On your mark, get set…GO! This big band lead by drummer Tommy Igoe takes you back to the day when bands played music for DANCING! Remember that? You’ve got jazz tunes and standards that make you want to get out…
Month: January 2015
Miho Nobuzane: Simple Words.
Never heard of this lady before? Join the club-neither had I, but I sure like what’s on this disc! Niho Nobuzane plays piano and sings while she leads a basic team on Tetsuya Sato/b, Mauriciao/dr and a rotation of guest…
Dann Zinn: Shangri La
It used to be that a sax trio was the top of Sisyphus’ hill for jazz musicians, but these days they are almost as common as a standard quartet. Tenor saxist Dann Zinn ups the ante by fronting a piano/bass-less…
Tara Davidson: Duets
Tara Davidson brings her soprano and alto sax as dance partners in a series of duets here with a rotating ensemble of friends. Mike Murley/ts, Trevor Hogg/ts, Andrew Downing/b-cel, Laila Biali/p, david Braid/p and David Occhipinti/g each get at least…
FRETFUL FUN…Lenny Breau: LA Bootleg 1984, Mark Elf: Returns 2014
Ah! The jazz guitar! No frills, no “effects”, no distortion; just pick up your axe and show me what you got! Here are two tasty treats that are finger pickin’ good! Lenny Breau takes you back to LA when there…
Jack Cooper: Mists-Charles Ives For Jazz Orchestra
Usually, the mix of jazz and classical feels like a forced date, with no one feeling quite right with the other. Jack Cooper, who arranged the music here for a jazz orchestra, came up with the smart choice of bypassing…
COOL BOP! Kazzrie Jaxen Quartet: Callicoon Sessions, Quaternity
Here are a couple releases, one studio, one in concert, from a hip quartet lead by pianist Kazzrie Jaxen. Her team consists of Charley Krachy/ts, Don Messina/b and Bill Chattin/dr, and lemme tell ya, I wanna see them in concert!…
Miguel Zenon: Identities are Changeable
Alto saxist/composer Miguel Zenon continues his exploration into the music of his heritage with a fascinating mix of music mixed with interviews that delves into the assimilation, both in word and in sound, of the identity of Puerto Ricans. With…
Michael O’Neill & Kenny Washington: New Beginnings
Here’s a rarity in jazz-a male tenor vocalist-most are either too high or too low, but Kenny Washington fits just right. He can lay down a lyric, or scat out a melody with equal aplomb, and he teams up here…
Darrell Katz and the JCA Orchestra: Why Do You Ride?
Guitarist Darrell Katz leads the Jazz Composers Alliance Orchestra through some cerebral sounds on this collection of his compositions. A mix of free form and swing stretches out for 13 minutes on “A Zen Story” which gives solo space for…