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6 Degrees Entertainment

Title - Dissolve
Artist - Richard Nelson/Makrokosmos Orchestra

For those unaware, with the 15-piece Makrokosmos Orchestra, composer/guitarist Richard Nelson provides us all with a big picture view of contemporary creative music.

The orchestra, a New York City outpost for the Maine-based Nelson and co-leader and saxophonist Tim O’Dell, encompasses influences from modern jazz and contemporary classical music, maneuvering deftly between ambitious compositions and adventurous improvisation.

Due out February 2nd, 2024 from Adhyâropa Records on Bandcamp and other services, Dissolve comprises three musical pieces that combine to form a captivating and grand scale narrative (one that Nelson suggests can be recombined in any order).

Furthermore, the title of each disparate, but interconnected work suggests a state of transition, a transformative action fitting an orchestra that exists so boldly in the spaces between genre and category.

1. Dissolve
2. Float
3. Cohere

With Dissolve marking the latest evolution of Nelson’s innovative conception of orchestral compositions, this dutifully elegant, ardently sculpted new recording opens on the 15 minute, titular and opulently spirited Dissolve, which itself still manages to, at times, sound organically cultured.

They then next bring us the more cinematically-hued, gloriously orchestrated Float (12 minutes), where the opening streams of gossamer are as ethereal and as alighting as one could have only hoped to hear, its mid-section a dutiful ambiance of pure melodic perfection.

Lastly we are brought forth the supremely decadent Cohere (12 minutes), which together with its R&B, soulful melodies and, later on, even some engaging drums and bongos dueling, is my own personal favorite of the trio.

Musicians:
The personnel includes such multi-talented players as saxophonist Adam Kolker, trumpeters John Carlson and Jacob Varmus, hornist Marshall Sealy, keyboardist Arco Sandoval, bassists Ken Filiano and Matt Pavolka, percussionist Rex Benincasa, and drummers Scott Neumann and Rob Garcia, among others.

www.richardnelsonmusic.com

Richard Nelson @ Instagram





Title - Couloir​/​Practitioners Vol. 2 “W”
Artist - Josh Sinton

For those unaware, called “varied and exciting,” as well as “one of the most striking baritone saxophonists,” Josh Sinton has been heard with some of the leading voices of Brooklyn’s creative music scene since arriving in 2004.

He’s led bands as varied as Predicate, musicianer and Ideal Bread as well as performing in the Nate Wooley Quintet, Anthony Braxton’s Tricentric Orchestra and Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society.

He’s studied at the AACM while living in Chicago in the nineties, the New England Conservatory in Boston in the aughts and with friends and colleagues here in NYC.

He also performs regularly on his chosen instrument the baritone saxophone as well as on bass clarinet and alto flute. He also writes music (and words) when the occasion demands and has just released his brand new recording Couloir​/​Practitioners Vol. 2 “W”.

1. Rift (3:21)
2. Scar (3:07)
3. Scission (2:23)
4. Scree (5:49)
5. Talus (4:26)
6. Thrutch (3:08)
7. Clough (2:58)
8. Arroyo (4:39)
9. Foramen (2:34)
10. Abyss (3:32)
11. Interstice (3:36)
12. Defile (5:33)
13. Gill (2:27)
14. Flume (3:04)
15. Seam (3:41)
16. Crevasse (9:09)
17. Willy-Nilly (7:00)
18. Whoosh (6:33)
19. Whoops (7:33)
20. Waterline (10:11)
21. Wrinkles (9:11)
22. Windfall (8:58)

Recorded July 19th, 20th and 24th, 2023 at Oktaven Studio, this dutifully masterful new recording opens on the jaunty Rift and the veritably translucent Scar and the proceeds to bring us the juttering Scission, the rhythmically divine Scree, the impassioned Talus, before unleashing the forceful Thrutch, the cautiously weaving Clough, the soulful Arroyo, and then come the playfully perky Foramen, the aching yearn within Abyss and the smooth-grooved Interstice.

Along next is the furtively cautious Defile and the inquisitive Gill and then come the ethereal Flume, the warm embrace within Seam, the stoically crafted Crevasse, which are in turn backed seamlessly by the aptly-named Willy-Nilly, a beautiful staggered hipsway found within Whoosh and the euphorically-driven Whoops, the album rounding out on the melodic, ten minute Waterline, closing on the curiously-curated Wrinkles and the emphatic nature of Windfall.

Official Purchase Link

www.joshsinton.com





Title - Laugh Ash
Artist - Ches Smith

For those unaware, originally from Sacramento, California, Ches Smith is a drummer, percussionist, and composer based in New York.

His most recent projects include the widely acclaimed 2021 album Path of Seven Colors by his ensemble We All Break, which merged Haitian Vodou music with progressive compositional and improvisational approaches, garnering Smith the top spot on The Guardian’s Best Jazz Albums of the Year list and a #7 ranking on the 2021 Arts Fuse critics’ poll; and Interpret It Well, an exploratory outing teaming guitar master Bill Frisell and Smith’s trio with pianist Craig Taborn and violist Mat Maneri.

He has also collaborated with a host of artists on many scenes since the early 2000s, including Marc Ribot, Tim Berne, John Zorn, Darius Jones, David Torn, Nels Cline, Mary Halvorson, Terry Riley, Kris Davis, Dave Holland, Secret Chiefs 3, Good for Cows, and Mr. Bungle, among others.

Smith’s new album, Laugh Ash, is perhaps his most startling and remarkable to date, a breathtakingly original set of music whose touchstones are myriad but ultimately meaningless in the face of an inventive and stunningly unfamiliar expression.

Due out February 2nd, 2024 via Pyroclastic Records, the album makes thrilling use of disorientation and juxtaposition: starkly beautiful chamber melodies coexist with synthetic rhythms, explosive bursts of improvisation with elusive song forms, austere ambience with thundering complexity.

Eclectic, undoubtedly, but in a paradoxical way that is defiantly cohesive while never losing sight of the fact that none of it should be.

1. Minimalism
2. Remote Convivial
3. Sweatered Webs (Hey Mom)
4. Shaken, Stirred Silence
5. The Most Fucked
6. Winter Sprung
7. Disco Inferred
8. Unyielding Daydream Welding
9. Exit Shivers

With all the music composed and arranged by Ches Smith himself, this rather diligently-sculpted new recording opens on the propulsive Minimalism and the swirling synth-driven percussional work of Remote Convivial and they are followed by the Eastern-imbibed Sweatered Webs (Hey Mom) and the jaunty Shaken, Stirred Silence.

Along next are the static melodies and rhythms that come together to make up The Most Fucked and in deep contrast, the wind chime ambiance of Winter Sprung, and they are in turn backed by the jagged electronic beats and pulses of Disco Inferred, the album rounding out on the stoically-chiming, veritably cinematic Unyielding Daydream Welding, coming to a close on the aptly-titled Exit Shivers.

Other Musicians:
Shara Lunon - voice and vocal processing
Anna Webber - flute
Oscar Noriega - clarinets
James Brandon Lewis - tenor saxophone
Nate Wooley - trumpet
Jennifer Choi - violin
Kyle Armbrust - viola
Michael Nicolas - cello
Shahzad Ismaily - bass and keyboards
Ches Smith - electronics, programming, vibes, drums, tubular bells, glockenspiel, timpani, tam tam, metal percussion

Official Purchase Link

www.chessmith.com





Title - Live At The Bottom Line, 1974
Artist - Steeleye Span

For those unaware, Fairport Convention co-founder and bassist Ashley Hutchings and legendary singer, Sandy Denny parted ways with the band after their classic Liege And Leaf album.

Hutchings recruited Tim Hart and Maddy Prior (an established folk duo) and Terry and Gay Woods, naming their new band after a character in the traditional song “Horkstow Grange.”

While their line-up fluctuated (Terry Woods would leave and later become the bassist in the classic Pogues line-up a decade later), the band solidified and continues to this day.

Staying true to their folk roots, the band found themselves not only supporting Jethro Tull on tour, but signing to Chrysalis Records. Their breakthrough sixth album released in 1974, Now We Are Six, referring to both number of album releases and band members, (with a cameo from David Bowie on saxophone!) That release included the track “Thomas The Rhymer,” which has become a Steeleye concert staple.

On their fourth tour of the US, Steeleye Span played New York’s fabled Bottom Line in July of 1974, showcasing not only material from their new and previous albums, but adding the classic jig and reel medleys the band had become known for in performance.

The 74-minute set includes their #14 UK hit “Gaudete,” the classic “John Barleycorn,” and much more. Many of the US tour dates were headlining shows, they garnered good press and some were broadcast on local FM radio, including the Bottom Line show which was carried on WNYU-FM.

Live At The Bottom Line, 1974 documents what may have been Steeleye Span’s longest and most successful tour of the US, and we’re lucky that on this New York City night, the tapes were rolling to capture this fantastic ever-evolving live band. Slàinte mhath!

1. Beg Your Leave
2. Irish Jigs (including Paddy Clancy’s)
3. Alison Gross
4. Song Introduction to “Cam Ye O’er Frae France”
5. Cam Ye O’er Frae France
6. Song Introduction to “John Barleycorn”
7. John Barleycorn
8. Song Introduction to “Little Sir Hugh”
9. Little Sir Hugh
10. Song Introduction to “Two Magicians”
11. Two Magicians
12. Saucy Sailor
13. Robbery With Violins/Kitty Come Down From Limerick/O’Rourke’s Reel
14. Summer Is A Comin’ In
15. Staines Morris/In Peascod Time
16. One Misty Moisty Morning
17. Gaudete
18. Thomas The Rhymer
19. The Musical Priest/The Silver Spear/The High Reel
20. Nautical Medley: Hearts Of Oak/A Life On The Ocean Wave/Rule Britannia
21. Royal Forester
22. The Mason’s Apron

All tracks previously unissued.

A highly influential British band who helped deliver folk-rock to the mainstream in the mid-’70s, Steeleye Span have enjoyed a lengthy tenure at the vanguard of British roots music, innovating their country’s traditional songs while adding a host of their own original material to its canon.

Along with Fairport Convention, with whom they share many similarities, they are the most recognizable and enduring group to have sprung from Britain’s late-’60s folk-rock movement.

This devastatingly good live recording from 1974 opens on the melodically pleasing Beg Your Leave, the frenetically-charged Irish Jigs (including Paddy Clancy’s), and the guitar-picked Alison Gross, and they are followed by a quick Song Introduction to “Cam Ye O’er Frae France” and then the jaunty Scottish track itself, another quick Song Introduction to “John Barleycorn” (which includes the reveal that they had gone to see The Exorcist that afternoon) and the flourishing song thereafter, a Song Introduction to “Little Sir Hugh” and the fervently-driven cut itself, and then the Song Introduction to “Two Magicians,” (which, we are told with a smirk, informs us the song was collected by a remote tribe in the Andes), backed by the rhythmic track itself.

Next up is the dutiful hipway of the forthright balladry of Saucy Sailor, and the funky Robbery With Violins/Kitty Come Down From Limerick/O’Rourke’s Reel and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the mid-tempo handclapper Summer Is A Comin’ In, the simply mesmerizing Staines Morris/In Peascod Time, the veritably playful One Misty Moisty Morning, the live set rounding out on the harmonized Gaudete, the drum-led rocker Thomas The Rhymer, and then we get the dynamic Musical Priest/The Silver Spear/The High Reel and the impassioned Nautical Medley: Hearts Of Oak/A Life On The Ocean Wave/Rule Britannia, the live set closing on the spirited Royal Forester and the tireless fiddle work found within the propulsive The Mason’s Apron.

Official Purchase Link

www.omnivorerecordings.com





Title - Guardians
Artist - Annie Chen

For those unaware, Annie Chen is a vocalist, composer, and bandleader from Beijing, based in New York since 2013. Her distinctive style draws on a rich continuum of musical traditions from Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

This creative vision – showcased on her releases Pisces the Dreamer (2014), Secret Treetop (2018) and her brand new album Guardians – is supported by years of experience in China’s jazz, blues, and funk scenes as well as active study and collaboration within New York’s vibrant jazz community.

Annie’s current focus is her Guardians ensemble, whose self-titled debut was released February 23rd, 2024 on JZ Music. Centered on an environmentally themed programmatic suite, the album features a dynamic cast of improvisers including Satoshi Takeishi (percussion), Fung Chern Hwei (violin), Vitor Goncalves (piano/accordion), Alex LoRe (woodwinds), Marius Duboule (guitar), and Mat Muntz (bass).

The project combines Annie’s compositional sense of storytelling and imagery with an experimental improvisational vocabulary, representing an exciting new chapter in her creative output.

1. Rozpacz (Despair) (7:19)
2. Underground Dance (6:31)
3. Rosemary’s Lullaby (6:30)
4. Güle Güle Istanbul (7:44)
5. Guardians Suite I – The Northern Eyes (7:46)
6. Guardians Suite II – The Whale River Song (6:06)
7. Guardians Suite III – Jellyfish All Around (5:34)
8. Guardians Suite IV – Vanished Tails, No Return (6:37)

First up on this eclectically-charged new recording is the emphasized Rozpacz (Despair) and the more melodically-stanched Underground Dance and they are backed by the aching yearn found within Rosemary’s Lullaby and the Eastern-flavored Güle Güle Istanbul.

The second half of the album is a quartet known as the Guardians Suite, where I – The Northern Eyes opens the musical adventure on a lushly sculpted track, and is in turned backed by the rhythmically-scattered II – The Whale River Song, then we get impassioned III – Jellyfish All Around, the album closing on the more ornately strewn IV – Vanished Tails, No Return.

A signature trait of Annie Chen’s music is its integration of experimental aesthetics with a strong sense of imagery and narrative. In her original compositions as well as her interpretations of the music of others, Annie’s approach straddles the line between abstract and programmatic music, aided by unconventional song structures, unique instrumentation, and a highly collaborative band concept.

These properties are on full display in the music presented in the newly composed Guardians suite, which provides the record’s thematic center. Preceding the suite are two new arrangements of older compositions by Annie and two interpretations of pieces by 20th-century Polish composers, all of which are drawn into the musical orbit of Guardians to form a cohesive and evocative body of work.

Through this unique set of music, Annie and her band question the relationship between humans and nature and its consequences: crisis, loss, and the possibility of hope.

www.anniechenjazz.com

Annie Chen @ Bandcamp





Title - Unwritten
Artist - Kaze

After 13 years together, international co-operative quartet Kaze make their first completely improvised album.

Featuring Satoko Fujii, Natsuki Tamura, Christian Pruvost, and Peter Orins, Unwritten releases February 9th, 2024 via Circum/Libra.

Kaze, the co-operative quartet featuring Japanese composer-pianist Satoko Fujii and trumpeter Natsuki Tamura along with French trumpeter Christian Pruvost and drummer Peter Orins, have released their first completely improvised album in their 13-year history.

For them it was not such a big stretch though. In fact, our compositions for Kaze have always been pretexts for improvisation, says Orins. Having played a mix of written music and free improvisation for so many years, leaves us a strong consciousness of structure, and in the end I think it’s hard to tell that what we play on Unwritten is only improvised.

1. Thirteen Years (36:50)
2. We Waited (17:25)
3. Evolving (8:30)

From a stylistic point of view and embedded throughout with some quite stunning, and for the most part, spontaneous improvisations, the album opens on the sonicly empowered, and equally balanced musical shapes that come to the fore on the 36 minute long opus Thirteen Years, and then we get brought forth the capriciously moody, 17 minute We Waited (where her somber, wistful piano provides a definitive arc throughout), the closing track being the undeviatingly, at first, but soon elevating, rising whirling compilations within the 8 minute Evolving.

www.satokofujii.com

Satoko Fujii @ Facebook

Satoko Fujii @ Twitter





Title - NOW That’s What I Call Music! Vol. 89
Artist - Various

For those not in the know, the just-released ‘NOW That’s What I Call Music! 89’ features 17 major current hits from today’s hottest artists, including Olivia Rodrigo, Paul Russell, Tate McRae, Billie Eilish, *NSYNC and Morgan Wallen.

Oh, and if all that wasn’t enough, each numeric NOW release also features “NOW Presents What’s Next” bonus tracks, previewing tomorrow’s biggest hits. Which means NOW 89 also features hot new tracks from Kyndal Inskeep, Jonah Kagen, Fridayy, Rhyan Douglas and Hannah Wicklund!

1. Olivia Rodrigo​​​ - Get Him Back!
2. Paul Russell​​​ - Lil Boo Thang
3. Tate McRae​​​ - Greedy
4. Doja Cat​​​​ - Agora Hills
5. Tyla​​​​​ - Water
6. JID Feat. 21 Savage and Baby Tate - ​Surround Sound
7. Kenya Grace​​​ - Strangers
8. Charli XCX & Sam Smith​​ - In the City
9. Sabrina Carpenter​​​ - Feather
10. Zara Larsson & David Guetta​ - On My Love
11. *NSYNC & Justin Timberlake - ​Better Place (From Trolls Band Together)
12. AJR​​​​ - Yes I’m A Mess
13. Billie Eilish - ​​​What Was I Made For? (From The Motion Picture “Barbie”)
14. Diplo, Jessie Murph & Polo G​ - Heartbroken
15. Teddy Swims​​​ - Lose Control
16. Morgan Wallen​​​ - Thinkin’ Bout Me
17. Noah Kahan - ​​​Stick Season

This free-flowing work of musical art opens on a song that was notably entirely shot on the new iPhone 15 Pro, Olivia Rodrigo​​​’s rangy alt-pop yearn within the full blooded Get Him Back! and the old school vibe and sound of Paul Russell​ with Lil Boo Thang, and they are followed by the early 2000s pop styling within Tate McRae’s Greedy, another prime example of the thin line between crazy and genius in Doja Cat’s Agora Hills, the relaxed summer vibes of Water from Tyla​​​​, and then come the absolute banger that I myself only learnt about from Tik Tok in JID featuring 21 Savage and Baby Tate on ​Surround Sound, a track that makes the sky slowly become brighter when I hear it, Kenya Grace’s Strangers, and then we get given the absolute bop cut from Charli XCX & Sam Smith​​’s In the City.

