More than just a jazz guitarist, Chuck Loeb has proven himself to be a versatile composer, arranger and producer in a wide range of musical styles and contexts. In addition to fronting several of his own bands and projects, and compiling an impressive discography stretching back to the late 1980s, Loeb has also worked the other side of the mixing board to produce a number of high-profile artists, including Spyro Gyra, Bob James, Walter Beasley, Larry Coryell and Kim Waters. He's also composed the score for numerous television programs (CNN, ABC News Nightline, CBS Up to the Minute) and has crafted the theme music for the New York Yankees and the Atlanta Braves, and performed on several motion picture soundtracks (Turner and Hootch, The Untouchables, Mixed Nuts). Indeed, there are few stones on the musical landscape that Chuck Loeb has left unturned.

On January 23, 2007, this Renaissance man joins Heads Up International with the worldwide release of Presence (HUCD 3117), an album that recognizes the importance of the human element - not just in the crafting of music, but in everyday life. "Nowadays, there's a lot of music that gets created in a laboratory," says Loeb, who enlisted musicians various incarnations of his live band to craft the album. "We all have computers, and we do things long distance. But it never ceases to amaze me how, as soon as you put the live musicians into the equation, it's their presence that brings the thing to life. That's the idea behind the album title - the effect that an individual's personality has on the music, both in the context of a recording and in a live setting."

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