Playing a wide variety of keyboards, programming and piano, composer Vahagn Stepanyan puts together a rhythmic and soulful collection of originals, ranging between smooth and R&B. The rotating cast includes Snarky Puppy member Mark Lettieri, as well as Eric Moore/r,…
Author: George W. Harris
Laila Faerman: Awake! Arise! Songs of Sri Chinmoy
Vocalist Laila Faerman brings together a collection of songs composed by Sri Chinmoy and has Misha Tsigaov arrange them to create an accessible jazz meets enlightenment melding of sounds and inspirations. Faerman’s voice is clear and warm, and she’s well…
LOOKING GOOD IN BLUE…Pat McDougall: In The Key Of Sorry, Kyle Culkin: Shotgun Ridge, Eric Heideman: Thrid Degree Gravity
Shades of blues… Singing with a tear in the beer, keyboardist Pat McDougall teams up with a core of Whit Draper/g, Ed Pierce/dr and Jim Solberg/b along with some cameo guests for a mix up upbeat and slow tunes for…
THE FIRST DRUMMING STAR…Gene Krupa: Drummin’ Man-Hits and Classic Recordings 1938-50
If you haven’t heard Gene Krupa’s iconic drumming on “Sing, Sing, Sing”, then maybe you’re on the wrong web site, as those relentless tom toms essentially defined the Swing Era. That recording also made Krupa into both a music star…
Nic Vardanega: New Beginning
Guitarist Nic Vardanega forms a trio with Ben Allison/b and Allan Mednard/dr for a tasty mix of blues with a country feel. There’s a dash of rock with Mednard supplying the pulse on “Summers” while a feel of rural road…
Jon Menges: Spirit of 3, Spirit of 4
Playing trumpet and flugelhorn, Jon Menges creates an album dividing up the time between a trio with Pete McCann/g and Evan Gregor/b and a quarter of Joe Fitzgerald/b, Robert Weiss/dr and Nathan Childers/ts-ss. Of the former, Menges is reminiscent of…
Connor O’Neill: The Same Changes, Vol II
Guitarist Connor O’Neill teams up with a core unit of Alex Delcourt/b, Steen Perry/dr and guests Morgan Walbridge/vib, Mervin Toussaint/as, Jessica O’Neill/voc and Micah Graves/p for a collection of lyrical and impression’d originals. There’s a chamber feel with strings and…
Nina Simone: You’ve Got To Learn
Recorded at the Newport Jazz Festival back in 1966, Nina Simone is captured in a transition time of her career, mixing her earlier jazz days with more modern social consciousness. She’s backed by Rudy Stevenson/, Lisle Atkinson/b and Bobby Hamilton/dr,…
DANCING AND BOPPING FROM AVID…Let’s Dance: Four Classic Albums From The Twist Era, Wynton Kelly Plus Don Sleet: Four Classic Albums
Two styles that have faded away, music for dancing and jazz for snapping the fingers to, are represented on these two reissues.. The early 1960s was the last time dancing became a craze before the disco 70s Here we have…
The Bluesland Horn Band: Six
Roadside service is delivered on a blue plate special with Marty Cochran belting out the swampy grits with a team that rotates more than a service tray at a diner. The horns of Miguelita Valdez, Doug Zacharieas, Barrie Sorensen, Armando…