Darrell Diaz

Credits:"Interlude (Instrumental)" Calloway Let’s Get Smooth "The Sound of One Hand Clapping" Calloway Let’s Get Smooth "The Sound of One Hand Clapping" Calloway Deep Cover Soundtrack Album "Dis Is Da Drum" Herbie Hancock "Life & Times of a Hustla" Ghetto Guerrilla "Koi & the Kola Nuts" Whoopi Goldberg & Herbie Hancock "Join the Band" Take 6 (Stevie Wonder) "Destiny Turns On the Radio" "New Standard" Herbie Hancock "Q’s Jook Joint" Quincy Jones "The Night Before Christmas" Impromp2 A Mojazz Christmas, Vol. 2 "Sunday Morning" (Music Video) Doc Powell "Wilderness" Tony Williams 1+1 Herbie Hancock & Wayne MTV Unplugged Maxwell "Ain’t It Good To Know" (Remix) JK & Robyn Springer Keyboards "Ain’t It Good To Know" (Music Video) JK & Robyn Springer "Embrya" Maxwell "Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)" El DeBarge & Eddie M. "Return of the Headhunters!" Herbie Hancock & The Headhunters "Fortunate" [CD5/Cassette Single] Life: Music Inspired by the Motion Picture Maxwell "Take the Ride" Mark Whitfield "Love and Basketball" "Blow" Johhny Depp "Future 2 Future" Herbie Hancock "In the Sun" Shaquille O’Neill Presents His Superfriends, Vol. 1 "Life Changes" Doc Powell "My Wife and Kids" Damon Wayans Devotion Darrell Diaz "Night School: An Evening with Stanley Clarke & Friends" DVD Future 2 Future DVD Herbie Hancock Diary of A Mad Black Woman Soundtrack First Christmas Andre Delano¨When I grow up, I want to be like Quincy Jones.” That’s what Darrell Diaz used to say when he was 15 years old. “I want to work with all of the great artists and produce great music.” So after honing his skills at Berklee College of Music, he set off for L.A. His first gig landed him as the apprentice to ¨The Keeper of the Keys¨, Herbie Hancock, and soon, his production, arranging and directing skills began to flourish.After a short time, he became an in-demand keyboardist / writer with Gerald Albright, Imprompt2, Howard Hewett, Doc Powell and many more. In 1996, he put together and led what has been called, “…the tightest R&B band since Marvin Gaye” to accompany soul-sensation, Maxwell. Later going on to create such hits as “Fortunate” and “This Woman¹s Work.”Those experiences, combined with repeated requests for more of “his” music, led him to create his first solo CD entitled, “Devotion.” Now ‘devotion’ usually implies a religious meaning, but according to Diaz, “Devotion” is the attitude of giving 100% of your being to something you believe in, not just the creator, but also your lover, your family, your art…everything. It was a quality instilled in me as a child by my father.” So “Devotion” reflects the complete dedication Diaz has for life. It showcases the masterful arranging and harmonic daring he learned from Hancock, the purity of communication he learned from Santana, the soulful songwriting he learned from Stevie Wonder, the imagery and storytelling he learned from Peter Gabriel and lastly the divine ability to heal and love through music as embodied by the immortal Donny Hathaway.If you light a candle, burn a few sticks of Nag Champa and give yourself the opportunity to enter into the musical world of Darrell Diaz and “Devotion”, you WILL be devoted.The title track “Devotion” features So-Cal native Antonio Sol, also a Maxwell alumnus, showcasing his beautiful voice over a funky soul groove with the clavinet laid down superbly by Herbie Hancock.”Come Back To Me” features saxophonist Keith Fiddmont soulfully lamenting a soul mate torn away, yet yearning to be rejoined.”³So It Goes” features Bridgette Bryant and Dorian Holley in a duet reminiscent of the classic style of Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway. It retells the age-old truth of planting the seeds now, for the flowers you want to blossom later.The ideas of: freedom, equality, love, respect and devotion embody every track on the CD.Darrell Diaz may not have set out to become an artist, but he is without a doubt, one of the true artists of our generation. As the lyrics to his song ”El Sabor del Cielo” say, “La vida enseña el color, el cielo nos da el sabor.” (Our physical life shows us the color or a hint of our true essence, but the heavens or our true spiritual nature give us our flavor.) mystic blue myspace layout