightless boundless and comes to it with unrestrained play joy to lecture. Naturally Soul forms the basis, and like always, if is to succeed correctly, the jazz is an important component in the Stephens Musikkosmos – but the man does not shrink from himself also at Pop („ What Does Your Heart Say“ “ , floats („ triefenden; Found“ and „ Never As Sure“), noncommittal Karibik sounds („ That Damn Full Moon Again“), skirt-sounding guitars („ The Power“), dezentem jazz radio („ Chaka“) or a trip into very best Santana times („ Skydance“) back. Gladly the gentleman takes also his musical experiences for its Background arrangements as basis for waghalsige harmony and speed change („ Sucker“)and at all – the surprise is program and therefore is evenly only natural it that Ty Stephens brings also soulful Soul jazz as rear-Lites of its current collection to lecture – „ What CAN I DO For You“ or the live brought in „ All The Love“ are worth already alone the investment in „ Aquarian Mind“. Evaluation: [8/10] (Over: Purchase left - info.: http://www.tystephensmusic.com)

"The first time I heard Ty sing, I was not the same. Not only is he a great singer, he is also a great performer!"

"A multi-talented cultural renaissance man, Ty Stephens is an all-around, well-seasoned instrument and genuine crowd-pleaser...representing the standards to which all vocalists should be held. His concerts with Romantasy are always exhilarating experiences."

"Ty Stephens is a talented and moving artist. His music and inspiration has supported us in our endeavors in servicing the community. We wish him much success!"

"I have been dealing with artists for the past 20 years, and when you encounter someone like Ty Stephens, you are immediately reminded about what real talent is. Ty is one of the most accomplished and versatile singer, performer, composer, and even, dancer, I've ever met. The T in Ty stands for Talent and he has plenty of it and also a alot of grace and class."

"...What a talent, smooth vocals, strong stage decor and soulfully inspiring dance moves...Ty Stephens is truly an entertainer."

"I was immediately won over by this fantastic vocalist whose style reminds me of quality soul heroes like Luther Vandross, Jeffrey Osborne, Will Downing and Peabo Bryson, but with a jazzier edge....I am willing to state that it's the best album by a male artist I've come across this year."

"Ty Stephens..is one of the rare artists who can parlay his stellar efforts in the recording studio into an electrifying live performance...versatility and creative fire...one of the best kept secrets in the industry..."

"...[Deeper In Fantasy] another polished and diverse self-penned package that fuses the basic R&B elements with funk and jazz in a Hathaway/Lucien/Downing kind of way....the vocally dextrous Stephens is in total control of whatever he's going to surprise you with next..."

"...[Deeper In Fantasy] the whole album seems to be a sort of musical aphrodisiac in the tradition of Barry White and the later work of Marvin Gaye."