Up next is Sabrina Carpenter​​​’s Feather, a pop-rock song that openly talks about the relief and freedom that comes from ending a toxic and exhausting relationship and then Zara Larsson & David Guetta’s​ harmonious On My Love, and they are in turn backed by the MTV Awards-revealed brilliance of *NSYNC & Justin Timberlake with ​Better Place (From Trolls Band Together), the relatable Yes I’m A Mess from AJR, an emotional musical struggle brought forth within Billie Eilish’s ​​​What Was I Made For? (From The Motion Picture “Barbie”), the top music rounding out on the hook friendly Diplo, Jessie Murph & Polo G​ track Heartbroken, the remarkable, raw, gritty, bluesy sound of Teddy Swims​on Lose Control, the countrified R&B-imbibed Thinkin’ Bout Me by Morgan Wallen​and then comes the phenomenally impassioned Stick Season from Noah Kahan.

18. Kyndal Inskeep​​​ - Growing Pains
19. Jonah Kagen - ​​​The Roads
20. Fridayy​​​​ - When It Comes To You
21. Rhyan Douglas​​​ - Last Page
22. Hannah Wicklund​​ - Witness

The impressive NOW Presents What’s Next section opens with the meaning Growing Pains by Kyndal Inskeep and the beautiful, dreamlike Jonah Kagen and his track ​​The Roads, before we are given the touching, uplifting love support and happiness that bleeds through every word within Fridayy’s When It Comes To You, the beautiful hidden gem of Last Page from Rhyan Douglas, the disc closing out on the ​​​powerful voice and phenomenal guitar skills by Hannah Wicklund​on her stunning Witness.

Official CD Purchase Links

www.LegacyRecordings.com





Title - NOW That’s What I Call ’90s R&B
Artist - Various

For those not in the know, NOW That’s What I Call 90s R&B features 13 of the best of the R&B hits from the ‘90s decade with tracks from Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, En Vogue, Babyface, Toni Braxton, and Whitney Houston.

1. Mariah Carey​​​ - Fantasy
2. Mary J. Blige​ - ​​Real Love
3. En Vogue​​​​ - My Lovin’ (You’re Never Gonna Get It)
4. Bell Biv Devoe​​ - ​Poison
5. Bobby Brown​​​ - Humpin’ Around
6. Montell Jordan - ​​​This is How We Do It
7. Donell Jones​ - ​​U Know What’s Up
8. Babyface​​​​ - Whip Appeal
9. K-Ci & JoJo​​​​ - All My Life 10. Brandy & Monica​​​ - The Boy Is Mine
11. Brian McKnight​​​ - Anytime
12. Toni Braxton​​​ - Unbreak My Heart
13. Whitney Houston - ​​​Exhale (Shoop Shoop) (from “Waiting To Exhale - Original ​​​​​Soundtrack)

The impressive NOW That’s What I Call ’90s R&B album opens with a singer who will go down in history as the one of the best, not only for her voice but her songs, for they never get old, much like the timeless, dreamy Fantasy (Mariah Carey) which is followed by the emotion, passion, and power that Mary J. Blige​ throws out within ​​Real Love, the absolute dance floor banger from En Vogue​ My Lovin’ (You’re Never Gonna Get It), Bell Biv Devoe’s iconic ​R&B classic Poison, and then we get one of the Kings of the R&B period for these songs, Bobby Brown with his pulsating Humpin’ Around.

Along next on this hit after hit after hit new compilation is an absolute masterpiece from Montell Jordan with ​​​the mega-monster This is How We Do It and the track that features a flawless verse by Lefteye, Donell Jones​’ ​​U Know What’s Up and they are in turn backed seamlessly by a genuine musical national treasure, Babyface and his lush Whip Appeal, K-Ci & JoJo​​​​’s timeless classic All My Life, and Brandy & Monica​​​’ awesomely breathtaking duet The Boy Is Mine.

The disc rounds out with the genre-crossing R&B of Brian McKnight​​ with Anytime and then comes the expressively amazing vocals from Toni Braxton​ on her aching yearn found within Unbreak My Heart, the final track being the beautifully emotive, legendary voice of Whitney Houston one her ​​​Exhale (Shoop Shoop) (from “Waiting To Exhale“ - Original ​​​​​Soundtrack).

Official CD Purchase Links

www.LegacyRecordings.com





Title - Chill
Artist - Lenny Williams

Vocalist Lenny Williams joined Tower Of Power in 1972 after releasing singles as a solo artist on Fantasy, Galaxy, and Atco Records. His first release with the band was their self-titled, third album, which went Gold.

After two albums with the group, Williams returned to his solo career — releasing albums in through the end of the 1970s on Warner Bros. Motown, ABC and MCA Records. Material from those albums became a hotbed for sampling decades later by Kanye West, Mobb Deep, Scarface, Young Jeezy, and others.

In 1986, Williams was recruited by award winning producer Preston Glass to sing lead vocals on a track by jazz artist Kenny G. The track, “Don’t Make Me Wait For Love,” hit #15 on the Pop charts, and the album, Duotones, went on to sell over five million copies in the US.

Lenny would reconnect with Duotones Producer Producer Glass (Stacy Lattisaw & Johnny Gill, Jermaine Stewart, George Benson, Earth, Wind & Fire, Stanley Jordan) in 1994 for a new album, Chill.

The album contains originals from Williams, Glass, and other Duotones contributors, as well as covers of hits by Daryl Hall & John Oates (“Sara Smile”) and McFadden & Whitehead (“Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now”).

Chill returns after being out of print on CD for 30 years. Featuring fresh remastering and updated artwork including new liner notes from Producer and journalist Kevin L. Goins, there has never been a better time to just Chill.

1. Chill
2. Baby, You Caught My Eye
3. Sara Smile
4. Driftin’
5. Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now
6. It Could Have Been You
7. Has Anybody Seen My Heart
8. Baby Take It Off
9. No One’s Ever Loved Me
10. Sentimental
11. I Do
12. There’s No Hiding Place

Although Lenny Williams has had a long solo career, he is still best-known for his three years as the lead singer of Tower of Power, one of the top funk/soul bands of the ’70s. But Williams was pursuing a solo career before joining Tower of Power, and he resumed his solo career after leaving that famous Oakland outfit in 1975.

Born in Little Rock, AR, on February 6th, 1945, Williams was only a child when he started singing in church (the place where so many great R&B singers got their start). Williams, who moved to Oakland, CA, when he was 14, planned to become a Christian minister but ended up changing his mind and decided to pursue a career as a secular R&B singer.

In 1969, Williams signed with Fantasy and recorded his first single, Lisa’s Gone, a soul ballad that was far from a big hit, but did receive some airplay in the Bay Area. After providing a second single for Fantasy, Williams was signed to Atlantic by Jerry Wexler and recorded a version of the Thom Bell/Linda Creed gem People Make the World Go Round.

Williams’ version might have been a hit, had it not been for the Stylistics, that is. Unfortunately for Williams, the Stylistics’ famous version of People Make the World Go Round came out as a single and soared to the top of the charts before Atlantic had a chance to release Williams’ version!

Oh, and for the record, Michael Jackson also recorded the tune in the early ’70s, although not with the same set of lyrics that the Stylistics embraced. But that setback was hardly the end of Williams’ career, for in 1972, he was hired as the new lead singer of Tower of Power. Because the band’s previous lead singer, Rick Stevens (best-known for his soaring performance on the hit ballad You’re Still a Young Man) had recently been convicted of murder, a replacement was needed, and Williams was definitely the man for the job.

Williams’ three years with Tower of Power established him as a big name in soul and funk and he became famous for his lead vocals on major hits like What Is Hip?, Don’t Change Horses (In the Middle of a Stream), This Time It’s Real and the ballad So Very Hard to Go.

But while Tower of Power was a big break for Williams, he only stuck around for three years for in 1975, the Bay Area resident left the band and became a full-time solo artist. His first few solo albums (recorded for Motown) didn’t do much, but his solo career took off in a big way when he recorded Choosing You for ABC. That 1977 release (which contains the major hit Shoo Doo Fu Fu Ooh!) almost went gold in the U.S.

Williams next solo effort, Spark of Love (also on ABC), became his first gold solo album and boasted the hit ballad Cause I Love You. After providing a few albums for MCA, Williams recorded for the independent Rocshire label in 1983 and 1984; when that company folded, he was deprived of a $50,000 dollar advance he said he was owed. Disgusted with music industry, Williams considered giving up singing and devoted a lot of his time to real estate investments.

As for the Chill album, in general, given this is indeed a review for it, well, it opens on the smooth Chill and the groovy R&B vibe of Baby, You Caught My Eye and then we get a lush rendition of Hall & Oates’ Sara Smile, a laid low Driftin’ and a funktastic Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now (featuring Lonnel Williams) and the beautiful ballad It Could Have Been You.

This tremendously effective album continues onward with the smoothly romantic Has Anybody Seen My Heart and the gentle R&B flow within Baby Take It Off, and they are in turn followed by the dutiful piano ballad No One’s Ever Loved Me, the low slung finger-snapper Sentimental, the album rounding out on the steadfast I Do, closing on the dance floor groove of There’s No Hiding Place.

Official Purchase Link

www.omnivorerecordings.com





Title - Kentucky
Artist - Neal Rosner

The new album by Neal Rosner titled Kentucky chronicles the artist’s 12-year residency in Madisonville, KY and features songs that were written between 1972 -2023. Engineered by Steve Baker, a small studio with a big heart, the album is divided into 2 parts: Plain (secular) and With Peanut (semi- religious).

Indeed, Neal plays keyboards, some percussion and vocals and some rather terrific local musicians are featured on the album, like guitarists Boscoe France and Alonzo Pennington.

Says Neal, “I especially like doing the harmonies. When you sing with yourself you often have a good vocal blend.”

Furthermore, some of the songs are written about past and present events, such as “Micajah” (USA first serial killers), “The Radical” (SLA Shootout in LA 1974), “Red and Blue” (written after the 2016 election, political divisions and the curse of social media), “Le Cirque Des Enfants” (Children’s Circus song) and “What is God/ Seed of Abraham” (we are all one).

1. The Choice
2. Apocalypse Chicago
3. Les Cirque Des Enfants
4. Frances
5. I Guess The Engagement Is Off
6. Me, Myself & I
7. Micajah
8. Red and Blue
9. The Radical
10. What Price Would You Pay
11. It Lives In The Attic
12. Do You Want To Go To Heaven
13. Avinu Malkenu
14. The 3 Prayers Psalm 19:14
15. What Is God/Seed Of Abraham
16. Western Kentucky Come On Down

The album opens on the pleasing melodies within The Choice and the guitar and Hammond-driven Apocalypse Chicago, and they are followed by the playfully flirtatious Les Cirque Des Enfants, the steadfast Frances, the lonesome, accordion-imbibed I Guess The Engagement Is Off, and then we get the yearnful Me, Myself & I, the jaunty Micajah, and then the family storytelling found within Red and Blue.

Along next is the low slung blues rock vibe of The Radical and the rhythmically alt-rock feel of What Price Would You Pay and they are in turn backed by the soaring synth rock of It Lives In The Attic, the sprawling Do You Want To Go To Heaven, the impassioned, chant like Avinu Malkenu, the recording rounding out on the harmonic prog feel of The 3 Prayers Psalm 19:14, the fun alt-pop, Gospel rock feel of What Is God/Seed Of Abraham, coming to a close on the accordion-drum-Hammond powered, free flowing pop-rock of Western Kentucky Come On Down.

Line-up:
Neal Rosner: keyboards, bass and keyboard, percussion, vocals
Steve Baker: engineer, co-producer, percussion
Barb Rosner: backup vocals, spoken word
Alonzo Pennington: guitar
Boscoe France: guitar
James Dillingham: guitar

Official Spotify Purchase Link

Neal Rosner @ Facebook





Title - Precious Diamonds
Artist - Adrian Sutherland

In a musical journey that celebrates his First Nations culture, roots-rock musician from Canada’s Far North, Adrian Sutherland has released two captivating singles from his upcoming album that will leave a lasting impact.

Releasing two new singles simultaneously may raise questions, but when you combine both titles, they form the title of his sophomore album, “Precious Diamonds,” - set for release on March 15th, 2024.

During Sutherland’s travels to Nashville in May of 2023, he recorded ten tracks for “Precious Diamonds” with GRAMMY-winning producer and legendary musician Colin Linden. This marks the second time the two have collaborated since Adrian’s JUNO-nominated debut album When The Magic Hits, recorded remotely during the pandemic.

“I am honored to have worked with Adrian on this album. Adrian is so free… free of pretense, free of constraints, and free of limitations on where his music could go,” said Linden. “His life experience and genuine musicality shine through in every note. He is really one of the best and most honest artists anyone could work with.”

Colin also brought Greg Calbi and Steve Fallone (Sterling Sound, New Jersey) on board for album mastering.

Both new singles, Precious and Diamonds, were co-written with brothers Chris Gormley and Matt Gormley, who have become frequent writing partners on some of Adrian’s solo music.

1. Notawe (Father)
2. My Rebel Spirit
3. Boogeyman
4. You Are Left Behind
5. Diamonds
6. Kiyash (Before)
7. The Storm
8. Feeling Of Love
9. Let It Shine
10. Precious

The album opens on the pleasing melodies and vocals within Notawe, a personal dedication to Sutherland’s father and the stronger, harmonica-driven, pop-grooved My Rebel Spirit and then we get the Coldplay-esque Boogeyman, the achingly beautiful ballad You Are Left Behind, and then comes the uplifting rhythms that drive Diamonds (which details the idea that people came from the sky up above and were made from the sun).

Along next is the second of his Cree songs (Adrian’s mother tongue), the yearnful, dutifully embodied Kiyash (Before) and the laid back Americana vibe within both Storm and Feeling Of Love, the album rounding out on the free flowing hipsway of Let It Shine, closing on the atmospherically-charged Precious (which was itself inspired by soulful Black music that came out of the South).

Musicians: Janice Powers (B3 organ), John Dymond (bass), Gary Craig (drums/percussion), Jerry Roe (drums), Jeff Taylor (accordion/dulceola), Jim Hoke (saxes), Mickey Raphael (harmonicas) & Brandon Robert Young (harmonies).

Official Purchase Links

www.adriansutherlandmusic.com

Adrian Sutherland - Precious (Official Audio)

Adrian Sutherland - Diamonds (Official Audio)





Title - Acceleration Due To Gravity
Artist - JonesVille

Hot Cup Records is proud to present Jonesville, the second release by the nonet Acceleration Due to Gravity. Jonesville features four new compositions by bassist/composer Moppa Elliott as well as performances of three early pieces by the legendary bassist and composer Sam Jones on the occasion of his centennial year. Each of Elliott’s compositions is inspired by the music of Sam Jones and named after a town in Pennsylvania, as usual.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Elliott created blindfold tests for a small circle of musicians and friends which led to completing his collection of all the recordings made by Sam Jones during his illustrious and long career. For the entirety of 2024, Elliott will host a weekly radio broadcast on WAYO in Rochester, NY where he will play music from each of Sam Jones’ recordings in roughly chronological order, interspersed with commentary and context.

Elliott’s original compositions, as performed by ADTG, are based loops that undergo transformation during each repetition and are staggered against each other. Each tune is made up of a handful of musical phrases (which in other circumstances could be samples) that loop and repeat, but never in the same way due to both written variations and the spontaneous improvisations of the band members. This allows each piece to retain both a unique sound world and forward momentum, constantly surprising the listener, and often, the band.

Elliott takes as a model the music of The Wu-Tang Clan, The Roots, Run the Jewels, DJ Premiere and other hip-hop artists who create song forms that are vehicles for multiple soloists and do not emphasize a central “hook” or refrain. Each of Elliott’s tunes has three solo sections built into it, and no recurring melodic chorus in order to more clearly emphasize the central role of the improvised solo.

1. Waddle
2. Geiger
3. Sparks
4. Energy
5. Power
6. Bangor

This delightfully abounding new recording opens on the aptly-named, stridently flourishing Waddle and then brings us the funky horns that drive Geiger, the horn-licious Sparks, the soulfully upbeat pulse of Energy, the album rounding out on the veritably cinematic Power, coming to a close on the jauntily impassioned Bangor.

Official Purchase Link

www.moppaelliott.com





Title - Advancing on a Wild Pitch Disasters, Vol II
Artist - Moppa Elliott

For those unaware, Disasters Vol. 2, out February 16th, 2024 on Hot Cup Records, is the much anticipated second release by the quintet Advancing on a Wild Pitch.

The recording features seven new compositions by Moppa Elliott named after towns in Pennsylvania that experienced a train collision, toxic smog, police bombings, or other disasters.

It follows up Disasters Vol. 1 recorded by MOPDtK, and this tour marks a dual celebration of both albums, with both bands. presents the new release with his quintet Advancing on a Wild Pitch.

Acclaimed bassist, composer, and arranger Moppa Elliott has always been an original with a singular vision, gathering equally imaginative and skilled colleagues in some of the most entertaining, unique ensembles in jazz. From Tuesday, February 21 – Saturday, February 24, three of those bands – Mostly Other People Do the Killing (MOPDtK), Advancing on a Wild Pitch, and Acceleration Due to Gravity – perform in Washington, DC; Pennsylvania; and New York in support of two ambitious new recordings: Disasters Vol. 2 and Jonesville, the second release from the nonet Acceleration Due to Gravity.

Jonesville features four new Elliott compositions as well as performances of three early pieces by the legendary bassist and composer Sam Jones on the occasion of his centennial year. Each of Elliott’s compositions is inspired by the music of Sam Jones and, as usual, named after a town in Pennsylvania.

