New Jazz Adds – 5/21/2019
New Jazz Adds – 5/21/2019
Greg Abate – Gratitude: Stage Door Live @ The Z (Whaling City Sound): Composer/saxophonist Greg Abate has released numerous recordings in his career and even at 71, he sounds like he’s got plenty of music and drive to spare. This live recording features eight original compositions and the three covers are Rahsaan Roland Kirk’s “Serenade To A Cuckoo”, Fats Waller’s “Jitterbug Waltz” and Joe Henderson’s “Inner Urge”. Abate plays alto, tenor and bari sax and flute during the course of this live gig. He is backed up by the Tim Ray Trio, featuring Ray on piano, John Lockwood on bass and Mark Walker on drums. There is lots of variety and wonderful playing on this disc. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Charlie Apicella & Iron City – Groove Machine (OA2): Guitarist Charlie Apicella and his augmented quartet offer five originals from the leader, one from organist Radam Schwartz and two covers – Lou Donaldson’s “Hot Dog” and Willis Jackson’s “Brother Elijah”. In addition to Apicells and Schwartz, the players include Gene Ghee (tenor sax) and Alan Korzin (drums) with Freddie Hendrix (trumpet on 4 songs), Amy Bateman (violin on 1 song) and Mayra Casales (congas on 4 songs). The players are wonderfully tight and the flow is infectious throughout. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Tyler Blanton – Sense Of Place (Destiny): This is vibraphonist Tyler Blanton’s first release featuring seven originals and covers of Lennie Tristano’s “Lennie’s Pennies”, Van Heusen and Burke’s “Polkadots and Moonbeams” and Robin, Chase and Whiting’s “My Ideal”. Half of the songs are performed as a trio with Blanton on vibes, Drew Gress on bass and Johnathan Blake on drums and Jon Cowherd on piano or Rhodes on theater five. This adds some nice variety. The playing is smooth, delightful and hip throughout. Click here to listen to a sample of the music.
Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra – Bohemiana, V2: The Compositions and Arrangements Of Dan Roberts (Bleebop): Part two of the works of Dan Roberts as performed by the Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra, showcasing his arrangements of “Ave Maria” (Shubert), “Shirl” (Horace Silver), “Lady Sings The Blues” (Billie Holiday & Herbie Nichols) and “Two Bass Hit” (John Lewis & Dizzy Gillespie) among others. There are some fantastic arrangements and performances in this set. The players include Brad Linde (bari sax); Marty Nau and Jason Hammers (alto sax); Xavier Perez, Billy Wolfe and Leigh Pilzer (tenor sax); Bags Davis, Leo Maxey, Brent Madsen and Griffith Kazmierczak and Joe Herrera (trumpet); Ben Ford, Steve Shaw and Shannon Gunn (trombone); Chris Buckley (bass trombone); Josh Walker (guitar); Dan Roberts (piano); Eliot Seppa (bass); Kevin McDonald (drums) and Lena Seikaly (vocal). Click here to listen to the songs on this disc.
Patrick Cornelius – This Should Be Fun (Posi-Tone): Alto sax player Patrick Cornelius offers his fourth release with a new group featuring Ben Allison (bass), John Escreet (piano), Mark Ferber (drums) and Nick Vayenas (trombone on five of the ten songs). The band is really solid throughout with great interaction and Cornelius shines with intensity and joy. This is a joyful session. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Larry Fuller – Overjoyed (Capri): Before forming his own trio, Larry Fuller was the pianist in bassist Ray Brown’s Trio, a member of Jeff Hamilton’s Trio and John Pizzarelli’s Quartet. Brown commented about Fuller, “He brings a vitality – he swings hard and I like that!” (http://larryfuller.com/) The rhythm section in Fuller’s trio are Hassan Shakur (bass) and Lewis Nash (drums). The playlist on this disc include two original songs by Fuller and a setlist that opens with Wes Montgomery’s “Fried Pies” to Stevie Wonder’s “Overjoyed” and onward to the Gershwins’ “How Long Has This Been Going On”, Ray Bryant’s “Cubano Chant”, Oscar Peterson’s “Bossa Beguine” and a wonderful jazz version of “Got My Mojo Workin’”. This is a fine set end to end! Speaking of which, click here to listen to a live version of “Mojo”.
