Mark Murphy has to be one of the most influential if not one of the least known jazz vocalists. Just about everyone that is out there these days has been touched by the style, attitude and delivery of this guy…
Author: George W. Harris
FRESH CLARINET SOUNDS…Darryl Harper: The Edenfred Files
As a clarinet player (or, more accurately, one who blows air into a clarinet to emit sounds), I always keep an ear open for new ideas on the licorice stick. Darryl Harper is a guy I’ve never heard of before,…
Denny Zeitlin: Both/And; Solo Electrico-Acoustic Adventures
Dr. Denny Zeitlin has made a career of creating a catalogue of some of the most imaginatively lyrical and sublime acoustic solo and trio sessions in the line of Bill Evans. This time around, the good doctor changes the prescription…
FOUR SHADES OF LATIN…Hector Del Curto: Eternal Piazzola, Duduka Da Fonseca Trio: New Samba Jazz Variations, Grupo Cha Cha: This is the Life, Arturo O’Farril and the Chico O’Farrill Afro Cuban Orchestra: Final Night in Birdland
Sometimes the “latin tinge” permeates jazz, and sometimes “jazz” permeates the latin tinge. That’s the story of, that’s the glory of…these four wonderful recordings. Bandoneon player Hector Del Curto explores the songbook of Astor Piazzolla with Pedro Giruado/b, Sami Mardinian/vio,…
VIVA ITALIA Y MEXICO! Quattro: Popzzical, The Krayolas: Tormenta
It seems like the latest trend in music are these bands that mix gypsy, jazz and pop. Here are two bands that delve into this latest genre. The quartet of Giovanna Clayton/cello-voc, Jorge Villanueva/pec-voc, Kay-Ta Matsuno/g-voc and Lisa Dondlinger/vio-voc combine…
Dyad: Plays Puccini
In order to improve my playing skills, my sax teacher used to tell me to play as if I were singing the lyrics with extra schmaltz, as in an opera. This collection of duets between Lou Caimano/as and Eric Olsen/p…
Gene Pritsker: Trio Amalgamate, Samplestra
Guitarist Gene Pritsker delves into fascinatingly experimental sounds on these two latest releases. While the instrumentation is quite varied between the two sessions, and even within one of them, the attitude of sound and ear expansion prevails. Trio Amalgamate includes…
Jose’ Rizo’s Mongorama: Baila Que Baila
Bandleader/composer/LA standard bearing DJ Jose Rizo once again puts his Jazz On the Latin Side band on hold and delivers an encore session by the equally impressive and oh so slightly smoother Mongorama. This most recent album has some suavely…
Chris Parker Trio: The Chris Parker Trio
Drummer Chris Parker leads a fresh sounding trio her with Kyoto Oyobe/p and Ameen Saleem/b on this well rounded mix of standards and originals. Rich and imaginatively swinging material like “C’est Possible” and Pat Metheny’s “Song For Bilbao” have wondrous…
Steve Heckman Quartet/Quintet: Born to be Blue
Here’s a delight for jazz fans that like their jazz served on a blue plate. Steve Heckmann uses his warm and high cholesterol tenor along with boppers Howard Alden/g, Matt Clark/p, Marcus Shelby/b and Akira Tana/dr on this thoroughly enjoyable…