Releases from The Speaker Sex… Betty Boopish vocalist Melanie Dill joins with singer and arranger Tom Johnson and a mix of big band and small group swing on this upbeat album. The album has a feel like Louis Prima and…
Author: George W. Harris
Markus Howell: Chosen Path
Alto saxist Markus Howell brings a classic post bop sound to this album with Art Hirahara/p, Boris Kozlov/b and Rudy Royston/dr on this classy collection of mostly originals. You can feel the church in his sound, delivery and song titles,…
Altin Sencalar: Discover
Trombonist Altin Sencalar delivers vintage hard bop sounds on this album with a band that includes Markus Howell/as, Diego Rivera/ts, Michael Dease/bs, Anthony Harvey/tp Art Hirahara/p, Raul Reyes Bueno/b, Rudy Royston/dr and Mike Rodriguez/perc. Sencalar is warm but never hogging…
John Escreet: The Epicenter Of Your Dreams
Pianist John Escreet teams up with fellow Angelenos Mark Turner/ts, Eric Revis/b and Damion Reid/dr for an album that sounds the extension of the vision of late period Blue Note, namely Andrew Hill’s Black Fire and Point Of Departure or…
The Pat Senatore Trio: Groovin’ In Rome
Back in the day, bassist Pat Senatore was a fixture in LA. Besides playing bass for Herb Alpert’s Tijuana Brass, he ran a hip jazz club in Malibu during the 1980s before becoming manager of Alpert’s Vibratto Jazz Club. These…
VINYL REVIVAL…Howard McGhee: Maggie’s Back In Town
The continued renaissance of reissued vinyl by Craft Recordings brings out its latest release in the comeback record from bebop trumpeter Howard McGhee. This 1961 session has McGhee returning to his former glory and style with a team of Angelenos…
Kavyesh Kaviraj: Fables
Playing keyboards and piano, Kavyesh Kaviraj creates a wide range of textures and moods with his team of Jeff Bailey/eb, Kevin Washington/dr, Pete Wh itman/ts-ss and Omar Abdulkaim/tp. On piano in trio form, his touch is graceful as he gallops…
Fernando Brox: From Within
Playing flute, composer Fernando Brox mixes ost bop with Latin ideas on this album with Iannis Obiols/p, Iago Fernandez/dr, Wilfried Wilde/g and Nadav Erlich/b. Erlich is given the opening on many of the pieces, setting the paces for Brox’s dream…
NEW, AS IN NEUMA…Bryan Hayslett: Cello Unlocked, Richard Carr: August Light, Matt Malsky: A Dill PIckle
One of the most creative labels, Neuma, continues to build a catalogue of fresh and new musical ideas. Here are a handful of samples of uncharted yet accessible waters. Two varieties of musical language are given on this album by…
Eliane Elias@Catalina’s 06.20.2
With the recent passing of baseball Hall of Famer Willie Mays, baseball fans were reminded of what once called a “five tool player”, namely, one that could hit, hit with power, run with speed, field and throw. If jazz had…