jazz adds may 23, 2016
charlie ballantine. providence. self. Second release (green = debut) from Indiana jazz/country-esque guitarist charlie ballantine, student of gorey christianson, and IU jazz guru david baker. with amanda gardier, alto; josh espinoza, organ; conner green, bass; josh roberts, drums. listen to: roads, hallelujah, temptation, old hammer, title track.
peter bernstein. let loose. smoke sessions. Smooth as silk quartet led by NYC guitarist peter bernstein that showcases several of bernstein’s original compositions. with gerald clayton at piano; doug weiss, bass; bill steward@drums.
d-town brass. golden belt. self. D-town brass is a fifteen person psychedelic-jungle-jazz-funk-orchestra from Durham, NC; their music blends the known with avant-garde, heavily sauced with rhythmic punch. lots of horns, reminds me of the midnight disturbers from NoLa, the early days of snarky puppy before they went international. so, this is high energy, brass chorus blend-y–cues are similar to each other, lots of color and a special place for the twins, xylophone and vibraphone.
chico freeman. spoken into existence. jive. After a decade in Europe, and a thirty-albumcareer as leader, tenor saxophonist chico freeman kicks off his American return with a recording that brings together African, Asian, bop, and blues. the quartet features michael baker@drums; Italian pianist antonio farao; Swiss musician heiri hanzig on double bass.
fred fried. core four & more. ballet tree. Guitar led group from Orleans, Ma, with vocalist, marcelle gauvin, driving the originals playlist. mike lavoie, bass; miki matsuki@ drums; bruce abbott, flute, and fred fried on 8-string guitar, composition, arranger.
antonio adolfo. tropical infinito. aam. Brazilian pianist/composer returns to the jazz and bossa tunes of 1960’s; full horn section–jesse sadoc, trumpet; marcelo martins, tenor; serginho trombone on “the bone”; + leo amuedo, electric guitar; jorge helder, bass; rafael barata@drums & perc.
miles ahead. radio special. sony. One hour radio broadcast about how Miles Ahead came together, with interviews from don cheadle, robert glasper, erin davis, vince wilburn jr—plus music from the film soundtrack.
mimi jones. feet in the mud. hot tone. Bassist/vocalist/founder of hot tone music, mimi jones is never shy about her musical explorations; with all originals, produced by her partner pianist luis perdomo, “the amazing crew” cover many musical styles– check out american, the haunting applause, lyman place, feet in the mud. with samir zarif, soprano sax; jon cowherd, piano & rhodes; jonathan barber superb @ drums.
luis perdomo. montage. hot tone. Venezuelan pianistic powerhouse, student of underrated legends sir roland hanna and harold danko, luis perdomo mixes up Latin classics ( si te contara, a bolero beauty)– with an original debussey-esque montage— with jazz standarads, body and soul, monk’s dream. flying solo.
ernie watts. wheel of time. flying dolphin. Tenor ernie watts, for thirty years played saxophone with charlie haden’s quartet west. in his new recording, watts’s Europe-based quartet celebrates that partnership with his quartet’s original playlist. with christof saenger, piano; rudi engel, bass; heinrich koebberling@drums.
lafayette harris jr. hangin with the big boys. airmen. Veteran pianist lafayette harris visits past original compositions and the American songbook for his ballad heavy playlist: with houston person, tenor; noel simone wippler, vocals; caleb curtis, alto; will terrill@drums; george delancey, bass.
myles wright. the la ep. self. Big orchestral LA sound, twenty three musicians–eighteen of them horns, produce a three song cd, and a dvd of the ensemble in action. the work is written, charted and led by Australian composer myles wright.
