Group 3

A big part of The Soundtrack Of My Life revolved around compilations, those discs put out for promotional purposes by the record labels to showcase their rosters. It was an excellent way to learn about artists that I may have been unfamiliar with. Of all the labels, GRP did a really great job, in its hey-day, of keeping the fans apprised of what they were putting out. I purposely used the phrase hey-day, because after Verve & UMG let Dave Grusin and Larry Rosen go, the new 'suits' in charge basically took an incredibly successful Contemporary Jazz roster and drove it into the dirt; of course, these were industry professionals and consultants who knew what the Jazz fan wanted! Thank God for the internet. Anyway, in 2002 Verve released a compilation for GRP's 20th Anniversary, The Best Smooth Jazz Ever; basically it was a pile of shit - no imagination or risk taking whatsoever. But, two tracks do standout, if for no other reason than that to my knowledge, they have never been released before, except on this disc; Group 3, comprised of Richard Elliot, David Benoit and Jeff Golub. The 3 of them, I believe, toured for awhile under this moniker; the music's ok, they've all done better on their own, but I'm sure some A&R guy patted himself on the back pretty good for this one. Like I said, thank God for the internet, I know The Soundtrack Of My Life does!