New Album Out NOW: “All We Have Are Moments”
Marqueal Jordan Releases New Album All We Have Are Moments
Third album is a musical documentation building on legacy
Saxophonist and Vocalist Marqueal Jordan’s desire is to be a musician and artist who not only learned the lessons of the legends who inspire him, but to also become an extension of those legends and build a legacy of music that would inspire generations to come. With his third album, All We Have Are Moments (AWHAM), Marqueal has created a solid foundation upon which to build that legacy. Recorded between the Summer of 2020 and February 2022, AWHAM is Marqueal’s most honest and complete body of work. It was created during a time of uncertainty, anger, despair, frustration, and loss, not to mention the Coronavirus Pandemic.
“The plan was to release an album on my 50th birthday, which was on October 23, 2020. I was going to call it “Visions”, but the pandemic stopped the music industry in its tracks. My dear friend and bandmate, the great drummer Khari Parker, passed away suddenly right before I started working on the album. Not only that, combined with the senseless deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, I was on an emotional rollercoaster and eventually in a state of depression. I had no emotion left to pour into working on the album, so I just stopped recording…for a while.”
After five months, Marqueal went back to work and finished two songs, “Elevation” and “Last Call”. The latter was released as an advance single for AWHAM in March 2021, but after a lukewarm reception by radio, he questioned the direction of his music career. “For a musical chameleon like myself, it is a challenge to go into one musical genre in general. When you go in that direction and you don’t get the results you desire, you get into your head, and you over think everything.” What eventually broke him out of his creative block was being able to go back on tour and interacting directly with the people who loved his music. “They let me know that my music and artistry are valued, and that they rock with me no matter what I do. Whether it was a local gig in Chicago, a sold-out show in Atlanta, or being back on the road with Brian Culbertson, it was confirmation and life affirming.”
Returning home from a three-week tour with Culbertson in November 2021, with a renewed sense of purpose and determination Marqueal threw himself into completing the album. He vowed to only release songs that he was emotionally connected to. “I wanted to feel every note I played or sang. Leave it all on the tape.” With the help of longtime collaborators Chris “Big Dog” Davis, Culbertson, Verne Allison Jr., Mike Logan Sr., and DJ I.N.C., along with keyboardist/producer Jonathan Richmond, Chicago-based MC D2G, and members of Marqueal’s working band, The Wachezaji (aka The Players), the result is an earnest and emotional collection of songs that speak to enjoying and cherishing every moment in the moment.
From the feel-good groove of “Sistas” featuring Culbertson, the Steppers’ vibe of “Mahogany”, the vocal urgency of “Behave to Love”, the sensual crooning on “Dot Dot Dot (The Sequel)”, the sneaky funk of “Elevation”, the Raphael Saddiq/Hip Hop influence of “And, Still…”, to the live version of “Last Call”, AWHAM has something for everybody. The performances on this album tell a story, and they are more assured and confident. “God took over this album. And I submitted to it. This was by far the most difficult album to create, but it is easily my best work to date. All We Have Are Moments is the most complete musical documentation of ME, and I am excited to share it with the world.”