Pastoral moods are created by leader Stefan Bauer as he plays marimbas and vibes with a lithe tam of tammy Scheffer/voc, Chris Bacas/ss-ts, Jim Vivian/b and Greg Ritchie/dr. Scheffer’s voice harkens to Luciana Souza in terms of dreamy softness, whether…
Month: January 2019
Julian Gerstin Sextet: The Old City
Armed with various percussion instruments including the tanbou bele, bongos and congas, Julian Gerstin takes you to the narrow streets of Jerusalem along with Anna Patton/cl, Don Anderson/tp-fh, Eugene Uman/p, Wes Brown/b and Ben James/dr. Various corners of the legendary…
NES: Ahlam
The intriguing trio NES includes two cellos (Nesrine Belmokh & Matthieu Saglio), with both on vocals and David Gadea for percussion. The moods emphasized exotic and Arabic atmospheres, with folksy percussion on the clip clopping “You Made It Hard For…
Kat Danser: Goin’ Gone
Singing and playing guitar, Kat Danser creates homespun and earthy moods with Seve Dawson/g-stg, Jeremy Holms/b-mand, Gary Craig/dr, Jim Hoke/sax-harp and Matt Combs/fid-mand. She sounds like a rambling woman with harp and guitar on the muscular “Goin Gone” and delivers…
Brad Whiteley: Presence
Pianist Brad Whiteley explores his thoughtful compositions with a sextet of Matt Pavolka/b, Kenneth Salters/dr, Tom Guarna/g and Michael Eaton/ts. Some sepia hues pervade with Guarna’s guitar on the driving “Dusk” and the country-ish “Dark Days” with a hint of…
Chris Pasin: Ornettiquette
Can Ornette Coleman be celebrated by a trumpet player? Why the Cherry not? Chris Pasin teams his trumpet with alto saxist Adam Siegal, which makes sense, and then also brings in piano/vibes by Karl Berger, voice from Ingrid Sertso and…
INNOVATIONS FROM INNOVA…Edna Michell: The Compassion Project, Stanley Grill: Rustling Flights of Wings, Roco: Visions Take Flight
Is it modern classical or jazz? Genres and borders are crossed on these latest three releases by Innova Records String’s the thing with violinist Edna Mitchell, playing in various settings with compositions from a wide ranging collection of artists to…
Weird Turn Pro: Let Me Be Unwound
Lead by pianist Mike Effenberger, Weird Turn Pro includes Chris Klaxton/tp, Chris gagne/tb, Matt Langley/bcl/ss, Rob Gerry/b and Mike Walsh/dr on this collection of originals. The colors are dominated by soft pastels, as the rhythm team trudges through “Or Els…
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****WHO IS THIS GUY?!? Frank Minion: Complete Recordings 1954-1959
Just when you think you’ve heard every jazz singer around, Fresh Sound Records pulls out another obscurity, releases some amazing material and makes you pull your hair out and exclaim “Why have I never known of this cat before?” This…
Richard Bennett: Ballads in Otherness
While making a successful living as the first call guitarist for the likes of Mark Knopfler and Neil Diamond, Richard Bennett has also quietly amassed an impressive catalogue of his own. Classy and understated, his albums are reminiscent of the…