Take 6 'Feels Good' album

The sound is unmistakable, a joyful, sophisticated, rollicking and mind-blowing thing. It is a celebration of the human voice lifted in appreciation to the wonders of life and the goodness of God. It is sparkling. It is exhilarating. And it is back. Take 6's new CD, Feels Good, is easily the most buoyant, effervescent project since--well, to be honest, since the first Take 6 album, which was released, incredibly enough, 17 years ago.

Since then, popular music has turned over a time or two, and the Take 6 sound has been woven firmly into its fabric, influencing any number of acts, most notably and straightforwardly Boyz 2 Men and the Backstreet Boys, as well as NSync, who paid them the ultimate compliment in asking them to do arrangements.

The band itself has grown immeasurably through the years, exploring new settings for the inspired vocals that are the centerpiece of their music and gaining fans around the world. Feels Good finds the sextet coming full circle, returning to the approach that first brought them to the public eye--incredible a capella jazz arrangements with positive lyrical content. It is music that feels good, that lifts up, that encourages, and that grooves like nothing they've done before.

It is also music over which they had complete creative and business control. After a dozen years on a major label, the sextet decided to make this record without any outside interference, arranging all and writing most of the songs for the project and forming their own record company, Take 6 Records, to release it.

“This was a natural progression for us," says Alvin Chea, who, along with Cedric Dent, Claude McKnight, David Thomas, Joey Kibble and Mark Kibble, makes up Take 6. "Traditional record companies want to lock you into a particular category. If you are slightly askew of that, they really don’t know what to do with you. We decided to take the reins on this project and in our careers so we could position our projects in the marketplace by how we felt led.”

The result is a capella with just a few touches of percussion, and a project that is arguably their most creative endeavor since their first. Highlights are everywhere. "Family Of God" is six voices in seamless accord, a soaring and lovely track that again sets the standard for vocal work. "Set U Free," with its Brazilian feel, is testament to the way in which the group can mix styles and cultures and still retain an eclectic yet unmistakable identity. With "Just In Time," they tackle fearlessly a standard covered through the years by one-of-a-kind stylists including Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin and Nina Simone, and they go more directly down a gospel path with a soaring and respectful cover of Twila Paris's "Lamb Of God."

It is another incredible addition to the band's catalog, a body of work which has carried the sextet around the world and made them stars of the first order in countries as varied as Japan and Brazil. In the U.S., Take 6 has left its mark everywhere in popular music. The group virtually owns Downbeat magazine's readers' poll, having won "Favorite Jazz Vocal Group" for nine consecutive years. They have won 8 Grammys out of a total of 18 nominations--making Take 6 one of the most nominated Gospel, Jazz, Pop or R&B artists in Grammy history--10 GMA Music Awards, a Soul Train award and two NAACP Image Award nominations.

Ten albums down the road, it is, of course, simple to catalog the impact Take 6 has had on the world. In the beginning, it was simply an aurally thrilling phenomenon.

Their debut, Take 6, was an event, one of a handful of times in modern music when a new act transcended genres, earned extraordinary critical and popular success, and inspired imitators who would attain superstar status themselves. That any new act could manage that is noteworthy. That an a capella group from a little Bible college in Huntsville, Alabama, could do so was phenomenal. The record sold a million copies, earned three Grammy nominations and fired the imagination of the creative community.

Stevie Wonder bought copy after copy to give to friends and put "Spread Love" on his answering machine. Ed Bradley voiced his amazement during a piece on them for "60 Minutes." They would record or perform with Wonder, Ella Fitzgerald, Kenny Rogers, Ray Charles, Don Henley, Branford and Wynton Marsalis, Patti Labelle, Al Jarreau, Denyce Graves, the Yellowjackets, James Taylor and k.d. lang, among many others. Music legend Quincy Jones said simply, "Take 6 are the baddest vocal cats on the planet. On this subject there is nothing else to discuss. That's the way it be's."

Their work appeared on movie soundtracks, at charitable and cultural events, on BET and VH-1, and in countless other settings across the cultural landscape. That they maintained their outlook, their spiritual moorings and their camaraderie through it all--there has been just one personnel change since the beginning--speaks as eloquently as anything in the entertainment world about what determination and integrity can sew and reap.

With Feels Good, the group also proves again what a commitment to constant reinvention can accomplish.

"It is important for us," says Mark Kibble, to continually challenge ourselves musically in order to keep our music and creative spirit fresh."

With the reins in their own hands, and their fortunes tied to stunning arrangements and God-given vocal gifts, Take 6 is re-enriching the world's musical heritage as well.

Biography

Being patently original, with a timeless musical artistry can only define one group- Take 6. Take 3 parts Gospel + 1 part Jazz, +1 dash of Pop +1 touch of R&B = 6 parts of soulful harmony. Take 6’s new album “Feels Good” ingeniously blends all these genres in a delicious, spirit-soaring feast of sound.

With the release of their much-anticipated album “Feels Good”, Take 6 returns to their rich musical heritage bringing the listener along for one of their most uplifting, funky and inspirational joy rides to date. “Feels Good” makes you feel just that –good. Its warm sonic tapestry weaves around the soles of your feet and up until it tickles the very “baby hairs” on your arms. Take 6 began crafting “Feels Good” a year and a half ago, yet this project represents everything that devout Take 6 fans, over the years, have come to love and expect from this multifaceted sextet. With a nod to their history, “Feels Good” boldly looks forward attacking Acapella in new exciting ways.

With a staggering eighteen Grammy-Award nominations, Take 6 is the most nominated Gospel, Jazz, Pop or R&B artists in Grammy history. Yet along with their solid 10 Grammy wins, 10 Dove Awards, one Soul Train Award and two NAACP Image Award nominations already on their mantel, Take 6 have set yet another challenge for themselves. The group has recently launched Take 6 Records, and is now capitalizing on, not only their 20 years of collective experience in the creative side of music, but also, by taking a more proactive role, in the business of music. Member Alvin Chea says, “This was a natural progression for us. Traditional record companies want to lock you into a particular category. If you are slightly askew of that, they really don’t know what to do with you. We decided to take the reigns on this project and in our careers so we could position our projects in the marketplace by how we felt lead. ”

In the music industry, Take 6 is so universally recognized as simply being “the best”, that they have virtually owned Downbeat magazine‘s readers’ poll having won “Favorite Jazz Vocal Group” 9 consecutive years. In spite of this, Mark Kibble states, “It is important for us to continually challenge ourselves musically in order to keep our music and creative spirit fresh.”

Take 6 has received some of its highest praise from the music industry’s icons. Mega producer and longtime collaborator Quincy Jones, has described Take 6 as” The baddest vocal cats on the planet.” In their stellar career, they have been honored to perform with numerous music legends including Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, David Foster, Al Jarreau, Stevie Wonder, Denyce Graves, The Yellowjackets and Wynton Marsalis among a host of others. The Take 6 style has also reached today’s pop culture. Their musical style and tight harmonies have influenced pop groups from Boyz II Men and Backstreet Boys to *NSYNC.

As wonderful as these honors and accolades are, Take 6 is still committed to using their music as a ministry. Claude McKnight (founding member) beams, “I’m immensely proud of the fact we have had only one personnel change in the group which was founded 20 years ago. It is very much a testament to our commitment to one another and spreading the gospel through our music”.

Take 6 consists of members: Alvin Chea, Cedric Dent, Claude McKnight, David Thomas, Joel Kibble and Mark Kibble.

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Take 6 - Feels Good