1. Powelton Village (4:51)
2. Cobb’s Creek (5:10)
3. Marcus Hook (5:12)
4. The Donora Smog (4:37)
5. Mud Run (6:02)
6. Van Meter (5:08)
7. Dimock (5:01)

Second volume of compositions named after towns in Pennsylvania that experienced historical disasters. This magnificently impassioned new recording opens on the pleasing swing within Powelton Village and the lighter, piano jazz fare of Cobb’s Creek, and they are followed by the low slung Marcus Hook, the rhythmically-sculpted The Donora Smog, the flourishing Mud Run, to album rounding out on the stoic, veritably ethereal Van Meter, closing on the upbeat finger-snapper Dimock.

Musicians:
Sam Kulik - trombone
Charles Evans - baritone saxophone
Danny Fox - piano
Moppa Elliott - bass
Christian Coleman - drums

Official Purchase Link

www.moppaelliott.com





Title - Duo Work
Artist - Grdina Lillinger

The JUNO award-winning Vancouver-based guitarist, composer improvisor, and master oud player Gordon Grdina is a dauntless musical explorer whose interests run the gamut from free improvisation and progressive jazz to traditional Arabic music, often weaving deftly between those desperate extremes.

Two new releases on his own Attaboygirl Records imprint showcase the stunning diversity of Grdina’s imagination: the third release by his jazz-Arabic music hybrid band The Marrow expands to include the captivating Persian vocalist Fathieh Honari, while Duo Work is a dizzying multi-directional collaboration between Grdina’s electric and MIDI guitars and the virtuosic German drummer Christian Lillinger.

While Grdina often moves from guitar to oud within the space of a single project or album, these two new efforts draw a hard line between the two. Gordon Grdina’s The Marrow with Fathieh Honari is a showcase for his deft oud work.

Duo Work is a wildly different project, electrifying and angular where The Marrow is trance-like and questing. The album continues the thrilling collaboration between Grdina and Lillinger, which has been documented via the quartet Square Peg (with violist Mat Maneri and bassist Shahzad Ismally) and a trio with Maneri.

Throughout Grdina is featured on guitar and MIDI guitar, a relatively new addition to his arsenal previously heard on Oddly Enough, a solo album featuring the compositions of Tim Berne. The instrument features synth pick-ups with MIDI controllers that allow Grdina to transform the sound of the guitar into virtually any instrument - existent or otherwise.

The axe makes for a perfect pairing with Lillinger’s expansive sound. “I wanted to fill a large sound space since Christian is quite an orchestral drummer,” Grdina explains. “I wanted to create a large sound world that could define many specific timbral spaces while retaining the freedom of an improvising duo that can turn on a dime.”

The album features four of Grdina’s compositions along with a set of improvised excursions. Each of the set’s concise pieces (most under four minutes) were isolated from longer free improvisations, chosen for their bold sense of structure and intentionality, then manipulated in post-production in a final act of (re)composition.

Grdina assigned song titles based on an impulsive sensory association. Indeed, Gerhard, named for the artist Gerhard Richter, is a clue to the overall sound.

“His paintings feel so metallic, modern and bright, yet have this warmth and soothing feeling to them,” Grdina explains. “I wanted to stress the humanity that comes through these pieces that don’t seem very natural on the surface.”

1. Song One
2. Dissolution
3. Impala
4. Bunker
5. Ash
6. Encounters
7. Pixilated
8. Jalopy
9. Gerhard
10. Big Blue
11. Traverse
12. Song Two

This supremely impassioned, heartfelt and gloriously structured new recording opens on the dogged Song One and the technical brilliance of Dissolution and they are then backed by the nuanced Impala, the rhythmically jaunty Bunker, and then comes the unyielding punk-jazz of Ash and the dynamically industrious Encounters.

Along next is one of my own personal favorites here, the resonating Pixilated and the multiple palettes woven within Jalopy and they are in turn followed seamlessly by the textural Gerhard, the guitar-electronic blending within Big Blue, the album rounding out on the incisive Traverse, coming to a close on the atmospheric Song Two.

Official Purchase Link

Grdina Lillinger @ Bandcamp





Title - Gordon Grdina’s The Marrow with Fathieh Honari
Artist - Gordon Grdina

Led by oud player Gordon Grdina, The Marrow brings together Arabic Maqam and Persian Dastgah with western improvised music and jazz.

The music is intricate and delicate, holding a deep connection to the past while looking forward. The group plays original and traditional works with Hank Roberts (cello), Mark Helias (bass), and Hamin Honari (tombak and daf).

The JUNO award-winning Vancouver-based guitarist, composer improvisor, and master oud player Gordon Grdina is a dauntless musical explorer whose interests run the gamut from free improvisation and progressive jazz to traditional Arabic music, often weaving deftly between those desperate extremes.

Two new releases on his own Attaboygirl Records imprint showcase the stunning diversity of Grdina’s imagination: the third release by his jazz-Arabic music hybrid band The Marrow expands to include the captivating Persian vocalist Fathieh Honari, while Duo Work is a dizzying multi-directional collaboration between Grdina’s electric and MIDI guitars and the virtuosic German drummer Christian Lillinger.

While Grdina often moves from guitar to oud within the space of a single project or album, these two new efforts draw a hard line between the two. Gordon Grdina’s The Marrow with Fathieh Honari is a showcase for his deft oud work.

The Marrow was originally conceived as a means of bridging the worlds of Arabic, jazz and improvised music. The core quartet brings Grdina together with veteran improvisors Hank Roberts (cello) and Mark Hallas (bass) and the Iranian-Canadian percussionist Hamin Honari.

The new album adds a rich additional layer with the addition of Hamin’s mother, the lauded Persian vocalist Fathieh Honari, through a mix of traditional songs, mid-20th century Iranian popular music, and classic Rumi poems set to Grdina’s original compositions.

“In Persian music they say that it’s not really music unless there’s poetry,” Grdina says. “So adding vocals pushes the album more towards a Persian aesthetic. I miss some element of that because I don’t speak Farsi, though I connect with Fathieh’s beautiful vocals as a sensory feeling and an emotional expression.”

1. Not of Them
2. Raqib
3. Raqs e Paravaneh
4. Break the Branch
5. Qalandar

This lushly orchestrated, wholly impassioned new recording opens on the twelve minute musical opus Not of Them, and is a stunning construction, so much so that has to be heard from start to finish to truly be fully appreciated. That is then backed by the all-embracing Raqib and the sensory push found within Raqs e Paravaneh, the album rounding out on the forlorn-hued, yet stirringly embodied Break the Branch, coming to a righteous close on the haunting Baluchi traditional song Qalandar.

Musicians:
Gordon Grdina - oud
Mark Helias - bass
Hank Roberts - cello
Hamin Honari - percussion
Fathieh Honari - voice

Official Purchase Link

Grdina Lillinger @ Bandcamp





Title - Sextet Session
Artist - Doug MacDonald

For those not in the know, Sextet Session is a brand new album by Los Angeles guitarist Doug MacDonald. The album features original compositions by MacDonald in addition to a few choice Standards, and Doug also wrote the arrangements for the trumpet and tenor saxophone.

Doug MacDonald is a fine bop-based guitarist in the tradition of Herb Ellis, Barney Kessel, and Joe Pass. He was raised in Honolulu and started on guitar when he was 13, having briefly played trombone before. MacDonald moved to Los Angeles in 1984 after a year in Las Vegas and made a strong impression as a freelancer.

In 1990, he relocated to New York. Doug MacDonald has played with top musicians, including Stan Getz, Sarah Vaughan, Buddy Rich, Hank Jones, Bob Cooper, Bill Holman, Jack Sheldon, and many others, recording with Sheldon, the Clayton-Hamilton Orchestra, and as a leader for Cexton and Resurgent; one of the latter is a nonet album.

1. Desert Blues
2. Whispering
3. Gee’s Flat
4. You’ve Changed
5. AT #33
6. Try Ads
7. Si Miner
8. Bubbles in the Wine

This deliciously abundant, wholly impassioned new recording opens on the upbeat and joyous Desert Blues and then we get brought forth the Brazilian samba beat found driving Whispering, the luxurious Gee’s Flat (a malapropism, a play on words, like the key of Gb), and the melodic standard You’ve Changed.

Along next is the synthesizer and harmonizer-hued AT #33 which is in turn backed seamlessly by the all-encompassing Try Ads, and then comes the Spanish-tinged Si Miner (a C minor key in music as opposed to “see coal miner”), the album rounding out on a dutifully sculpted Bubbles in the Wine.

Musicians:
Guitar - Doug MacDonald, Tenor Sax - Doug Webb, Trumpet - Aaron Janik, Piano - Josh Nelson, Bass - Mike Gurrola, Drums - Charles Ruggerio

Doug MacDonald @ Instagram

www.dougmacdonald.net





Title - Hip To The Skip
Artist - Christian Fabian Trio

Jazz bassist Christian Fabian has returned with a new trio album called Hip to the Skip. Fabian plays a variety of styles (he swings hard in the Lionel Hampton Big Band), but for this outing he opted to explore funk and fusion jazz.

The bassist and bandleader’s group is filled out by keyboardist Matt King and drummer Jason Marsalis, who said “This is the first album I’ve ever done where I’m playing in the funk/fusion vein the whole session. This was a lot of fun and listeners will be surprised by the music.”

Along with original songs, Fabian arranged some beloved jazz standards in the fusion style, taking cues from artists like Herbie Hancock, Weather Report, and more.

1. Hip to the Skip
2. Moanin’
3. Mercy, Mercy, Mercy
4. This Can’t Be Love
5. Incognito
6. When the Saints Go Marching In
7. Zig 7
8. (Funky) Four
9. In the Name of Feminism
10. Sidekick
11. Effendi

This genuinely authentic new recording opens on the vibrancy of the titular Hip to the Skip and the stridently flavored Moanin’ and they are then followed by the smoothly lush grooves laid down within Mercy, Mercy, Mercy, the R&B bliss of This Can’t Be Love, and then we get an impassioned fervency that drives Incognito.

Up next is one of my own personal favorites, the laid back, low slung melodies that make up the beloved When the Saints Go Marching In and the funky Hammond work of Zig 7, and they are then in turn backed by the aptly-named (Funky) Four, the lovingly jaunty In the Name of Feminism, the album rounding out on the all-embracing Sidekick, closing on the rhythmic beauty Effendi.

Official Hip To The Skip Music Video

www.christianfabian.com





Title - 10,000 Hours
Artist - Hiruy Tirfe

For those unaware, the sound collage that opens saxophonist Hiruy Tirfe’s debut album, 10,000 Hours, features a host of influential voices.

Prominent among them, naturally, is author Malcolm Gladwell, whose oft-quoted theory about the time required to gain expertise gives the album its title.

But it also includes former Sixer Allen Iverson, via an excerpt of his legendary “practice” rant; Questlove discussing sacrifice; Will Smith on his “ridiculous, sickening work ethic”; and Barack and Michelle Obama lecturing students on hard work.

It’s clear that Tirfe has drawn inspiration from these motivational pronouncements, and that it’s paid off: at 29, Tirfe has performed with The Roots, Patti LaBelle, Solange Knowles and other luminaries, while honing his skills on stages in Philly and beyond.

But the key to his burgeoning success might be rooted less in these celebrity examples than in the humbler words heard later in the album. On “Mom and Dad,” Tirfe interviews his parents, immigrants from the East African country of Eritrea, about the struggles they faced in their adopted home.

Indeed, 10,000 Hours marks Tirfe’s arrival, driven in no small part by his parents’ example. “Growing up as a first-generation American, a first-generation musician, and the firstborn in my family, Malcolm Gladwell’s [ideas] really spoke to me,” Tirfe explains, sitting in the music room at Overbrook High School, where he’d just finished teaching.

“My parents made the sacrifices that they did to make sure I am where I am today, and it was important to me to get that across. One of my first memories is my dad going back to school while my mom was working in parking lots at 30th Street Station and South Street. It wasn’t easy for them, and they instilled a lot of discipline and work ethic in me. Their example has been truly powerful and meaningful.”

1. 10,000 Hours (The Opener)
2. A Cry For Help
3. Trial
4. Incentive
5. NFF
6. Live Your Life And Take Control
7. Little Ghetto Boy
8. 10,000 Hours
9. Mom & Dad
10. The Believer
11. Chances
12. Second Nature
13. No Saving (Extended)
14. 10,000 Hours (The Closer)
15. No Saving (Radio Edit)

On an album where diverse influences endlessly converge, the new recording opens on the informative of 10,000 Hours (The Opener) and the serenely opulent A Cry For Help and they are followed by the forthright Trial (which features the impassioned rasp of beloved Eagles center Jason Kelce and his iconic victory speech following Super Bowl LII), the impassioned Incentive, the joyfully jaunty NFF, before we are then brought forth the free flowing musical majesties found within Live Your Life And Take Control and a soulful rendition of Donny Hathaway’s Little Ghetto Boy.

With the album taking a turn around the halfway point, evoking the Studio Wednesdays scene with the appearance of spoken word artist Chiara Chantelle, up next is the a rousing, near 12 minute take of the aforementioned titular 10,000 Hours and the low slung foot tapper Mom & Dad and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the flourishing The Believer, the humbling Chances, then comes the rhythmic Second Nature, the veritably stoic, yet elegantly-hued No Saving (Extended), the album rounding out on the .36 second drum lesson within 10,000 Hours (The Closer), closing on the beautifully crafted, R&B ambiance of No Saving (Radio Edit) (both versions featuring R&B singer-songwriter Mare).

The album’s core band features musicians whose paths Tirfe crossed on the local scene — pianist Luke Carlos O’Reilly, bassist Matthew Keppler and drummer Lionel Forrester Jr. — joined by guests met through his wide-ranging experiences, including trombonist Aaron Goode and keyboardists Dan Rouse and Kayla Childs. (In her neo-soul guise as Black Buttafly, Childs will open for Tirfe at the Bride).

Official Purchase Link

www.hiruytirfe.org





Title - Library Card
Artist - Stephen Philip Harvey

For those unaware, Library Card is the fifth album of saxophonist and composer Stephen Philip Harvey and the debut album of his chord-less trio, SPH+2.

This release showcase six original compositions that celebrate children’s books and young adult novels and one Rodgers and Hart standard.

Stephen Philip Harvey is an African American saxophonist, composer, arranger, and educator. As a musician and bandleader, Stephen has throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions of the United States. He leads his ensembles with a drive to explore a vast array of avenues in improvisation and composition.

These ensembles include his chordless trio SPH+2, his electric quintet, Sphinx, his mid-sized jazz combo, the Stephen Philip Harvey Octet (SPH8), and his large ensemble the Stephen Philip Harvey Jazz Orchestra (SPHJO).

Prior to this new release, he has five full album releases under his belt: Suite Childhood (2016, Self-Released) and Smash! (2022, Next Level an imprint of Outside In Music).

His debut octet album, Elemental, which was released on Harvey’s label, Hidden Cinema Records, was talked about for the longest time and he added to this eclectic collection in late September of 2023 with his electric quintet’s eponymous release, Sphinx.

1. I Could Write a Book (feat. Max Murray)
2. Huevos Verdes (feat. Max Murray)
3. Going Places (feat. Max Murray & Jordon Stanley)
4. Son of Poseidon (feat. Jordon Stanley)
5. Lunar Lullaby (feat. Max Murray)
6. Melody at Midday
7. Let’s Go Exploring (feat. Jordon Stanley)

Released by Hidden Cinema Records, the album opens on the playfully twee I Could Write a Book and the rhythmically enchanting Huevos Verdes and then we are brought forth the perky Going Places, then some engrossing melodies form for my own personal favorite Son of Poseidon, the chordless trio continuing onward with the languishing Lunar Lullaby, the recording rounding out with the majestic, low slung Melody at Midday, closing on the upbeat and joyful Let’s Go Exploring (featuring Jordan Stanley).

Personnel:
Stephen Philip Harvey, soprano and tenor sax
Max Murray, bass
Jordon Stanley, drums

www.stephenpharvey.com

Stephen Philip Harvey @ Facebook





Title - Fellowship
Artist - David Gibson

As indicated by the title of his Imani Records leader debut, veteran trombonist David Gibson developed the repertoire on Fellowship while endeavoring “to create a sense of purpose” amidst the isolation of Covid-19.

Deeply admired by his peers for the high-level arranging skills that highlight his seven previous albums by two- and three-horn ensembles since 2002, three albums by Orrin Evans’s Captain Black Big Band, and his work as musical director for George Gee’s Swing Orchestra, Gibson’s debut quartet album places his considerable instrumental prowess front and center, as he navigates eight originals marked by his characteristic blend of complex harmonic structures and elemental melodies with a burnished, centered tone and a flow of fresh ideas.

Joining Gibson is the challenging, kinetic rhythm section he’s frequently performed with at Smalls and various other New York venues, comprising energetic rising star pianist Davis Whitfield and drum master Kush Abadey, both thirty-ish, and bassist Joseph Lepore

1. Disquietude (6:27)
2. Beyond Breath (7:25)
3. Meek’s Wrath (6:06)
4. Discursiveness (5:24)
5. Chief Distortion (5:24)
6. Persist (5:58)
7. Waiting for Patience (7:01)
8. Fellowship (5:44)

This delightfully stylistic new recording opens on the quietly rambunctious Disquietude and the fleetingly ornate, veritably glistening Beyond Breath and they are then followed by the smoothly lush grooves laid down within Meek’s Wrath, and then we get the upbeat and euphoric-tipping Discursiveness.

Up next is the fervently-sculpted Chief Distortion which is itself backed seamlessly by the luxurious Persist, the album rounding out on the emboldened Waiting for Patience, closing on the most languishing beauty found within the titular Fellowship.

Musicians:
David Gibson – trombone
Davis Whitfield – piano
Joseph Lepore – bass
Kush Abadey – drums

Official Purchase Link

www.jazzbone.org





Title - Sons
Artist - Phil Sargent

Guitarist and composer Phil Sargent is a name to be reckoned with in the Boston and New York music scenes. Described as a musician who is cognizant of the tradition but thinks outside of the box (All About Jazz) and who incorporates melodic hooks into the mix, where superior technique, cunning interactions, memorable song forms, and seething solo jaunts attain a near-flawless symmetrical presence (JazzReviews.com), Sargent has shared the stage with the likes of giants such as Dave Liebman, Jerry Bergonzi, and John Lockwood, to contemporary earthshakers such as Matt Wilson, Bob Moses, Phil Grenadier, and Yosuke Inoue, among others.

