# This Time (Al Jarreau album)

Professional ratings :
| Review scores ||
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
This Time is the fourth studio album by Jazz vocalist Al Jarreau, released in 1980 on Warner Bros. Records. The release marked a change in Jarreau's sound to a more R&B-oriented flavor. As a result, the album achieved more success on the mainstream charts than his previous works, while also topping the Jazz Charts. It also reached No. 6 on the R&B charts and No. 27 on the Billboard 200." In 1981 "Never Givin' Up" gave Jarreau a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male.
This Time marked Jarreau's first foray into the top 40 on the Hot 200 or top 10 on the R&B charts, as well as his first No. 1 on the Jazz charts. His next album would prove even more successful, topping both the Jazz and R&B charts.

## Charts & Awards
### Album

| Chart (1980) | Peak position |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 27 |
| R&B | 6 |
| Jazz | 1 |
| Year End Chart (1980) | Peak |
| Jazz | 40 |

### Charting Singles

| Year | Song | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions |
| Year | Song | US Pop | US R&B |
| 1980 | "Distracted" | - | 61 |
| 1980 | "Gimmie What You Got" | - | 63 |
| 1980 | "Never Givin' Up" | 102 | 26 |
"Never Givin' Up" received a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male in 1981, Jarreau's first nomination in the R&B field. It lost to Jarreau's Warner Bros. labelmate George Benson for the Give Me the Night album, who had recently undergone a similar change in sound.

## Personnel

* Al Jarreau – lead vocals, backing vocals (1–3, 5, 7), vocal percussion (1, 4), rhythm arrangements (1–4, 7–9)
* Greg Mathieson – rhythm arrangements (1), acoustic piano (1), string synthesizer (1, 3–5)
* Jay Graydon – synthesizer programming (1–3, 5, 8), electric guitar (1–3, 5, 7, 8), rhythm arrangements (2–4, 7–9)
* Tom Canning – rhythm arrangements (1, 2, 5, 8), Fender Rhodes (2, 4, 5, 8), acoustic piano (3, 5, 8), bells (8)
* David Foster – acoustic piano (2), Fender Rhodes (3, 9)
* Michael Omartian – string synthesizer (2, 8)
* Larry Williams – synthesizers (3, 6, 8), Fender Rhodes (6)
* Steve George – synthesizers (7)
* George Duke – Fender Rhodes (7)
* Oscar Castro-Neves – acoustic guitar (1)
* Dean Parks – electric guitar (3, 5)
* Earl Klugh – acoustic guitar (9), rhythm arrangements (9)
* Abraham Laboriel – bass guitar
* Ralph Humphrey – drums (1, 4, 5, 9), percussion (4)
* Carlos Vega – drums (2, 3)
* Steve Gadd – drums (6–8)
* Earl Lon Price – saxophones (7)
* Bill Reichenbach Jr. – trombone (3, 7)
* Chuck Findley – trumpet (3, 7)
* Jerry Hey – horn arrangements (1, 3, 7), flugelhorn (1, 2, 7, 8), trumpet (3, 7)
* Tom Kellock – rhythm arrangements (3)
* Les Thompson – harmonica solo (5)

## Production

* Producer – Jay Graydon
* Engineers – Joe Bogan and Jay Graydon
* Second Engineer – Debbie Thompson
* Recorded at Dawnbreaker Studios (San Fernando, CA).
* Remixed and Overdubbed at Garden Rake Studios (Sherman Oaks, CA).
* Mastered by Bernie Grundman at A&M Mastering Studios (Los Angeles, CA).
* Art Direction – Richard Seireeni
* Cover Photography – Richard Avedon
* Sleeve Photography – Michael Rice and Susan Jarreau
* Still Life – Harry Mittman