"I love old school rhythm and blues music," says vocalist-keyboardist Frank McComb while taking a break from working on his debut Columbia CD. "Man, Stevie Wonder, now, he put a dent in the '70s for r&b. Same with Donny Hathaway. I guess the best way to describe my album is Stevie and Donny meets Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea."
Attired in an oversized beige t-shirt, jeans and a New York Yankees baseball hat, McComb is camped out in Sony Studios on West 54th Street in New York fine-tuning his recording. Today he's working on keyboard overdubs with a Fender Rhodes and Moog Prodigy. After crossing a few t's and dotting a couple i's on the fat-grooved track "Wasting Your Time," McComb reflects on the long road he's taken to get here.
Born in 1970, the Cleveland native started playing piano at the age of 13. It was a life-changing experience for him. When he was 15, he met Willie Ross, an r&b guitarist who was so impressed by the youngster's playing he enlisted him for his local gigging group. "Willie was my musical father," McComb says. "That cat was so influential."
By 17, McComb had his own trio that played around Cleveland and at 20 became musical director of Cleveland pop group Rude Boys. While touring he met up with D.J. Jazzy Jeff & Fresh Prince and not long after moved to Philadelphia to do session work with the group. While there he signed a production deal that eventually went sour, resulting in two recordings that never saw the light of day.
in Santa Monica and worked on a song. Right then, Branford and I got cool." McComb went on the road with the band and continued working with Marsalis on subsequent Buckshot projects. "Once Branford got locked in at Columbia as a music consultant, he pulled me in. I'm still trying to digest it all. It's been a long time coming. I've been fighting this battle since I was 15. Then again, it's always better to get war scars before success. Otherwise you set yourself up for a fall."
Even though McComb and Marsalis had become tight, the former was still nervous about what the latter would think of his music. "I kept saying to myself, I've got to be me," McComb says. "I've got to do what I do. I'm not making sacrifices any more. So I started sending demos of songs to Branford, thinking, oh, no, he's going to think these are too soulful or too deep in the r&b vein. But everytime he called back and said he loved what I was doing. He only offered small bits of very constructive advice. In fact, talking with Branford, who serves as executive producer of the album, while I've been recording has helped me to focus and not get sidetracked." One of the big lessons McComb has been learning to apply is the less-is-more approach to recording. "Branford's taught me that. But I also remember listening to Herbie Hancock's 1973 album Headhunters and hearing Herbie play that fat bass line at the beginning of 'Chameleon.' It's perfect less-is-more. And that tune is a jazz masterpiece. It's the same as in life. I'd much rather hear someone give me one sentence of wisdom than a whole paragraph of nothing."
As for why Branford isn't blowing one of his horns on the album, McComb replies, "He says he doesn't need to. He's not sugarcoating me. He's speaking the truth. He says what's here stands on its own without any guest appearances."
McComb developed most of the material in his home studio before coming to New York to record. "When you've got your homework done, it guarantees you that things will run smoothly. Plus, having the right personnel makes all the difference. The most important person is the drummer and I've got that great old school r&b drummer Rocky Bryant. Ray Fuller plays the guitar. He doesn't need a tape to hear ahead of time. He comes into the studio and just applies himself to the track. He brings the seasoning to the steak." McComb also uses two bass players, Eric Revis for the hard-hitting funk tracks and Richard Bona for the tunes that require a softer touch. Does McComb have a favorite from the fifteen tunes he's tracked so far? "I don't have one," he says adamantly. "They're all my favorites. I don't love one more than the other. These songs are like my children. They're all equal."
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