Now, over a decade since his previous release, Sargent once more takes the stage and studio as a bandleader with Sons, an album that stands both as a tribute to and reflection on fatherhood and how it has transformed him and his world.

His 2010 release (A New Day) has received critical acclaim. In addition to writing for his own group he composes and has released recordings with the genre bending groups Iskar and The Industrious Noise Trio and many others. Phil also performs nationally as a sideman in the Sonic Explorers, Bruno Raberg Nonet, Rick DiMuzio Quintet, Mehmet Ali Sanlikol Jazz Orchestra, Brooke Sofferman Perspective, John Funkhouser quartet, and a variety of other ensembles ranging from straight ahead jazz to the avante-garde.

With his brand new album Sons (out now via Higher Level Media), Sargent makes emotively tangible that which is held deeply at the center of the human experience: family. To grow and create, to provide and protect, to wrestle and raise up - all this is held testimonial within the vast textural landscapes and sweeping genre fluidity of Sons.

Sargent composes and plays not merely for himself and for his music, but because he has something worthwhile to say, and an audience worthwhile to say it to who inspired it all to begin with.

1. Skyline
2. Rest Area
3. Me Fa Me Re
4. Life
5. Be Careful Out There
6. Bivawack
7. Isolation
8. Sons
9. Breathe

This mighty fine, and expertly focused new recording opens on the driven Skyline and the melodiously free flowing Rest Area (feat. Greg Loughman & Mike Connors), and they are then followed by the Western-hued, yearning guitar-driven Me Fa Me Re and the beautifully cultivated hipsway found within Life (feat. Jerry Sabatini, Greg Loughman & Mike Connors).

Up next are the ambient melodies within Be Careful Out There (again featuring Loughman & Connors) and the plucky Bivawack, and they are in turn backed by the languishing Isolation (with Loughman & Connors), the album rounding out on the luxuriant Sons, closing on the captivating Breathe.

Phil Sargent - Sons [Official Music Video]

www.philsargentmusic.com





Title - Circular Motion
Artist - Francesco Crosara

For those not in the know, Francesco Crosara is an Italian jazz pianist and composer who has performed at select musical venues internationally.

Furthermore, over his illustrious career thus far, he has also performed with Lionel Hampton, Freddie Hubbard, Roy Hargrove, Richie Cole, Von Freeman, Lilian Terry, Bobby Shew, Ira Sullivan, Don Menza, John Heard, Gabe Baltazar, Bruce Forman, Barbara Morrison, Earl Palmer, and more.

With a style that can be termed as straight-ahead Jazz with Latin, Fusion, Classical and World music influences, and garnered from a lifetime of music creation, for his brand new album Circular Motion, Seattle-based Crosara has selected 10 of his compositions from the last 40 years with the idea of highlighting the nexus between early work; with its simplicity and youthful appeal, to later works where he expressed richer harmonic textures and possibilities.

Three different rhythm sections bring his music to life, each adding varied sonic textures and rhythmic vitality to the whole. Bassist Clipper Anderson and drummer Mark Ivester swing and float; the vibrant grooves of electric bassist Farko Dosumov and drummer D’Vonne Lewis lend a modern momentum; and the youthful eclecticism of bassist Osama Afifi and drummer Xavier Lecouturier adds yet another dimension.

1. Preludio Flamenco (6:01)
2. Longing (6:24)
3. Julia’s Tango (6:53)
4. Gymnopédie No.4 (8:07)
5. Circular Motion (6:32)
6. Kurama (9:48)
7. Passion (8:08)
8. Maktoub (7:48)
9. One Day Honey, One Day Onions (6:22)
10. Sarava (6:14)

This new recording opens on the organic fluidity of Preludio Flamenco and the upright bass-led, and aptly-titled Longing and then proceeds to bring us the heartwarming Julia’s Tango, the playfully sculpted Gymnopédie No.4, and then comes the sheer effervescent magnificence of the titular Circular Motion.

Up next is one of my own personal favorites, the sincere foot-tapper Kurama and the delightfully orchestrated, veritably summery Passion and they are in turn backed by the upbeat and joyous melodies of Maktoub, the album rounding out on the funky rhythms within One Day Honey, One Day Onions, closing on the flamboyant swirls and twirls of the beautiful Sarava.

PERFORMERS:
Francesco Crosara - acoustic piano, synthesizer (3,9,10)
Clipper Anderson - acoustic bass (2,4,5,8)
Mark Ivester - drums (2,4,5,8)
Farko Dosumov - electric bass (1,3,7,9)
D’Vonne Lewis - drums (1,3,7,9)
Osama Afifi - electric bass (6,10)
Xavier Lecouturier - drums (6,10)

Official Purchase Link

www.francescojazz.com





Title - Life’s a Gig
Artist - Vanisha Gould & Chris McCarthy

For those not in the know, and with themes are romance and heartbreak that course through covers and original pieces alike, Vanisha Gould & Chris McCarthy have just released their brand new duo album, Life’s a Gig.

The duo, who have been playing together some seven years or so now and thus have a mighty strong rapport with one another at their live shows, are now allowing that musical bond to seep through into this new album (out now).

“’Life’s a gig, it don’t pay much but it costs a lot,’” Vanisha reveals. “I said that at a party one evening, whispered it imitating Miles Davis. We all laughed. Truth is, life has offered me a lot. All I’ve ever wanted was to sing this beautiful music and make a living from it. I never thought I would also find family. Community. This album is meant to represent exactly that. Just family coming together singing tunes we’ve sung countless times before.”

1. Cool
2. Aisha
3. What A Little Moonlight Can Do
4. Fall In Love With Me In Fall
5. No Moon At All
6. Jolene
7. Monk’s Dream
8. No More
9. Between The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

With a sweetly-sculpted vein of old-fashioned jazz music from the 40’s and 50’s, this delightfully-hued new recording opens on the playful Cool and the luxuriant Aisha and then brings us the impassioned What A Little Moonlight Can Do and the veritably glistening Fall In Love With Me In Fall.

On an album where the singer is lovingly influenced by Billie Holiday and Nina Simone, among others, up next that is dutifully brought to the fore on the heartfelt No Moon At All which is itself backed seamlessly by a quite stunning reworking of Dolly Parton’s Jolene, a perky Monk’s Dream, the album rounding out on the lavish No More, closing on the rhythmically jaunty Between The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea.

“I feel truly blessed to know Chris McCarthy (piano) and Kayla Williams (Viola - Jolene & Fall in Love With Me in Fall),” Vanisha continues. “They both carry this music with such integrity and ease. I want to flower my family with love. Arleen Simmons Gould and Hollis Gould are directly responsible for the voice that you hear on this album. Without their support and unending love, well, this gig called “life” would be undesirable, and without swing.”

“My brother, Victor Gould, also my favorite musician and composer, handed me my first Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong album- the rest is history. He is not just my confidant, but he paved the path for me, as well. From middle school in Simi Valley, California to the New York Jazz scene, his extraordinary expertise and reputation has inspired me. Life’s a Gig. A pretty damn good gig.”

Vanisha Gould & Chris McCarthy - Aisha (Official Music Video)

Vanisha Gould @ Instagram

Chris McCarthy @ Instagram





Title - Falling Feels Like Flying
Artist - John Korbel

Having already established himself with a wealth of riveting releases these last few years, emerging artist John Korbel returns once again to deliver his brand new single New York All To Ourselves.

Lifted from his newly released studio album Falling Feels Like Flying, which is available to purchase now, the first single New York All To Ourselves makes for a wonderfully smooth and alluring listen.

The album also features keyboardist Mark Falchock, who is also the producer, Steve Luciano on guitar, Ezra Henry on drums, Marco Bojorquez on bass, saxophonist Alain Bradette, trombonist Derrick Harris, trumpeter and saxophonist Sam Zambito, and Chris West on woodwinds; with background vocals provided by both Carmen Harrell and Sam Reckart.

Honing more of that jazz-inspired aesthetic he is known for, there is now doubt this new one will sweep you off your feet and leave you feeling renewed throughout!

1. Wheels Up
2. Lizard Of Oz
3. New York All To Ourselves
4. The One Without Wings
5. Take A Ride With The Top Down
6. Sing
7. Natural Selection
8. Sweet Burning
9. Falling Feels Like Flying
10. Wheels Up (Extended Version)

On an album that contains a variety of tones, including some rather playful and energetic ebbs and flows, the new recording opens on the sweepingly decadent rhythms within Wheels Up and the more strident Lizard Of Oz and they are followed by the luxuriant New York All To Ourselves, the veritably shimmering The One Without Wings, and then we get the gently foot-tapper Take A Ride With The Top Down.

The old soul that lovingly drives the current music scene, Korbel continues onward with the frenetically-charged melodies within Sing and the laid low swing of Natural Selection and they are in turn backed by the aptly-named Sweet Burning, the album rounding out on the triumphant vibe of Falling Feels Like Flying, closing on an extended version of Wheels Up.

John Korbel - Falling Feels Like Flying (Official Music Video)

www.johnkorbel.com





Title - Cohesion
Artist - David Larsen

For those unaware, David Larsen’s new recording Cohesion is due out March 1st, 2023.

David is the director of instrumental studies at Spokane Falls Community College. He holds a PhD from Washington State University and degrees from Pacific University, University of Oregon, and Western Oregon University.

David has been a presenter/performer for the Jazz Education Network, North American Saxophone Alliance, and several other conferences and festivals.

David has also performed with a variety of artists including Ken Peplowski, Francisco Torres, Dave Glenn, Ron Vincent, Bill Mays, Dean Johnson, and the internationally acclaimed jazz vocalist, Halie Loren.

David is an active composer. His published works cover a wide variety of styles and genres. His compositions have won numerous awards including JW Peppers Editor’s Choice for 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. His music has been performed and recorded by a wide variety of groups around the U.S. and abroad.

His compositions and arrangements have been played by Washington State University, University of Oregon, and others around the country.

1. Cohesion (4:50)
2. Down To It (4:36)
3. Movement (7:41)
4. Wishing Well (5:15)
5. Fedchock (5:18)
6. Working Things Out (6:15)
7. Mount Fuji (4:45)
8. El Duelo (6:24)

This delightfully ambient new recording opens on the radiant rhythms that bring the titular Cohesion together and the upbeat Down To It and they are then followed by the low slung swing of Movement and the playfully perky Wishing Well.

Up next is the triumphantly-charged Fedchock and is itself backed by the luxuriantly-hued Working Things Out, the album rounding out on the soaringly upbeat melodies within Mount Fuji, closing on the jaunty strength of sculpted magnificence within the spirited El Duelo.

“The idea for Cohesion came when I met these players while they were on tour in the Northwest”, Larsen reveals. “I really loved the sound they were getting and their group dynamic. After talking for a bit, I decided to bring them out as the guests for the SFCC Jazz Workshop. While they were out, we played some gigs and went into the studio to record this album. I wanted to capture some of the great vibes of this group with my new compositions. These styles were a bit foreign to me, but I love a challenge, so I leapt in with both feet.”

Official Purchase Release

www.larsenjazz.com

David Larsen @ Facebook





Title - Being
Artist - Chris Rottmayer

For those not aware, Being is pianist Chris Rottmayer’s fourth album (and due out March 8th, 2024 via Shifting Paradigm Records). It’s a collection of original music, written as part of a study of pianist Mulgrew Miller and his recordings with the Woody Shaw Quintet.

Joining him on this album are Russ Johnson on trumpet and flugelhorn, Matt Endres on drums, and jazz master Rufus Reid on acoustic bass. The skillful compositions and virtuosic performances on BEING weave an exotic and mysterious tapestry that explores Miller and Shaw’s harmonic and modal concepts.

1. On the Street Where Woody Lives
2. Re-United
3. Pigalle
4. Chatelet
5. Autumn Evening
6. Song of Modes
7. Ballerina Dance
8. La Seizieme
9. Pont Neuf
10. Rue des Lombards

This deliciously-sculpted new recording opens on the veritably overflowing with a charged spirit alongside a tact driven to delight On the Street Where Woody Lives and the swirling Re-United and they are then followed by the sheer elegance of Pigalle, the laid low, yet vibrantly all-embracing Chatelet, and then we get the languishing Autumn Evening.

Along next is the methodically-sculpted, and melodically-hued Song of Modes and the flourishing Ballerina Dance and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the cushioned La Seizieme, the album rounding out on the veritable dreamy gossamer Pont Neuf, coming to a close on the free-flowing Rue des Lombards.

Musicians:
Chris Rottmayer - Piano
Russ Johnson - Trumpet and Flugel Horn
Rufus Reid - Acoustic Bass
Matt Endres - Drums

Official Purchase Link

www.chrisrottmayer.com

Chris Rottmayer @ Facebook





Title - The Door is Open: The Music of Gregg Hill
Artist - Randy Napoleon

Guitarist Randy Napoleon soars on this new collection of tunes by the prolific jazz composer Gregg Hill. The core of his ongoing band intact, their freedom to expand boundaries, surprise, or just lock into an unassailable swing is readily available to enjoy.

In 2014, after more than a decade in New York City, and traveling the world with Freddie Cole, Michael Buble and others, he found himself in the middle of the thriving jazz center that Lansing, Michigan had become since bassist Rodney Whitaker’s arrival almost 25 years ago.

Along with his bandmates, pianist Rick Roe, Whitaker, and drummer Quincy Davis, composer Gregg Hill has added an energized compositional voice to the scene, enticing Napoleon, Whitaker, Michael Dease, and others into inspired collaborations.The Door Is Open: The Music of Gregg Hill, Napoleon is free to stretch, bend and expand on Hill’s central themes, and the musical rapport he shares with visiting NY vocalist Aubrey Johnson over his last two albums.

1. The Lost Tune
2. The Door is Open
3. Escape to Cat Island
4. Motel Blues
5. Spa-Teneity
6. April Song
7. The Last Pop Tune
8. Skyline
9. Triple Play

On an album chock full of artistic expression, the new recording opens on the deeply connective The Lost Tune and the warmly embracing, yet vibrantly-hued titular The Door is Open and the we get the broadly emotive Escape to Cat Island, the contextual Motel Blues and the swinging, meter-changing found within Spa-Teneity.

Along next on this album that showcases a most perfect balance between swing and soul, is the lushly harmonic and deliciously melodic April Song which is in turn followed by the musical maturity of his own personal growth within music shown within the heartbeat of The Last Pop Tune and the cleanly-sculptured, and one of my own personal favorite Skyline, the album closing on the original styling found adorning Triple Play.

Other Musicians: Aubrey Johnson (vocals), Rick Roe (piano), Quincy Davis (drums), Rodney Whitaker (bass), Luca Lafave (bass on tracks 1, 4, 5, 7), Anthony Stanco (trumpet), Walter Blanding (saxophone), and Andrew Kim (trombone).

Randy Napoleon - The Door is Open (Official Music Video)

www.randynapoleon.com





Title - The Ways In
Artist - James Zollar

The New York City jazz world is an ecosystem involving musicians, venues, programs, enthusiasts, and much more. There are multiple “ways in” to this scene, but for a jazz artist new to the city, it is very intimidating.

Nevertheless, there are many available paths, and sometimes all that an aspiring musician needs is a “wayfinder”. Over the past few decades, James Zollar has been a wayfinder to many jazz artists looking to break into the New York City scene.

When I meet jazz artists in New York City, and let them know I am James’ older brother, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard them share glowing stories about James’ generous efforts to help them find their way into the New York City jazz ecosystem.

Just mention his name in any of the jazz circles around New York, and you will likely hear stories that speak to his giving soul and strong musicianship.

With the encouragement of his family, especially his beautiful wife, Nabuko Kiryu (an accomplished jazz singer, composer and arranger in her own right), who is also featured on this recording, James has stepped out front on this project titled, “The Ways In” (out now via Docmo Music).

1. The Fruit - Dedicated to Barry Harris
2. Peace / Blue Silver - Dedicated to Al Zollar
3. Reflectory
4. The Single Pedal of A Rose - Dedicated to Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ
5. Jim Jim
6. Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me - Dedicated to Cootie Williams
7. Swing Spring
8. Pat - Dedicated to Pat Zollar
9. Down Town Up
10. Checkered Hat
11. Epilogue Dedicated to Mercer Ellington

This magnificent sculptor of sounds opens his new recording with the upbeat and melodious The Fruit and the more forthrightly delivered Peace / Blue Silver and then follows them up with the veritably cinematic stance within Reflectory, and then we get the lush Ellington cut The Single Petal Of The Rose in its orchestral form (lovingly dedicated to Queen Elizabeth ), and the playfully perky Jim Jim.

On an album where the music emanates an intellectual and poetic approach throughout, next up is the impassioned Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me and then comes the percussion-bedded Swing Spring and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the luxuriant Pat (itself dedicated to his wife Pat Zollar), the generously vibrant Down Town Up, the album rounding out on the opulent Checkered Hat, closing on the beautiful Epilogue.

James Zollar - Down Town Up (Official Music Video)

Official Purchase Link





Title - Omar Sosa’s 88 Well-Tuned Drums (Vinyl LP)
Artist - Omar Sosa

GRAMMY-nominated pianist and composer Omar Sosa’s body of work as a composer, bandleader, and recording artist is a rich tapestry of styles and cultures, from solo piano to big band, from Mother Africa to Cuba – and the descendant communities of the Diaspora – and from jazz, Afro-Cuban, and an array of folkloric traditions to Western classical music.

What’s more, Sosa often performs and records with synthesizers, samplers, and electronic effects, making it challenging to categorize his music, but providing so much of its originality and allure.

Omar Sosa’s 88 Well-Tuned Drums, the documentary directed by Soren Sorensen, captures much of Sosa’s oeuvre and the accompanying soundtrack LP of the same name reflects the artist’s chameleon-like sensibilities.

