New Jazz Adds – 10/29/2019
New Jazz Adds – 10/29/2019
Ron Burris – Mr. Cool (Self-produced): Saxophonist Ron Burris grew up of the left coast and began his interest in playing as early as the fourth grade in school. He was enamored with Motown early on, but “after hearing the music of Gene Ammons Ron fell in love with jazz. Ron states “I admired Gene Ammons because he had such a beautiful sound on the horn, especially the low notes, and he made everyone listening feel the music he was playing. Lastly, Gene was a wonderful person”! Ron drew inspiration from other sax masters most notably John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins and Cannonball Adderley to name a few.” (http://www.jazzcorner.com/news/display.php?news=9243) Burris plays tenor, alto and soprano sax on this disc and is backed up by Leo Cavanaugh (guitar), Waye De La Cruz (keys), Steve Webber (bass), Evan Carr (drums), Ron Carson (congas, percussion) and Laurice McCoy-Ozyuwah (vocalist on one song). Most of the songs are Burris originals. He also plays “Mr. P.C.” and “You Send Me”. Click here to listen to an original song from this set.
Corey Christiansen – La Proxima (Origin): “With his collection of recordings over the last decade, guitarist Corey Christiansen reflected heavily on the great vistas of his Utah home, the West, and traditional melodies, while still fully imbuing his music with a modern jazz aesthetic. With that same penchant for exploring ‘roots,’ Christiansen’s 6th Origin release borrows inspiration from the music that influenced him from Africa, through Cuba and into the States. While not an Afro-Cuban album per se, the more specifically explored rhythms & grooves that have always informed his playing, and that of his bandmates here – bassist David Belove, drummer Colin Douglas, and percussionist/co-producer Michael Spiro – add new layers of perspective, dance and feel.” (http://originarts.com/recordings/recording.php?TitleID=82785) This disc is filled with joy, rhythm and harmony. Click here to listen to samples of the first two songs.
Adrian Cunningham – Adrian Cunningham & His Friends Play Lerner & Lowe (Arbors): The title says it all: saxophonist Adrian Cunningham gathered Fred Hersch (piano), John Hebert (bass), Eric McPherson (drums), Randy Brecker (trumpet, flugelhorn) and Wycliffe Gordon (trombone) put the jazz touch on eleven songs by Lerner and Lowe ranging from “I Could Have Danced All Night” and “Thank Heaven For Little Girls” to “They Call The Moon Maria” and “Brigadoon”. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of songs from this disc.
Whit Dickey – Tao Quartets – Peace Planet & Box Of Light (AUM): Drummer Whit Dickey offers two slices of jazz from the beyond: Peace Planet which features Matthew Shipp (piano), William Parker (bass) and Rob Brown (alto sax) and Box Of Light which keeps Dickey and Rob Brown and shifting with Steve Swell (trombone) and Micheal Bisio (bass). Peace Planet was recorded in 2018 and Box Of Light in early 2019. This is challenging music with Peace Planet probably offering the more difficult music of the pair. Click here to listen to two songs from each disc.
Laszlo Gardony – La Marseillaise (Sunnyside Communications): “A formidable improviser who lives in the moment” (JazzTimes), Laszlo Gardony has performed in 27 countries and released a dozen albums on the Sunnyside, Antilles, and Avenue Jazz labels during his distinguished decades long career. Winner of the Great American Jazz Piano Competition, Gardony has been called “a pianist worthy of praise within the highest pantheon of performers” by Jazz Review, and “a great pianist” by Dave Brubeck.” (http://www.lgjazz.com/pages/about.html) Gardony has released over a dozen discs. This disc is another solo set with five originals and the others his personal transformations of songs like Erroll Garner’s Misty and Revolution (a Gardony adaptation of “La Marseillaise”). The performances are fresh and terrifically enjoyable! Click here to listen to the piece “Revolution”.
Erroll Garner – A New Kind Of Love (Octave): The ever changing pianist Erroll Garner sought a variety of paths to maintain his freshness and popularity. This particular set was recorded in 1963. The music had been composed by Garner for the film “A New Kind Of Love”. Garner made some revisions and played with a full orchestra with strings. Click here to listen to the songs on this disc.
Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band – The Gordian Knot (Music Of Content): “I assembled what would become the Big Phat Band in mid 1999 with the intention of recording a record and nothing more. I wanted to document the music I was writing for the big band genre, but no way did I want to hassle with doing live gigs and all the logistical problems and phone calls and…no way. But around the time of the release we got a call to play a concert at my alma mater Cal State University Northridge. I remember some of the guys had doubts we could even get through a whole concert of the charts I had written. But we did, and not only did the audience love it, we had a blast. For a bunch of session musicians, playing for a live audience again was intoxicating. It reminded me of why I started playing music in the first place, because the life of a session musician can get to be fairly isolated. You rehearse the cue, record the cue and move on to the next, and you don’t hear it again until the film comes out months later. But here you had a live audience, reacting in real time! Not only reacting but interacting with the musicians! So, with that fun experience resonating in my mind, I started to dip my toe into the water and attempt to get some gigs for the band.” (http://www.bigphatband.com/about-bpbbio) This appears to be their tenth release and this band is tight! Trumpets: Wayne Bergeron, Dan Fornero, Mike Rocha, Willie Murillo, Dan Savant; Saxes: Eric Marienthal (soprano, alto), Sal Lozano (alto sax, flutes, piccolo), Brian Scanlon and Jeff Driskill (tenor sax, flute); Kevin Garren (alto sax); and Jay Mason (bari sax, bass clarinet); Trombones: Andy Martin, Charlie Morrillas, Francisco Torres, Craig Gosnell; Ray Brinkler (drums); Kevin Axt (acoustic, electric bass); Andrew Synowiec (guitar); Joey LeLeon (percussion); Gordon Goodwin (piano, keys; tenor and soprano sax) and Vangie Gunn (vocals). Click here on the links that have yellow hashmarks to listen to samples of this set.
Gordon Grdina Quartet – Cooper’s Park (Songlines): “Since the release of his first album in 2006, Think Like the Waves (Songlines), Gordon Grdina has sought a musical language that would allow him to incorporate his dual interests in the electric guitar and the oud. It is tempting to view this as an “East meets West” process, wherein Grdina’s jazz and rock-infused guitar playing melds somehow with the Arabic influences that typically contextualize oud performance. But that is not entirely accurate, as Grdina’s recordings are more likely to pull avidly from all sorts of directions, making the inspirational origins of his compositions almost beside the point. Chamberlike grace and precision will run up against raw punk energy, and deep strains of jazz and blues will be skewed by impressionistic abstraction. And, through it all, the music remains eminently listenable and engaging. Grdina’s latest quartet offering, Cooper’s Park, is a case in point. It features a group comprising pianist/keyboardist Russ Lossing, alto sax/bass clarinetist Oscar Noriega and drummer Satoshi Takeishi, first assembled by Grdina for Inroads (Songlines, 2017). The album’s lengthy compositions allow Grdina to strike multiple emotional registers, and to draw on the substantial talents of his colleagues in making music that is rigorously composed yet also makes significant room for freedom and dialogue. It is an ideal representation of Grdina’s expansive aesthetic.” (https://www.allaboutjazz.com/coopers-park-gordon-grdina-songlines-recordings-review-by-troy-dostert.php) Sometimes exotic, other times are fusion-like. Sometimes beautifully blended, others are intensely outside. Depending upon the reach of the listener, the fusion is intriguing and fresh. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Michelle Lordi – Break Up With The Sound (Self-produced): This release is Lordi’s fourth release and it features four originals and several surprising “oldies” like Cole Porter’s “True Love”, Davis/Ramirez/Sherman’s’ “Lover Man”, Jagger and Richards’ “No Expectations” and Hank Williams’ “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry”. Accompanying musicians are Tim Motzer (guitar, electronics), Matthew Parrish (bass) and Rudy Royster (drums) with guest Donny McCaslin (tenor sax on 4 songs). The overall sound is haunting and engaging. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of songs on this disc.
Brian Lynch Big Band – My Journey Through Literature In Music (Holistic MusicWorks): “GRAMMY® Award-winning trumpeter and recording artist Brian Lynch presents one of his most ambitious projects to date: The Omni-American Book Club. This expansive album of music for large ensemble connects Lynch’s lifelong passion for reading and the books that have shaped his life with his original music.
