STEVE HAINES
 
Steve Haines, Becca Stevens, Chad Eby, Joey Calderazzo high res.jpg
Steve Haines, Becca Stevens, Chad Eby, Joey Calderazzo high res.jpg

NEW ALBUM AVAILABLE MARCH 29!

STEVE HAINES AND THE THIRD FLOOR ORCHESTRA

FEATURING: BECCA STEVENS, CHAD EBY AND JOEY CALDERAZZO

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Justin Time Records is proud to announce the March 29th release of bassist, composer and arranger Steve Haines’ upcoming album Steve Haines and the Third Floor Orchestra. The album features Becca Stevens on vocals, Chad Eby on soprano saxophone, Joey Calderazzo on piano and a full orchestra providing a beautiful sonic backdrop over which Eby’s sax floats and Stevens’ voice soars. Drawing on influences from the jazz, classical and celtic traditions, this album of stunning original compositions and reimagined popular songs transcends genres, and has something to offer for a very wide array of listeners.

On Steve Haines and the Third Floor Orchestra, the artist chose to interpret the work of multiple composers from his homeland of Canada with pieces from Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Leonard Cohen and Kim Mitchell gracing the album. Listeners will undoubtedly enjoy Haines’ arrangements of popular songs such as “Harvest Moon,” “Hallelujah,” and “Patio Lanterns.” These arrangements celebrate the original melodic and lyrical structures of the pieces with explorations in harmony and instrumentation which aim to augment the power of these classic songs.

This release offers listeners the rare opportunity to hear vocalist Becca Stevens’ rich voice accompanied by a full orchestra, which harkens back to the early days of jazz, when such accompaniment was commonplace. The world renowned vocalist describes her voice and approach on this album as “wider,” stating that she has to “soar over the area that she had to cover sonically.” Haines has been acquainted with Stevens for over decade; they first met at a gig in New York City, where she gave him a copy of her debut Tea By Sea, which “totally knocked [him] out.” Stevens wrote two songs for this release including the wistful waltz “No More,” and the driving, bright-tempoed “Canyon Dust.”

The inspiration for Steve Haines and the Third Floor Orchestra came after Haines had finished writing a string quartet arrangement for Stevens. Writing for the album began in the summer of 2016, and the album’s recording process was completed in February 2018. Haines’ foray into orchestral writing also paired with his passion for writing lyrics, a recent discovery for the artist. “In my midlife, I discovered lyrics, and there a couple of songs on here of mine.” Haines exclaimed, “I am late to writing and even paying attention to lyrics but i’m very glad for them at this stage of my life.”

In “What I’ve Seen,” Haines writes about the devastating effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in returning veterans. Moved by the loss of many young men and women in the military to suicide, Haines penned the lyrics to this piece. He states ““What I’ve Seen” started out as a story about a mother speaking to her lost husband, and his response from the grave.” Stevens delivers Haines’ forlorn lyrics, and tells the heartbreaking story with sincerity and grace. The piece ends with a short, powerful improvisational segment from Eby, his soprano saxophone wailing over the tender string harmonies, reminiscent of a wife’s cries of longing over a lost love.

“You,” another composition with lyrics by Haines, tells a largely autobiographical tale of a deepening serendipitous love in the life of the author. The composer states that the piece started with the solo guitar refrain that is heard at the beginning of the song, and unfolded into the sublime lyrically-driven track that can be heard on the album. Haines explains “The concept is that the “You” that one loves can be more than one person: it could be a spouse, a son or daughter, a mother or a best friend, or God.” The ethereal verses of this song with vocals accompanied by classical guitar leave room for the piece to grow dynamically into the wonderful, amorous clave-driven choruses that truly bring this song to life. This track features a fantastic solo by stellar pianist Joey Calderazzo.

Steve Haines and the Third Floor Orchestra will be available on March 29th, and an album release show is planned 8:00 pm, April 26th at UNCG Auditorium in Greensboro.

Track Listing:

  1. HERE ARE OUR HEARTS (1:01) Susan Drake/Julie Jennings

  2. NO MORE (6:17) Becca Stevens/Bill Stevens

  3. FAIR AND TENDER LADIES (5:12) Olle Johnny Lande/Ivar Hansson

  4. YOU (5:36) Steve Haines

  5. HARVEST MOON (5:23) Neil Young

  6. CHOPIN MAZURKA OPUS 17 No. 4 (6:29) Frederic Chopin

  7. PATIO LANTERNS (4:27) Kim Mitchell/Phillip Woods

  8. WHAT I’VE SEEN (5:35) Steve Haines

  9. HALLELUJAH (6:59) Leonard Cohen

  10. CANYON DUST (5:07) Becca Stevens

  11. IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND (6:05) Gordon Lightfoot

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The Third Floor Orchestra

The Third Floor Orchestra

Steve Haines, bass/composer

Steve Haines, bass/composer

Kevin Geraldi, conductor

Kevin Geraldi, conductor

Marjorie Bagley, violin

Marjorie Bagley, violin

Personnel:

CONDUCTED BY KEVIN GERALDI

BECCA STEVENS - VOICE

CHAD EBY - SOPRANO SAX

JOEY CALDERAZZO - PIANO

STEVE HAINES - DOUBLE BASS

KOBIE WATKINS - DRUMS

FLUTES - ERIKA BOYSEN, MEGAN MAKEEVER

ASHLEY BARRET - OBOE

ANNA LAMPIDIS - ENGLISH HORN

CLARINETS - CARMEN EBY, ANTHONY TAYLOR

RON RUDKIN - BASS CLARINET

REBECCA LIBERA - BASSOON

TRIMPETS - RUSTY SMITH, BRANDON LEE

FRENCH HORNS - ABIGAIL PACK, TANNER WEST

TROMBONES - SETH FRACK, CAMERON MACMANUS, CAMERON LUKE

JUSTIN WORLEY - TUBA

PERCUSSION - ERIC WILLIE, ADAM SNOW

ANDREW BEACH - BASS

MIRA EBY - BACKGROUND VOX TRACK 5

VIOLIN 1 - MARJORIE BAGLEY, HANNAH SPEAR, ABIGAIL BRACEWELL, QUASHAWN CHADWICK

VOILIN 2 - TRACY VIATOR, MADELEINE KLEE, DWYLA PEARSON, WENYIN DENG

VIOLA - SCOTT RAWLS, CLAIRE FOWLER, KATIE BRACEWELL, DAVE PHILLIPS

CELLO - ALEX EZERMAN, BRIANNA TAM, BETHANY UHLER, MIGUEL ZAPAROLLI

PUBLICITY: LYDIA LIEBMAN PROMOTIONS

BOOKING
INQUIRIES:

stevejhaines@gmail.com

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