Ramsey Lewis — Les Fleurs/Fantasy/Keys To The City

From BGO Records here is another double CD reissue of Ramsey Lewis releases- bringing together three early-to-late 1980 albums from this very versatile and prolific Chicago-based pianist & composer. With the sound over the albums going jazzy piano to light funk-based instrumental easy-listening music. Onto 80’s R&B, jazz, and soul-pop crossbreeds with an electronic/ sample edge.

Like all of BGO's releases, the two CD come in their house-style packaging- with the two CDs coming in a slim-line double CD jewel case. This features a glossy twenty-page inlay booklet, which takes in full credits for each of the three albums featured. As well as a new ten-page write-up about the albums & Mr Lewis career in the 1980s- a decade when he put out thirteen albums. With the whole thing coming presented in a coloured card slip sleeve.

First up we 1983’s Les Fluers- which like all of the albums featured here appeared on Columbia Records. It’s a seven-track album- which brings together instrumental covers of songs, with a few original compositions. The sound of the album is very piano-focused- with a fairly few of the tracks also featuring light funk bass, & subtle keyboard embellishments. The whole album has a very sleek-yet-mellow 80’s production to it, with the more beat & bass bound elements gently nudging into proceedings here and there.  We go from rolling & elegant jazzy blues piano runs of Burt Bachrach’s “ A House Is Not A Home”. Onto the piano & electro vibe melody meets funk bass snap ‘n’ pulse of  Charles Stepney’s “Les Fluers”. Though to funk soul pop meets elegant keys of “With A Gentle Touch”. All in all making for a nicely pleasing, but lightly creative early 80’s album.

Next, we have 1985’s Fantasy- this is a nine-track album, which very much saw Lewis mixed and shifting through different genres for a largely much more upbeat record- with more of a pronounced electronica and sampled edge to proceedings.   The first five tracks of the album are at the end of the first CD- with the remaining four tracks appearing at the start of CD two. The album moves from snapping to knocking electro beats, darting funk bass, layered piano & synth melody, and sampled voice elements of “Ram Jam”. Onto 80’s R & B/ soul dance snazziness of “Victim Of A Broken Heart” which features both male & female soulful singing. Through to cascading piano keys meets snapping 80’s pop beats/ melody of the album closer “The Quest” with a great very 80’s Sax break appearing before the end of the track as well as a funk bass breakdown. All in all, Fantasy is a most adventurous- yet approachable album, with the wonderful blending of his playing & arrangement skills with popular/upcoming elements of the mid-’80s.

Finally, on the end of disc two, we have 1987’s  Keys To The City. This is an eight-track affair- and really sees  Lewis stepping further in popular genres/ sounds of the late 80s. We go from “Falling In Love” with wavering female backing vocals, soul pop beats, light funk tones, and cascading to blues-bound piano runs from Mr Lewis. There’s taut synth funk bass, ethnic electro beats, bright synth key melody, and jiving piano keys of “Strangers” which features a rising female soul chorus. With the album playing out with “Love And Understanding” with its snapping ‘n’ hissing beats, cascading layers of keys & synth, as well as very bombastic synthetic horn stabs.  As an album Keys To The City sounds so late 80s- but if you take that on, and enjoy/ embrace the production/sounds you’ll have a most enjoyable time here.

This is now the fifth double disc album collection of Ramsey Lewis albums from the fine folks at BGO- and I do hope there’s more to come. If you enjoy very ’80s-sounding easy listening, which is piano-focused but fairly genre fluid you’ll very much get a kick out of what’s on offer here. To buy direct, and check out other Lewis releases drop by here.