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Party music for the first authenticated alien landing! We certainly don't know when that will be, but we've got the music ready and waiting. Both of Cam Newton's international releases, The Motive Behind the Smile and Welcome Aliens, were praised by RECORD WORLD as "quite extraordinary." BILLBOARD selected Welcome Aliens as a Top Album Pick, and called Cam's music "complex and inventive." DOWN BEAT awarded Welcome Aliens no fewer than 4 1/2 stars of a maximum 5 stars!
On the liner notes for his album First Flight, legendary Jazz guitarist Charlie Byrd recognized Cam Newton, along with John McLaughlin, Larry Coryell, Pat Metheny and Ralph Towner as one of the best of a new generation of Jazz-influenced guitarists. Cam has toured throughout the United States, Mexico and Europe, where he lived and performed for several years. He has toured and performed with a stellar roster of artists, including David Sanborn, Stephane Grappelli, Miles Davis, B.B. King, Manhattan Transfer, Joan Baez, David Crosby, George Winston, Hoyt Axton, J.J. Cale, Joan Armatrading, Richie Havens, Grover Washington, Jr., Jimmy Buffet, Richard Thompson, and Spyro Gyra.
"This music draws you in like a positive magnetic field. Unexpected accents, shifting meters, and contrapuntal complexities set it apart from fusion-as-usual. Newton's guitar playing is full of nice surprises. Like a jazzy John Fahey...... "
-DOWNBEAT MAGAZINE
This is a very different Cam Newton recording than his previous Inner City album The Motive Behind The Smile. While that set features the acoustic guitarist in a quartet, in duets with tablas and on unaccompanied solos, Welcome Aliens is more electric and showcases Newton in a fiery all-star group.
By the time Welcome Aliens (which is subtitled “Party Music for the First Authenticated Landing”) was recorded in 1979, Cam Newton was already known as a true original. He began as a self-taught guitarist and songwriter when he was 12 and never really fit into any rigid musical category. After college, he became a registered music therapist who worked with the elderly.
He made his recording debut for Inner City. Welcome Aliens consists of eight of his originals. In addition to Newton, who is heard on classical guitar and his 12-string guitar, the lineup of musicians includes the late legend Jim Pepper on tenor and soprano, Mark Isham (best known for his soundtracks) on flugelhorn, piccolo trumpet and French Horn, violinist Rob Thomas, keyboardist David Leslie, bassist Pat O'Hearn, drummer Doug Ness, Jack Newton on congas and Hom-nath Upadhyaya on tablas.
While it is easy to call this music fusion, it does not always fit the classic definition of fusion as rock and funk rhythms combined with jazz improvisation. Newton, who contributed all eight originals, is a very impressionistic and cinematic composer as can be ascertained by looking at his song titles, which include “Heroic Proportions,” “In The Temple Of The Falling Leaf,” “and “Welcome Aliens.” His music tends to be episodic, thoughtful (even in its most energetic sections), and picturesque.
There is also a lot of variety to be heard on Welcome Aliens. To name a few highlights, “Water Baby's Chant” features Newton's haunting voice as part of the ensemble. “In The Temples Of The Falling Leaf” and “Recent Developments” have colorful interplay between bassist O'Hearn and Upadhyaya's tablas. “Welcome Aliens” is a bit witty and occasionally riotous. “The Theme” is a ballad feature for Jim Pepper” while “Up The River” could be called avant-folk music.
Review
"This unusual program can simply be described as Cam Newton music. It is well worth exploring.
"A very original guitarist and songwriter, Cam Newton debuted on Inner City with the acoustic and World Music-oriented The Motive Behind The Smile. His second album, Welcome Aliens, is quite a bit different, showcasing Newton in a fiery all-star group. Newton, who is heard on classical and 12-string guitars, also features Jim Pepper on tenor and soprano, flugelhornist Mark Isham, violinist Rob Thomas and a rhythm section with both congas and tablas. While some of the music is jazz/rock fusion, other pieces are impressionistic, cinematic, episodic and picturesque; all of it is thought provoking and unpredictable" - Scott Yanow
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