New Jazz Adds – 5/5/2017
New Jazz Adds – 5/5/2017
Joe Alterman – Comin’ Home To You (Self-produced): Pianist Joe Alterman studied and played with Jean Michel-Pilc, Ralph Lalama, Joe Lovano and John Scofield among others while studying at NYU. His playing has been praised by Les McCann, Monty Alexander and Ramsey Lewis as well. This is his third release and it features Nathaniel Schroeder (bass) and Doug Hirlinger (drums) on most of the disc, shifting from Scott Glazer (bass) and Justin Chesarek (drums) on the opening song. The program includes two Alterman originals and an array of covers from Jimmy Davis’ “You Are My Sunshine” to “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” and Hall and Oates’ “Sara Smile”. Nice interpretations throughout. Click here to listen to the songs on this disc.
Corbin Andrick – Bonzo Squad (Self-produced): Bonzo Squad is an instrumental ensemble formed in Chicago, IL. The group formed as the house band of a jam session venue in 2014. Members of Bonzo Squad include Corbin Andrick (Bonzo) on saxophones and flute, Andrew Lawrence on keyboards and synthesizers, Andrew Vogt on bass, and Zack Marks on drums. They cover a good bit of ground stylistically. Their explorations blend jazz, funk, and rock in a way that commands attention with its beats and sound shifts. The music is whimsical, but also thoughtful and engaging. This is their first release. Click here to listen to one or more performances of songs on this disc.
Regina Carter – Ella: Accentuate The Positive (OKeh): Violinist Regina Carter has created a wonderful tribute to the late Ella Fitzgerald in honor of her 100th birthday. The disc covers a wide span of the styles Fitzgerald recorded during her own career and focuses on the joy in her performances. In additional to Carter’s splendid violin performances, contributing musicians are Marvin Sewell (acoustic, electric, slide guitar), Xavier Davis (piano, Fender Rhodes, Hammond B-3), Chris Lightcap (acoustic, electric bass) and Alvester Garnett (drums, percussion) with Miche Braden and Carla Cook singing one song apiece. The song selection covers the significant range of the material Fitzgerald sang as well as one could in nine songs. Highly recommended! Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Chick Corea – The Musician (Concord Jazz): This release covers three discs as the soundtrack and centerpiece of the recent film of the same name. Corea plays: unplugged with Return To Forever; in a trio with Gary Peacock and Brian Blade; with the Five Peace Band (John McLaughlin, Kenny Garrett, John Patitucci and Brian Blade); in a duo with Bobby McFerrin; with Mary Burton and The Harlem String Quartet; a tribute to Miles Davis with Wallace Roney, Gary Bartz, Eddie Gomez and Jack DeJohnette; with Flamenco Heart featuring vocalist Concha Buika, Carles Benavent (bass), Jorge Pardo 9sax, flute), Jeff Ballard (drums) and Nino Joselle (guitar); with Marcus Roberts and Wynton Marsalis; doubled with Herbie Hancock; and closing with the Elektric Band (Frank Gambale – guitar, Eric Marienthal – sax, John Patitucci – bass, and Dave Weckl – drums). Magnificent music! Click here to catch the movie trailer!
Chris Greene Quartet – Boundary Issues (Self-produced): Saxophonist Chris Greene has a love for a wide range of music and a deep desire to merge or apply a variety of styles to express older songs in new ways. He composed three songs on this disc, his eleventh, and tackles some older songs like “Nica’s Dream” (Horace Silver) and “Day Dream” (Strayhorn-Ellington). The members of the quartet are Damian Espinosa (piano, keys, writer of one song), Marc Piane (bass, writer of one song), and Steve Corley (drums). The overall sound, particularly Greene’s sax playing, is quite smooth and swings like soul jazz. The group also honors past masters like Silver and Coltrane. Click here and use the arrow in the circle to start listening to the songs on this disc.
Benedikt Jahnel Trio – The Invariant (ECM): This disc is the third release by this trio, featuring Benedikt Jahnel (piano, all compositions), Antonio Miguel (bass) and Owen Howard (drums). Jahnel states that having performed together for ten years has allowed him to compose pieces that fully reflect the individual players and the strength of the trio itself. “The Invariant pools the best of the many pieces Benedikt Jahnel has composed in the last five years, incorporating the dynamic responses of his trio partners into the fabric of the material. For the most part this is music carefully shaped for these players; this is its strength and the source of its detail.” (Jahnel’s webpage) The result is beautiful and compelling. Click here to listen to a sample labelled as “ The Invariant”.
Oliver Lake – Right Up On (Passin’ Thru): Composer/saxophonist Oliver Lake presents this disc of his compositions ranging from 1998 – 2016. Flux members are Tom Chiu and Conrad Harris (violin), Max Mandel (viola) and Felix Fan (cello) and the performance consists mostly of this group. Lake does join in on alto sax on a few numbers, but his instrumental presence is minimal. This is an avant-garde disc as you might expect and you’ll need to have your ears tuned to challenging material. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples from this disc.
