Brian Simpson has been the keyboardist and Musical Director for Dave Koz for many years, but he’s also a talented artist in his own right.  With four CD’s under his belt, Brian has been steadily moving onto center stage and embracing the spotlight quite well.  Just days before he set sail on the 2011 Smooth Jazz Cruise, Smoothviews welcomed the opportunity to chat with Brian about his career.

Smoothviews (SV): Good evening Brian.  I know you’re incredibly busy, thank you for chatting with me this evening. You’re only days away from sailing, so I know you’ve got a thousand things going on.
Brian Simpson (BS): No problem.   I am multi-tasking big time.  I’m right in the middle of cruise rehearsals.  I’m getting ready to leave on Saturday.  I just got back from Southeast Asia.  I was there for the last two weeks.

SV: So you went right into rehearsals then?
BS: Oh, I did.  I’m kind of glad I had to work.  It staves off the jet lag.  Sometimes having work helps.

SV: The cruise leaves in a couple of days.  By the time this interview is read, you’ll be finished cruising.  The line-up is impressive.  Almost anyone who makes or plays smooth jazz music is performing.  You’ve done several of these cruises before.  Do you do anything special to prepare for them?
BS: I’m preparing for them a year in advance.  I’m thinking about them literally a year or more before.  There’s a lot to consider in programming.  Certain artists are going to have requirements, like who wants background singers, horn players, etc.  We try to work in advance so we can make artists happy and make it work for us as well.

SV: It’s not all work and no play.  What are you most looking forward to on this cruise?
BS: Actually, on the second week, a couple of my kids are coming with my wife.  I’m excited.  It’s the first time my kids have been on a cruise, so that will be exciting.  The other thing is I really do enjoy are the guests that come onboard the ship.  I’ve made a lot of friends.  We get a lot of people that come back over and over.  I’ve been on these from the beginning.  I’ve done six or seven of them.  I don’t know how many years now.  I see a lot of the same people, and the fans are great.  I see a lot of people who already know about me, and I get people that haven’t heard me.  I get a lot of new fans who get to hear my music for the first time.  It’s a great experience and the fact that we’re interacting, we’re hanging out, we’re standing in buffet lines together and all that stuff, is great. 

SV: That’s pretty good.  I was on the cruise website today.  It is pretty much sold out, but the 2012 cruise is already 60% sold.  That’s fantastic.
BS:  There’s definitely something about this formula that works.  There’s no doubt about that.  It’s really connecting with people.  I’m not surprised.  I recommend it to my friends.  They will not be disappointed with this kind of trip.

SV: When these cruises first started, I figured at around year five or six, they would burn themselves out, but they seem to be getting more popular.
BS: And spawned another cruise.  You know, Dave Koz has started one too.  His seems to sell very well too.  It just shows that there is not a shortage of cruisers.

SV: That’s the other thing.  I thought that as more people got into the cruise business, that there’s only a finite amount of customers with cruise dollars to go around, but everybody seems to be holding their own, at least for the time being.
BS: It’s the ultimate vessel.  If you add up what you would spend going to see a few concerts, it’s not that bad.  Everything is all inclusive.  Not to mention, you’re in the Caribbean. 

SV: How can you beat that?  I’m practically salivating because it’s been so cold here, and we just had that nasty winter mix followed by a layer of snow the other day.  I’m thinking, “Oh boy!  They’re getting ready to go out on the Caribbean.” (Laugh)
BS: It’s even been cold here in L.A.  I’m not going to complain; it is Los Angeles, but I’m looking forward to getting to the Caribbean myself.

SV: I bet.  The list of talent for this cruise is just extraordinary.  I know you’ve worked with most, if not all of these musicians before.  Is there anybody on the line-up that you’re really looking forward to working with?
BS:  For sure, Candy Dulfer, who I spent Christmas time with.  We did the Dave Koz & Friends Christmas Tour.  What a joy.  It’s such a treat.  She’s a great musician, but I already knew that.  She’s such a great person.  I really had a great time working with her.  She’ll be on our cruise, so, I’m really looking forward to that. 

I really love the fact that I get to do my own show on this ship.  I do it in sort of a jazz club.  I can have artists come in and sit in with me.  I would have Candy come sit in, Richard Elliott, or Boney, or whoever happens to come over.  It’s such a great environment.  I remember last year when I did, Marcus Miller and Earl Klugh both sat in.  It was the most perfect thing.  We did the song, “Collaboration.”  They hadn’t played that together since they recorded the song.  It was so special.  It was one of those things that happens one time; either you’re there and you see it, or you’re not.  Those kinds of moments happen on the ship a lot over the week.  They happen on different stages and different places where certain musicians get together and something spontaneous happens.  You just have to be there for it.  It really is not to be missed.  You’re going to see some really special stuff.  A lot of magic gets created.

