Invitation
Studio album by Joe Sample
Released	1993
Studio	The Power Station (New York City, New York) Schnee Studios (North Hollywood, California)
Genre	Smooth jazz / Standards / Third stream
Length	49:49
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Tommy LiPuma
Joe Sample chronology
Collection (1991) Invitation (1993) Did You Feel That? (1994)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]

Invitation is a 1993 album by jazz pianist Joe Sample released through Warner Bros. Records. It contains reinterpretations ( remakes) of jazz standard compositions written by artists such as Duke Ellington, Johnny Mercer, among others (as listed in parentheses in the track list). Invitation is more of a jazz/ classical crossover album with orchestral arrangements by Dale Oehler.

In 1993, Invitation reached No. 1 in the Top Jazz Albums chart and No. 43 in the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart in Billboard magazine. On the top albums chart, it peaked at No. 194. [1]

1. " Black Is the Color" (Traditional folk song) - 3:53
2. " A House Is Not a Home" ( Burt Bacharach, Hal David) - 4:57
3. " Come Rain or Come Shine" ( Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer) - 5:07
4. " Invitation" ( Bronisław Kaper) - 4:21
5. " Summertime" ( George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, DuBose Heyward, Dorothy Heyward) - 6:49
6. " Nica's Dream" ( Horace Silver) - 5:20
7. " Stormy Weather" (Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler) - 5:01
8. " Django" ( John Lewis) - 3:45
9. " My One and Only Love" ( Guy Wood, Robert Mellin) - 6:12
10. " Mood Indigo" (Duke Ellington, Barney Bigard, Irving Mills) - 4:26

• Joe Sample – grand piano, synthesizers, rhythm arrangements
• Larry Williams – synthesizer programming
• Cecil McBee – upright bass
• Victor Lewis – drums
• Lenny Castro – percussion
• Dale Oehler – orchestra arrangements and conductor
• Emile Charlap – orchestra contractor

• Tommy LiPuma – producer
• Angelo Montrone – assistant producer
• Al Schmitt – recording, mixing
• Chris Albert – second engineer
• Robert Smith – second engineer
• Bruce Miller – additional engineer
• Doug Sax – mastering at The Mastering Lab (Hollywood, California)
• Deborah Silverman-Kern – production coordinator
• Greg Ross – art direction, design
• Tom Tavee – photo portraits
• Douglas Brothers – main photography
• Joe Sample – liner notes
• Patrick Rains & Associates – management