Gentle Giant has recently released a 30 disc (!) box set of concert material from their vast cache of recordings. This band was well known for being a force to be reckoned with in concert, as they used their clever…
Month: May 2020
Dave Askren & Jeff Benedict: Paraphernalia-Music of Wayne Shorter
Jeff Benedict plays alto and soprano saxes as he leads a quartet with guitarist Dave Askren and a rhythm team of bassist Jonathan Pintoff and percussionist Chris Garcia as the Wayne Shorter songbook is visited and given fresh interpretations. Material…
Chris Poland: Resistance
Guitarist Chris Poland creates dark hues with his guitar-shaped paint brush and core team of Bill Dickens/b, David Taylor/g, Jim Gifford/dr along with cameo guests Kevin Woods Guin/b, Albert Caldwell/org and vocalists Rhymefest and Felicia Patton. Many of the pieces…
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****John DiMartino: Passion Flower-The Music of Billy Strayhorn
One of the overlooked composers in the history of jazz is certainly Billy Strayhorn, who was not only overshadowed by his boss Duke Ellington, but rarely given the credit for The Duke’s most famous song, “Take the ‘A’ Train”. This…
SOFT BRASS…Ben Holmes: Naked Lore, Thomas Marriott: Trumpet Ship
Ben Holmes plays trumpet and “rotary trumpet” in a trio setting with Brad Shepik on nylon string guitar and percussionist Shane Shanahan. Holmes’ tone is warm and alluring, a la Kenny Dorham, and he’s quite lyrical with Middle Eastern percussion…
Benjamin Boone with the Ghana Jazz Collective: Joy
Benjamin Boone plays alto and soprano sax as he leads a funky team of Bernard Ayisa/ts, Victor Dey/key, Bright Osei/b and Frank Kissi/dr through a set of soulful struts. Sandra Huson adds lovely voice on a handful of the tunes,…
Tim Shaghoian: Gentle Beacons
Tenor saxist Tim Shaghoian creates fluffy forms with his horn leading the way on his originals plus a standard with Chris Janzen/g, Kevin Person/p, Richard Lloyd Giddens/b and Antonio Montanez/dr. The team works well as a unit, doing some clever…
John Stein: Watershed
Calm guitar waters are created by guitarist John Stein as he mixes and matches with Daniel Grajew/p-key, Frank Herzberg/b, Ze Eduardo Nazario/dr and Teco Cardoso/ss-as-fl on a collection of standards and originals. He shows his sleek bop chops on a…
Jimmy Greene: While Looking Up
One of music’s most gentle souls both musically and spiritually is saxist Jimmy Greene, who’s had a Job’s amount of trials in his life. This latest album with an all star cast of Aaron Goldberg/key, Stefon Harris/vibes, Lage Lund/g, Reuben…
Carla Olson: Have Harmony, Will Travel 2
Carla Olson sounds like she was weaned on the Byrds on this jingle jangled morning of material that even includes a guest appearance by Gene Clark. The core team of Paul Marshall/b, Ben Lecourt/dr, Mikal Reid/key are mixed and matched…