Month: August 2019

Carlos Barbosa-Lima: Delicado

Guitarist Carlos Barbosa delivers sublime Brazilian jazz in a variety of settings with Larry Del Casale/g, Duduka Da Fonseca/perc, Nilson Matta/b and Helio Alves/p for sublime interpretations of classic tunes. His touch on the nylon strings is sensitive and lyrical,…

Ron Davis: Symphronica Upfront

Pianist and composer Ron Davis mixes jazz and modern strings on this rich and textured album. The “jazz” section includes Kevein Barrett/g-mand, Mike Downes/b, Steve Heathcoate/dr and a four  piece string section as well as vocals by Daniela Nardi. The…

Yoko Miwa Trio: Keep Talkin’

Pianist Yoko Miwa leads a hip trio through a collection of originals and standards, showing a sense of tradition and adventure. Her own title track shows strong fingers boogalooing, while showing uptown and upscale style on the stately swingers “Secret…

Kenneth Brown: 2nd Chances

Drummer Kenneth Brown swings in a variety of settings with a mix and match all start team including Nicholas Payton/tp, Chris Potter/ts-ss, Darryl Hall/b, Keith Brown/keys, Ashlee Varner/voc, Jamel Mitchell/ts, Will Boyd/cl-ss and Steve Kovalcheck/g. The intriguing mix here is…

Stratus Luna: Stratus Luna

Consisting of bassist Gabriel Golfetti, keyboardist Gustavo Santhiago, drummer Giovanni Lenti and guitarist Ricardo Santhiago, Stratus Luna serves up vintage fusion not unlike groups like Yes or PFM. Rich in complex melodies an driving grooves, the team delivers warm colors…

David Bixler: In the Face of Chaos

I always say, nothing testifies as clearly as a changed life, and alto saxist David Bixler testifies to his own restoration on this collection of 6 originals and traditional spiritual.  He testifies with fellow congregants Rogerio Boccato/perc, Jon Cowherd/p and…

Paul Combs: Unknown Dameron

In jazz, there is “obscure” there’s “overlooked”  and then there’s “unknown.” Pianist and composer Tadd Dameron was a major contributor to the early days of bebop and hard bop, with some classic compositions to his credit like “Our Delight,” “Hot…