It’s tricky in these days of so many musical genres to come create a music that is both original and alluring. Playing piano, modular and iPad, composer Darren Pickering successfully breeds together soundscapes with improvisation and jazz pulses on this…
Month: January 2024
MODERN TRIOS FROM NEUMA…Galan Trio: Kinesis, Vol. 2, Ewart-Asplund-Ricks Trio: Emphatic Now, Hurwitz-Stokes-Pesca: The Night Shall Break
Like the best of independent labels, Neuma Records has created a catalogue with a definable sound, that of 21st Century ideas of sophistication and experimentation, blurring the lines between modern jazz and classical. Here are three releases displaying how today’s…
Kristen R. Bromley: Muagsician
Clean and clear-toned guitarist Kristen R. Bromley delivers a double disc of solo work, comprised of jazz standards, hymns and originals. Her style is like an economized version of Joe Pass; still skilled and sophisticated, but not with as much…
YESTERDAY AND TODAY… The Beatles: 1962-1966/1967-1970
This four disc collection of “classic” Beatle songs (and by now, which of their songs isn’t) is noted for the inclusion of the mystical reunion of The Beatles. John Lennon’s dreamy ballad “Now and Then” was originally recorded in 1977…
VINYL REVIVAL… Wes Montgomery: The Complete Full House Recordings
In case you hadn’t noticed, it is a golden age for being a jazz fan, as scores of either undiscovered gems, or reissuing of classic albums is becoming a weekly event. Craft Recordings has been digging up some fantastic material…
STUDIO STUD…Phil Upchurch: Plays Big Hit Dances
One of the stalwarts of the LA studio scene, guitarist Phil Upchurch (b 1941) still plays once in awhile at the local clubs like The Baked Potato, making his n ame on countless sessions for artists like Stan Getz, Dizzy…
VINTAGE R&B…Roscoe Gordon: Just A Little Bit
One of the most infectious RB singers and pianists post WWII was Rosco Gordon III (1928-2002) who played in the vein of Amos Milburn, Lloyd Price or early Ray Charles. This two cd, 52 song collection has some of his…
The Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective: Fiesta at Caroga
Consisting of Brian Stark/ts, Ben Weisger/tb, Eric Devey/tp, Stephen Busath/cong, Sebastian Nassar/timb, Brian Shank/perc, Ian Stewart/b and Jose Guzman/g, the Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective reminds the musical world that “salsa” actually means “sauce”, as this album simmers with a wide variety…
Andrew Binder: Conspiracy Deliracy
Bassist Andrew Binder mixes vintage jazz sounds with some clever and quirky ideas on this wide ranging album with a team of Justin Dyar/tp, Brian Stark/sax-fl, Frank Niemeyer/tb, Jose Gobbo/g, Kurt Reeder/key and Maxwell Osawa/dr. The tunes all seem to…
Danette McMahon: No More Excuses
Danette McMahon fits into a category that is unfortunately long forgotten, that of “singer/songwriter”. This album features her own compositions, and they are all clever in terms of lyrical content and each one has some rich and wide ranging musical…