Pianist and composer Helen Sung brings her working team of John Ellis/wwinds, David Wong/b and Kendrick Scott/dr in juxtaposition with the Harlem Quartet (Ilmar Gavilan/vi, Melissa Whigte/vi, Jaime Amador/va, Felix Umansky/cel) on this richly textured album. The other key element…
Month: October 2021
ALL STAR TRIOS GLISTENING…Ron Carter-Jack DeJohnette-Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Skyline, Joe Farnswoth: City Of Sounds
There are times when you don’t even have to listen to an album, but you know that you’re going to get it just because of who’s on it. Bassist Ron Carter, drummer Jack DeJohnette, pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba…any more questions? It’s…
Brasuka: A Vida Com Paixao
If you’re not a sucker for Brazilian jazz, there is seriously something wrong with you. The energetic pulses, sensuously nasal voices and surfing horns make for timeless enjoyment. The band Brasuka consists of Rosana Eckert/voc, Ricardo Bozas/voc-perc, Denny Robinson/p-key-voc, Tom…
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****Jonathan Bauer: Sings & Plays
It’s guys like trumpeter/singer Jonathan Bauer that make you love jazz. First of all, he’s got a horn that sounds like a testosteroned Chet Baker. Ditto his voice, that has a sublime swing but also a dash of vintage Louie…
MOTOWN BOP…Detroit Composers Collective: Realism
Detroit has had a long time legacy of supply jazz with a surfeit of home grown artists including Tommy Flanagan, Barry Harris, James Carter, Lucky Thompson and Wardell Gray, and we won’t even mention soul artists like Stevie Wonder or…
BLUES! Tito Jackson: Under Your Spell, Clay Melton: Back to Blue
Nothing like the blues played by a veteran who’s paid his dues. That’s what you get on this album by guitarist/vocalist Tito Jackson, who plays and sings with dirt under his nails with a tam of Michael Harris/dr, Michael T.…
Barry Altschul’s 3dom Factor: Long Tall Sunshine
One of the last remaining of the original “free” drummers, Barry Altschul leads a Coltrane-inspired trio with Jon Irabagon/ts-sss-ac and Joe Fonda/b through five white knuckler originals. Fonda and Alstchul dig in deep as Irabagon’s tenor hearkens to Impulse-era Trane…
MAN WITH A PEN…Al Hammerman: Just A Chance
It’s rare to come across a gent who specializes in the artistry of lyrics and music alone. Such is Al Hammerman, who is working on creating his own songbook, ranging from Tin Pan Alley, to sophisticated jazz and even a…
Georgia Mancio & Alan Broadbent: Quiet Is The Star
Sublime and impressionist duos by the pen, piano and voice of Alan Broadbent and Georgia Mancio respectively create an delicate and poetic musical interplay. Mancio’s voice ranges from Blossom Dearie buoyancy to Broadway earnestness throughout, delivering her lyrics like water…
Steven Harlos: The Piano Music of Dick Hyman
Neo trad pianist Dick Hyman is best known for his work on various Woody Allen films, but his own solo and small group albums are also consistent and swinging. For this album, pianist Steven Harlos gives a tribute of sorts…