New Jazz Adds – 9/17/2019
New Jazz Adds – 9/17/2019
John Bacon – Refractions (Jazz Dimensions): Defined as “the change of direction of a ray of light, sound, heat, or the like, in passing obliquely from one medium into another in which its wave velocity is different”. (www.dictionary.com/browse/refraction) Drummer John Bacon describes this release as “Seven compositions of Thelonious Monk, six interpreted and refracted by trio, one by solo piano, recorded just prior to Monk’s centennial in 2017.” (https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/baconmcneillziemann) Michael McNeill plays piano and Danny Ziemnn (bass). Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Deb Bowman – Fast Heart (Mama Bama): Composer/singer Deb Bowan “began playing piano and singing in the southern gospel church from an early age. With a BA focus on classical Theater and Dance from University of Alabama, she relocated to New York City in 1999 and began a professional career in entertainment where since she has performed worldwide in TV, Film, Theater, Cabaret Shows & World Cruises and has since relocated and been embraced as one of Atlanta’s Finest Entertainers.” (https://debbowman.com/bio/) She composed and helped create lyrics for four of the ten songs on this disc. The covers include reworking of songs like “Moody’s Mood For Love” and “Georgia On My Mind” to Herbie Hancock’s “Butterfly” and Edith Piaf’s “La Vie En Rose”. But the deepest treasure here are Bowman’s originals in collaboration with Janet Powell. They are wonderfully enticing in their own style. Accompanying musicians are choirs Mama Bama, Elena Dollinger, Lisa Ramey and the JW Inspirational Voices of Harlem and musicians Eric Lewis (piano, Rhodes); Steven Wolf (percussion), Greg Lewis (Hammond B3), Matthew Garrison (bass), Kenyatta Beasley (trumpet) and Marla Feeney (viola, violin). Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Joshua Breakstone Trio – Children Of Art (Capri): Joshua Breakstone offers a tribute to Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers by selecting songs various players who have been in the grou, including Lee Morgan, Walter Davis Jr, Cedar Walton, Wayne Shorter, Horace Silver, Benny Golson and Hank Mobley, closing out with his own composition in their honor – “Children Of Art”. Breakstone plays guitarist with Eliot Zigmund (drums) and Martin Wind (bass). It’s a nice and mellow set throughout. I regret I am unable to find a sample from this set.
Jane Bunnett & Maqueque – On Firm Ground/Tierra Firme (Linus): “With Maqueque, (Jane) Bunnett has created something new and phenomenal in the world of jazz. What started out five years ago as a project to record and mentor young brilliant Cuban female musicians, has become one of the top groups on the North American jazz scene. An internationally acclaimed musician, Bunnett is known for her creative integrity, improvisational daring, and courageous artistry. Her exploration of Afro-Cuban melodies expresses the universality of music, and her ability to embrace and showcase the rhythms and culture of Cuba has been ground-breaking. Maqueque are: Jane Bunnett, soprano saxophone & flute; Melvis Santa, vocals & percussion; Mary Paz, congas & vocals; Dánae Olano, piano; Tailin Marrero, acoustic & electric bass; Yissy García, drums.” (http://www.janebunnett.com/bio/) Guest players include Dayme Arocena (vocal), Melvis Santa (vocal) and Nicole Nikki D Brown (vocals, sacred steel). Click here for a brief introduction to their music.
Miles Davis – Rubberband (Warner Bros): “The waiting is over. For years, a series of recordings has intrigued many Miles Davis fans. Sometimes called “the Rubberband sessions” or the lost Miles Davis album,” the sessions took place from October 1985 to January 1986 – after Miles split with longtime label Columbia and signed to Warner Bros. For a variety of reasons, most of these sessions has never been released – until now.” (Liner notes) Davis constantly looked for new styles and certainly did a great deal shifting throughout his career. Musician/producers Attala Zane Giles and Randy Hall worked on the material but it was not released during Miles’ lifetime. The jive/pop style was appealing to Davis leading to these songs. They have been touched up some and there is a fair amount of variety or piecework done to forge this final edition. “Many of the 11 tracks on “Rubberband” have been doctored and updated, with lush vocals and drum sounds added in an attempt to pull the album into 2019 — and to fulfill Davis’s dream of making songs friendly to the radio.But Mr. Wilburn, Mr. Hall and their fellow producer Attala Zane Giles are now in their 50s or early 60s, roughly the age Davis was when he recorded this material. They did not draw upon younger musicians to help them update the album, as Davis certainly would have, so their attempts to modernize certain tracks with contemporary accouterments often miss the mark. Pieces like “So Emotional,” with lead vocals from the neo-soul virtuoso Lalah Hathaway, and “Rubberband of Life” — a remix of the album’s original title tune, with a beat somewhere between backpack rap and trip-hop — land in a mixed-up middle ground, straddling the ’80s and today. But the tunes that are less touched-up offer a tantalizing glimpse down a road that Davis might well have followed further, had his label not intervened. Some of those pieces became part of his stage show, and have circulated as bootlegs and in compilations. One is “Carnival Time,” an Antillean-inflected anthem that’s equally indebted to early Weather Report and Quincy Jones’s work with Michael Jackson. “Give It Up” and the original “Rubberband” (included as the final track, bookending the album with the more heavily altered “Rubberband of Life”) intriguingly presage Davis’s hip-hop experiments on “Doo-Bop,” which would be his final LP before his death in 1991. (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/11/arts/music/miles-davis-rubberband.html) Click here for a sample.