International Orange – A Man And His Dog (Self-produced): “If you were to create a family tree with International Orange as the tree itself and the roots representing the paths that the individual band members took to get to where they are today, you would understand why New York Music Daily recently said that:
“International Orange are one of the most distinctive, unpredictable instrumental jambands out there” and at any moment they can “shift between Afrobeat, old school soul, psychedelic funk, gutbucket organ grooves and Bahian-Alavored beats”. (https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/internationalorange12)
The players include Gaku Takanashi and Leo Traversa (bass), Dan Stein and Adam Morrison (keys), David Phelps (guitar), and Todd Isler (drums). A unique jam band. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Larry Koonse – New Jazz Standards, Vol. 4 (Summit): This disc is the fourth of a series honoring the work of trumpeter Carl Saunders in the search of some “new” standards. Saunders settled in Las Vegas where during a twenty year stint he played with Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennett, and Frank Sinatra and traveled as a lead player with Paul Anka, Robert Goulet, Si Zentner, Harry James, Maynard Ferguson, Benny Goodman, Dan Terry, and Charlie Barnet. He has long been one of the finest players around and he composed numerous songs. Guitarist Larry Koonse has been working on a series of “New Jazz Standards” and became excited about playing Koonse’s works. This is the fourth i the series and this time out is stunning! Koonse has Tom Warrington (bass), Joe LaBarbera (drums) and pianist Josh Nelson. The interaction between Koonse and Nelson is absolutely fantastic. The performances are indeed “new” standards! Click here to listen to samples from this disc.
Peter Madsen’s Storytellers – Curiouser & Curiouser (Playscape): Veteran pianist and composer Peter Madsen’s presents his tenth release, Curiouser & Curiouser. “This release is Madsen’s first CD project with his recently conceived jazz quartet – The Storytellers – a splinter group of musicians originally from Madsen’s Collective of Improvising Artists (CIA), featuring Herbert Walser on trumpet, horn and electronics, Martin Grabher on drums and percussion and Herwig Hammerl on double bass.” (http://www.playscape-recordings.com/index.php?news) The twelve portraits on this disc are sonic representations of the characters in “Alice In Wonderland” from Alice to the March Hare and closing with a sonic representation of Wonderland itself. It is a delightful portrait for kids and adults. Click here to listen to samples of the portraits Alice, the Cheshire Cat and the White Rabbit.
Alicia Olatuja – Intuition : Songs From The Minds Of Women (Resilience): “Praised by the New York Times as “a singer with a strong and luscious tone and an amiably regal presence on stage”, Alicia Olatuja has been astounding audiences with her exquisite vocals, artistic versatility and captivating demeanor. She first came into the national spotlight in 2013, whilst performing as the featured soloist with the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir at President Barack Obama’s Second Inauguration. Shortly thereafter, she assembled her own jazz based ensemble and recorded her first solo album, Timeless (2014). Now focusing on the rich contributions of a diverse selection of female composers, Alicia is set to release her sophomore album, Intuition: From the Minds of Women in 2019 on the Resilience Music Alliance label. The album celebrates the achievements of a long list of esteemed female composers, while offering a musical perspective unique to Olatuja.” (https://www.aliciaolatuja.com/about) Truly an intriguing and beautiful release. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Mary Stallings – Songs Were Made To Sing (Smoke Sessions): “Not a single lyric on ‘Songs Were Made To Sing’ was written by Mary Stallings, but each one represents a chapter in her life and a piece of her soul. On her latest album, due out May 17 from Smoke Sessions Records, the incomparable vocalist has crafted an exquisite collection of classic songs to reflect on a life well and passionately lived. ‘With Songs Were Made To Sing’, Stallings puts her distinctive stamp on a diverse set of 13 songs, using her gift for interpreting a lyric to transform familiar melodies into profoundly personal and captivating stories.” (http://dlmediamusic.com/mary-stallings/mary-stallings-songs-were-made-to-sing-available-may-17-via-smoke-sessions-records/) Her style draws the listener in and rewards each one. She is 79 and her style, breath and control is almost unbelievable. She also likes variety! She performs Arlen and Kohler’s “Ill Wind”, Ellington’s “Prelude To A Kiss” and Bloom and Ruby’s “Give Me The Simple Life”, but also picks up Monk’s “Blue Monk”, Horace Silver’s “Soul Mates” and closes with a killer version of Stanley Turrentine and Rahsaan Roland Kirk’s “Sugar”. Stallings has some serious flair! Backing musicians on this disc are Eddie Henderson (trumpet), Vincent Herring (alto & tenor sax), David Hazeltine (piano), David Williams (bass) and Joe Farnsworth (drums) with Daniel Sadownick (percussion). Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Rodney Whitaker – Common Ground: The Music Of Gregg Hill (Origin): “Internationally renowned bassist and Mack Avenue recording artist, Rodney Whitaker, currently holds the titles of Professor of Jazz Bass and Director of Jazz Studies at Michigan State University where he has built one of the leading jazz degree programs and performing faculty in the United States of America.” (http://rodneywhitaker.com/biography/) He was also the bassist in Wynton Marsalis Septet and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra for seven years and he has also released eight disc as a leader. Whitaker is a forceful player who can cover many shapes of jazz style. HIs players on this disc are Terrell Stafford (trumpet, flugelhorn), Tim Warfield (alto, soprano, tenor sax), Bruce Barth (piano), and Dana Hall (drums) with vocalist Rockelle Fortin on four of the eight titles. The variety is broad and the band itself can blow up a storm! Click here to listen to a song from this disc.
Kopasetically,
Professor Bebop