SV: That’s a good point.  That’s one of those things that make it worth the price, those once in a lifetime moments.  It’s not rehearsed.  It just happens.
BS: The fact is you’re getting people together that don’t normally perform together.  You don’t see these guys onstage together ever.  It just doesn’t happen.  It leads to some very interesting things.  We’ve got a couple of new artists that are going to be awesome that many people may not be familiar with; one is Simone, the daughter of Nina Simone.  I was at her rehearsal here in L.A. and it was awesome.  She’s an awesome singer.  What a great talent.  I hadn’t been really familiar with her music.  I’m really looking forward to her shows.  And Larry Braggs; he’s the singer with Tower of Power.  He’s doing a show of his own.  It’s going to be killer as well.  Those are going to be exciting shows.  People are going to be surprised.  I love it when people find out about someone new that just blows them away.  It’s fun.

SV: That gives music fans the opportunity to hear new people whom they may not otherwise hear.
BS: Exactly.

SV: I suspect there are several musicians onboard who are anxious to work with Brian Simpson.
BS: I hope they’re at least satisfied with the experience.  I’ll leave it at that.  As long as they don’t leave saying, “That damn Brian.”

SV: I can’t imagine anyone would say that. (Laugh) So, you’ve got four CD’s released to date.  South Beach has been doing well on the charts, and, I see you’re getting your name out there, you’re playing more gigs.  You seem to be making a successful transition from doing your side work to being the front person.  What’s been the most challenging thing about moving into that position?
BS: I’d say the challenge is just to get promoters, some of the bigger, well known, promoters, to see you as an artist, and not, “Oh, there he is again.  I’ve seen him a million times with Dave Koz, or someone else.”  I have to let them know that I’m an artist in my own right; that’s the only challenge.  Honestly, that hasn’t been so bad.  I’ve gotten a lot of work.  I can’t complain because it’s been really, really good.  I’m so busy now to even worry about it or think that much about it.  Every week I drive to the airport and take off.  There really hasn’t been a shortage of work, although I know in general, it’s not a good time for the average musician.  It’s been pretty rough.  It’s definitely rough in the smooth jazz world.  CD sales are terrible for everyone, and there’s plenty of bad news for everyone, yet I’ve kind of been positioning myself to do some things.  I’ve put certain festivals together and all star shows and it’s paid off.  All the friendships I’ve made over the years, I can actually draw on that now to use my connections to put together some shows that wouldn’t necessarily have been that easy for anyone else to do.  I did the All Star show at the Rehoboth jazz festival.  This will be my second year doing the Tri-C Jazz Festival in Cleveland.  I have a major line-up with that show this year.  It looks like it’s going to be Dave Koz, Rick Braun, Mindi Abair, Kenny Lattimore, and Ray Parker, Jr.  We’re still getting that together, still getting all of the contracts signed.  So that’s what I’m trying to do.  I still do small shows, but I do big shows like that, big dollar shows, and everything in between.  I’m also expanding it to other countries.  I just played two nights in Bangkok and in Indonesia.  I’ll be going back to the Java Jazz Festival in Jakarta, Indonesia in March. 

SV: I’ve heard such great things about that festival from some of the musicians who’ve played there.
BS: OMG!  I think it’s the biggest in the world now.  I’ve been there every year since it started.

SV: That’s great.  Lenny Castro said he absolutely loved playing that festival. 
BS: I love Lenny.  We’ve done shows together over there as a matter of fact.  It’s a great experience and as an artist, you kind of feel you get treated a little better sometimes.

SV: Really?  That’s a bit discouraging to hear that we don’t treat our artists well.
BS: It’s not that we’re not treated well.  There is a certain kind of hospitality that you can only get in other countries sometimes.