The books that have shaped Lynch’s consciousness, and thus his music, have been myriad, and his dedications for the music of The Omni-American Book Club reflect both the diversity and the focus of his reading interests. Alongside a strong emphasis on the work of African-American writers and writing on African-American culture, both classic and contemporary, Lynch’s reading interests range widely in the area of social consciousness and social justice.
The nine compositions that make up The Omni-American Book Club offer a panoramic view of Lynch’s world as composer, arranger and trumpet soloist in his first big band recording as a leader. With the help of all-star cast of special guests, Lynch’s pieces blend Afro-Caribbean jazz and straight-ahead swingers with hints of hip hop, funk, bossa nova and even trap music to reveal the most realized and accomplished expression of his vision as a composer to date.
Brought to fruition by a stellar big band comprised of Lynch’s teaching colleagues, students and alumni of The Frost School Of Music, University Of Miami, along with a selection of world class musicians from the Miami area and outstanding special guests, this album is a feast for the ears and a sonic delight. All music composed and arranged by Brian Lynch.
Dedications:
1 Crucible For Crisis: for David Levering Lewis and W.E.B DuBois
2,10 The Struggle Is In Your Name for Ta-Nehisi Coates and Albert Murray
3 Affective Affinities for Ned Sublette and Eric Hobsbawm
4 The Trouble With Elysium for Naomi Klein and Mike Davis
5 Inevitability And Eternity for Timothy Snyder and Masha Gessen
6 Tribute To Blue (Mitchell) for Isabel Wilkerson and Ralph Ellison
7 Opening Up for Nell Irvin Painter and Brené Brown
8. Africa My Land: for Chinua Achebe and Robert Farris Thompson
3,11 Woody Shaw: for Amiri Baraka and A.B. Spellman
Special guests are Dafnis Prieto (drums), Orlando “Maraca” Valle (flute), Donald Harrison (alto sax), Regina Carter (violin), David Liebman (soprano sax) and Jim Snidero (alto sax). Click here to listen to the songs on this collection.
Michele Rosewoman’s New Yor-Uba – Hallowed (Advance Dance Disques): “This anticipated next chapter celebrates 35 years of evolution, featuring her longstanding assemblage of master musicians from both the worlds of contemporary jazz and spiritually based Cuban folkloric music…Oru de Oro roughly translates as ‘room of gold’ and is an instrumental body of music created around a venerated sequence of rhythms played on traditional Batá drums in sacred chambers.…All compositions and arrangements by Michele Rosewoman, Contrast High Music ASCAP. Track 11: traditional songs, public domain. Performers are Alex Norris (trumpet, flugel horn) Román Filiú (alto & soprano saxophones, flute), Stacy Dillard (tenor sax), Chris Washburne (trombone, bass trombone, tuba); Andrew Gutauskas (bari saxophone) (tracks 11 and 12); Michele Rosewoman (piano, fender rhodes, vocals); Gregg August (bass), Robby Ameen (drums); Román Diaz-(batá, congas, vocals); Mauricio Herrera( batá, congas, vocals); Rafael Monteagudo (batá, congas); and Nina Rodríguez-(lead vocal track 11). I regret I am unable to find a sample of music from this release.
Cathy Segal-Garcia – Straight Ahead To The U.K. (Dash Hoffman Records): Singer – songwriter Cathy Segal-Garcia looks back on her time as a singer and performer. This particular disc is dedicated to her passed friend, Andy MacIntosh, who played alto sax and sang and composed as well. Six of the thirteen songs on this disc were composed or co-wriiten by Segal-Garcia, who also co-wrote two songs with John Abercrombie. Other performers on this disc are bassists U.K., Paul Morgan, Laurence Cottle and John Leftwich; Cliff Hall, John Pearce and Roy Hilton (piano), Isamu McGregor, Carey Frank and John Leftwich (Rhodes synths)Ian Thomas (drums), Simon Gardner (trumpet)and Andy MacIntosh and Katisse Buckingham (sax). This appears to be her thirteenth release. It’s all a warm remembrance. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Kopasetically,
Professor Bebop
