When Lonnie Liston Smith made the transition from sideman to leader in 1973… Read Full Bio ↴When Lonnie Liston Smith made the transition from sideman to leader in 1973, it was the beginning of a fusion/crossover/post-bop band he dubbed Lonnie Liston Smith & the Cosmic Echoes. The acoustic pianist/electric keyboardist, who was born in Richmond, VA, on December 28, 1940, should not be confused with soul-jazz/hard bop organist Lonnie Smith. This Smith would have had an impressive resumé even if he had never formed a band of his own. In the '60s or early '70s, he had been a sidemen for, among others, Pharoah Sanders, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Gato Barbieri, singer Betty Carter, and trumpeter Miles Davis. In fact, Smith was still in Davis' employ when he signed with producer Bob Thiele's RCA-distributed Flying Dutchman label and recorded his first album as a leader, Astral Traveling (which Thiele produced). Nonetheless, the Cosmic Echoes were a major step forward for Smith -- the improviser had a lot more time to devote to his own compositions and he was free to concentrate on a very spiritual type of fusion that had a variety of influences. The post-bop of model explorers like Coltrane, Sanders, Kirk, Yusef Lateef, McCoy Tyner, and Charles Lloyd was a heavy influence on Smith's composing since all of those artists shared the Cosmic Echoes' spiritual concerns. But the Cosmic Echoes were hardly jazz purists. Their instrumental fusion combined those post-bop influences with funk, pop, and rock, and some of their best-known vocal numbers (which include 1979's "Space Princess" and 1983's "Never Too Late") were outright R&B. It was on April 24, 1973, that Smith recorded Astral Traveling and led his first Cosmic Echoes lineup, which included George Barron (soprano and tenor sax), Joe Beck (guitar), Cecil McBee (bass), David Lee, Jr. (drums), James Mtume (percussion), Sonny Morgan (percussion), Badal Roy (tabla drums), and Geeta Vashi (tamboura). Astral Traveling was entirely instrumental, but it wasn't long before Smith added a vocalist to the Cosmic Echoes: his brother Donald Smith. Although Donald Smith had helped his brother put together the Cosmic Echoes' first lineup, he isn't actually employed on Astral Traveling -- 1974's Thiele-produced Cosmic Funk was the first Cosmic Echoes album that featured him on vocals. From 1974 on, the Cosmic Echoes' albums were typically about 80 percent instrumental, but included a few vocal offerings. Subsequent Cosmic Echoes projects included 1975's Expansions, 1975's Visions of a New World, 1976's Reflections of a Golden Dream, and 1977's Renaissance, all of which were on either Flying Dutchman or RCA proper. Along the way, the Cosmic Echoes had more than their share of personnel changes. When the group recorded a live album for RCA in 1977, the lineup included Smith on piano and keyboards, his brother Donald on vocals, Dave Hubbard on tenor and soprano sax, Al Anderson on electric bass, Ronald Miller on electric guitar, and Hollywood Barker on drums -- a lineup that, except for Lonnie Liston Smith himself, is totally different from the Cosmic Echoes lineup heard on 1973's Astral Traveling. It was in 1978 that Smith and his Cosmic Echoes left RCA and moved to Columbia to record Loveland, which was a respectable seller (at least by jazz standards) and fared well among fusion, crossover, and quiet storm fans. Smith's next Columbia album, Exotic Mysteries, gave us the single, "Space Princess," which featured Donald on lead vocals and became a minor hit. Although Exotic Mysteries was primarily an instrumental fusion album, "Space Princess" wasn't jazz at all -- the tune is funk-disco but still has that mystic Cosmic Echoes vibe. Some people felt that when Smith and his Cosmic Echoes were recording for Columbia in the late '70s and early '80s, they became too slick and commercial -- nonetheless, the group still had integrity and was still enjoyable and interesting during its Columbia period. Donald Smith temporarily left the Cosmic Echoes after Exotic Mysteries and on 1979's Song for the Children, he was replaced by singer James "Crabbe" Robinson (who is also employed on 1980s Love Is the Answer). And Robinson wasn't the only person who passed through the Cosmic Echoes in the late '70s or early '80s. Others who came on board during Smith's Columbia period included guitarist Abdul Wali, bassist Pee Wee Ford, drummer Lino Reyes, and percussionist Lawrence Killian -- like Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers, Lonnie Liston Smith & the Cosmic Echoes could be a revolving door. Donald Smith ended up returning to the fold in the early '80s, which is also when the Cosmic Echoes were reunited with Thiele (who signed Smith to his new Doctor Jazz label). One of songs that Smith's Cosmic Echoes recorded for Doctor Jazz was the urban/quiet storm vocal number "Never Too Late," which was released as a single and became a minor hit. In the mid-'80s, the Cosmic Echoes unofficially called it quits and Smith moved on to other things. But the pianist/keyboardist (who turned 60 in 2000) returned to a Cosmic Echoes-minded approach in 1998, when he was reunited with his brother Donald and featured him on the album Transformation (which came out on Smith's own label Loveland Records). In 2002, Sony's reissue-oriented Legacy Recordings looked back on the Cosmic Echoes' late '70s and early '80s output with a two-CD retrospective titled Explorations: The Columbia Years.