Featuring artists born across five continents in conversation and performance, the film is a frenetic and nonlinear narrative that follows Sosa’s sinuous trajectory from his birth and upbringing in Camagüey, Cuba’s third-largest city, his education at the prestigious Escuela Nacional de Música in Havana, military service in Angola during that country’s long civil war, and eventual relocation to Ecuador where, for a time, he wrote, arranged, and performed commercial jingles.

Sosa’s solo career began with a fortunate move to San Francisco in 1995 where he met manager Scott Price, who co-produced the film and its soundtrack. Sosa and Price forged a partnership that continues to this day. “For fans and newcomers alike,” Price said, “the film and soundtrack LP are a great way to enjoy Omar’s music and better appreciate the artist and his creative process.”

The soundtrack features music from eight Sosa albums, including three GRAMMY nominees — Sentir (2002), Across the Divide (2009), and Eggūn (2013) – and will be released by Price’s Oakland-based label, Otá Records.

1. Sunrise [3:48] Calma (2011)
2. Toridanzón [4:26] Sentir (2002)
3. Portrait [4:03] Pictures of Soul (2004)
4. Promised Land [7:03] Across the Divide (2009)
5. Cha Cha du Nord [6:09] Es:sensual (2018)
6. So All Freddie [8:24] Eggun (2013)
7. Angustia With Tumbao [3:17] Omar Omar (1996)
8. Para Ella [5:18] Spirit of the Roots (1999)

This dutifully sculpted, delightful new collection opens on the veritably translucent elegance of Sunrise and the magnificently uplifting, sprightly and heartwarmingly sculpted Toridanzón and then brings us the stoically ethereal Portrait and the atmospherically-charged Promised Land.

Along next is the dutifully-honed, enigmatic liveliness of Cha Cha du Nord and the organic, all-encompassing, highly impassioned So All Freddie, the album rounding out on the tuneful, magnetically strident Angustia With Tumbao, closing on the ornate gossamer that threads throughout Para Ella.

For Sosa, whose prolific career began nearly 30 years ago, looking back at his own life has been a profound – if unusual – experience. “Whatever I did before, it’s already in the past,” Sosa says. “Personally, I’m always paying attention to what I’m working on in the moment and looking for what comes next. I’m always so focused on what I’m doing now, trying to create. Sometimes I don’t even listen to what I do. So it’s gratifying to hear how other people feel about my music.”

“Jazz as a philosophy is freedom. Jazz has no borders,” Sosa continues. “If you look at jazz as a style of music, you have bebop, you have hard bop, you have free jazz, you have avant garde jazz, you have Latin jazz, but in the end what is the bottom line; freedom. You can do whatever comes to you.”

www.omarsosa.com

Omar Sosa @ YouTube





Title - Keep Swingin’ - The Music of Charlie Banacos
Artist - Garry Dial & Rich DeRosa

For those unaware, Garry Dial & Rich DeRosa offer a heartfelt tribute to the late Jazz genius Charlie Banacos with their new album and book Keep Swingin’, out January 19th, 2024 (via Outside in Music).

That’s right, the vibrantly-hued Keep Swingin’, a collaborative new project spearheaded by renowned pianist Garry Dial and stalwart arranger-drummer Rich DeRosa, is a tribute to the great jazz educator Charlie Banacos, whose pedagogy has influenced legions of jazz musicians over the past 50 years.

Keep Swingin’ will be released as a 10-track collection of Banacos’ music, reimagined and re-arranged by Dial and DeRosa. It is performed by some of Banacos’ most accomplished devotees,and friends including Mike Stern, Jeff Berlin, Jerry Bergonzi, Wayne Krantz, and many more.

Complimenting the album is a stunning 100-page book of Charlie’s students’ personal anecdotes, photographs, artistic renderings, and more. The book features corresponding QR codes per tune, per chapter.

It’s no understatement to call Charlie Banacos a Jedi Master of jazz. He was a pianist, composer, author, and educator — but he was far more than the sum of those parts.

1. Keep Swingin’ (feat. Garry Dial, Terell Stafford and Dick Oatts)
2. Great Awakening (feat. Wayne Krantz and Joe Hubbard)
3. The Bat Cave (feat. Gerard D’Angelo, Garry Dial, Gary Smulyan and John Riley)
4. Pine Needles (feat. Mike Stern and Garry Dial)
5. Mummy’s Curse (feat. Jerry Bergonzi)
6. Bernie Burnola (feat. Helio Alves, Anne Drummond, Paulo Levi, Mauricio Zottarelli)
7. A-440 (feat. Jeff Berlin)
8. Nero (feat. Garry Dial and Jay Anderson)
9. Pluto Language (feat. Dick Oatts, Victor Provost, Anne Drummond, Mauricio Zottarelli)
10. Pelaghia (feat. Margaret and Barbara Banacos)

This excitingly sculpted new recording opens on both alto saxophonist Dick Oatts and trumpeter Terell Stafford coming to the fore on the lushly grooved, titular Keep Swingin’ and then comes the combo of electric bassist Joe Hubbard and electric guitarist Wayne Krantz on the infectious Great Awakening, and they are followed by the The Bat Cave (featuring soloists in pianists Gerard D’Angelo, Garry Dial, baritone saxophonist Gary Smulyan, and drummer John Riley), the warm embrace that guitarist Mike Stern brings to Pine Needles, and then we get brought forth the talents of tenor saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi and his quintet on the deliciously rhythmic The Mummy’s Curse.

Along next is the soulful blues found within Bernie Burnola, and which features Helio Alves, Anne Drummond, Paulo Levi, and Mauricio Zottarelli) and that is backed by my own personal favorite, the dutifully hued A-440, which itself has on board bass great Jeff Berlin, and they are in turn backed by the engaging Nero (featuring Garry Dial and Jay Anderson), the album rounding out on the uniquely-grooved Pluto Language (which utilizes a 3/4 rhythm called Mazouka (or Mazouk), a creolized version of the European Mazurka, adapted by enslaved Africans on the islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique), closing on the two-piano classical piece Pelaghia (featuring Margaret and Barbara Banacos).

Garry Dial curated Keep Swingin’ along with arranger Rich DeRosa — and it turned out to be a lavish, multimedia tribute to this unquestionable titan. Both in print and on record, Keep Swingin’ features a handpicked selection of 10 Banacos tunes, from “Great Awakening” to “Bernie Burnola” to “Pluto Language.”

The album features a horn section consisting of trumpeter and flugelhornist Nick Marchione, alto saxophonist and flutist Andrew Gould, tenor saxophonist and flutist Chris Oatts, trombonist Ryan Keberle, and baritone saxophonist Gary Smulyan.

“There are nine different keyboardists, five bassists, five drummers, three guitarists, six saxophonists, three trumpeters, and three flute players,” Dial explains in the book. “Please keep in mind that each track is quite different because each artist is unique.” With that, he encourages the listener to soak in the program, where you hear “all these great jazz musicians being themselves.”

www.garrydial.com

Garry Dial @ Facebook





Title - Finesse
Artist - Jim Rotondi

For those unaware, veteran trumpeter and pedagogue Jim Rotondi has just released his new album Finesse, an intricately interwoven masterpiece for big band and orchestra arranged and conducted by Vienna’s Jakob Helling, featuring Steve Davis, Dick Oatts and Danny Grisset (via Cellar Music Group).

Simply put, Finesse is a new masterwork for big band and orchestra by great trumpeter, composer and educator Jim Rotondi. Known for his longstanding and star-studded career extensively throughout New York and wider Europe for over 30 years, Rotondi has been a steady member of the ensembles of everyone from Toshiko Akiyoshi and Bob Mintzer to the small groups of Lou Donaldson, Curtis Fuller, and Joe Chambers.

Now, after having already made his mark on the landscape of jazz with eight albums as a bandleader, Rotondi steps forward to bring about a longstanding dream and the fulfillment of one of the great legacies of jazz history: a large ensemble album featuring both big band and orchestra.

Aptly entitled Finesse, Rotondi’s ninth album comprises an orchestra of virtuosi conducted and arranged by Jakob Helling, all of whom are steeped in the historically and musically rich tradition of Austria, where Rotondi currently resides and teaches.

The manifold brilliance of this cast does not stop there, however, as Rotondi also called on his peers, the legendary trombonist Steve Davis, saxophonist Dick Oatts and pianist Danny Grisset from his prolific decades in New York.

With robust arrangements, luscious orchestrations, and tantalizingly crafted solos, Finesse is poised to be Rotondi’s most profound and indelible mark on the world of jazz and creative music to-date.

1. Ruth (7:30)
2. Dark Blue (6:47)
3. Ladybug (8:04) (Danny Grissett, piano)
4. Designated Hitter (4:22) (Mario Gonzi, drums)
5. Falset (7:41) (Dick Oatts, soprano saxophone)
6. Before Curtis (0:40) (Clemens Hofer, Mario Vavti, Johannes Herrlich, and Christina Lachberger, trombones)
7. For Curtis (7:11) (Danny Grissett, piano)
8. Going to the Sun (6:28)
9. Prelude for 14 Strings and Flute (1:11) (Herwig Gradischnig, baritone saxophone)
10. Interlude (5:02) (Danny Grissett, piano)
11. In Graz (7:35) (Martin Fuss, alto saxophone)
12. Happy Feet (6:06) (Daniel Nösig, trumpet)
13. Miller time (8:22) (Steve Davis, trombone)

This brilliantly-hued new recording opens on the luxuriant sculpted Ruth and the veritably cinematic Dark Blue and they are followed by the flamboyant Ladybug, the charged Designated Hitter, and then come the soothingly rhythmic Falset and the short, but sweet languishing Before Curtis.

Along next is the short, but sweet, perky and playful Before Curtis and the melodic Going to the Sun and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the low slung short Prelude for 14 Strings and Flute, the ornate beauty found within Interlude, the fervent In Graz, the album rounding out on the all-embracing Happy Feet, coming to a close on the richly decadent ebb and flow that propels Miller time.

In conclusion, the album marks an acknowledgement of the highest, most celebrated points of the jazz tradition and history and uses this jubilant vehicle of combined orchestra and big band to raise the bar and set the stage for the familiar to be utilized in new, endlessly inventive ways.

With Finesse, Rotondi showcases the sheer creative force that comes with clear vision and a decisive ability to collaborate with a strong shared goal. Indeed, as the title clearly states, Finesse is a work of adroit aptitude and endlessly subtle brilliance that could only be pulled off by one who possesses the album’s namesake quality in such potency as Rotondi.

Official Purchase Link

www.jimrotondi.com





Title - LifeSongs
Artist - Marshall Gilkes & WDR Big Band

For those unaware, Alternate Side Records recently released LifeSongs, the latest album by renowned trombonist Marshall Gilkes and the heralded WDR Big Band.

A rich musical journey inspired by life itself, LifeSongs is a crowning achievement for the twice-GRAMMY nominated artist, who is known internationally for his virtuosic command of the trombone, and widely recognized as one of the great big band composers of our era.

Furthermore, LifeSongs represents something of a musical homecoming for Marshall Gilkes. The lauded trombonist spent four memorable years in Cologne, making his mark within the ranks of the WDR Big Band’s brass section until his departure in late 2013.

Just a month after his tenure ended, Gilkes and the WDR Big Band reunited for what would become the smashing, 2x GRAMMY nominated album Köln. His first large ensemble project as a leader, Köln formally introduced Gilkes as a multifaceted composer-arranger-conductor-soloist force to be reckoned with.

In 2018, the two teamed up again for the critically acclaimed Always Forward, of which All About Jazz praised as “succeed[ing] on every level.” Now, the two entities come together once again for a third go with LifeSongs.

Indeed, when composing the music that would make up his eighth album as a bandleader, Gilkes noticed a commonality across his compositions. “I realized that a lot of the themes for these pieces relate directly to life and what’s going on in the world these days,” Gilkes explains. Channeling these moments, both in his personal sphere and the greater whole, he crafted a breathtaking collection of material tied directly to these times.

1) Fresh Start
2) Back in the Groove
3) Cora’s Tune
4) My Unanswered Prayer
5) All the Pretty Horses
6) Middle Ground
7) Sin Filtro
8) This Nearly Was Mine
9) Sugar Rush
10) Longing for Home
11) Taconic Turns

This magnificently rhythmic new recording opens on the empowered Fresh Start and the smoothly sculpted Back in the Groove and the brings forth the all-embracing melodies within the delightful, and near ten minute Cora’s Tune, before we are graced with the more regimented My Unanswered Prayer and the soulfully-hued All the Pretty Horses.

Up next is the luxuriantly-channeled, yet stridently pointed, ten minute Middle Ground and another regimented heartbeat is then found formulated within Sin Filtro, and they are in turn backed by a veritably cultured ambiance found within the core of This Nearly Was Mine, the album rounding out on the aptly-titled Sugar Rush and the sweetly-enhanced beauty of Longing for Home, closing on the fervently-charged Taconic Turns.

Official Purchase Link

www.marshallgilkes.com





Title - Standards
Artist - Yotam Silberstein

In the liner notes to his brand new album Standards, the astonishing jazz guitarist Yotam Silberstein expresses a wish to “bear witness to the better angels of human endeavor” via music. And these six selections — associated with heavyweights from Miles Davis to Rodger and Hammerstein, Victor Young, and many more — might just prove their existence.

On Standards, which releases on February 23rd, 2024 via Jojo Records, Silberstein is joined by a straight-ahead legend in tenor saxophonist George Coleman, bassist’s bassist John Patitucci, and Billy Hart, a living legend of the jazz drumming lineage. Throughout, the guitarist channels the bebop and blues that forged him, into some of the most treasured songs in the Western musical canon.

As Silberstein explains, most of his albums — like 2019’s Future Memories, 2016’s The Village, and 2009’s Next Page — have consisted of original music. However, those steeped in his craft know of his tremendous respect for the tradition of Black American music. Which extends to his collegial relationship with the true heavies on the scene.

“A lot of my work here in New York in the last 20 years has been with some of the jazz masters,” Silberstein explains. “So, I wanted to, first of all, play standards because I had never had a chance to record an album of standards. And also, to do it with the real guys, you know? The heroes.”

1. Serenata
2. Beija Flor
3. Lo-Joe (ft. George Coleman)
4. If I Loved You
5. Eclypso
6. Never Let Me Go (ft. George Coleman)
7. Little Willie Leaps
8. Stella By Starlight

This most wondrous new recording opens on the lavishly opulent Serenata, which was itself composed in 1947 by Leroy Anderson, with its most famous rendition still being the one put to lyrics by Mitchell Parish and sung by Nat King Cole) and then we get the Brazilian-hued Beija Flor (composed by Nelson Cavaquinho), the beautiful Lo-Joe and the simply divine If I Loved You; which obviously hails from the songbook of Oscar Hammerstein II and Richard Rogers, and was created for the Broadway musical Carousel.

Along next is the magnificently tonal, swinging calypso found within the driving heartbeat of Eclypso and that is in turn backed by the elegantly luxurious Never Let Me Go, the album rounding out on the succulently moody ebb and flow of Little Willie Leaps (itself a contrafact of “All God’s Chillun Got Rhythm,” that Miles Davis once recorded with Charlie Parker), closing on the decadent bebop of Stella by Starlight.

www.yotammusic.com

Yotam Silberstein @ Facebook





Title - Live in Chicago [2CD]
Artist - Gustavo Cortiñas

The new album entitled Live in Chicago, is the fiery release from celebrated jazz drummer, composer, and educator Gustavo Cortiñas. This live recording captures the essence of Cortiñas’ musical journey, offering a glimpse into the transformative experiences that have shaped his unique sound.

Cortiñas is joined on this outing by his long-time sextet – a litany of Chicago-based jazz greats including trumpeter Drew Hansen, renowned saxophonist, clarinetist, composer, and educator Artie Black, trombonist Matthew Davis, bassist and composer Kitt Lyles, and pianist Joaquin Garcia.

“I believe that it is a rite of passage for any jazz artist to put out a live record”, remarks Cortiñas. Over the history of the artform, live jazz albums have acted as the vehicle to capture some of the rawest, truest and most organically beautiful moments in music.

The mark of a truly great live release is that it moves past its initial intention as a mere document of a performance, and captures a musical moment that transcends time. Such is the case with Cortiñas’ Live in Chicago.

Disc 1:
1. Overture
2. Hanaki
3. Wish I Could Be There Now
4. La Balada Del León
5. Arete

This beautifully adventurous new recording opens on the glorious Overture and then we get the sublime medium tempo blues cut (from Snapshot) Hanaki, which is followed by the beautifully sculpted Wish I Could Be There Now (which is a 7/4 composition dedicated to a friend affected by violence in Mexico), the stunningly effective ballad La Balada Del León (a touching ballad dedicated to Cortiñas’ father), the first disc rounding out on a mesmerizing trumpet intro by Drew Hansen for a cut from the second album, the dutiful Arete.

Disc 2:
1. Dialectics of Freedom
2. Timing Is Everything
3. The Man of Flesh and Bone
4. La Ruta de Regreso a Guinea está en la Arcoiris
5. Pax Britannica

Along next on the second disc are the technical prowess and mastery of textures found within the heartbeat of Dialectics of Freedom and the deeply expressive Timing Is Everything, which are in turn backed by the veritably transformative The Man of Flesh and Bone, the album coming to a close on the rhythmic magnificence of an African-inspired piece in 12/8 La Ruta de Regreso a Guinea está en la Arcoiris and then the supportive ensemble piece Pax Britannica.

The concept of the album stems from Cortiñas’ desire to explore the magic of live performances and treat his original compositions as living standards. The live recordings were captured at Constellation in Chicago, IL, on the night of December 15th, 2022. They are raw and unedited, attempting to capture the spirit of the moment; a Snapshot, of a moment in time.

www.gustavocortinasmusic.com

Gustavo Cortiñas @ Instagram





Title - A New Beat
Artist - Ulysses Owens JR. and Generation Y

For those unaware, the brand new album A New Beat, by internationally lauded drummer and bandleader Ulysses Owens Jr. and his exciting outfit of promising rising talent, Generation Y, is now out and ready for consumption!

