It’s ironic that music as free as jazz would label itself as “socialist”, as jazz was verboten in Communist countries. Besides, try asking Prokofiev or Shostakovich what they thought of the government directing their music. But, alas, I digress… Chelsea…
Month: January 2020
SWINGING IN THE SOUTH…Sister Lucille: Alive, Soggy Po Boys: All In Favor
A pair of albums celebrating life south of Mason/Dixon.. The Sister Lucille Band actually has no one named Lucille, as lead vocalist Kimberly Dill, guitarist/vocalist Jamie Holdren, drummer Kevin Lyons and bassist Eric Guinn bring together a bunch of non-Lucille’d…
MAINSTREAM JOYS…Andy Ballantyne: Play On Words, Doug MacDonald & The Tarmac Ensemble: Live At Hangar 18-Jazz Marathon 4
Music with no muss nor fuss… Leader Andy Ballantyne plays tenor sax, alto sax and a dash of clarinet on his Blue Note inspired outing teamed with Rob Piltch/g, Adrean Farrugia/p, Neil Swainson/b and Terry Clarke/dr. His tenor gives a…
ARE THERE TRANSCRIPTIONS OF THIS? Joshua Gerowitz: Dark Forest Theory
Guitarist Joshua Gerowitz leads a tentet through a decalogue of tunes recorded at Citrus College. What you get here are a collection of avant garde collection of vocal wisps and operatic voices gone wild teamed with Louis Lopez’s trumpet as…
Randy McAllister and the Scrappiest Band in the Motherland: Spitball, Shatter and Patch
Singer Randy McAllister plays a nasty harp and even a bit of drums as he leads a team of Brandon Hudspeth/g, Cliff Moore/b and Adam Hagerman/dr through some rowdy blues rockers. The acoustic pieces have some earthy folk guitar along…
THE DOCTOR’S LAST PRESCRIPTION…Dr. John and the WDR Big Band: Big Band Voodoo
Dr. John’s music is still alive and well after his departure from this world to the next, with this recently uncovered 1995 German recording with the WDR Big Band showing his perfect gumbo of jazz, blues and New Orleans beyond.…
Massimo Biolcati: Incontre
Better known for his work with guitarist Lionel Loueke, bassist Massimo Biolcati shows what he can do as a leader on this creative and wide ranging collection of songs, both original and covers, with a team of Sam Yahel/org-p, Jongkuk…
Raquel Cepeda: Passion-Latin Jazz
For the title, isn’t “Passion” and “Latin Jazz” a bit redundant? Especially with Raquel Cepeda at the vocals? Cepeda sings like she’s been on an iv drip of South American coffee with a core team of Adriano Santos/dr, Thomas Helton/b,…
SASSY AS A STAR…Sarah Vaughan: The Complete Columbia Singles As & Bs 1949-53
Along with Billie Holiday, Anita O’Day and Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Lois Vaughan 91924-1990) was one of the pioneers of jazz vocals, with the latter three ladies taking it to the level of bebop in the modern age. This 3 disc,…
SOLO WORKS…Matt Herskowitz: Mirror Image, Sean Hamilton: Table For One, Greg Diamond: Musings & Origins
Pianist Matt Herskowitz brings melodicism and a modern classical approach to a wide variety of lyrical songs. The melding of jazz and classical works well, with a rich and stately read of “My One And Only Love” and a wondrous…