Steve Rawlins - Word On The Street (2026) [Hi-Res]

American pianist, composer, trumpeter, and arranger Steve Rawlins is preparing to release his new album, WORD ON THE STREET. This release marks a rare occasion where the musician takes center stage as a bandleader: over a career spanning more than five decades in the entertainment industry, he has recorded only two solo albums — his debut vinyl release Step Right Up (1985) and the intimate record Solo Piano (2020). Rawlins built his reputation primarily behind the scenes, creating orchestrations and compositions for television, film, and major live entertainment productions.

Rawlins' musical background includes studying under baritone saxophonist John Magruder and legendary composer Sammy Nestico, performing in Nestico's big band during his university years. At just 19 years old, he secured a position as staff arranger and music librarian for The Merv Griffin Show. Later in his career, he was commissioned to write arrangements for Benny Goodman's 40th Anniversary Concert at Carnegie Hall and contributed work to The John Davidson Show.

WORD ON THE STREET features ten original or co-written compositions alongside one classic jazz standard. The recording features a lineup of prominent Southern California musicians, including saxophonist and flutist Sal Lozano, guitarist Grant Geissman, bassists Ken Wild and Hussain Jiffry, and drummer John Ferraro. The record is also a family affair: the leader's daughters, Marisa Bradfield and Victoria Rawlins, along with his former wife Isela Sotelo, provided vocals for the 1960s-style jazz-pop track "It's Cool," while his son-in-law Kieron Menzies handled the mixing engineering.

The album's stylistic range spans straight-ahead jazz ("Moraga Drive"), cinematic ballads ("The Time Is Right"), and updated archival pieces originally written for television in the 1970s ("Word on the Street," "The Knuckleball"). A central highlight of the tracklist is the influence of Brazilian music, samba, and bossa nova ("Friday Night," "Now's the Time for Coffee," "Come with Me to Brazil"). The album concludes with a solo, introspective interpretation of Jimmy McHugh's jazz standard "Let's Get Lost." The digital release of WORD ON THE STREET is set for August 14, 2026.

Tracklist:
1. Steve Rawlins - Moraga Drive
2. Steve Rawlins - Friday Night
3. Steve Rawlins - It's Cool
4. Steve Rawlins - The Time Is Right
5. Steve Rawlins - Word On The Street
6. Steve Rawlins - Tomorrow Is Yesterday
7. Steve Rawlins - Come With Me To Brazil
8. Steve Rawlins - The Knuckleball
9. Steve Rawlins - Reach Out
10. Steve Rawlins - Now's The Time For Coffee
11. Steve Rawlins - Let's Get Lost