Christian Jacob Trio – The Originals (WilderJazz): Pianist Christian Jacob begin his training as a very young child. He attended Berklee School of Music and broadened his musical depth while touring with Maynard Ferguson. His next steps were performing with Flora Purim and Airto Moreira, Randy Brecker, and Miroslav Vitous, among others. This particular disc serves both of Jacob’s loves – jazz and classical. The other members of the trio are Trey Henry (bass) and Ray Brinker (drums). In addition, the trio is joined by the Calabria Foti String Ensemble on eight of the twelve songs. The story was composed by Christian and Wilder Jacob. Click here to listen to the background and samples of disc it self.
Orice Jenkins – Centennial Cole: The Music Of Nat “King” Cole (Truth Revolution): Multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter Orice Jenkins offers his third release to Nat “King” Cole and others who have been an important part of his life. Cole would have been 100 this year. the songs themselves range from “Mona Lisa” and “Nature Boy” to “Smile” and “The Very Thought Of You” and even includes a song of his own.Jenkins doesn’t have the silky voice that Cole did, but his earnestness of his performance is evident. He is supported by a constantly shifting set of musicians. Click here to listen to Jenkins performance of “Mona Lisa”.
Chris Lightcap –Superbigmouth (Pyroclastic): “Bassist and composer Chris Lightcap has worked with Marc Ribot, Regina Carter, Craig Taborn, Glen Hansard, Mark Turner, John Medeski, Jason Moran, Tomasz Stanko, Chris Potter, Paul Motian, John Scofield, Dave Liebman, Paquito D’Rivera, Anthony Braxton, Joe Morris, Sheila Jordan, James Carter, Butch Morris, Ben Monder and many other artists. His playing is featured on over 70 albums and as a bandleader/composer he has produced four critically acclaimed albums of original music.” (http://chrislightcap.com/about/) This disc appears to be the fifth. The players supporting LIghtcap are Craig Taborn (organ, piano, Wurlitzer), Tony Malaby and Chris Cheek (tenor sax), Jonathan Goldberger and Curtis Hasselbring (guitars), with drummers Gerald Cleaver and Dan Rieser. The overall sound is a mix of multi threads swimming in the air – it’s not psychedelic but it is often seems to be a mixture of sheets of sound. Click here to listen to two songs on this disc.
Occidental Gypsy – 44070 (Self-produced): Occidental Gypsy offers what appears to be their second disc of “western gypsy” music. The players include Brett Lee Feldman (lead guitar, vocals); Eli Bishop (co-arrranger, strings, rhythm guitar, vocals), Jeremy Frantz (lead vocal, guitar), Jeff “JPat” Feldman (bass) and Jon Chapman (percussion).While everyone in this genre pays homage to Django, Occidental Gypsy clearly has no expectation of the group that everyone bows down to. That being said, however, this group has joy and flair and certainly deserves notice. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of the songs on this release “44070”.
Poncho Sanchez – Trane’s Delight (Concord Picante): “On his first new album in seven years, GRAMMY Award-winning conguero Poncho Sanchez celebrates the life and music of the iconic saxophonist John Coltrane…. Trane’s Delight is a love letter from one musical pioneer to another, as the Latin Jazz legend pays homage to one of his earliest and most indelible influences….I’ve always loved John Coltrane,” Sanchez says, “ever since I was a kid and first learned about jazz. I’ve recorded tributes to a lot of my heroes in life – Mongo Santamaria, Tito Puente, Cal Tjader – so I thought it was definitely time to do a tribute to the great John Coltrane.” (http://news.theurbanmusicscene.com/2019/08/poncho-sanchez-to-release-tribute-album-tranes-delight-on-sept-20th-2019/) Band members includeSanchez on congas, vocals, and percussion and the rest of the players are Francisco Torres (musical director, trombone), Ron Blake (trumpet, flugelhorn), Robert Hrdt (alto sax, tenor sax, flute), Andy Langham (piano), Rene Camacho (bass, backing vocals), Joey DeLeon (timbales, percussion, backing vocals), Giancarlo Anderson (bongos, percussion), Ross Schodek (bass), Cornelius Alfredo Duncan, Jr (kalimba) and Norell Thomson (guest vocal). Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of two songs on this disc.
Mark Winkler – I’m With You – Mark Winkler Sings Bobby Troup (Cafe Pacific): Vocalist Mark Winkler caught the vibe from Bobby Troup and it was incurable. This disc is a wonderful example by mixing the magical hits, like “Route 66” and “Hungry Man” with the obscure like “Snootie Little Cutie” and “Triskaidekaphobia”. There’s even an original by Winkler, “In No Time”. The supporting musicians also shift throughout: Rich Eames and Jon Mayer (piano); Gabe Davis and Kevin Axt (bass); Dave Tull Dave Tull, Mark Ferber and Roy McCurdy (drums); Grant Geissman and Anthony Wilson (guitar); Joe Bagg and Jamieson Trotter (Hammond B3), Ann Patterson (flute); and Ricky Woodward and Bob Sheppard (sax). Click here and scroll down to listen to four songs from this disc.
Eric Wyatt – Golden Rule: For Sonny (Whaling City Sound): “Through his six recordings as a bandleader, tenor talent Eric Wyatt has basically been performing unspoken tributes to Sonny Rollins. Wyatt calls Rollins his actual/musical godfather….Wyatt’s latest, The Golden Rule: for Sonny, is his inimitable way of paying tribute to those strong boppers of the past, joined by talents that have been contributing valiantly to the vibrancy of today’s jazz scene—guitarist Russell Malone, pianist Benito Gonzalez, trombonist Clifton Anderson, tenor JD Allen, and emerging youth like Giveton Gelin on trumpet and pianist Sullivan Fortner.” (https://avxhm.se/hraphile/EricWyattTheGoldenRuleForSonny2019.html) Click here to listen to the opening song.
Kopasetically,
Professor Bebop