Mardi Gras
Lonnie Liston Smith Lyrics

We have lyrics for 'Mardi Gras' by these artists:

2-Tone Huh uh uh Got in my bag, pockets stuffed with the…
2baggshawty When did every day begin to feel like Mardi Gras Tiddies out…
Anathallo the things you laughed about. the things that made me sad. …
Coupons why don't you light it up we need a different scene turn…
D.O.M w/ Buddy Whittington Mardi Gras (Screwed and Chopped)…
Dave MARDI GRAS PARTY LYRICS Mardi Gras Party, in New Orleans An…
Dierks Bentley Damn she hurts the morning after Drunk on thinking I could…
Fats Domino Well I'm goin' to New Orleans I wanna see the Mardi…
Gino Vannelli I broke the doldrums of my dreary dreams The london bridge…

Igrekzet Mała wskakuj na blat dzisiaj nie patrzę w dal Wyjmuję flaszk…
JUVENILE You got a problem with me? Fuck you too, all of…
Les VRP {Parlé :} Un p'tit sourire... Vivement mardi gras, qu'on…
Louisiana Avenue Alright nah, it's carnival time in New Orleans, Louisiana Co…
Maes Noxious Ça détaille toute la journée, y a mes gars toujours…
Pierre Kwenders feat. Jacobus Le Mardi Gras eye Le Mardi Gras eye Le Mardi Gras eye Le…
Pino Daniele Acqua e sapone per pulire il viso Dai segni del tempo Da…
Professor Longhair & His New Orleans Boys While you stroll in New Orleans You ought to go see…
Radio Free Earth Hey there, Mardi Gras / Remember what you saw The other…
Ridiculous Rowe Yea And they like it better when you ain't got no…
Roy Byrd Well I'm goin' to New Orleans I wanna see the Mardi…
Suka Suka I’m sick of the news political views Let’s start askin the…
Tanto Metro & Devonte and Joe It's a hot and a rockin' street All-right, all-right Burns m…
Tego Calderón Báilalo, Mai Tego Calderón Underdog (¡Hey!) Tanto dolor…
Tego Calderуn Báilalo, Mai Tego Calderón Underdog (¡Hey!) Tanto …
Terry Lightfoot and His Band How we danced, as we dreamed at the Mardi Gras Was…
Thomas Jefferson It's a God-awful small affair To the girl with the…
Yot Club Turn the car Maybe think about all of the plans that…

We have lyrics for these tracks by Lonnie Liston Smith:

A Chance for Peace give peace a chance and see what happens we have our…
A Lonely Way to Be Don't be so afraid, Love wont hurt you. Just make sure that…
Colors of the Rainbow I just want the money I never met a bitch that…
Expansions expand your mind to understand we all must live in…
Give Peace A Chance give peace a chance and see what happens we have our…
Journey Into Love Come with me, on the trip through the galaxy Flyin' high,…
Love Beams love beams x2…
Night Life "We be hangin' on the block 'til dawn" Outsidaz' Night Life…
Quiet Moments Alarm, The Raw Moments In Time I was born of nineteen fif…
Space Princess Space princess where can we meet And fly away just you…
Speak Low Speak low when you speak, love, Our summer day withers away …
Starlight And You my heart feels so warm when you are around my soul…
Summer Nights Summer nights…
Sunset floating with the sunset…
Twilight Haven't laughed this hard in a long time I better stop…
Vision of a New World the world is yours, repeat…

Visions of a New World the world is yours, repeat…

The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos

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Comments from YouTube:

alex green

9y↑9

Sunday afternoons Dingwalls sessions. Early 1990's . Gilles Peterson on the decks. IDJ dancers busting the moves. Everything felt right, whatever was going on outside :)

Lieve De Groef

3y↑2

Again 8 years late, but what a wonderful track to discover! Lonnie l Smith piano?!... Great flute part who?!... Amazing percussion, faster than any comet in the universe. A big fat Mardi Gras tune. Obrigações ! 🧡
Oh yes, and a very nice, arty album cover! 👌

Ross Buchanan

5y↑3

Great track from the legendary Lonnie Liston Smith. Timeless music.

J Eshun

11y↑2

Pure memories, pure vibes with this tune, have a great weekend Dr Jazz- A typical Saturday morning id be record hunting at Bluebird records, then of for a lunchtime boogie at 100 club in Oxford st, as we sweated on the dancefloor to tunes like this, people were busy shopping, it was always a surreal feeling coming out in daylight, yes that era was so special

Darnell Walker

4y↑5

Just absolutely beautifully amazing carnival ride.

Jaindia

4y↑6

Love this....reminds me of my childhood..I ruined the living room carpet to this but my dad never said a word :) Big tune early 80's on the dance floor Manchester!