Patrick Yandall is a jazz guitarist with a constant contribution to the music scene. Born in Bay City, Michigan, he found his luck in San Diego and L.A., where he has established himself as session musician. Besides performing on sessions Patrick is recording tracks for the Weather Channel and jazz Muzak that you hear in malls and other places. Patrick started his solo career with That Feels Nice (1994), followed by A Lasting Embrace (1997), Of Two Cities (2000), Back To The Groove (2001), From The Ashes (2003), Eyes Of Mars (2005), Samoa Soul (2006), New York Blues (2007), Laws Of Groovity (2008) and this year A New Day (2009). His new album is devoted to the smooth jazz genre and features besides multi-instrumentalist Yandell himself Marc Pierucci (keyboards, percussion, bass and drum programming) and Jeff Laakso (sax). Patrick wrote all songs on this album, which is today's by no means common practice. A New Day is not limited to a pure date. It's a philosophical and historical attitude of mind. The positive will that there is a chance to change the conditions to something better. This strong believe is also part of Patrick's thinking and expression of his music. Patrick often interprets his thoughts in guitar chords like on Urban Flight. The clear and crystal guitar sound is underlined by urban bass and beats. Marc Pierucci adds impressing synth sounds. This musician from Nevada should definitely create his own website to get more promotion. Patrick proudly shouts out: "I Am There!" And his guitar is unmistakably unsurpassed and unfaultable to hear. A great praise for Jeff Laakso's superb horn arrangement with the Kickass Brass section. The guitar-fueled Do You Feel showcases more of Patrick's relaxed smooth jazz guitar style. Comparison with Wes Montgomery, George Benson and other guitar legends are allowed. No Yandall album without funk. Pistons Stomp brings the funky notes. It's a formidable listening pleasure when Patrick runs the frets. Marc Pierucci puts his keyboard into the performance just in time. On Full Force Patrick takes a sleight adaption to the old hit Walking In Rhythm by the Blackbyrds but he works the theme in different directions and gives it a new twist. The mellow If You Love Me reveals the silky guitar sound and the romantic vein in Patrick's heart. The sunny side of San Diego with beach, sea, surfing and relaxing life is incorporated in Sun Diego. Have a nice day! Yandall has followed a path based primarily in jazz and blues. Patrick calls this edgy way simply The Path. LC Squared is pure guitar mastery. Patrick wrote Mr. Fattburger for keyboardist Carl Evans jr., co-founder and member of the smooth jazz group Fattburger, who died on April 10, 2008 at a San Diego hospital in an age of 53. The band was named for a song that Mr. Evans wrote as an ode to his favorite hamburger. The significant synth sound reminds of Evans' work. Patrick Yandall's A New Day is delicious and appealing. Exactly the nucleus of fine smooth jazz guitar music. --HBH of smoothjazz.deHere comes #10 for Patrick Yandall I have to admit to a certain bias here, as I personally think that Patrick Yandall is one of the most polished and accomplished guitarist around (and I speak from the vantage point of one guitarist to another, although I m sure we re miles apart in terms of overall ability and talent!). He wears smooth jazz like a well-fitting suit, and his clear, distinctly melodic sound clearly supports that view. As for his writing talents, we re talking solid pieces, well interwoven into the very fabric of his music. A New Day, his latest, whose scheduled release date is April 3, bears all the markings of yet another aural treasure. A New Day is simply loaded with shiny excitement right from the very start. The 1st and title track is most aptly named, as it s just right for starting a new day: Sunny, driving, and with purpose and direction. That s followed by the rocking, rhythmic Urban Flight, a tune definitely designed for getting on your dance groove. Anyone who can sit through Pistons Stomp without giving in to or at least fighting--the urge to get up and get the party started has to be made of some immobile solid substance, like a brick wall! Other tracks that follow are notably characteristic of this prolific author of 10 superb releases, each bearing its own signature. It s perfectly alright, and has become acceptable to most jazzers, if an artist should opt to revisit in some clever way sounds or tunes from his or her earlier releases (and many have even embarked on a couple of CDs comprised largely of covers). However, what appeals to me most about Yandall is his ability to create something perfectly separate from previous work while staying rooted in a style that has defined him. His material is almost always fresh with new and exhilarating melodies, and one finds oneself anxiously awaiting the next tune or album because of this remarkable ability. Now, on A New Day, he approaches different styles that still suit his personal style. There are selections that may remind you of Earth, Wind, and Fire, the Isley Brothers, Larry Carlton, Carlos Santana, Fattburger, and various forms of funk in fact, there are specific tributes to a few of these greats here. In the end, however, this is Patrick Yandall, in all his glory, recognizing those superb and different styles in his own very special way. If you re like me, you like your smooth jazz with motion, definition, and something that stirs the soul as well as tantalizes the ear. Something slightly different from the last album you heard (by any artist)-- but not unidentifiably different--doesn t hurt, either, right? Well, that s what you get when you listen to Yandall. Here s another album without a single throw-away track, in my opinion. I don t know of very many albums about which I can say that easily, although there have been a notable few lately. At any rate, remember the release date for this one. You can thank me later. Posted by Ronald Jackson at February 21, 2009 8:02 PM --SmoothVibes.com Ronald JacksonIf there is one musician whose style typifies the sun soaked vibe synonymous with the city of San Diego it is guitarist Patrick Yandall. When in 2006 I reviewed his album Samoa Soul I described him as having rhythm and melody pumping through every vein of his body and his 2008 follow-up Laws Of Groovity provided further evidence of his distinct southern Californian groove. Now, with his latest project, A New Day , he has surpassed himself with a wonderful collection of eleven self penned tracks that is jam packed with some of the best contemporary jazz you will hear this year. Yandall s music engenders enormous enjoyment and the mid tempo magic of Urban Flight is smooth jazz at its immaculate best. In this respect it is in the good company of the superb If You Love Me and, whereas the sexy Do You Feel allows Yandall to slip effortlessly into tranquil mode, Pistons Stomp finds him firmly on funk enriched soil. It s a tune that from melodic beginnings drives to a compelling crescendo while the tight and wholly in the pocket I Am There shimmers with excellent horns from Jeff Laasko and the Kickass (yes, that s right, Kickass) Brass Section. Yandall also takes time out to pay his respects to some of the musicians who have touched his own musical development. He dedicates The Path to Carlos Santana and, despite the fact his playing is totally indicative of this legendary guitarist, Yandall still makes the tune entirely his own. The Larry Carlton inspired LC Squared is a sheer delight yet perhaps the most poignant of Yandall s tributes is that dedicated to the late Carl Evans Jr. Appropriately titled Mr. Fattburger , this beautifully structured number provides a fitting homage to the co-founder and keyboard player of the San Diego based band that, in the late eighties, did so much to shape the then emerging smooth jazz genre. The decidedly retro sounding Full Force fizzes along on a jazzy beat and, as Yandall switches to keys, he perfectly evokes the sound of jazz fusion circa 1980. The first single to go to radio is the R & B influenced title track. With a delicious brass driven groove, and Yandall s tight playing, this cut is a real winner yet just as good and taking us right back to where this review began, Sun Diego says it all about Yandall and the city in which he resides. With sunshine dripping from every note, and a horn infused feel good factor that is off the scale, this is what it s all about.  A New Day , which will be released nationwide on March 3, is a total joy and the perfect antidote to these credit crunched times in which we all currently live. For more go to patrickyandall.com --Smooth Jazz Therapy by Denis Poole