What did big band sidemen between tours? Why, they went to Paris, of course, as these two cds filled with all stars and Left Bank locals demonstrate. The first disc has members of Woody Herman’s Third Herd of Dick Collins/tp,…
Month: November 2017
Casey James: Strip It Down
Texas guitarist Casey James made a name for himself as an American Idol finalist, but he doesn’t need that monicker to impress you on this blues rocker of an album. He teams up with the tight unit of Ron McNelley/g,…
Mae.sun: Vol 1: Inter-de
Comprised of Hailey Niswanger/sax-voc, Nikara Warren/vib, Axel Laugart/key, Andrew Renfroe/g, Aaron Liao/b and David Frazier Jr/dr, the band Mae.sun delivers creative post bop originals on this collection of tunes penned by Ms. Niswanger. She uses her voice as well, delivering…
HI! I’M RICKY BYRD! Ricky Byrd: Clean Getaway
Best known for his work with Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, guitarist & vocalist Ricky Byrd delivers an album that touches on a razor’s edge topic: addiction and recovery. A founder of the non-profit group Clean Getaway, Byrd puts together…
The POET STILL SINGS…Tim Buckley: Venice Mating Call
This two disc set collects material Tim Buckley performed at the famous Doug Weston’s Troubadour back in 1969. There is the accompanying Live at the Troubadour album from 1994, but this one is different enough to make you want to…
Maciej Obara Quartet: Unloved
Breathy alto saxist Maciej Obara delivers a rewarding collection of post bop originals with a communicative team of himself with Dominik Wania/p, Ole Morten Vagan/b and Gard Nilssen/dr. For the most part, he lets his warm alto speak volumes, as…
THAT TODDLIN’ BAND…Chicago: Now More Than Ever
Titled “The History of Chicago,” this 1 ½ hour film by Peter Pardini gives a rich history of the generation-crossing band Chicago. Back when they started in the late 60s, the idea of “fusing” jazz and rock was in its…
Jonathan Saraga: Journey To A New World
Trumpeter Jonathan Saraga fronts a warmly toned post bop sextet of Remy Le Boeuf/s, Aki Ishiguro/g, Chris Pattishall/p-key, Rick Rosato/b and Kenneth Salters/dr through some clever originals and covers. Of the latter, the two horns float lilke cirrus clouds as…
THE PEACE TRAIN RETURNS…Yusef Islam/Cat Stevens: The Laughing Apple
Back in the late 60s and early 70s, Cat Stevens was THE most popular folk-styled singer/songwriter on the planet, with major hits like “Peace Train” and “Where Do The Children Play” and million selling albums like Tea For the Tillerman.…
ASIAN BLENDS…David Lopato: Gendhing For A Spirit Rising, Billy Drewes: Under One Sun
Western jazz teams with sounds from afar… This ambitious 2 disc set features David Lopato in a pair of different settings. He himself plays piano along with a plethora of instrumetns such as vitual violin, sampled zither, marimba and various…