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Blues From The Rainforest

Merl Saunders

Initial release : April 1990

Sumertone FCD-7712

Jerry Garcia plays on four tracks of this Merl Saunders release.

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album cover

Tracks

  • Blues From The Rainforest (Merl Saunders)
  • Sunrise Over Haleakala (Merl Saunders)
  • Blue Hill Ocean Dance (Merl Saunders / Muruga)
  • Afro Pearl Blue (Merl Saunders / Muruga)
  • Dance Of The Fireflies (Merl Saunders)
  • Sri Lanka (Merl Saunders / Eddie Moore)
Musicians

The musicians on the CD as a whole are;

  • Merl Saunders - synthesizers
  • Jerry Garcia - guitar, MIDI
  • Muruga - percussion
  • Eddie Moore - percussion
  • Bill Thompson - percussion, drum programmer
  • Shakti & Karen Baker - vocals
Garcia plays on the first four tracks with the following musicians;

Blues From The Rainforest;

  • Merl Saunders - synthesizers
  • Jerry Garcia - electric guitar
  • Muruga - percussion
Sunrise Over Haleakala;
  • Merl Saunders - synthesizers
  • Jerry Garcia - acoustic guitar
Blue Hill Ocean Dance;
  • Merl Saunders - synthesizers
  • Jerry Garcia - MIDI guitar flute & other custom sounds
  • Muruga - percussion
  • Eddie Moore - percussion
  • Bill Thompson - drum programmer, percussion
Afro Pearl Blue;
  • Merl Saunders - synthesizers
  • Jerry Garcia - MIDI guitar cries and horns
  • Muruga - percussion
  • Eddie Moore - balaphone
  • Shakti & Karen Baker - vocals
Credits

  • Producer - Merl Saunders
  • Co-Producer - Marina Zachau
  • Engineers - Bill Thompson, Greg Gordon
  • MIDIcian - Bill Thompson
  • Mixing - Merl Saunders, Bill Thompson, Greg Gordon
  • Pre-Mastering - Bill Thompson, Roscoe Gallo, David Gray
  • Mastering - Brian Gardner
  • Cover Art - Gary Knack
  • Cover Concept - Marina Zachau, Merl Saunders
  • Photography - Linda Jacobson, Joanne Mohr
  • Liner notes - Merl Saunders, Muruga
  • Special sound effects from the rainforest and ocean courtesy of M.S. Productions and Melvin Seals.
  • Recorded and mixed at Aunt Monk Studios, San Francisco
Notes

In his liner notes Merl Saunders comments on Garcia's involvement;

I wanted to get my long term cohort Jerry Garcia involved because I knew he also had concerns about the rainforest. I knew I could count on Jerry's ability to perceive what I wanted musically. Our previous collaborations have always been inspiring because of our ability to communicate without words. Some of my best work has come from these magical sessions together.
Garcia commented on the cause behind the album in an interview;
This project is another way of calling attention to the rainforest as a whole biological entity, everybody has their own process of discovery, but I believe that this record might help some people experience the ethos of the rainforest.
Sunrise Over Haleakala is from the same recording as the version on the Merl Saunders album With His Funky Friends : Live. Merl Saunders has said the following about the track;
Sunrise over Haleakala is one of my favorite songs. It is all the same track, long and short version. One was edited for radio play and the other is in the CD Blues From The Rainforest.
Related releases

An edited version of Sunrise Over Haleakala is included on;

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