The muscles were flexed at Dizzy’s Club with bassist Gerald Cannon at the helm, leading the testosteroned team of Eddie Henderson/tp, Sherman Irby/as, Joe Lovano/ts, Steve Turre/tb, Dave Kikoski/p and Lenny White through a collection of tunes associated with John…
Month: March 2024
A FORGOTTEN BOPPIN’ LADY…Clora Bryant: Plays and Sings-Complete Recordings 1957-1960
It never ceases to amaze me that, after being a jazz fan for over half a century, Spain-based Fresh Sound Records is still able to bring up from the depths singers and musicians I’ve never heard before. Case in point…
Marshall Gilkes and the WDR Big Band: LifeSongs
Trombonist Marshall Gilkes teams up with the WDR Big Band for some sophisticated charts on this recent album. He features himself on the upbeat “Fresh Start” and the marching band like high stepper Sin Filtro” with some exciting percussion in…
Chief Keegan: The Piles High Club
Comprised of Luke Dunford/key, Mark Dudley/g , Alan Elliott/b and Cian Hanley/dr, the band Chief Keegan may come from Ireland, but they sound like they imbibed the waters of the Mississippi instead of Guinness. The band has a funky Memphis…
A MOST INFLUENTIAL GUITAR…Barney Kessel: The Contemporary Years 1953-57
Almost all rock guitarists of the 1960s cut their teeth listening to Barney Kessel, who’s bopping single note runs were the clarion tones for young Americans and Brits trying to figure out how to create a guitar solo. This two…
Syndone: Dirty Thirty 1992-2022
The Italian progressive rock/fusion group Syndone puts together a 12 song anthology, essentially an introduction for most of us plugged in fans. The core team of Nik Comoglio/key, Riccardo Ruggeri/voc, Marta Caldara-perc-key, Gigi Rivetti/p-key, Simone Rubinato/b and Ciro Iavarone/dr specializes…
Emanuel Casablanca: Strung Out On Thrills
Playing guitar and singing with a honeyed yet traveled voice, Emanuel Casablanca delivers modern blues with a core team of Julian Chobot-Sam Lazarev/b, Donal Sturge Anthony McKenzie II-Max Freeberg/dr and a slew of guests on some gritty originals. There’s a…
Vanessa Perea: This Is The Moment
Vocalist Vanessa Perea joins together with Adam Birnbaump, Neal Miner/b and Aaron Kimmel/dr for some rich reads of standards. She has a tone and delivery hinting at Carmen McRae, suave on “This Is The Moment” and able to bop as…
COOL STRINGS…Jean-Pierre Sasson: Portrait of an Unsung Jazz Guitarist
Just when you thought that you’ve heard every jazz guitarist… I can honestly say I have never even heard of French guitarist Jean-Pierre Sasson, but this 2 dusc album makes me wonder what I was missing. He comes right out…
VINYL REVIVAL…Cannonball Adderley: Know What I Mean?, Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers: Caravan
Just to give evidence on how the standards of excellence in jazz have changed… When these two albums came out, respectively, in 1961 and 1962, Cannonball Adderley’s Know What I Mean and Art Blakey’s Caravan received 3 ½ and 4…