Matt Johnson‘s name might be unfamiliar to the general public, but dedicated Jamiroquai followers will know him for his many years of service as the musical director and keyboard player of the internationally feted British jazz-funk group. Away from Jamiroquai, Johnson has built up an impressive resume as a songwriter and producer, working alongside the likes of Nolwenn Leroy, Julian Perretta, Duffy, Newton Faulkner, Will Young, and Laura Doggett. Now, the keyboard wizard emerges out of the shadows with his second album, Matt Johnson At PizzaExpress Live In London, the follow-up to his 2020 debut studio long-player, With The Music.
Matt Johnson At PizzaExpress Live In London is the keyboardist’s first in-concert recording and the fifth release on the newly launched PX Records label, set up earlier in 2023 to release albums from new and established stars of the jazz and soul scene alongside a selection of music from PizzaExpress Live’s extensive archive of live recordings.
The album features seven tracks recorded on stage at PizzaExpress Jazz Club in Soho in November last year. As well as containing some original jazz-funk gems, like the excellent singles ‘Interstellar Love’ and ‘Laluna,’ Johnson includes a couple of classic tracks from two of his music idols: Roy Ayers’ ‘Our Time Is Coming’ and Lonnie Liston Smith’s ‘Expansions.’