Any musician from any genre will tell you that the key to success is to have your own voice and a story to tell. And while he may be a C&W singer from the Texas/Louisiana side of life, Trace Adkins…
Month: July 2019
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****Larry Koonse: New Jazz Standards Volume 4
Here’s an album that amply displays the strengths of the LA Jazz scene. Guitarist Larry Koonse is always seen at some local club, as well as the teammates here in pianist Josh Nelson (who’s one of the most in-demand accompanists…
Dave Stryker: Eight Track III
Guitarist Dave Stryker keeps playing a winning hand in his revamping 60s and 70s hits with a team of Stefon Harris/vib, Jared Gold/org, McClenty Hunter/dr and Mayra Casales/perc. It’s not necessary, but it helps, to know the original hits to…
Art “Turk” Burton: Ancestral Spirits
Percussionist Art “Turk” Burton gets Afro-Cuban rootsy on some jazz standards with a team of Sammie Torres/perc, Eddie Beard/p, Luis Rosario/timb, Patrice Burton/voc, Edwin Daugherty/as, Yosef Ben Israel/b, Maggie Brown/voc and Ari Brown/ts. Patrice starts thing of by telling a…
Johnathan Blake: Trion
Son of famed violinist John Blake and usually at the helm of Tom Harrell’s band, drummer Johnathan Blake leads an open trio with the spartan support of bassist Linda May Han Oh and tenor sax titan Chris Potter/ts. The venue…
Sarah McKenzie: Secrets Of My Heart
Vocalist and songwriter Sarah McKenzie plays piano with Pierre Boussaguet/b, Dan Wilson/g, Donald Edwards/dr and a collection of guests on percussion, strings and woodwinds on summery mix of originals and covers. Her phrasing is warm and clear, cozy with her…
Nic Vardanega: Point In Time
Guitarist Nic Vardanega leads a light and spacious quartet with Jakob Dreyer/b, Josh Roberts/dr and Michael Rodriguez/tp-fh on a rich post bop collection of originals. For the most part, his tone is strong, thick and mellow, working well with Rodriguez’s…
Luca: Lions
Soft and graceful vintage R&B modes are produced here by Luca, who sings, plays keyboards and synths, teaming up with a mix and match ensemble of Sean Dixon/dr, Jordan Scannella/b, Dave Goldman/synth-p and a handful of guests. He gives a…
Lauren Desberg: Out For Delivery
Known also for her work as a photographer, Lauren Desberg shows her vocal skills with a collection of musical snapshots with a team of Kris Bowers/p, Ben Shepherd/eb, Jonathan Barber/dr, Russell Hall/b, Braxton/ts and Andrew Renfroe/g. The songs are either…
Lisen Rylander Love: Oceans
Lisen Rylander Love plays just about everything, including (deep breath) tenor sax, omnichord, kalimba, Hawaiian Art Violiln, keyboards, bass clarinet, percussion and “live” electronics, with some percussion by Henrick Rylander. The result is a collection of dark moods, stark vox…