Saxophonist Kirk Whalum will release Romance Language, a song-for-song remake of the classic 1963 collaboration between John Coltrane and singer Johnny Hartman. The album, which features Kirk’s brother Kevin Whalum on vocals, consists of six romantic standards composed by such greats as Irving Berlin, Sammy Cahn, Billy Strayhorn and Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart. The album will be released by Rendezvous Music on Valentine’s Day, Feb. 14.
The album, produced and arranged by Whalum and John Stoddart, was recorded with virtually no overdubs, using Kirk Whalum’s touring band: Stoddart (piano, keyboards, organ), Marcus Finnie (drums), Braylon Lacy (bass), Kevin Turner (electric guitar), Michael “Nomad” Ripoll (acoustic guitar), and Ralph Lofton (organ) along with George Tidwell (flugelhorn, trumpet) and percussionists Bashiri Johnson and Javier Solis.
Romance Language is Kirk Whalum’s 19th album as a front man. The two brothers will tour this year in support of the album, in addition to co-headlining the Apostles of Gospel Tour with Jonathan Butler and CeCe Winans.
