Boney James On His New Album “Solid,” Working With Morris Day, Non-Musical Hobbies & More
A four-time GRAMMY nominee with four RIAA-certified gold records and career sales topping three million units, Boney James continues to defy musical genres. A two time NAACP Award nominee, a Soul Train Award winner and named one of the Top 3 Billboard Contemporary Jazz Artists Of The Decade, James has a new album coming out later this month. Solid is the saxophonist’s 17th album as a leader and will be released by Concord Records on June 12, 2020; Solid follows up his smash 2017 release Honestly which became his eleventh #1 Billboard Contemporary Jazz Album.
All of Solid’s 11 tracks were produced and written or co-written by Boney James. Three songs –“Full Effect,” “Tonic” and the title track — were built from licks played at soundcheck by touring guitarist Kendall Gilder on the road in support of Honestly. Four other songs were initiated by longtime James collaborator, acclaimed writer/producer Jairus “J-Mo” Mozee (Anderson.Paak, Nicki Minaj, Anthony Hamilton). One of those tracks with Mozee, “Be Here,” notably features special guest Kenny Lattimore.
I had the pleasure of speaking with Boney James by phone on March 10, 2020 about Solid and plenty more, including his time with Morris Day and hobbies outside of music. Notably, this was one of the last interviews I recorded before the current Coronavirus pandemic. Audio of the full interview is embedded below and will also appear on a future edition of the Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz podcast. More on Boney James and Solid can be found online by visiting www.boneyjames.com.