Bradley Leighton

Back to the Funk

Artist Interview by: Ed Tankus

August 2005 - Bradley Leighton’s career has taken some interesting twists and turns. He grew up in Washington State, spent time at Fort Lewis in the military band and then later, Korea. He taught and played in Seoul, but he eventually returned home to Seattle where he honed his chops for the next 15 years playing flute in funk and R&B bands, and jazz trios. In 2003, Leighton made the move to San Diego. He says, “When you’ve spent a winter in Seattle, you’ll know the answer why ...”

Leighton has released two CD’s and is currently working on his third. Unlike the first two, this one is strictly a studio work.

“I’m working on a completely contemporary jazz album at this point ... more of an urban contemporary sound. It’s going to feature some horn arrangements ... maybe like the Braxton Brothers, that kind of thing.” Working in the studio is different for everyone and Leighton is no exception. “For me, it means I try and go in as fresh as possible. We outline the session and I have an idea of the grooves and the tempos involved, but there’s really very little preparation. I just kind of go in and once the pre-production is done, I just kind of knock it out.  I do my input on the front end saying ‘I’d like it to sound like this and like this’ and then I work with my producer, Allan Phillips.  He puts together some grooves and some ideas and then we go out and find the individual players that we need to produce that sound.”

So what can we expect from this new release?

“The sound [of the alto flute] is just growing on me,” explains Leighton. “It seems to fit in better with most combo situations sonically--I mean the blend with other instruments.  In this case, when I’m working with muted trumpet or trombone or some baritone sax that I double with on this album, it blends well with all of that.”

Distinctly missing, however, will be Rob Whitlock’s Hammond B3. This was a conscious decision by Leighton who wants to keep himself and his music diverse and reachable. “I’m not about finding a place [musically] as I am about doing as many different things as I can.  I came up in a real heavy R&B background and played a lot of dance music, and I still like to do that.  I don’t ever want people to say, ‘He’s the jazz flutist.’”

Leighton’s desire for diversity extends beyond performing and into teaching. His philosophy is that everybody should be playing music. “It’s not just something that only artists and musicians do,” says Leighton.

Leighton has a flute choir that he put together that meets once a week in local homes. The ages vary. It’s his way of giving back to the community in the same way the Seattle musicians gave to him, and inspired him when he was growing up. But when he teaches, music theory isn’t necessarily the first thing on his list. “For an amateur player and for someone that’s only going to pick up their horn for an hour or two a week, you can give yourself a satisfying playing experience without being inundated with all the theory ... it’s more of an ear approach. I teach them how to recognize simple queues and to navigate a song.” He insists that music theory still has its place for serious and professional musicians.

Bradley Leighton’s first exposure to music as a child was country and western and the weekly Lawrence Welk shows. His only jazz influence came from a 1909 Hobart player piano his family had in the living room. “The paper rolls that it played consisted of old boogie-woogie and blues tunes. No one in the house was musical and nobody played the piano, but I would sit there and play the rolls and try and make my hands do it ... I have the first four or five years of piano training, like everyone else, from the neighborhood piano-teaching lady.  I still play quite a bit of piano just as a writing tool and a composition device, rarely on a gig.”

Leighton readily admits that he has no clear idea of who his audience is and that’s fine. His performances can include music from the 40’s to today. He just doesn’t like to stick to a format. The feedback he’s received from his CD’s tells him the demographic is different for each and every song. He really doesn’t worry about it and feels quite lucky that he’s recording, and that he’s able to produce these CD’s.

“The key to making it work is to do the things that I like to do,” says Leighton.  All the indicators are that there are quite a few listeners that like what Bradley Leighton does, too.

Bradley Leighton’s new CD is expected out this winter. Its reception and airplay around the country will determine how far and wide Leighton may tour to support it. He’ll be performing on at least one jazz cruise and would love to come to New York and elsewhere. In the meantime, you can check out Bradley Leighton and all his music by going to his website.

For more information: bradleyleighton.com

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