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Acoustic Alchemy are a British contemporary instrumental and smooth jazz band formed in England in the early eighties (c. 1981). Originally fronted by acoustic guitarists Nick Webb and Simon James, the band has evolved gradually and is still in existence to this day.
During the eighties, there was little grateful audience for instrumental smooth jazz in the UK, mainly because the big players in the genre were American. The pioneering sound of two duelling acoustic guitars - Simon James on nylon and Nick Webb on steel - was a fresh touch on the genre, and hence the immediate success of the band, backed up string trio The Violettes. In the mid-eighties, James left the band to focus on other projects; Nick Webb found other talent in the form of melody maker Greg Carmichael.
The new pair began playing as an in-flight band on Virgin Atlantic flights to and from the States - it was then when an executive for American record giant MCA found them by chance. The pair had literally played their way to America, and in 1987 were signed to the MCA Master Series, a pioneering idea whereby new musicians were given the money and space to make their music a reality. Sadly, most of those on the label took it as an opportunity to spend money that wasn't theirs, and a lot of promising work never materialised.
The Alchemy were, however, different. Joining forces with other like-minded musicians such as percussionist Mario Argandoña and bassist Bert Smaak, the band began work on their first album at the Hansa Haus Studios, in Bonn, Germany. This was where they met engineer Klaus Genuit, who the band have stayed working with to this day.
Soon, the first album, "Red Dust And Spanish Lace" was released. It was an instant radio hit - the first single, "Mr. Chow", went down in smooth jazz history as a Chinese reggae fusion. Other songs, such as "The Stone Circle" still stand out as some of the Alchemy's finest work. Two more albums followed with MCA - "Natural Elements" (1988) and the pop-based "Blue Chip" (1989).
The big money came rolling in, and Acoustic Alchemy were soon tempted away from MCA to the world's biggest jazz label, GRP Records. Six more albums were spawned, started with the critically slated "Reference Point" (1991). Things soon changed with "Back On The Case" (also 1991), with a ten-track album which rivalled the innocent brilliance of the band's debut four years previous. GRP also uncovered fourteen tracks from 1982-1987, featuring Simon James, which were released as a compilation called "Early Alchemy" (1992). "The New Edge" (1993) and "Against The Grain" (1994) came next, to mixed reviews.
For their eighth album, "Arcanum" (1996), the band decided to take a retrospective look back. Employing an orchestra and recording in London's Pinewood Studios, the band recorded three new tracks, and live recreations of many classics.
"Positive Thinking" (1998) was to be Acoustic Alchemy's last album with original frontman Nick Webb. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer prior to starting work on it, and sadly got progressively worse throughout the project. In the end, he could only offer inspiration, as he was too weak to play at recording sessions. Nick Webb passed away that year. However, the album was one of the band's best, and critics were very impressed with the track "Rainwatching W.I.".
After Nick Webb's passing, Greg Carmichael decided to keep the band alive, but with big changes. He brought in understudy Miles Gilderdale as his playing partner, and the band moved label, to Higher Octave Music, home of fellow guitarist Craig Chaquico. The debut album on the label, "The Beautiful Game" (2000) was dramatically different. New, stronger influences came from all sorts of genres; "Trail Blazer" brought pop, "The Last Flamenco" brought drum and bass", and "Big Sky Country" brought country.
"AArt" (2001) was released a year after, and was their biggest and best release to date. Offering fourteen tracks, with assistance from saxophonist Jeff Kashiwa, the album was nominated for a Grammy Award.
The band's latest release was "Radio Contact" (2003), featuring their first ever track to include vocals.
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