"Here's what the jazz jock's are saying about me/my CD..."
Alisa Beckwith - Alabama Public Radio - Tuscaloosa, AL
"Marc's album is great. Kinda puts me in the mind of Kurt Elling."
Joost van Steen - Jazz & Blues Show - The Netherlands
"Right on the Nose !!! Great CD! Quite some variety on it and very good vocal skills, will give this airplay that's for sure."
Daryl Scott - WNIN-FM - Evansville, IN
"Incredibly talented young fella. Love the style and flavor the Trio adds to his voice. Great find!"
Dick Crockett - Still Another JAZZ Show - KXJZ - Sacramento CA,
"MARC COURTNEY JOHNSON begins the last segment with the DAN CRAY TRIO, for Cray is one of the new young lions in piano jazz. Johnson has that hip phrasing of Kurt Elling and Al Jarreau. So familiar with PHILLIP MANUEL another very great jazz vocalist, (where’s the next one?)
Marc Johnson began with an original "Better" and the classic "Invitation." There’s a little Hathaway here. With Marc Johnson, you have a break out jazz artist. We have to pay attention to these new artists, for they will go, R & B big time! Can you blame them. It’s like the NBA! If I’m young, six - ten with a dead on, turn around fade away jumper from the low block, I’d be thinking about my family and the big money. Too!"
Benjamin Boddie - WSHA-FM - Raleigh, NC
"Tell Marc to be patient, I like "You Make It Better" as well. Had to make a choice from so many delicious tunes. The world is his."
Lester A. French Jr. - WMEB-FM - Orono,ME
"I have listened to this CD and indeed like it very well, indeed. I was surprised as he mixes jazz with R&B yet doesn't sound watered down like so many other vocalists. I think this could find some spins at WMEB.
Peace, Les"
Scott Fugate - WBCX - Brenau University - Gainesville, GA
"Wow! What a fabulous CD! Thank you for sending Marc Courtney Johnson & The Dan Cray Trio.
We will be adding the following tracks for airplay in a variety of our eclectic formats: "Better", "Nola's Song", "Lush Life", "Until I Meet You", "Almost Like Being In Love." I'm sure we'll be adding all the tracks in the future on Eclectic 89.1 WBCX covering NE Atlanta and North Georgia!
If you would like to do any promotional giveaways we would be happy to participate!"
Mike Matheny(Dr. Mike) - RadioIO.com - Atlantic Beach, FL
"marc... got it today... just heard it.... great stuff... let's get all that you know ready to hear your music on radioioJAZZ.... and i am certain that listeners in the more that 78 different countries are going to like what they hear.... Dan Cray is already getting lots of play from their recent release... and my instant review is that your getting them on your record is a very .... very good thing...
love it..
drmike"
Norm Movitz - KUMR-FM - Rolla, MO
"I featured Marc’s disc on my “Just Jazz” show this past Friday night. Excellent vocalist, great trio, intriguing arrangements and really cool disc. Chicago can sure crank out some fine sounds. I hope our listeners enjoyed the disc as much as I did on a hot July night,
Norm"
Rick Wojcik - Owner and Founder of the Dusty Groove Record Store, Chicago, IL
"We're not normally ones to dig new jazz vocalists, but this guy's great! Marc Courtney Johnson hails from Chicago, and he's got a warmly flowing sound that recalls some of the recent genius from Chicagoan Kurt Elling -- but which also stretches back to 70s magic from Al Jarreau or George Benson. But even over and above all those well-placed references, Johnson's got a depth that goes even farther -- a willingness to stretch out on a tune, add in his own lyrics, and really improvise with his phrasing -- a truly "jazz" approach to jazz vocals, one that so many singers today seem to have forgotten about. The Dan Cray trio provides wonderful support for Marc on the set -- allowing for lively rhythms, long runs on the piano, and the right sort of energy to match Johnson's lyrically flowing style. Our favorite number on the album is Johnson's wonderful reworking of Bill Lee's "Nola's Song" from the She's Gotta Have It Soundtrack -- but all tracks are great, including the originals "To Be Free" and "You Make It Better" -- plus versions of "Invitation", "Until I Met You (Corner Pocket)", and "Lush Life".
Neil Tesser - Listen Here Radio - Chicago, IL
Marc Courtney Johnson's self-released, self-titled debut disk (available through his web site, Dreamyjazz.com) came out in 2004, though you probably haven't heard of it, or of him: he's pursuing vocal jazz as a sideline to a career in Web Programming, so he's had relatively few gigs and little exposure. That's a shame, because Johnson has plenty of promise, both as a singer- his throaty tenor gets up into the Aaron Neville range- and as a songwriter; the more seasoning he gets, the better he'll sound. The album, like his stage work; has some valleys but some real peaks as well: he'll sometimes bite off a bit more than he can chew in terms of phrasing, tempo, or intonation, but he gets kudos for stretching toward tougher material, and he has a sure sense of what the music should do or say. Also on the plus side, Johnson works with a marvelous trio led by pianist Dan Cray, and he picks some unexpected but welcome material, such as tunes by Bill Lee (Spike's dad) and Luther Vandross. Well Worth hearing.
Thomas "Biz" Bisard - WNMC 90.7 FM Traverse City MI
"I got the cd on Thursday and have given it a listen today. While I don't necessarily agree with all his choices, such as the extreme up-tempo section on 'Invitation,' they are valid and do work for the tunes. Overall I'm kinda gassed by his chops.
I'll be adding it this next week fer shurrr. I'm thinkin' our listeners will love it.
Schweebop Beedeedoh, Biz"