JJ Joe Sansaverino Client of Kari-On Productions Publicity

JJ Sansaverino
"Sunshine After Midnight"
www.jjsans.com

Accolade Highlights
JJ is a current client

Brian Bloom, Audiophile Audition
3-1/2 Stars
Think Karl Denson or Norman Brown with a bit more funk. My co-worker said the first track would be a perfect track at the end of a Will Smith movie—an observation that is not far off the mark as it does have a soundtrack flavor to it. A lot of the guitar work seems to be inspired by greats like Wes Montgomery and George Benson. The second track sounds a lot like “Breezin’.” It even has some scratching like a Soul Live record. From a sampling of only the first few songs the listener will realize that there is a nice variety of tracks. Track four and 10 are a little reggae, six is Latin influenced, and seven is a harder funk/soul-like track ala Santana. Guitar and other acoustic sounds are very good while the electronic sounds have a slightly processed quality. None of the music is harsh or in your face—it’s mellow and smooth and worth more than a casual listen. If this disc doesn’t get a lot of airplay on the lite/smooth jazz stations I’d be surprised. Check it out!

Denis Poole, Smoothjazztherapy
From the first track of the CD, ‘Sunshine’, a tight piece of laid back, melodic yet funky smooth jazz where less is always more, that mission is clearly accomplished. In fact ‘Sunshine After Midnight’ is something of a triumph for JJ who, together with Alex Valenti, writes and produces all twelve tracks. The experience JJ has gained through performing with some of the worlds top reggae acts is put to good use on ‘Victory Of Righteousness’. It starts out with a solid beat that suggests ‘Stand Up For Your Rights’ and then weaves in melodic guitar that has a kind of Jamaica meets Southern California thing going on. Also in the reggae groove is ‘Rejuvenation’. Here the beat underpins cool piano from Earl Appleton with the whole held together by JJ’s skilful playing. Sansaverino also shows he can turn it down with tracks like the mellow yet bluesy ‘My Lover’ and the Latin spiced ‘Mother’. ‘Fallen Heroes’ is another gentle track but one that develops a haunting lilt along the way while ‘On The Avenue’ is another laid back and funky number with outstanding production, a killer bass line throughout and handsome sax from Ze Luis Oliveria. The production of Sansaverino and Valenti continuously dares to be different and the way they use turntable effects courtesy of DJ Charm puts both ‘Just About Everybody’ and ‘Swing Easy’ among the highlights of the entire collection. The first of these starts out rock solid urban before a fulsome brass section carries it along and blends with the guitar of JJ who, much in the style of Jeff Golub, allows himself to rock within the constraints of the tight up temp beat. The latter is a striding little tune with stellar brass again to the fore. It’s a foot tapper of the highest order. With ‘Sunshine After Midnight’ JJ Sansaverino is serving up a heady and atmospheric mix of soulful smooth jazz that is as good as anything I have heard all year.

Michael James, Smooth Jazz and More
3 Stars out of 4
J.J.’s guitar playing style will remind you of Lee Ritenour. His selection of tracks is smooth, easy and mellow, all original compositions. The highlight is the track "Sunshine"
as I enjoyed the mix of vocals and his great guitar playing. He's a future star in the world of smooth jazz music.

Nicholas Sheffo, Fulvue Drive-in
We always are wondering where all the talented musicians are.
We know many of them are backing name acts and J.J. Sansaverino is on that list.
He co-wrote every track here, which shows his natural grasp of guitar. There is
nothing phony or forced about this album, which is a plus.

Karl Stober, Jazzreview
Accompanied by a cast of very exclusive and talented sounds
Mr. Sansaverino has presented one of the finer works I have been
subjected to in 2005. Upbeat and hot in feel, daring and adventurous
in style, “Sunshine After Midnight” will exceed most knowledgeable
jazz fans expectations.

Sansaverino has recently released his first CD entitled Sunshine After
Midnight for the ALZEJO Music Label. When speaking of this debut effort,
the best way to describe what JJ has done is to say “job well done.”

Sunshine After Midnight is a CD worth looking for and by any measure of
talent, it is a multi-faceted sound energy ray of excitement. For the most part,
JJ’s first ever solo effort can best be described as a platform that features a
multitude of guitar influences. Included in this most unusual CD experience are
R&B, jazz, reggae, rock and fusion styles of music. Strategically speaking, JJ
has placed the subtleties of urban rhythms along side horn perfect melodies
that have been fused with a variety of flavors that includes the street dynamics
of New York and the Latin-tinged metrics of Brazil. For additional spice, Sansaverino
propels the CD forward with an infectious array of grooving rhythms, as heard on
the track entitled “Just About Everybody.” With a push from the intuitive creative spirit
that comes from within, JJ has taken his guitar posture to a level that is fresh and uniquely
qualified to be different. He has done so without the usual clichés of smooth jazz commercialism.
That fact in itself makes Sunshine After Midnight well worth a listen and speaks to JJ’s thought-provoking approach.

In retrospect, when listening to JJ Sansaverino’s debut release, I could not help but
be touched by his approach. He has taken the qualitative aspects of fusion, coupled
with the nuances of the Caribbean experience and stirred in a variety of musical style
to push the envelope of jazz to another level of creativity. Although this release allows
JJ to let his hair down as a leader and to flex his muscle as a jazz artist, I do believe
there is a high degree of creativity yet to be seen from this highly eclectic guitarist.

Adam Greenberg, All Music Guide
3 Stars
"The debut album from JJ Sansaverino, among other things, the lead guitarist
for Maxi Priest for the last few years. There's some nice production value
here, with Alex Valenti and Zé Luis Oliveira taking the helm to switch off and on
from a New York sound to partially Brazilian inspired with notable highlights
including "Fuego" and "Victory of Righteousness”. Sansaverino is a worthwhile
guitar player."

Geannine Reid, Ejazznews.com
His sideman approach paid off for him in spades, giving Sansaverino
the experience and knowledge to come out as a solid force for his
debut release. Sansaverino exhibits groove, style and appeal with
his fresh approach to R&B infused jazz. “Sunshine after Midnight,”
not only highlights Sansaverino as a composer, but his soaring chops
and intelligent lines as a guitarist.