What makes Ryan Porter’s brand of jazz that extra bit special is his knack of subtly incorporating elements of r&b, funk, hip-hop and soul into his compositions.

Take his new track ‘Heaven Only Knows’, which sees the Los Angeles trombonist wonderfully merging r&b grooves with effervescent jazz stylings while Nia Andrews lays down vocals that can only be described as heavenly.

The new cut is lifted from ‘Force For Good’ his forthcoming release on World Galaxy/ Alpha Pup Records in June which features core members of the West Coast Get Down, a collaborative group of musicians all born and raised in Los Angeles. The members include the likes of Kamasi Washington (sax), Brandon Coleman (piano, Fender Rhodes), Miles Mosley (acoustic bass), and more.

Speaking about the title of the album which references an interview passage by John Coltrane during the ’60s, Porter says:

“I was doing research on John Coltrane when I came across an interview of him being asked why his music seemed to attract many different types of intellectual, philosophical, and spiritual people. He stated that he made some changes in his own personal life that made him question his purpose on this earth. In the course of thinking of his purpose on this earth, he noticed that in this life everyone is faced with a decision and that decision guides what your contribution to this world will be. He thought to himself there is so much evil in the world and so many people are making the choice to become a force for evil. John felt making a choice to be a force for good would not only help his life but make his music the film score for the people who choose to force for good no matter what the conditions are. The Force for Good album is my contribution to the legacy of John Coltrane’s message of peace, love, and unity through music.”

Listen to ‘Heaven Only Knows featuring Nia Andrews below.

All in all, a feelgood and uplifting track that gets us more than excited for the upcoming album!

Head here to purchase the LP ahead of its June 14th release, check out the artwork and tracklist below.

Tracklisting

01. Madiba

02. Maggie

03. Neves (Interlude)

04. Heaven Only Knows (ft. Nia Andrews)

05. Blame it on The Sun

06. Carricou

07. Memory Band

08. Mesosphere

09. World on Wheels

10. Oscalypso

11. People Talk

Force For Good is out 14/06 on World Galaxy / Alpha Pup Records. Pre-order here.