Not too tight fitting, and it doesn’t make your butt look too big… The team of thick toned tenorist Derrick Michaels, double bassist Zachary Swanson and drummer Dalius Naujo get together for 9 intuitive originals. The ideas range from a…
Month: September 2022
PRE-MOTOWN SOUL…The Caravans: Where Gospel Meets Soul 1952-62, Gene McDaniels: The Singles & Albums Collection 1959-62
Not all black music was R&B before Motown, STAX and Doo Wop. Here are a couple of various colors from the mosaic of black music in the 1950s and 60s. Originally known as the Robert Anderson Singers and The Robert…
Black Nile: River of Emotions
Brothers Aaron and Lawrence Shaw create world wide soundscapes not unlike the panoramic Kamasi Washington on this album including Mike Mitchell-Malachi Harvey-Mekala Session-Greg Paul/dr, Diego Gaeta-Paul Cornish-Chris Fishman/key and even through in rapper Tru Sounds for a one off. There’s…
Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad: Katalyst JID013
The reverse-psychologists Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad mix urban hip hop tones to vintage jazz ideas on their latest addition to the Jazz is Dead catalogue. The sure know how to dig a groove, with “The Avenue” having bass…
THIS IS MODERN PIANO 101…Randy Weston: The Complete Recordings1955-57, The Complete Recordings 1958-60, Mal Waldron: The Recordings 1956-57, The Complete Recording 1957-61, Duke Pearson : The Classic Albums Collection, Junior Mance: The Complete Albums Collection 1959-1962, McCoy Tyner: The Impulse Albums Collection
Whatever piano you hear on a modern jazz album has been influenced by one of the artists that is covered in these reissue multi-cd box sets. The 1950s and 60s were key years in the evolution of jazz piano, so…
Miguel Zenon: Musica De Las Americas
Few jazz artists are able to bridge the gap between traditional Latin folk music and modern jazz like alto saxist Miguel Zenon. His catalogue is a travelogue of sounds and traditions, with this latest one a festive occasion, as Zenon…
LAST OF THE WARM TENORS…Zoot Sims: The Rare Albums Collection, Zoot Sims with Bucky Pizzarelli, Joe Venuti and Zoot Sims, Joe & Zoot & More
One of the warmest-toned tenor saxist, undeservedly forgotten these days, is Zoot Sims (1925-85). Originally one of the Four Brothers (along with Stan Getz) in Woody Herman’s famous Second Herd, he is best known for his small group settings as…
Connie Han: Secrets of Inanna
Dressing and posing on her album covers like something from a graphic comic, but playing like Blue Note period Herbie Hancock, Connie Han brings vintage sounds with modern ideas to the fore with her team of Bill Wysaske/dr, John Patitucci/b,…
Susan Reed: Thousands Of Ways
Susan Reed serves as a double threat, swinging on violin and singing with a folkish allure with her team of Craig Wagner/g, David Friesen/b and Steve Barnes. On vocals, the team comes across at times like a jazzy Fairport Convention,…
Joshua Redman/Brad Mehldau/Christian McBride/Brian Blade: LongGone
The supergroup of Joshua Redman/ts-ss, Brad Mehldau/p, Christian McBride/b and Brian Blade/dr have released a rich album to coincide with their current tour. The album feels like an invitation to attend a gig, and it sounds worth going to. The…