SV: That must be some kind of cultural thing.  I want to talk about South Beach since it’s your latest release.  I say you’ve done it again.  You’ve made another CD of good, solid original smooth jazz music.  Even before I heard it, I knew I was going to like it because I liked your other CDs.  You have a good track record.  After hearing it, I do like it.  How have things changed for you since releasing your first CD, Closer Still, back in 1995?
BS: I’d say that the main thing is that my style has evolved, my concept in production and the way I write songs has evolved.  It’s been helped a lot by my fans, my audience.  I take stock.  I listen to what they say, and I can see and read reviews.  I can see what people are saying about certain songs when they are posted.  In the world we live in now, if something ends up on You Tube or if something is on your Facebook page, you’ll get comments.  You get a vibe on what people are saying or thinking.  I actually like that.  Even when I perform live, people come up and talk to me and tell me they love this song or what they loved about that song on a certain record.  I do pay attention to that.  It helps me when I’m working on a new project to remember what really connected with someone. I think it always pays to listen to your audience and to help make that connection even better, whatever connection you’ve already established with your audience.  I’m just trying to keep going for that. 

Although I say that, on my next record I’m really looking to do something to break out of the current mold.  The last three records are pretty much in the same mold, and I think it’s time to do a little something different, especially with the way that radio is basically gone now, so you don’t need to worry about it as much as you used to, so why not?  This is a great time to take a little chance and do something different.    I don’t really want to consider it taking a chance because I just think it’s absolutely necessary to grow.  Different artists have taken that to mean something different to them.  They may do a traditional jazz record or something like that, which to me is just a step in a different direction.  I actually want to take a step in a new direction, so I’m looking more into an electro-soul vibe.  Actually, I was just talking to an artist today, a young man.  I knew I was going to have to get involved with some young people to do this music because it’s just something you don’t find old people doing. (Laugh)  I’m really excited about it.  I heard some music from this guy and I’m [thinking] ‘Oh yeah.  That’s what I want to do.’  I’m excited about doing something completely different.  Hopefully it will be finished this year.  For me, my stuff has always been groove oriented.  This is definitely going to be more in that category.

SV: The title song, “South Beach” actually reminds me of the title song of “It’s All Good.”  It had a similar rhythm to me.
BS: Oh, totally.  That’s all intentional.  I pretty much tried to just cover the base here.  I’m going to put this in here because I know it connects with people.  If anything represents me, I’d say it’s that bluesy, bass kind of groove like that Ramsey Lewis style.  That is as much Brian Simpson as anything is; I’ll put it that way.  If I was going to pick one style of music that really is closest to me, it would be that.  It naturally comes from me, without any effort.  It’s that kind of song.  And that’s why I do those.  Of course, I don’t make a whole record of that.  I’m trying to create a whole experience and some different moods.

SV: Again, you’ve got some very talented musicians playing on this CD.  They play well, and, they compliment your style; Euge Groove on “Lay It On Me,” Peter White, who is always good on everything he plays (laugh), and George Duke.  You two really are old friends, aren’t you?
BS: We sure are.  I spent 10 years with his band.

SV: “Never Without You” is my favorite song on that CD.  It’s just a beautiful song.  It’s very lovely.
BS: Thank you.  That’s the one with Peter White.  I knew I had something special since he played his guitar on there.  It definitely has some emotional impact, which is something I look for in all of my music.

SV: And that song is for one of your children.
BS: My new oldest daughter.  We had just met for the first time when she was in her 20’s, like three years ago.  It was a very emotional experience.  Of course, I had already written songs for my other three kids, so I certainly had to write one for her.

SV: Now you’ve got all of your children represented in song.  That’s good.  Everybody’s covered. (Laugh )I have one more question.  Most people know you as Dave Koz’s keyboardist and Musical Director and now you’re finding your way as a solo artist.  What’s next for you in the near future?  We’ve already discussed the next album.  What else does 2011 have in store for Brian Simpson?
BS:  It’s looking like another busy year of work.  As we’re doing this interview, I’m getting ready to leave for two weeks on a cruise.  The first week in March, I’ll be in Indonesia at the Java Jazz Festival.  Later on in March, I’m going to South Africa with Dave Koz.  In April, I’m putting together the Tri-C Jazz Festival [in Cleveland.]  In May, I’m doing a bunch of my own dates.  In June, I’ll probably go to work in the summer with Dave.  After that, it’s back to being Brian Simpson.  I’m all over the place.

SV: I see.  You’ve pretty much got the year worked out.
BS: It’s getting like that where I pretty much know where I’m going to be.

SV: I hope you make some time for yourself in between all of that.
BS: I’m always happiest when I’m working.  Quite honestly, when I have time off, I’m [thinking,] ‘Oh God.  I need to get back out there.’  I definitely have fun when I’m working.  That’s why I’m able to do it, and that’s not really like work for me.

SV: That’s good.  We’re happy that things are going well for you.  We look forward to hearing more music from you.  Thanks for chatting with me this evening.  And have a good time on the cruise.
BS: Thank you.