1954 was a golden year for Miles Davis, as he was essentially starting to become, well, Miles Davis on the recordings collected together on this vinyl/cd collection. No, he h ad not formed his first “Classic” quintet with Jones, Coltrane,…
Author: George W. Harris
Randy Lee Riviere: Concrete Blues
Singer/guitarist Randy Lee Riviere rocks the blues like it’s the 1970s with Tom Hambridge/dr, Kenny Greenberg- Bob Britt/g, Robert Kearns-Stephen Mackey/b and Mike Rojas/key. The dozen originals rock steady on “Mania”, give some hard thunder for “Moccasin Lake” and serve…
Abbey Lincoln: The Classic Albums 1957-1961
Along with Billie Holiday, Abbey Lincoln was one of the most expressive female jazz singers of the modern jazz era. Her style ranged from hard bop to free, as these classic albums from 1957-61 indicated. Her 1957 debut has her…
Ali Watson Quartet: Terrarium
Bassist Ali Watson brings together a team of Matt Carmichael/ts, Alan Benzie/p and Greg Irons/dr for a collection of his originals. The album is quite pastoral in its content, with Carmichael’s brethy tenor serving as a subdued melody maker, sighing…
RICH REEDS FROM NEUMA…Drew Whiting: All In, Todd Gaffke: Locally Sourced
With so many jazz artists playing the saxes on the , ahem, BRIGHT side so often, this pair of albums from Neuma Records shows the softer side of the reed section. Rotating between alto, tenor and baritone saxes Drew Whiting…
DOO WOP AND JAZZ VOCALS FROM AVID…The Platters: Four Classic Albums Plus, Mavis Rivers: Four Classic Albums Plus
Vocals in the form of Doo Wop and jazz are reissued from UK based Avid Records. Sing along! One of the premier vocals groups, The Platters, essentially defined romantic do wop in the 50s and 60s, with lead vocalists including…
Joel Jeschke: Time & Place
Drummer Joel Jeschke teams with a core of Brendan McGrath/p, Brett Hansen/g and Aretha Tillotson/b while adding guest Holly Sangster for a couple tracks on an accessible mix of post bop originals. Jeschke shows his lyrical wares on the clever…
The Jim Self/John Chiodini Duo: Feels So Good
The unlikely duo of Jim Self’s tuba and John Chiodini’s guitar gives an encore album of fun swinging music, bringing in guests to the festivities this time around. Half of the fun here is the song selection, only out-done by…
SWING AND SING…Les Brown and His Band of Renown: All The Hits and More 1939-1955
While not considered a trend setting band, Les Brown’s Band of Renown was a respectable swing outfit, best known as a vehicle for some of the day’s best vocalist, notably a lady named Doris Day. This 2 disc, 49 song…
NEW FROM NEUMA AND KLAUS KUGEL…Roby Glod/Christian Ramond/Klaus Kugel: No Toxic, Frank Pul Schubert/Kazuhisa Uchihashi/Klaus Kugel: Black Holes Are Hard To Find, Transatlantic Five: Transitions
The German-based label Nemu Records has released a trio of adventurous albums, all united in that they include drummer Klaus Kugel in different permutations. Hang on tight! No Toxic has Kugel in a trio with Ruby Glog/as-ss and Christian Ramond/b…