Praised by The New York Times, Rolling Stone, DownBeat and more for his impactful work as a bandleader and recognized as a vital force with legends such as Kurt Elling, Wynton Marsalis and Christian McBride, GRAMMY-Award winning Owens Jr.’s rise from “young lion” to seasoned mentor has been undeniably swift.

As his career as a world-class musician has blossomed mightily, so has his impact in music education, marked by a professorship at The Juilliard School, now in its seventh year. Informed by his experience as an educator, and by the profound legacy of mentorship enacted by great bandleaders Art Blakey and Betty Carter, Owens Jr. scouts the next generation of jazz movers and shakers in an ensemble he calls Generation Y.

Four years after its formation, Owens Jr. took the group – in its multiple iterations – into the studio. The end result is A New Beat – a unique musical juxtaposition that stands both as a tribute to the legacies and traditions of his mentors, and an homage to the unbridled potential of the future.

1. Sticks (7:36)
2. Better Days (7:15)
3. London Towne (7:06)
4. Until I See You Again
5. Soulful (8:13)
6. Heart Full of Rhythm (5:19)
7. Bird Lives (live) (8:32)
8. Helen’s Song (5:11)

This expertly manicured new recording opens on the powerfully self-aware beauty Sticks (a Cannonball Adderley/Nat Adderley track) and the stridently-hued Better Days (a composition by Generation Y band member and trumpeter Anthony Hervey) and then we get the rhythmically-emotive London Towne (an original composition by Benny Benack III) and the luxuriant, ornately sculpted, pianist Luther Allison cut Until I See You Again.

Along next is the rather aptly-named, and delightfully grooved also Soulful (itself a tribute to Roy Hargrove) and that is in turn backed by the Gospel-imbibed Heart Full of Rhythm (co-written by Horace Gerlach and Louis Armstrong), the album rounding out on the energetically fervent the Jackie McLean composition Bird Lives (live), closing on the sheer dulcet beauty found within the simply glorious Helen’s Song (George Cables).

Official Purchase Link

www.usojazzy.com





Title - Being Guided by the Light
Artist - Mamiko Watanabe

For those unaware, Jojo Records have just released the stunning new album Being Guided By The Light, the fifth album by pianist Mamiko Watanabe, and which is also his Jojo Records debut.

The representation of a musician in full flower, Watanabe plays the piano with grace and intensity, revealing her endless state of exploration. This trio date features Watanabe alongside heralded bassist Santi Debriano and legendary drummer Billy Hart.

Mamiko is joined by two revered masters of jazz with Billy Hart on drums and Santi Debriano on bass and is filled with praise for this collaboration “I was so grateful for this recording opportunity with Billy. His sound touched my soul. The way Santi Debriano makes the groove on my compositions are always exactly the way I want. I’ve been learning from Santi the limitless creativity through rhythm, phrasing and communicating as a group.”

NEA Jazz Master Hart, who has played alongside virtually every jazz great including Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Pharoah Sanders and more over his seven-decade career, says of Mamiko: “She is one of the very best I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing with.”

1. Being Guided by the Light (6:28)
2. Pas De Trois (6:27)
3. The Peacocks (7:17)
4. The Scene is Clean (4:39)
5. Atomic Space (8:14)
6. Nigeria (7:11)
7. My Grandfather’s Clock (5:30)
8. Island Birdie (4:45)

This empirically cultured new recording opens on the luxuriant, titular Being Guided by the Light and the sterner, more precise fare of Pas De Trois and they are then followed by the baroque gossamer of The Peacocks and a divinely dazzling The Scene is Clean.

Along next is the simply mesmerizing Atomic Space which is in turn backed by the propulsive Nigeria, the album rounding out on the exuberantly-sculpted My Grandfather’s Clock, closing on the spirited Island Birdie.

Being Guided By The Light is the latest release from Jojo Records, which was established in 2021. Created by jazz musician Simon Belelty, Jojo strives to provide listeners with a dazzling and almost mystical experience. With an emphasis on high quality audio and vinyl, the catalog is carefully curated by the most skilled technicians and producers, and leavened with passion.

www.mamikowatanabe.com

Mamiko Watanabe @ Instagram





Title - The Longest Story Ever Told
Artist - The Kings

For those unaware, The Kings, originally formed in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Oakville, Ontario, are a Canadian rock band. The original lineup was David Diamond (lead vocals, bass, songwriter), Sonny Keyes (vocals, keyboards, songwriter), Max Styles (currently Todd Reynolds) (drums), and Mister Zero (guitar, songwriter).

Before their breakthrough, they spent over three years as WhistleKing, refining their skills through rehearsals, club gigs, and songwriting, always with recording as the goal. Their journey led them to Nimbus 9 Studio in Toronto, where renowned producer Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd, Alice Cooper, KISS) joined the story.

Ezrin’s involvement led to a worldwide major label deal with Elektra Records in Los Angeles. Their debut project, “The Kings Are Here,” featured the smash hit ‘This Beat Goes On/Switchin’ To Glide,’ which received extensive major market airplay all over the USA and Canada, spending 23 weeks in the Billboard Hot 100, earning them a Canadian Juno Award nomination, Platinum album and Gold single status and induction into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.

The Kings continued their musical journey with the albums “Amazon Beach,” “RSVP,” “Unstoppable,” “Party Live in ’85”, “The Lost Tapes of a Seventies Bar Band” and “Because of You,” all of which showcase their energy and songwriting prowess. They also released a captivating documentary titled “Anatomy of a One-Hit Wonder”, as well as the incredible concert film “Live at Heatwave”.

Now, in 2024, The Kings have released the full length album The Longest Story Ever Told (out now via Dizzy Records/Curve & Warner Music), reaffirming their status as a rock band with songwriting depth. With a history of hits, over 2000 North American shows and a devoted fan base, The Kings remain a hungry band with something to prove.

1. Always Off The Deep End
2. Nowhere To Go But Gone
3. The Longest Story Ever Told
4. When Dreams Come True
5. I Know So
6. Circle of Friends / Man That I Am
7. A Rose For Your Stone
8. Clean Shot
9. She Don’t Fool Around
10. Triangle Blues

On an album where the bands enthusiasm and musical stamina is effortlessly weaved throughout each song, the new recording opens on the melodically stanced, synth rocker Always Off The Deep End and the forthright Nowhere To Go But Gone and they are followed by the pulsating, guitar/piano rocker, titular The Longest Story Ever Told, the low key, acoustic-imbibed, lennonesque-hued (at first) When Dreams Come True and then comes the driving, drum-led rock of I Know So.

With three of the original members are back together for this album - Dave Diamond (vocals, bass), Mister Zero (guitar), and Sonny Keyes (keyboards) - along next is the brilliant medley of Circle of Friends / Man That I Am and the Spanish-imbibed A Rose For Your Stone, and they are seamlessly backed by the veritably ’60s hard rock sound of Clean Shot and the propulsive She Don’t Fool Around, closing on the throaty rocker Triangle Blues.

The Kings - I Know So [Official Music Video]

www.thekingsarehere.com

The Kings @ Facebook





Title - Mystical
Artist - Reza Khan

For those unaware, the element of the unknown is inherent when artists come together to collaborate. World jazz guitarist Reza Khan is intrigued by that mystery, seeing magic in the creative process and finding the results to be mystical.

Putting his eager curiosity and desire to experiment into practice, he invited a handful of Grammy-recognized musicians and Billboard hitmakers to join him and producer, songwriter and horn player David Mann on a collaborative recording adventure.

The resultant collection, Mystical, will arrive on March 8th, 2024.

Khan has a lengthy history of collaborating with Mann, who as a saxophonist, flutist and woodwinds player has worked with superstars – from Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga to Sting, James Taylor, Paul Simon, Madonna, Billy Joel, The Eagles and Tower of Power along with seminal jazzers Jeff Lorber, Chuck Loeb, Michael Franks, Dave Koz and The Rippingtons. Mann was Khan’s first call to co-write and produce the album when he conceived the project.

On Khan’s six albums, he had never before turned the producer’s duties completely over to anyone, but he trusted Mann to helm “Mystical” after having had a really positive experience on his previous outing, 2021’s “Imaginary Road.”

With Mann aboard, Khan decided to do something else he never did before: begin composing music for the album with specific featured artists in mind – even before asking if they would be willing to guest on the album.

Khan’s leap of faith paid off when every single one of them – two-time Grammy winner Bob James, Grammy winner Jeff Lorber, three-time Grammy winner Jimmy Haslip, Grammy nominees Keiko Matsui and Philippe Saisse, and Billboard chart-topper Nils Jiptner – eagerly accepted the invitation to collaborate with the guitarist on “Mystical” based on the lofty standards of musicianship, songwriting and production exhibited on Khan’s well-crafted contemporary jazz, fusion, world music and new age albums.

1. “Falcon” (feat. Jeff Lorber)
2. “Mystical” (feat. David Mann)
3. “Catalina’s Dream” (feat. Bob James)
4. “Language of Love” (feat. Philippe Saisse)
5. “Bahia’s Mama” (feat. Jennifer Grimm & David Mann0
6. “Strum” (feat. Keiko Matsui)
7. “Rising” (feat. David Mann)
8. “Look at the Bright Side” (feat. Nils)
9. “Positivity” (feat. Mark Egan & David Mann)
10. “Whispering Trees”

Bolstered by Lorber’s fusion-y keyboards and mini-Moog, this delightfully collaborative recording opens on the veritably translucent ebb and flow within “Falcon” and the top down, window leaning, sunny day drive of the titular “Mystical” and then we get given the contemplative “Catalina’s Dream,” the exotically romantic, updated first single “Language of Love,” before the dutiful Brazilian jazz-hued “Bahia’s Mama” (featuring the original vocals of Jennifer Grimm) is brought forth.

Along next is the delightfully shimmering “Strum” and the upbeat and joyful “Rising” and they are then in turn backed by the beaming positivity tones of hope and progressiveness found within “Look at the Bright Side,” the album rounding out on the free flowing hipsway crafted throughout “Positivity,” closing on the sweeping acoustic guitar work that welcomes us into the cinematically sweeping “Whispering Trees.”

“‘Mystical’ is a collection of ten original songs that display musical versatility and creativity. The album is also the result of my collaboration with some of the most talented and renowned musicians in the jazz and world music scene. Each of these musicians has contributed their own style and flair to the songs, creating a musical synergy that is both captivating and inspiring,” said the Bangladesh-born, New York City-based Khan about the album made up of seven new songs and three reimagined tunes culled from his catalogue.

Official Purchase Link

www.rezakhanmusic.com

Reza Khan @ Facebook





Title - On The Trail with The Lonesome Pines
Artist - Hilary Gardner

Infusing jazz and Western swing with lyrical improvisations and dreamlike harmonies, Hilary Gardner and The Lonesome Pines vividly evoke the expansiveness and romantic allure of the American West.

The seeds for the project were sown during the early months of the pandemic, when vocalist Hilary Gardner — from the confines of her Brooklyn apartment — found herself dreaming of wide-open spaces and the freedom to roam.

Dreaming of those aforementioned wide-open spaces from her one-bedroom apartment she subsequently teamed up with three extraordinarily talented and generous musicians — Justin Poindexter (guitar), Noah Garabedian (bass), and Aaron Thurston (drums) — and The Lonesome Pines were born and after playing sold-out shows in and around NYC, they headed into the recording studio and made an album. This album.

But, as Hilary admits, she needed a Kickstarter project to help get the album finished and product ready. “Making a full-length recording these days is, at best, a Herculean effort. Most of the time it feels quixotic — and in particularly trying moments it feels downright Sisyphean. For independent musicians like me, recording and releasing music remains a costly endeavor — and in the age of digital streaming, it’s harder than ever to recoup expenses.”

“Here’s the thing, though: as musicians, making music is something we have to do. From a logistical standpoint, creating new work is necessary in order to book gigs. But, less prosaically, making a recording empowers independent musicians to share our music with listeners everywhere. It’s a way we can try, in some small way, to add beauty and forge meaningful connections in our discordant, conflict-ridden world. In short, I keep charging this proverbial windmill because I believe that it matters.”

“I’m truly grateful that you’d consider helping me bring this project across the finish line.”

1. Along the Navajo Trail
2. Cow Cow Boogie
3. Call of the Canyon
4. Under Fiesta Stars
5. Silver on the Sage
6. Jingle Jingle Jingle (I Got Spurs)
7. Cowboy Serenade (While I’m Smokin’ My Last Cigarette)
8. Song of the Sierras
9. Along the Santa Fe Trail
10. Lights of Old Santa Fe
11. I’m an Old Cowhand (From Rio Grande)
12. Twilight on the Trail

This delightfully vibrant and wholly impassioned recording opens on a languishing twang that winds through Along the Navajo Trail and the jaunty bob of Cow Cow Boogie and then we get the beautiful fireside ballad Call of the Canyon, the gently rhythmic Under Fiesta Stars, the low slung Silver on the Sage, and the comes my own personal favorite, the yippy yay of Jingle Jingle Jingle (I Got Spurs).

With all the songs on this album evoking all the romantic mythology of the American West, next up is the low laying balladry of Cowboy Serenade (While I’m Smokin’ My Last Cigarette) and the upbeat and joyous Song of the Sierras and they are in turn backed by the veritably shimmering Along the Santa Fe Trail, the harmonious balladry gossamer of Lights of Old Santa Fe, the album rounding out on the congenial foot-tapper I’m an Old Cowhand (From Rio Grande), closing on the lone pines whistler Twilight on the Trail.

www.hilarygardner.com

Hilary Gardner @ Instagram

Hilary Gardner @ Facebook





Title - Leave the Gate Open
Artist - Luke Carlos O’Reilly

For those unaware, Luke Carlos O’Reilly is an award winning pianist and organist whose musical style is heavily influenced by Jazz, Soul, R&B, Gospel, Latin Jazz and Classical.

After a Boston upbringing, O’Reilly moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to attend Esther Boyer School of Music at Temple University on an academic and music scholarship.

It was in Philadelphia where he had the opportunity to tour and record with artists such as Seal, Roy Ayers, Curtis Fuller, Nicholas Payton, Dave Valentin, Billy Paul, Bobby Watson, Slide Hampton, Fred Wesley, Macy Gray, Steve Turre, Musiq Soulchild, Bilal, Carol Riddick, K’naan, Wiz Khalifa and many others.

To date, O’Reilly has released four (4) solo albums; Living In The Now (Prospect Hill Records 2011), 3 Suites (Prospect Hill Records 2013), I Too, Sing America: A Black Man’s Diary (Imani Records 2021), and now his brand new release, Leave the Gate Open (2024).

In addition to his continued touring of his own projects, O’Reilly works often as a sideman as well. He is currently teaching at The Kimmel Center of Philadelphia and The University of The Arts.

1. Soul Dancing (04:28)
2. Keep On Keeping On (4:29)
3. Only Option (5:09)
4. When Darkness Takes Our Light (2:32)
5. Little Man (5:24)
6. Deshazor (4:43)
7. Mini Mama (5:47)
8. City Called Heaven (6:53)

This thoroughly impassioned, heartfelt and wholly all-embracing new recording opens on the low slung finger-snapper Soul Dancing and the joyful R&B soul found within Keep On Keeping On and then we get the drum-led grooved jazz of Only Option, and the comes my own personal favorite, the late night, skin-stroked shuffle of When Darkness Takes Our Light.

Along next is the gently frenetic Little Man and the veritably shimmering Deshazor and they are in turn backed by the rapturous Mini Mama, closing on the luxuriant City Called Heaven.

Purchase Link

www.lukecarlosoreillymusic.com

Luke Carlos O’Reilly @ Facebook





Title - All For You: The Virgin Years [1986-1992] (3CD)
Artist - Cutting Crew

It’s been Cutting Crew’s fate to be primarily remembered for their enormous, multi- million selling international hit, ‘(I Just) Died In Your Arms’, and that’s here in two versions, but this box set shows that there’s much more to the band, whose driving pop- rock is defined by strong song writing, Nick Van Eede’s soulful vocals and Kevin MacMichael’s lead guitar.

The USA took Cutting Crew to their hearts and ‘(I Just) Died In Your Arms’ topped the Billboard chart, ‘I’ve Been In Love Before’ reached #9 and the album ‘Broadcast’ peaked at #16, going gold. In the UK ‘(I Just) Died In Your Arms’ was a #4 smash hit.

All four singles from ‘Broadcast’ are also presented as extended remixes originally issued on 12” singles including the much loved 12” mix of ‘(I Just) Died In Your Arms’ and Arthur Baker’s remix and dub of ‘Any Colour’.

Cutting Crew frontman Nick Van Eede has opened his archives to contribute five demos to the set, including two previously unreleased – ‘Open Up Your Window’ and a cover of Simon Dupree And The Big Sound’s ‘Kites’.

Van Eede, who still leads Cutting Crew today, has been newly interviewed for the box set booklet.

Featuring 52 tracks over 3CDs, this box set contains the three studio albums Cutting Crew recorded between 1986 and 1992, the Grammy nominated debut, ‘Broadcast’ (1986), acclaimed follow up, ‘The Scattering’ (1989), and the ripe for rediscovery, ‘Compus Mentus’ (1992), plus B sides, remixes and demos.

CD 1: Broadcast (1986)
1. Any Colour
2. One For The Mockingbird
3. I’ve Been In Love Before
4. Life In A Dangerous Time
5. Fear Of Falling
6. (I Just) Died In Your Arms
7. Don’t Look Back
8. Sahara
9. It Shouldn’t Take Too Long
10. The Broadcast

B-Sides & Remixes
11. For The Longest Time
12. I Just Died In Your Arms (12” Remix)
13. I’ve Been In Love Before (Extended)
14. One For The Mockingbird (Extended Remix)
15. Any Colour (Arthur Baker Remix)

The irony of Broadcast is that, for my money, the three hit singles weren’t even the best songs on it. The title track, Any Colour, It Shouldn’t Take Too Long, Sahara and Life In A Dangerous Time all gave evidence of a band far more thoughtful and creative than the MTV videos and the fairly naff cliches of I’ve Been In Love Before ever came close to suggesting.

