One of the first guitarists to take the baton from pioneer Charlie Christian, Barney Kessel (1923-2004) set the standard for bebop guitar during his long and productive career. MVD has put together 8 of his best albums, serving as a…
Month: June 2022
LIVERPOOL IN BRAZIL…Minas: Beatles In Bossa
Why does bossa nova make everything better? Think you’ve heard The Beatles every way possible, well, here’s a new one, and it’s fantastic. Vocals by Orlando Haddad, Patricia King Haddad and Jordan Haddad harmonize and solo with aplomb to the…
TIE-DYED ZEITLIN….Denny Zeitlin: The Name of This Terrain
Best known for his acoustic piano work a la Bill Evans, with an occasional foray into electronica, Denny Zeitlin has issued a session from 1969 that is going to raise a few eyebrows. Think about running across your father’s college…
The Groove Krewe featuring Nick Daniels III: Run To Daylight
Vintage and danceable R&B with a Crescent City pulse is delivered by the rotating team of The Groove Krewe and the lead vocals of Nick Daniels III. Daniels has a soulful growl reminiscent of The Four Tops’ Levi Stubbs, bold…
Ben Morris: Pocket Guides
Composer and arranger Ben Morris plays piano as he leads his semi-big band through a wide range of originals. Various and exotic moods are created, such as a mix of muted horn from Derek Ganong teaming with a Korean melody…
Hugo Fernandez: Ozean
Tensile toned guitarist Hugo Fernandez brings together a quartet with horn man Christoph Titz, electric bassist MartinLillich and drummer Jesus Vega through a collection of post bopping originals. He has fun with a reggae pulsed “Caribbean Illusion” and gets a…
The Dave Weckl/Tom Kennedy Project@Catalina’s 06.02.22
A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. PR 18:24 There were two obvious takeaways that the audience was imbedded with after listening to the 110 minute set…
****RINGER OF THE WEEKS****IT’S GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME…Hank Williams: I’m Gonna Sing-The Mother’s Best Gospel Radio Recordings
If you don’t know where the lyrics of “It’s good enough for me” come from, you either missed Sunday School a few times or don’t know Americana. There’s an old hymn “Give Me That Old Time Religion” that summarizes this…
THE BEST TRIO AROUND? Goldings-Bernstein-Stewart: Perpetual Pendulum
One thing a trio needs in order to reach that certain level of excellence is longevity. The Standards Trio of Jack DeJohnette, Keith Jarret and Gary Peacock achieved that status. The threesome of keyboardist Larry Goldings, guitarist Peter Bernstein and…
WHY IS THIS GUY NOT MORE WELL KNOWN? System 6: Indispensable
I’ve seen tenor saxist Benn Clatworthy a number of times in LA, and after each set I ask myself “why isn’t this guy in everyone’s Top Ten List for sax players?”. He’s got a Sonny Rollins-inspired T-bone steak of a…