The Lome Mellow atmosphere. The elongated high synthesizer (‘drone’) note. The sunny chorus. The ecstatic cry „My Life, My Life, My Life!“. The number ‘Everybody Loves The Sunshine‘Van Roy Ayers from 1976 was a original source of inspiration for just under 190 artists from the Hiphop, R&B and Soul. They samped particles out or reused characteristic atmospheric elements.
‘Summertime‘From DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince from 1991, the same summer carefree radio radiated. Or how ‘My Life’ from Rapper Dr. Dre starts, and how the trio TLC in it ‘My Life‘Along Scherde (at 3 minutes 13). Or the yearn from d’Angelo in 2000. “The song seems to be touching every generation,” said Ayers herself The Guardian. Everyone loves the sun, except Dracula. “
It is therefore this magical song why the Vibraphonist, composer and producer Roy Ayers (84), who died in New York, will be remembered the most. Every once in a while a new generation discovered from Pharrell Williams to Common, the Lome, Groovy Souljazz by Ayers, from hitsongs to more obscure albums. But once the sun comes through well, the jukebox in your head automatically presses the ‘Everybody Loves the Sunshine’ button in your head, although more than fifty years ago that Ayers recorded it on a very hot day in the Electric Lady Studio in New York.
Traditional jazz
The song, he told at a performance North Sea Jazz in 2011always brought him back to his childhood in Los Angeles. Already as a little boy he saw Lionel Hampton go loose on the vibraphone, he was immediately lit by the energy. Yet it would take until he was seventeen before he himself had his first vibraphone. Discovered by the famous jazz author and producer Leonard Feather, Ayers debuted with the album in 1963 West Coast Vibes With traditional jazz. Soon flautist Herbie Mann asked him for his band, they recorded three albums together.
With his band Roy Ayers Ubiquity, Ayers began to combine jazz in the mid -1970s and eighty jazz. His music became more and more danceable, with albums like Lifeline (1977) with hits like ‘Running Away’. Or Fever (1979) With ‘Love Will Bring Us Back Together’. The use of his vibraphone mallets became subordinate to his singing.
In the 1980s he started Uno Melodic, his own record label, followed by Gold Mink Records. He asserted himself as a producer for, among others, records from Fela Kuti. In the following years he broke a different direction. His influence on the development of the Neo-Soul movement with artists such as D’Angelo became great. Warm -blooded vibes in ‘Take a Look at Yourself’ on Guru’s album Jazzmatazz Was also a renewed introduction to the pioneer in 1993.
Talkative host
His last solo album Mahogany Vibe came out in 2004, with contributions from Betty Wright, Kamilah and Eykah Badu. Many artists asked for collaboration, such as Eykah Badu or Tyler, The Creators in the Track ‘Find Your Wings’ (2015).
In the last decade of his life he still performed, although his game on the vibraphone was little, the mallets often remained unused. The performances were a stew of Acidjazz, Soul, Funk and Bedroom R&B through his band, with Ayers as a talkative, authentic host who always felt like his biggest hit.