East meets best for some loving Fourplay

It will be a family reunion of sorts when bassist

Nathan East

and the jazz band

Fourplay

visit the Keswick Theatre this weekend.

"It's always a homecoming, because I get together with family and have 15 to 20 people in the front row," East told the Daily News. He was born here, one of seven kids, though raised in California. "My uncle, Melvin East, who just had his 81st birthday, will be there."

But there are more reasons for East to anticipate this show than just performing in front of family and friends.

"For me, it's just playing with the best," East said, referring to the stellar musicianship of bandmates Bob James, Larry Carlton and Harvey Mason. "When I was growing up and just starting my career, I would listen to every one of those guys - Harvey, James and Larry.

"Playing with these guys has been a dream."

But East carved out a solid career before joining Fourplay.

Always interested in music, East's biggest early career break came when he joined the group Power, which was hired to back up the Stax Revue and for R&B great Barry White on a national tour.

Then East, still in his teens, joined White's Love Unlimited Orchestra. Later, in the early '80s, he would work with White again, and with luminaries such as Dionne Warwick and Johnny Mathis. You can hear this stellar session man on Lionel Richie's hit "Endless Love" and Kenny Rogers' "Lady."

Fourplay was formed in 1991, while James was working on his album "Grand Piano Canyon." He approached the musicians with the idea that each would contribute equally to the project.

So what makes this fusion foursome so, well, irresistible?

"I think the Fourplay sound is actually a combination of elements, melodies, rhythms and improvisations," East said. "It's a particular combination of people. I'm really happy that we have been able to be together for 16 years."

Fourplay was a hit as soon as its self-titled debut surfaced in 1991. The all-star band has released a slew of well-received albums, including 1993's "Between the Sheets," 1994's "Elixir," 2002's "Heartfelt" and last year's "X."

Along the way, some of the musicians have found time for solo projects. James has released more than 30 albums, including "Urban Flamingo" last year and "Take It From the Top" in 2004.

Guitarist Carlton is just as prolific, having worked on albums by Steely Dan, Stanley Clarke, Michael Jackson and Kirk Whalum, to name a few.

Drummer Mason has released 11 solo albums, and has contributed work to more than 50 other albums.

So far, East hasn't released a solo work. Could that happen any time soon?

"It's one of those things I have been threatening to do, and the guys joke about it because I haven't done an album yet," East said. "It's definitely on my list as far as career moves."

But so is staying in the Fourplay lineup.

"Well, [breaking up] is the nature of being in a group, but you look at groups like Spyro Gyra and Tower of Power, going on 40 years being together," East said. "For us, it was kind of like a mission of ours to not just be one-timers. . . . We thought this should be one of those things that we keep going as long as we can."

Even without a solo disc, East has received perhaps the clearest indicator around that his sound has been game-changing: he has his own signature bass, issued by Yamaha.

"I designed it with [Yamaha], and they did everything they could to represent me and my sound," East said. "I have been playing their bass for 30 years, so we have a long relationship. They came to me and asked how to improve their instrument."

Thus the Nathan East Signature Model Bass was born. The five-string retails for more than $3,000, and reviewers have said the instrument is worth many times more.

So what's next for Fourplay? One can certainly expect the group to continue to flourish.

"There is almost 100 years of [music] background between the four of us, so when we go in to play, we're not trying to do something we already did," East said. "You try to come up with something fresh and new, and that's our thinking."

Meanwhile, East looks forward to coming back to the city where he was born.

"I'm very proud to be from the City of Brotherly Love, and keep that love coming," East said. "It will always be one of the world's greatest cities." *

Keswick Theatre, Easton Road and Keswick Avenue, Glenside, 7:30 p.m. Sunday, $29.50 and $37.50, 215-

572-7650, www.keswicktheatre.com.