Alfred da Rocha Viana Jr., more popularly known as Pixinguinha (1897-1973), was one of the most important Brazilian composers as well as respected sax and flute player. Mandolinist Hamilton De Holanda celebrates his music in a series of intimate solos…
Month: June 2015
Andy Brown: Soloist
Ah! A no frills guitar solo album. I thought people forgot how to make these after Joe Pass died. Masterful at the frets but always exuding taste over chops, Andy Brown gives intimate readings of 14 standards and surprises, ranging…
Dafnis Prieto Sextet: Triangles and Circles
Drummer Dafnis Prieto never stops moving. Each of his albums has something interesting and fresh to offer, and no two sound exactly alike. This time around, he’s got a team of Peter Apfelbaum-ts-ss-mel, Felipe Lamoglia/as, Mike Rodriguea/tp, Manuel Valera/p and…
Phill Fest: That’s What She Says
If you’re a fan of Brazilian music, this one’s gonna tickle your ears. Guitarist and vocalist Phill Fest mixes originals with classics here with Robert Prester-Dale Powers/p, Russ Howard/b, Ronie Martinez-Carlomagno Araya/dr, Jonathan Sigel/tp, Andy & Jack Potter/perc and guest…
Kevin Stout & Brian Booth: Color Country
Not too many jazz albums are inspired by the deserts of the South Western States, but Brian Booth/sax-fl and Kevin Stgout/tb-g give it an impressive go here. They lead a swinging bop team of Joey Singer/p, Tom Warrington/b, John Abraham/dr…
Michael Valeanu: Hard To Cook
The title must refer to culinary styles, as guitarist Michael Valeanu displays ample ability to cook on his guitar. He mixes tasty solo work along with a symbiotic trio of Jake Goldbas and Jake Sherman/B3 and delivers a rich and…
Billy Lester: Unabridged
Pianist Billy Lester displays a wide reach with his fingers on this solo album of originals. He has a wondrous sense ofsounds as he does dancing fugue on “Songbook Harmony” while his devotion to Thelonious Monk is spotlighted on the…
Ran Blake & Christine Correa: The Road Keeps Winding
This album with pianist Ran Blake and vocalist Christine Correa is the second volume of a tribute to Abbey Lincoln. Aside from two takes of “Throw It Away” which have Blake soloing, the material has the two delivering their stark…
Frank Carlberg & Leo Genovese: Shadows and Reflections
Keyboard Concepts are in abundance here, as Franks Carlberg and Leo Genovese do duets on piano, Rhodes, Farfisa and classical organ on a collection dominated by originals, and interestingly, Thelonious Monk. Of the former, the is a Satie-esque spaciousness with…
Kaze: Uminari
The quartet Kaze is comprised of Christian Pruvost and Natsuki Tamura on trumpet, Satoko Fujii at the piano and Peter Orins handling the drums. Together they bring together five songs ranting from just under 10 minutes to just over 20…