If you don’t know anything about black gospel music of the 1940s-50s, starting with The Pilgrim Travelers would not be a bad decision to get “baptized”. Along with The Soul Stirrers, The Dixie Hummingbirds and The Golden Gate Quartet, they…
Month: July 2023
THIS IS A HARD BOP DRUMMER…Philly Joe Jones: Eight Classic Albums On 4 CDs-Riverside & Atlantic
Possibly THE sound of hard bop was produced by Philly Joe Jones, who was arguably on more jazz album sessions than any other drummer. This collection of eight albums (not all are on the Riverside and Atlantic labels) in various…
SMOOTH IN THE GOOD SENSE…Randy Bernsen: Heart Mind and Soul
Florida-based guitarist Randy Bernsen plays “smooth” guitar in the good way, meaning clean, clear and clever, and with muscles flexed in the process. He’s honed his chops with the likes of Jaco Pastorius, Herbie Hancock, Peter Erskine and Bob James,…
Denin Slage-Koch: It Comes In Waves
Guitarist Denin Slage-Koch sounds like he has imbibed from the Kenny Burrell waters on this classy swinging session with Shane Endsley/tp-fh, Ryan Keberle/tb-mel, Gavin Allen-Dunn/p-org, Seth Lewis/b, Bobby Wiens/dr and guest Jared Cathey/cl. In the format with horns, there is…
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****The Rumble: Live at The Maple Leaf
There aren’t a lot of times you hear a live disc and think to yourself “I wish I were there”, but this concert at The Maple Leaf by The Rumble makes me want to take in the atmosphere and vibe.…
Rent Romus/Heikki Koskinen: Itkuja Suite-Invocations on Lament
A Finnish suite akin to works by Jean Sibelius is delivered by co-leaders Rent Romus/as-ss-fl-voc-mel and Heikki Koskinen/ts-tp-kentele and a wide range of support in Heikki Laitinen/voc, Jushua Marshall/sax-fl, Erika Oba/fl-pic, Ann McChesney-Young/acc, Max Judelson/cel, Mark Clifford/vib, Safa Shokrai/b, Cory…
LATIN LOVES…Antonio Lizana & Emilio Solla: El Siempre Mar, Luiz Millan: Brazilian Match
There is a reason we use “romantic” and not “teutonic” when discussing passions… Antono Lizana sings and plays the sax while teaming up with pianist Emilo Solla, Jorge Roeder/b and Ferenc Nemeth/dr for a collection of personal portrayals. A string…
NEW FROM OMNIVORE….Terry Adams & Steve Ferguson: Louisville Sluggers, Victoria Hallman: From Birmingham to Bakersfield
Omnivore Records has a clever way of finding forgotten and lost recordings from a few decades back and bringing them a return to the light. Here are a couple sample fun ones… NRBQ founders Terry Adams/voc-p-key and Steve Ferguson/voc-g-dulc have…
Ramana Vieira: Tudo De Me/All Of Me
Playing piano and supplying strings, vocalist Ramana Vieira teams up with David Parker/b-, Jeff Furtado/g, Earl Jackson/dr and some cameo guests for an effort to modernize the sound of traditional Portuguese fado. There is more of a “pop” feel to …
Dwight Trible: Ancient Future
One of the most creative and explorative of today’s vocalists. Dwight Trible takes a different route on this recent release, plugging in with John Beasley/key, Andre Gouche/b, GE Stinson/g, Greg Paul/dr and b ringing in a collection of guests for…