Clifford Lamb – Brothers & Sisters (Weber Works): Pianist Clifford Lamb has played with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, John Pattitucci, and Larry Gales among others. This disc is his third and it features Cindy Blackman Santana (drums), Buster Williams (bass), Nicholas Payton (trumpet), Chaim Dunbar (spoken word, poetry) and Laura Vall (vocal). The material includes three originals by Lamb and covers of compositions by Kenny Dorham, Roy Hargrove and Marvin Gaye’s classic “What’s Going On”. The music is somewhat laid back and quite accessible, while offering a good bit of variety. Click here to listen to a Clifford Lamb original from this disc.
Peter Madsen – Satin Doll: A Tribute To Billy Strayhorn (Playscape): Pianist Peter Madsen and guitarist Oliver Rath offer this lovely tribute to the composer and pianist Billy Strayhorn, who first offered his composition “Satin Doll” to Duke Ellington in 1938. That collaboration continued until Strayhorn’s passing in 1967. Rather than simply offer the music as it was performed by Ellington, Madsen opted to rearrange several of his favorite songs and to perform them in a guitar/piano setting to celebrate their incredible flexibility. The result is quite wonderful. The new arrangements both surprise and offer a beautifully fresh soundscape that will delight a broad range of listeners. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Michael Morreale – Love And Influence (Pepjack): Educator/composer/trumpet player Michael Morreale has served as a Professor of Music (Jazz emphasis) at the College of Staton Island since 1995 and a jazz trumpeter for most of his life. He recorded with Joe Jackson on the latter’s “Body and Soul” (1984) and “Blaze of Glory” (1989). This recording is a retrospective of the work of his longterm band. Formed in 1983 as The Staton Island Chamber Music Players Jazz Quartet, the group eventually grew to a septet. The music included on this set stretches from 2002 to 2016. The main group features Morreale (trumpet, flugelhorn, piano), Jon Gordon (alt, soprano sax), John Alfred (trombone), Tony Rogusis (piano, Fender Rhodes), Bill Moring (bass) and Tim Horner (drums). There is some fine music on this set. The group swings and has great command as a mainstream jazz ensemble. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this set.
Sarah Partridge – Bright Lights & Promises: Redefining Janis Ian (Origin): Vocalist Sarah Partridge began her career as an actress whose first major breakthrough was co-staring in Tom Cruise’s “Risky Business” in 1982. She almost accidentally found her way to singing by stunning her friends with her rendition of “Summertime” in a karaoke bar. After a while, continuing to sing more and more, she sat in with Doc Cheatham several times and eventually became a professional singer. She has several releases to her name and in searching for something new, she happened to meet Janis Ian, whose “Society’s Child” had been a favorite of Partridge’s. They developed a friendship which eventually led to this release. Partridge has a beautiful voice and amazing control of her delivery. The songs here were mostly composed by Ian. Two, however, were in collaboration by Ian and Partridge. The style is often jazzier than Ian’s originals, but this disc is truly a tribute to her work. Partridge sings throughout and is joined by Ian on the opening song. Musicians include Allen Farnham (piano), Bill Moring (bass), Tim Horner (drums, percussion), Scott Robinson (tenor & soprano saxes, flute, clarinet), Ben Williams (trombone), Paul Meyers (acoustic guitar) and Ben Stein (electric guitar). This is a remarkable performance as well as being a wonderful reminder of Ian’s special gifts. Click here to listen to the songs on this disc.
Daniel Weltlinger – Samoreau: A Tribute To The Fans Of Django Reinhardt (DMG): “…Daniel Weltlinger has been widely acclaimed by critics and audiences alike for his distinctive sound and improvisational approach in the genres of Gypsy-swing, jazz, klezmer and experimental/free-improvised music.” (Daniel Weltlinger webpage) He is distinguished from other current “gypsy jazz” players by his light and lithe violin style. Weltlinger explains that his third release in this trilogy fits as a finale. The preceding two, “Souvenirs” and “Koblenz” were a blend of Django Reinhardt originals and Weltlinger’s originals about Reinhardt’s life. This release is all Weltlinger originals and “explores themes of universal humanity” (liner notes). Other musicians on this disc are guitarists Lulo Reinhardt, Christiano Gitano, Taylor Paucken, Jermaine Reinhardt and Romano Reinhardt covering both rhythm and solos with Harald Becher (bass) and Winfried Schuld (accordion, piano). There is generally a softer sound than other such releases where the focus has been more about the guitar than the violin. Gypsy jazz enthusiasts check this out. Click here to listen to the songs on this disc.
Kopasetically,
Professor Bebop