Though (I Just) Died In Your Arms is obviously entirely worthy of its ’80s mainstream rock classic status, if any of those five previously mentioned songs had followed it as singles, Cutting Crew would have been a mega attraction for the rest of the decade (in my humble opinion).

The slick guitar rock on Broadcast may not have wowed the rock & roll intelligentsia, but it’s a guaranteed crowd pleaser, an underrated collection of simple, heartfelt love songs and up-tempo pop that reside between the stylistic boundaries of new wave and mainstream rock.

(I Just) Died In Your Arms and I’ve Been In Love Before immediately thrust Cutting Crew onto the U.S. charts; however, both songs aren’t sufficient in summing up Broadcast’s appeal overall though, as noted.

That said, the five bonus tracks include brilliant extended cuts, such as a 12” remix of I Just Died In Your Arms and a lovely I’ve Been In Love Before, but it’s my own personal CC favorite One For The Mockingbird (Extended Remix) that makes this disc what it is.

CD 2: The Scattering (1989)
1. Year In The Wilderness
2. The Scattering
3. Big Noise
4. Everything But My Pride
5. Handcuffs For Houdini
6. (Between A) Rock And A Hard Place
7. Tip Of Your Tongue
8. Reach For The Sky
9. The Last Thing
10. Feel The Wedge
11. Binkies Return (Instrumental)
12. Brag

B-Sides & Demos
13. Christians
14. Card House (Live)
15. Contact High
16. More Than A Dream (Demo)
17. Into The Night (Demo)
18. No Secrets (Demo)

In truth, by the time Cutting Crew released their second album in 1989, they were viewed as irrelevant by both critics and the fickle public that elevated (I Just) Died In Your Arms and I’ve Been In Love Before onto the pop charts two years earlier. The cold shoulders which welcomed The Scattering were most likely due to the lack of immediately catchy songs; nevertheless, while The Scattering doesn’t have ear candy like the band’s hit singles, the music is less-blatantly commercial and more personal.

Ergo, in my humble opinion, it’s still slick stuff -- big ’80s synthesizers, glossy FM radio guitars, in-your-face drums -- but Nick VanEede’s vocals have a frosty glow that creates a mood and sustains interest that I personally adore.

As for the accumulated B-Sides & Demos bonus tracks, the best of the best for me are the dynamic Contact High, the alluring demo Into The Night, and the live cut Card House.

CD 3: Compus Mentus (1992)
1. No Bad Thing
2. (Another One Of My) Big Ideas
3. Frigid As England
4. Julie Don’t Dance
5. If That’s The Way You Want It
6. Need Someone
7. Your Guess Is As Good As Mine
8. Ricochet
9 Sweet Auburn
10. Crooked Mile
11. Don’t Let It Bring You Down
12. All The Way In

B-Sides, Remixes & Demos
13. Been In Luv (92)
14. Everything But My Pride (92 Remix)
15. Open Up Your Window (Demo)
16. Mirror And A Blade (Live)
17. One For The Mockingbird (Shelly Yakus US Remix)
18. Any Colour (Dub)
19. Kites (Demo)

Their 1992 album Compus Mentus became the duo’s third and final album together, as they decided to part ways as band mates the next year which meant the end of Cutting Crew. Nick van Eede, a wholly underrated song writer and someone who always lays down his best lyrics on anything he directs his attention to, does enough here to carry the album, but it sure wasn’t their best.

That said, standout tracks for me include Frigid As England (written by Jeff Lowe), the plaintive Sweet Auburn and the darkly comic, Don’t Let It Bring You Down, with the album spawning just the one single, the empowered If That’s The Way You Want It.

As for the selection of bonus B-Sides, Remixes & Demos, stand outs for me include the two 1992 takes Been In Luv and Everything But My Pride, a totally rocking One For The Mockingbird (Shelly Yakus US Remix), and the delightful live cut Mirror And A Blade.

Official 3CD Purchase Link

www.cuttingcrew.biz

www.cherryred.co.uk





Title - In Focus [EP]
Artist - Jason Arkins

For those unaware, Jason Arkins, hailing from Carmel, NY, is a saxophonist and composer currently in his senior year at the Frost School of Music.

Indeed, Jason was recently named the 2022 Vandoren Emerging Artist Jazz Saxophonist and has achieved many other accolades including YoungArts Finalist, participation in both the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra and NYO Jazz, and he was member of the JAS Aspen Big Band under the direction of Christian McBride.

In January of this year, he released his debut EP entitled In Focus, which features Mike Ramos, Jack Dratch, Leo Folsom, and Beau Cornelius.

1. Mister Behaving (7:26)
2. The Higher Road (7:54)
3. Cut Scene (5:53)
4. In Focus (7:46)
5. A Squeegee Situation (4:31)

This collection of original music inspired by his very own musical journey thus far, opens on the translucently fluctuating melodies within Mister Behaving and the gently furtive The Higher Road and they are in turn backed by the veritably glistening Cut Scene, the joyously sculpted, titular In Focus, with the uplifting EP coming to a close on the all-embracing, dutifully impassioned A Squeegee Situation.

Musicians:
Jason Arkins - Saxophone/Compositions
Beau Cornelius - Piano/Keyboards
Leo Folsom - Synths/Keyboards
Mike Ramos - Bass
Jack Dratch - Drums

Purchase Link

www.jasonarkinsmusic.com

Jason Arkins @ Instagram





Title - Caravan (180 Gram Vinyl LP)
Artist - Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers

Originally released in 1963, Caravan was Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers’ first album for Riverside Records. Featured in addition to Blakey are Freddie Hubbard (trumpet), Curtis Fuller (trombone), Wayne Shorter (sax), Cedar Walton (piano) and Reggie Workman (bass).

This new edition is released as part of the Original Jazz Classics Series and is pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI with all-analogue mastering from the original tapes by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio and presented in a Tip-On Jacket. US Import.

Side A:
1. Caravan
2. Sweet ’N’ Sour
3. In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning

Side B:
1. This Is For Albert
2. Skylark
3. Thermo

In truth, this album was one of my very first purchases of a jazz LP, in 1963 or 1964, at a record store near St Lazare station in France. Why this one? First of all, the cover caught my eye. Art Blakey enthroned in front of his drums, lips pursed, focused on his playing. The title too, Caravan in large font and the name Art Blakey in gold letters. A real gem to behold and not just musically, of course.

Apart from the name of the drummer, the other performers were total strangers to me (at the time). By then I was more familiar with the Ventures’ version of Caravan than Duke Ellington’s. And apart from listening to Caravan at the beginning, I was always taken aback by this music, but from listening to the album over time, I have come to wholly appreciate everything about how Blakey constructs his musical acts of sheer wonderment.

It was much later that I realized that I owned one of the best Jazz Messengers albums, the group formed between 1961 and 1964 (approximately from the albums Mosaic to Free for All) which included three blowers destined for a very great career: Curtis Fuller (trombone), Freddie Hubbard (trumpet) and especially Wayne Shorter (tenor sax). Cedar Walton on piano and Reggie Workman on double bass completed the group.

This album, in particular, was recorded in October 1962. Three standards, Caravan and the balladry of both Skylark and and In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning were the go-to ones for the radio back then, whereas the two Shorter compositions Sweet ’N’ Sour and This Is For Albert (dedicated to Bud Powell) are pure dynamite, with one of Hubbard’s Thermo also becoming part of this musical history.

A boiling hot record that starts with a hell of a version of the Duke Ellington/Juan Tizol jazz standard Caravan, along with sparkling soloists galore and moments of genuine heartfelt and impassioned joy, now listening to this 180 Gram vinyl (from Craft Recordings) again proves to me just how this most divine record hasn’t aged a bit (just like me!)

Official Purchase Links

www.craftrecordings.com





Title - Know What I Mean? (180 Gram Vinyl LP)
Artist - Cannonball Adderley with Bill Evans

Know What I Mean? was originally released in 1960 as a collaboration between jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley and legendary pianist Bill Evans, along with the rhythm section of the Modern Jazz Quartet, Percy Heath (bass) and Connie Kay (drums).

This new edition of the album is released as part of the OJC Series and is pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI with (AAA) lacquers cut from the original master tapes by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio. It is presented in a Tip-On Jacket. US Import.

Side A:
1. Waltz For Debby
2. Goodbye
3. Who Cares?
4. Venice

Side B:
1. Toy
2. Elsa
3. Nancy (With The Laughing Face)
4. Know What I Mean?

Charlie Parker died in 1955 and, without missing a beat, Cannonball was there to catch Bird’s mantle before it had touched the ground. After Miles featured himself with Cannon (Somethin’ Else) and then added him to his front line with Coltrane, the public was well-prepared for the culmination -- Kind of Blue -- an album that remains the most successful in jazz history (in terms of both sales and critical reviews).

With the break-up of the sextet, Cannon was free to go back to the soul-jazz and hard-bop approach of the quintet with his brother -- which previously had struggled to make enough to live on. But from 1959 to 1966 (the year of Mercy, Mercy, Mercy) the Quintet was a top draw, bringing jazz to both coasts and around the world while recording a series of live albums with a succession of gifted piano-players (Bobby Timmons, Victor Feldman, Joe Zawinul) and eventually the addition of a 3rd front-liner and inarguable star, Yusef Lateef.

Cannon’s style, unlike Sonny Stitt’s, represented a distinct break from the bebop lines of Bird and Diz, replacing some of the cerebral, intimidating elements of bebop with music that was heated, deep-fried, and readily accessible. Some musicians began to take shots at Cannon (he’s too sloppy, and his elocution needs work, etc.), but those who were able to drop the comparisons with Bird soon came around to Cannon’s always joyous, firmly-supported sound (the most powerful and energized breath-stream of any alto player -- as I discovered recently when comparing three interpretations of Stars Fell on Alabama, the other two by Stitt and Phil Woods).

As a Cannonball completest and self-professed alto-tenor freak, I’d recommend Cannon’s two albums with alto plus rhythm section ahead of the admittedly more popular albums featuring Cannon with other horn players. If you’re a Wynton Kelly fan (as I am), you won’t find better Wynton or Cannon than the Riverside album Cannonball Takes Charge.

If you’re a Bill Evans fan (my favorite pianist), you won’t find a more thoughtful, lyrical Cannonball than Know What I Mean? Still, over the past 50 years, I’ve played the Wynton session ten times for every single spin of Know What I Mean?, an whereas Bill’s is a restraining influence, Wynton’s is an enabling one. Theirs is the more stimulating, mutually complementary relationship, and I trust it will be the listener’s as well.

In closing, the focus here is, of course, on Adderley’s excellent post-bop styling, but it’s also interesting to hear Evans playing with a rhythm section as staid and conservative as Kay and Heath (both charter members of the Modern Jazz Quartet). In fact, it’s hard to imagine any fan of mainstream jazz not finding much to love on this very fine recording (out now as a 180 Gram vinyl reissue from Craft Recordings).

Official Purchase Links

www.craftrecordings.com





Title - Love is Back in Style
Artist - The Stylistics

Philadelphia legends, The Stylistics were a preeminent vocal group throughout the 1970s notching hit after R&B hit with their trademark ballads. Their chart-topping prowess was only amplified when, 25 years after The Stylistics’ original hit, “Betcha By Golly Wow” was covered by Prince on his Emancipation album, introducing the classic song to a new generation of listeners.

After two decades of success, The Stylistics took a break from the studio to focus on their live show presentation and touring, but by the mid-’90s, they were ready to record again. Producer and songwriter Preston Glass had developed a relationship with Thom Bell, which after success with other artists (Stacy Lattisaw, Kenny G, Earth, Wind & Fire), led him directly to The Stylistics.

First released on producer Preston Glass’ Marathon Records in 1996, Love Is Back In Style brought the legendary soul masters well into that decade with an album that is the perfect marriage between the then-modern sounds of the 1990s and their classic ’70s hits.

Love Is Back In Style carried a similar quality found in the great works The Stylistics gave fans in the 1970s, while under the tutelage of the iconic producer/composer/arranger/conductor Grammy®-winner Thom Bell. The album is also poignant, given that it was the last album recorded with three original Stylistics — Airrion Love, Herb Murrell, and longtime lead singer, Russell Thompkins Jr..

1. I Once Had A Love
2. She’s All That
3. Shoulder
4. Keeping You To Your Promise
5. Right Face, Wrong Mind
6. Have You Ever Been In Love?
7. Go
8. Where Do You Run
9. Love Can Heal A Wounded Heart
10. You Must Love Loneliness
11. What You’re Goin’ Through
12. She’s All That (Remix) [Bonus Track]

This stunningly ambient flashback to a much easier, smoother time of life musically surrounds the group with elegance and first-class Philly songs and arrangements from the off.

Indeed, Russell Thompkins’ effortless falsetto never sounded better and the same is true for Herb Murrell and Aiiron Love, whose deeper register takes a track such as Love Can Heal a Wounded Heart to lofty heights.

Some of the stand out tracks for me are She’s All That is a funky, synth-heavy tune that just goes everywhere you could ever wish it to, Shoulder has some of the sitar licks that bring back memories of those times, Keeping You To Your Promise is a sweet ballad with a soggy hook line, and the uptempo Right Face, Wrong Mind is an uptempo number with a dutiful soul.

Have You Ever Been In Love? once again uses the sitar sound to try and remind us of the classic Stylistics ballads, which it most assuredly does, and then we get tracks such as Where Do You Run (a competent ballad) and the aforementioned Love Can Heal A Wounded Heart has a nice shared lead between Russell, Herb and Arrion.

Oh, and as much as Herb Murrell preaches against rap at live concerts, they include one here by Biggy Smallz on the remix version of She’s All That!

Featuring remastering by multiple Grammy®-winning engineer, Michael Graves and updated artwork containing informative liners from Kevin L. Goins, Love Is Back In Style rightfully takes its place in the canon of one of Philly soul’s greatest groups.

Official Purchase Link

www.omnivorerecordings.com





Title - Another Look [Expanded Edition]
Artist - Doris Troy

Doris Troy took the music world by storm with her 1963 smash “Just One Look.” The Hollies, Anne Murray, and Linda Ronstadt would bring it back to the charts, and countless artists including Bryan Ferry, Count Basie, Klaus Nomi, and Harry Nilsson would later put their spin on it as well. In 1969, The Beatles signed her to their label, Apple Records, and an eponymous, star-studded album appeared later that year.

In 1976 & 1977, after albums for the Polydor and People labels, she released two singles on the Midland International label. The first contained the notation “from the forthcoming album Another Look,” complete with an assigned catalog number.

However, an album never appeared. Near the end of that decade, she collaborated with British Ambassador of Soul David Nathan to record tracks, which finally made their way into the public ear in 2018 — some on vinyl, some only available digitally.

Another Look collects these rare and hard to find tracks from the mid to late ’70s, and places them together to offer a definitive view of this period of Troy’s career.

Containing both 7″ and 12″ versions of the Midland International material (most available again for the first time since their original release), this set collects another track only previously available on a UK compilation plus her material recorded with Nathan including one previously unissued recording.

1. Can’t Hold On
2. Another Look
3. Lyin’ Eyes (Short Version)
4. Give God Glory
5. You Got Me Baby (1979 Disco Version)
6. It’s All In The Game(1979 Disco Version)
7. What’cha Gonna Do About It (1980 Version) – Doris Troy feat. Mystic Merlin
8. Smilin’/Let Me Make Love To You (Medley) – Doris Troy with Vy Higginsen
9. Lyin’ Eyes (Long Version)
10. Can’t Hold On (12” Version)
11. Another Look (12” Version)
12. You Got Me Baby (Short Version)
13. What’cha Gonna Do (Nefer Music 2018 Remix) – Doris Troy feat. Mystic Merlin

This highly impressive 13-track collection of her rare and hard to find tracks from the mid to late ’70s, opens on the joyously soaring Can’t Hold On and the euphoric Another Look and then we get the soaring Lyin’ Eyes (Short Version), the Gospel-hued Give God Glory, the hipswinging You Got Me Baby (1979 Disco Version), before we are graced with the playfully sweet It’s All In The Game (1979 Disco Version) and the swingalong of What’cha Gonna Do About It (1980 Version) [which is Doris Troy featuring Mystic Merlin].

Along next is the truly magnificent Smilin’/Let Me Make Love To You (Medley) [which has Doris Troy with Vy Higginsen] and along version of Lyin’ Eyes, and they are in turn backed by spectacular 12” versions of both Can’t Hold On (12” Version) and Another Look,the recording rounding out on a short version of You Got Me Baby, closing on the a 2018 Remix of What’cha Gonna Do [again featuring Mystic Merlin].

With packaging containing informative liners from set co-Producer David Nathan, this collection proves just one look at Doris Troy is never enough. It is time for Another Look.

Official Purchase Link

www.omnivorerecordings.com





Title - Where? (180 Gram Vinyl LP)
Artist - Ron Carter w/ Eric Dolphy & Mal Waldron

Bass player Ron Carter’s debut album Where? features Eric Dolphy (clarinet, sax, flute) and Mal Waldron (piano). The album was originally released in 1961 having been recorded at Rudy Van Gelder Studios in New Jersey.

Interestingly enough, the set appeared under Eric Dolphy’s name first, but it is, in fact, bassist Ron Carter’s date - his first as a leader. Carter and Dolphy had played together in Chico Hamilton’s group and on Dolphy’s important 1960 date Out There.

This new edition is released as part of the Original Jazz Classics Series and is pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI with all-analog mastering from the original tapes by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio and presented in a Tip-On Jacket with obi.

