Some fresh fingers are in the hands of pianist Lawrence Fields, featured mostly in a trio setting with Corey Fonville/dr and Yasushi Nakamura/b on a collection of mostly originals. He has a nice and clean style, warm and bluesy like…
Month: March 2024
Gerald Cannon: Love At Dizzy’s Club-The Music of Elvin & McCoy
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…
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…
Francois Couturier & Dominique Pifarely: Preludes & Songs
Modern sonatas are created by violinist Dominique Pifarely and pianist Francois Couturier on this album of originals and covers. The two take turns at leading, other times joining together. The two create spacious dots and dashes during “Lee Surcroit I”…
PASTEL HORNS…Benjamin Lackner: Spiritdrif, Julia Hulsmann Quartet: Under The Surface
Gentle saxes and trumpets are in display on these recent ECM releases… Pianist Benjamen Lackner brings in Mathias Eick/tp, Mark Turner/ts, Linda May Han Oh/b and Matthieu Chazarenc/dr for soft and simmering originals. Turner is particularly subdued her, fluffy on…
Out Of/Into: Motion I
Returning to it’s early days idea of mixing and matching kindred spirits in various settings, Blue Note Records brings together long time friends Gerald Clayton/p, Immanuel Wilkins/as, Joel Ross/vib, Kendick Scott/dr and Matt Brewer/b for a mix of group-conceived originals.…
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…