Art “Turk” Burton brings together two different bands in both studio and concert settings with the unifying factor being his resolute congas on this mix of jazz and Latin sounds. The first two tracks include a bopping read of “When…
Month: December 2015
Aarhus Jazz Orchestra: ReWrite of Spring
Jazz bands since Woody Herman have attempted to swing Igor Stravinsky’s famed Rite of Spring, all with varying results. Composer and Conductor Lars Moller makes a wise choice in this studio/concert version of the piece by re-arranging a bulk of…
SEATTLE SOUNDS…Hans Luchs: Time Never Pauses, Ben Winkelman Trio: The Knife
While better known for being the origin of grunge rock, Seattle also boasts Origin Records, which releases some impressive post bop sounds. Here are a couple samples… Guitarist Hans Luchs leads an impressive and flexible team with Shaun Johnson/tp, Stu…
Ben Patterson: For Once In My Life
B3 player Ben Patterson keeps the keys warm and supple here, forming a nifty trio with Peter Bernstein/g and George Fludas/dr. He has a soft touch on the keys, preferring to let the speakers hum instead of cry, and it…
John Wojciechowski: Focus
John Wojciechowski plays soprano, alto and tenor saxes as he leads a post bop team of Ryan Cohan/p-key, Dennis Carroll/b and Dana Hall/dr through a mix of originals and standards. His tenor sound has an autumnal Coltrane tone to it,…
EVER HEAR OF EDITING? Noah Preminger: Pivot-Live at the 55 Bar, Justin Lepany: Agnes (In Redemption)
Look, even Charles Mingus edited some of his recordings to make them a bit more palatable. Here, we’ve got two artists who give us everything they’ve got. And, although you can feel the creative juices flying, the music here is…
BEETHOVEN OF THE BASS…Jaco: The Film, Jaco: Original Soundtrack
Here’s both the soundtrack and the documentary of famed but ill-fated bassist Jaco Pastorius. While I titled this review as Jaco being the Beethoven of the bass, the documentary begs to differ, calling Pastorius “The Hendrix” of the electric bass, since…
Aarhus Jazz Orchestra: ReWrite of Spring
Jazz bands since Woody Herman have attempted to swing Igor Stravinsky’s famed Rite of Spring, all with varying results. Composer and Conductor Lars Moller makes a wise choice in this studio/concert version of the piece by re-arranging a bulk of…
The David Ricard Big Band: Holiday Swingin’
Here’s a Christmas album that holds up on its own for the entire year. Bassist/arranged David Ricard puts together a swinging big band that freshens up the Great Nativity Songbook for a fun take of the Carols. Some Ventures-inspired guitar…
ONE LIVE YARDBIRD…Eric Clapton: Slowhand at 70 at the Royal Albert Hall
There’s not exactly a dearth of recordings of Eric Clapton performing in concert, but this one from a gig at Royal Albert Hall finds the legendary blues rocker in an inspired mood. Maybe because he’s surrounded himself with jazz artists…