Despite a small, but vocal minority declaring Kenny G a sellout, especially following his sensational collaboration with Kanye West on the song Use This Gospel, from West’s JESUS IS KING album, I consider him to be one of the very best contemporary jazz musicians of our time.
Seriously, dear reader, the sellout tag for musicians needs to stop as it is akin to sour grapes and achieves absolutely nothing. I know some very talented jazz musicians, in their own right, that claim Kenny G is a sellout but I don’t recall anyone ever declaring that the stereotypical struggling jazz artist is the epitome of success. Regardless, Breathless was my introduction to jazz-styled music and I fell in love, now considering myself to be a fan of Jazz and, yes, I have Kenny G to thank for that.
Since its release in 1992, Breathless has amassed sales of over 12 million units. I’ve purchased five of those copies over the years and streamed the album countless times. You may wonder why I purchased so many copies. Well, my mother was a fan upon the album’s release so I gifted her a copy. Then I managed to scratch the disc, by accident, that caused a little more b-bop in G-Bop, so I had to replace it. I then purchased another copy for myself so that I never ran the chance of damaging another prized possession. Oh, and I picked up the cassette release as well for I didn’t have a Discman at the time. After several years, and at the dawn of the MP3 era, I thought it was a good idea to digitise all my albums into this new technological format and sell the CD on eBay. In retrospect, that was an incredibly naive choice so a few years ago when I began building my record collection again, I picked up the CD for the fifth time and other than a misprint, I couldn’t be happier as the mastering of the CD is the same as that originally release in 1992 and shows just how exceptional the humble CD can sound. Yes, I acknowledge there are HDCD, XRCD, and SACD editions available in China and Japan but I think you’d be hard-pressed to notice a difference unless you’ve got a very expensive and very revealing system. Hence, the standard CD should be the epitome of perfection for most music lovers. I also don’t feel we need to see a vinyl re-issue of Breathless. I know the resurgence of vinyl is all the buzz at the moment, but I believe that you should buy an album in a format that best suits the music. In this case, I feel it is most certainly the compact disc.
The Joy Of Life is a gorgeous opening song that sets the tone for the entire album. It’s upbeat and positively styled and if you haven’t already, I’d recommend you turn the volume up. While it is sensational at normal listening volumes, it really opens up and sounds amazing when the volume is raised.
Forever In Love is simply beautiful and I’m often left speechless upon listening to it. Kenny G has taken that Soprano Saxophone to the very limit of each note, ensuring that it is one of the most memorable songs on Breathless.
Forever In Love was also released as a single, but the accompanying music video is largely forgettable and ultimately sullies the song in my opinion.
In The Rain is a lovely song that flows nicely from Forever In Love but it isn’t arguably a standout track even though it adds to the overall album experience.
Sentimental is pure magic. It is so relaxing and visual, especially if you close your eyes and allow yourself to be taken to a wondrous world where music reigns supreme.
The music video for Sentimental is in a similar vein to that of Forever In Love where despite the attempt to tell a story, the music video ends up being superfluous to the song itself and while I acknowledge how difficult it must be to come up with a concept for an instrumental-focused musician, I would have much preferred to have seen Kenny G in a concert performance, or even in a natural setting, playing the song.
By The Time This Night Is Over (with Peabo Bryson) is a great song and if you hear a little of Michael Bolton’s style, particularly from The One Thing era, you wouldn’t be mistaken as he co-wrote it with Diane Warren and Andy Goldmark. While Bryson sings it beautifully, even if he is drowned out a little by Kenny G’s Soprano Saxophone, I must admit that as a fan of Bolton, I’d love to hear him record a rendition with a mix more in tune with his own style. The comparison would certainly be interesting. Johnny Mathis covered By The Time This Night Is Over on his 1998 release Because You Love Me and while it is a valiant effort, it doesn’t come near the Bryson/Kenny G interpretation.
End Of The Night is a solid song with Kenny G switching to the Tenor Saxophone, although I dare say that something is missing and it feels a little over-produced if I’m to be completely honest.
Alone is magnificent with a gorgeous low-end that will test the bass response of your stereo system. This is one song where you should most certainly feel the reverberations throughout your body.
Morning is simply beautiful.
Even If My Heart Would Break (with Aaron Neville) is one of my favourite songs on the album and coincidentally was the first time that I had ever heard Aaron Neville, thereby proving that collaborations are not a bad thing for I’ve been a Neville fan ever since.
G-Bop was a beloved song of mine in the 90s, yet as I’ve aged, while I still thoroughly enjoy G-Bop, I don’t find the same level of enjoyment as I once did. A shame, yes, but I also find it fascinating to see how my musical interests have shifted over the years and I often find myself wondering if it is a simple case of maturing or if the shift is due to the constantly expanding music styles and artists I am listening to these days. Perhaps I’ll never know, but it is interesting to ponder.
Sister Rose sonically blows my mind. It is gorgeous and just as Kenny G did on Forever In Love, he has taken that Soprano Saxophone right to the edge of each note and masterfully held it in place. Sister Rose is also one of the best examples of sonic visualisation whereby you feel as though you’re in the studio experiencing a private performance. Sensational!
A Year Ago is a beautifully smooth song that flows perfectly from Sister Rose.
Homeland is a lovely song. Nothing to write home about, however, but Breathless wouldn’t be the same without it.
Natural Ride is listed as track 14, in the liner notes, for the CD release, but I honestly can’t recall the song and therefore feel that it has been omitted from the Australian edition for many years. It’s a shame, however, that this has not been amended. Checking out Natural Ride on YouTube doesn’t leave me with an incessant longing for the song. It’s adequate but arguably not spectacular and lacks cohesion with the other songs on Breathless, so in one way I’m happy for the exclusion.
The Wedding Song is an incredible tune to close the album with. If you’ve been listening to Breathless at night, you’ll thoroughly enjoy the reduced tempo and smoothness that will relax you but if you’re listening in the day, you’ll likely find yourself playing the album again or at least staying within Kenny G’s extensive catalogue of music.
Overall, Breathless is one album that should be in every music lover’s collection for it is relaxing, exhilarating, and ultimately timeless.