Side A:
1. Rally
2. Bass Duet
3. Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise

Side B:
1. Where?
2. Yes, Indeed
3. Saucer Eyes

I love this album for a number of reasons, but foremost is the unique configuration of the ensemble. Carter’s chops as a bassist were undeniable even as a twenty-four year old, but he had the courage to enlist bassist George Duvivier to join him on three of the tracks, then play cello himself without a bassist on three other tracks. Add in Eric Dolphy’s bass clarinet on some of the tracks and you have a musician vision that is not only unique in concept, but also in performance.

The sounds brought forth embody a complete essence of a truly great album and although the music clocks in at a scant 35:48, this album is especially important to musicians - regardless of instrument - who can gain a lot of insights by closely studying the way the ensemble comes together and the structure of Carter’s arrangements.

Recorded at Rudy van Gelder’s Englewood Cliffs, NJ studio on June 20, 1961 (less than a month after Carter’s twenty-fourth birthday), Carter is heard on cello for three of the six tracks and his natural born skill set is undeniable throughout.

For me, the two highlights here are the opener, which features Dolphy’s freewheeling bass clarinet and the composer’s most adventurous cello work on this set, and the easygoing duet with George Duvivier; a quiet, back-porch conversation that makes few demands on either of these bass giants, sure, and yet sumptuously invites you to listen, to engage.

Taking them one by one, and pianist Mal Waldron is characteristically dry, economical, and swinging. Drummer Charlie Persip quietly impresses with thoughtful, detailed work. Duvivier is on bass when Carter plays cello. The six tracks lovingly comprise two Carter originals, two standards, and a pair of Randy Weston numbers and they are blended supremely.

Official Purchase Links

www.craftrecordings.com





Title - The Rolling Stones - Singles 1966-1971 [Box-Set]
Artist - The Rolling Stones

For those not in the know, ABKCO Records has just released the second Rolling Stones Singles 1966-1971 seven inch single box-set, which follows up the 1963-1966 collection from last year, and thus contains 18 vinyl singles and extended play records as originally released by Decca, London Records and ABKCO Records.

This features original packaging, original mono and stereo single mixes and all the hits from this classic era including five number ones. Tracks include ‘Paint It Black’, ‘Have You Seen Your Mother Baby Standing In The Shadow?’, ‘Let’s Spend The Night Together’, ‘Jumpin’ Jack Flash’, ‘Street Fighting Man’, ‘Honky Tonk Women’, ‘Brown Sugar’, and many other classics.

It also features songs that while recorded between ’66 and ’71 where sometimes issued as singles after that, an example being ‘I Don’t Know Why’, which wasn’t issued until 1975 to promote the Stones rarities album Metamorphosis. A bit more dubiously, the Neptunes and Fat Boy Slim remixes of ‘Sympathy For The Devil’ (issued on SACD in 2003) now get their own seven-inch, although at least the original version is still on disc 17.

All the tracks in this box were remastered by Bob Ludwig, and the discs are manufactured by Third Man Pressing in Detroit. The set also comes with a 32-page book containing extensive liner notes by Nigel Williamson.

Disc 1: “Paint It, Black” US version (originally released May 1966)
A. Paint It, Black
B. Stupid Girl

Disc 2: “Paint It, Black” UK version (originally released May 1966)
A. Paint It, Black
B. Long Long While

Disc 3: “Mother’s Little Helper” (originally released June 1966)
A. Mother’s Little Helper
B. Lady Jane

Disc 4: “Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing In The Shadow?” (originally released September 1966)
A. Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing In The Shadow?
B. Who’s Driving Your Plane

Disc 5: “Let’s Spend The Night Together” (originally released January 1967)
A. Let’s Spend The Night Together
B. Ruby Tuesday

Disc 6: “We Love You” (originally released August 1967)
A. We Love You
B. Dandelion

Disc 7: “She’s A Rainbow” (originally released November 1967)
A. She’s A Rainbow
B. 2000 Light Years From Home

Disc 8: “In Another Land” (originally released December 1967)
A. In Another Land
B. The Lantern

Disc 9: “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” (originally released May 1968)
A. Jumpin’ Jack Flash
B. Child Of The Moon

Disc 10: “Street Fighting Man” US version (originally released August 1968)
A. Street Fighting Man
B. No Expectations

Disc 11: “Honky Tonk Women” (originally released July 1969)
A. Honky Tonk Women (mono mix)
B. You Can’t Always Get What You Want

Disc 12: “Memo From Turner” (originally released November 1970)
A. Memo From Turner (Mick Jagger)
B. Natural Magic (Ry Cooder) from the film Performance

Disc 13: “Street Fighting Man” UK maxi-single (originally released June 1971)
A. Street Fighting Man
B1. Surprise Surprise
B2. Everybody Needs Somebody To Love

Disc 14: “Brown Sugar” (A-side originally released April 1971; B-side originally released June 1971)
A. Brown Sugar
B. Wild Horses

Disc 15: “I Don’t Know Why” (originally released May 1975)
A. I Don’t Know Why (aka Don’t Know Why I Love You)
B. Try A Little Harder

Disc 16: “Out Of Time” (originally released September 1975)
A. Out Of Time
B. Jiving Sister Fanny

Disc 17: “Honky Tonk Women” (originally released April 1976)
A. Honky Tonk Women (stereo mix)
B. Sympathy For The Devil

Disc 18: “Sympathy For The Devil” Remix (originally released as part of SACD E.P. & CD single September 2003)
A. Sympathy For The Devil (The Neptunes Remix)
B. Sympathy For The Devil (Fat Boy Slim Remix)

Having grown up in a 7” single, vinyl-buying household in both the UK and the US, and with parents both devoted fans of bands such as The Rolling Stones, the Beatles, The Kinks, The Who and oh-so many more, I myself grew up listening to all these wondrous songs (A-Sides and B-Sides, I am glad to report) and so not only feel very blessed that this quite stunning new box-set has been kindly sent to us for review by ABKCO, but honestly feel well positioned to bring to you my collective thoughts on the contents here today.

Firstly, once you remove the factory-seal and open the box, that new car smell (so to speak) generously, and gorgeously wafts up to your nose and makes you immediately smile (knowing that, unlike second hand garage sales and old timey record shops), the vinyl you remove from this box will not be raggedy-sleeved, or feature vinyl scratches and blemishes of any kind.

With, save for one, each single lovingly housed within its own color picture sleeve - as opposed to some other box-sets that shall remain nameless, where each single came out housed in plain white sleeves - it is not only the quality of the vinyl itself when played, but the look of the replica flashback picture sleeves that just make you nostalgically crumble inside.

If I had to pick a favorite from amongst this plethora of musical wonderment, it would be the opener Paint It Black, a cut that neither matched the intensity of its forebears, nor the oppressive themes which its lyrics suggested, and yet the Wyman-suggested Hammond organ pedals lay a luxurious bed from which the tune rises from.

It’s B-Side, the simply magnificent Stupid Girl, itself possesses an endearing and energetic snottiness that might have won the Stones a good amount of sexually frustrated young men fans back then, one assumes.

Another would be Mother’s Little Helper - which peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 - and is driven by its lyrics being about an indictment of middle class prescription drug abuse as an antidote to the drudgery of everyday life. It’s B-Side is Lady Jane, a song that showcases Brian Jones’ instrumental incorporation of baroque rock (as it would since come to be known).

Moving a little further into the wondrous box-set - and away from the worldwide known hits that punctuate this collection - and another stand out is the Memo From Turner. A solo single by Jagger, it features some beautifully alluring slide guitar by Ry Cooder and is from the soundtrack of Performance; in which Jagger played the role of Turner, a reclusive rock star.

The B-Side to the single is Natural Magic by Ry Cooder, also from the film Performance, and is itself a guitar virtuoso performance of the highest caliber.

Along next would be the Stevie Wonder-penned I Don’t Know Why (aka Don’t Know Why I Love You), which was a hit for the Stones in February of 1969. The B-Side is Try A Little Harder, which is itself built around a basic low twangy soul-rock guitar riff and backup harmony chant.

One more personal choice would be Out Of Time, which brought together the wonderful studio sounds of electric dulcimers, marimbas, and auto harps, all brought vividly to the fore to create a much under-rated track. It’s B-Side is Jiving Sister Fanny, which may well be chock full of incomprehensible vocalizations and filler phrases, is still a coherent tale about a man in Philadelphia who has the brain of a dinosaur!

The lovely, large color book is magnificent also, featuring lots and lots of wondrous old black and white/color photographs of the band, along with adjacent single release information. And the posed/caught live, five various art cards (photos) and luscious horizontal black and white poster make for lovely viewing also.

ABKCO Records is home to the entire catalog of The Rolling Stones from 1963 to early 1971. This includes the albums The Rolling Stones, England’s Newest Hit Makers, 12 X 5, The Rolling Stones No. 2, The Rolling Stones, Now!, Out of Our Heads, December’s Children (And Everybody’s), Aftermath, Got Live If You Want It!, Between the Buttons, Their Satanic Majesties Request, Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed and Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out! The Rolling Stones in Concert. ABKCO Films is home to Charlie Is My Darling - Ireland 1965 and The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus.

Official Unboxing | The Rolling Stones 7" Singles 1966 - 1971 (Vinyl Box Set)

Official Purchase Link

Official Website

The Rolling Stones @ Facebook

The Rolling Stones @ Instagram

The Rolling Stones @ Twitter

The Rolling Stones @ YouTube

www.ABKCO.com





Title - Bird’s Eye
Artist - David Leon

For those unaware, David Leon is a Miami-born saxophonist, woodwinds player, composer, and improviser living in Brooklyn, New York. His work is guided by a persistent search for vitality through autonomy, contradiction, hyperbole, and humor.

His work with the saxophone investigates alternate methods for producing a tone, refinement of these techniques, and development of a distinct vocabulary using these sounds; he melds this timbral approach with melodic and rhythmic phrasing from Cuban folkloric traditions, narrative playing, Free Jazz & avant-garde esthetics, and microtonality to reveal a personal conceit.

David’s current projects include Bird’s Eye, a trio with Doyeon Kim and Lesley Mok which will release its first recording this March 8th, 2024 on Pyroclastic Records, and Locomotive, a double horns-guitars-percussion trio co-led alongside Adam O’Farrill.

His debut album, Aire de Agua (released August 2021 on Out of Your Head Records) has been praised as “a splendid debut from a young saxophone player who, starting with the right foot, promises to make a name for himself in the creative jazz scene” (Felipe Freitas, JazzTrail).

He has also released two albums in the Current Obsession series that documents improvisations with current collaborators.

1. You won’t find it by yourself
2. Ay-ya
3. Nothing Urgent, Just Unfortunate
4. to speak in flowers
5. A Night For Counting Stars
6. Secret Footshake
7. Expressive Jargon I & III
8. Infatuation Station
9. Secret Handshake
10. Palmetto

This emotionally hued new recording opens on the jaunty You won’t find it by yourself and the spirited Ay-ya and they are followed by the organically layered Nothing Urgent (featuring Doyeon Kim & Lesley Mok), Just Unfortunate, the atmospherically-sculpted to speak in flowers, and then we get the playful A Night For Counting Stars.

Along next is the embroidered Secret Footshake and the preciseness of sound found within Expressive Jargon I & III and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the expressive yearn of Infatuation Station, the album rounding out on the veritably ethereal Secret Handshake, closing on the articulate Palmetto.

Musicians:
David Leon - soprano & alto saxophones, alto flute, piccolo
DoYeon Kim - gayagum, voice
Lesley Mok - drumset & percussion, glockenspiel

Official Purchase Link

www.davidleonsmusic.com





Title - Reves
Artist - Philippe Graffin

Reves, the new album by acclaimed French violinist Philippe Graffin, features two world-premiere recordings of freshly discovered concertos by Belgian virtuoso violinist and composer Eugene Ysaye - the complete Violin Concerto in E Minor and Poeme Concertant. Rounding out this beautiful album are gems for violin and piano: 2 Mazurkas de Salon, Op.10, and Reve d’enfant.

The world-premiere recording of the complete Violin Concerto in E Minor by Belgian virtuoso violinist and composer Eugene Ysaye has arrived! Following the recent discovery of a first movement, further manuscripts which complete the work have come to light - one a full orchestration, others for violin and piano - which were found on opposite sides of the Atlantic. Philippe Graffin’s close collaboration with Ysayoe aficionado Xavier Falques led to a page-by-page analysis and painstaking reconstruction of the musical puzzle pieces, resulting in this recording of the full, three-movement concerto which displays Ysayoe’s trademark ardour, intensity and originality.

For reasons unknown, Ysayoe abandoned his Violin Concerto in E minor in 1885, but some years later embarked on another, Poeme concertant, which was also recently discovered in manuscript form and is imbued with passion and the love Ysayoe felt for his pupil Irma Sethe. Their love was mutual but their relationship could not endure, possibly sealing the fate of Poeme concertant which lay undiscovered for over a century but is now brought back to life with this world-premiere recording.

Philippe rounds out the recording with three Ysayoe gems for violin and piano: 2 Mazurkas de Salon, Op.10, works the violinist / composer frequently performed and gained popularity throughout Europe and Russia in his lifetime; and Reve d’enfant (A child’s dream), which he dedicated to his youngest son Antoine.

1. Ysaye: Pome Concertant (orch. Erika Vega)
2. Ysaye: Violin Concerto in E Minor: I. Allegro appassionato non troppo vivo
3. Ysaye: Violin Concerto in E Minor: II. Andante
4. Ysaye: Violin Concerto in E Minor: III. Allegro in modo di pomposo ma furioso
5. Ysaye: 2 Mazurkas de Salon, Op. 10: No. 1
6. Ysaye: 2 Mazurkas de Salon, Op. 10: No. 2
7. Ysaye: Reve d’enfant, Op. 14

This highly impressive, dutifully sculptured new recording opens on elegantly flourishing, if not cunningly stern Pome Concertant and then we get the trio: the playfully sprite Violin Concerto in E Minor: I. Allegro appassionato non troppo vivo, the engaging Violin Concerto in E Minor: II. Andante, and then comes the impassioned Violin Concerto in E Minor: III. Allegro in modo di pomposo ma furioso.

Along next is the cultured swirl and twirl that plays out within 2 Mazurkas de Salon, Op. 10: No. 1 (Dans le lontain) which is itself backed seamlessly by the ornate gossamer of its partner 2 Mazurkas de Salon, Op. 10: No. 2 (Mazurka), everything coming to a close on the more melancholy of the works, the impeccable Reve d’enfant, Op. 14.

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com





Title - Mystery Sonatas: Die Rosenkranz-Sonaten
Artist - Alan Choo w/ Jeannette Sorrell & Apollo’s Fire

The Mystery Sonatas by Austrian composer Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber, believed to have been penned in the 1670s, remain unsurpassed for their virtuosity and extended use of scordatura, a unique tuning system that underscores different aural colours and timbres of the violin, thereby illuminating the pictorial themes of the Rosary – the processions devoted to major moments in the lives of Christ and the Virgin Mary – which Biber’s work depicts.

Singaporean violinist Alan Choo, the vibrant leader of acclaimed baroque ensemble Apollo’s Fire, headlines a dynamic and descriptive recording of the Mystery Sonatas, enhancing the scordatura with six different violins that require 15 individual tunings. He explains, “The use of a unique scordatura tuning for each sonata means that a violinist needs to use multiple violins if performing several of the pieces in the same week – each violin kept at the tuning of its respective sonata. Otherwise, the constant re-tuning of a violin would destabilize its tuning. I used a total of six violins in this recording. The personality of each instrument shines through.”

Joined by a chamber ensemble of his Apollo’s Fire colleagues, including founding director Jeannette Sorrell on harpsichord, Choo navigates Biber’s extended techniques with aplomb and devotion to the 15 programmatic sonatas which are compiled into three cycles – the Joyful Mysteries (the Angel Gabriel delivers the news to Mary that she will be the mother of the Messiah), Sorrowful Mysteries (Jesus’ agony, knowing he is about to be betrayed) and Glorious Mysteries (the Resurrection of Christ and his ascent to heaven) – and are crowned by the timeless finale, Passacaglia for solo violin.

Disc 1:
The Joyful Mysteries
Sonata No. 1 in D Minor “The Annunciation”
1. I. Praeludium
2. II. Aria (Allegro) – Variatio – Finale

Sonata No. 2 in A Major “The Visitation”
3. I. Sonata
4. II. Allaman
5. III. Presto

Sonata No. 3 in B Minor “The Nativity”
6. I. Sonata
7. II. Courente – Double
8. III. Adagio

Sonata No. 4 in D Minor “The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple”
9. Ciacona

Sonata No. 5 in A Major “The Finding of Jesus in the Temple”
10. I. Praeludium
11. II. Allaman
12. III. Guigue
13. IV. Saraban – Double

The Sorrowful Mysteries
Sonata No. 6 in C Minor “The Agony in the Garden”
14. I. Lamento
15. II. Adagio

Sonata No. 7 in F Major “The Scourging at the Pillar”
16. I. Allamanda – Variatio
17. II. Sarabanda – Variatio

Sonata No. 8 in B flat Major “The Crowning with Thorns”
18. I. Sonata: Adagio – Presto – [Adagio]
19. II. Guigue – Double (Presto) – Double II

Sonata No. 9 in A Minor “The Carrying of the Cross”
20. I. Sonata
21. II. Courente – Double – [Double II]
22. III. Finale

Sonata No. 10 in G Minor “The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus”
23. I. Praeludium
24. II. Aria – Variatio

Recorded at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Cleveland Heights, Ohio between November 19th, 2021 - May 16th, 2023, the first disc of the recording opens on the delightful The Joyful Mysteries, and first being Sonata No. 1 in D Minor “The Annunciation”: the ornate gossamer of Praeludium and the more spirited nature of Aria (Allegro) – Variatio – Finale, and then comes Sonata No. 2 in A Major “The Visitation”: and the sterner fare of Sonata, the focused Allaman, and then the playful Presto.

Along next is Sonata No. 3 in B Minor “The Nativity”: which itself opens on the cultured Sonata, then continues with the flirtatious Courente – Double, ending with the aching yearn found within Adagio, then comes Sonata No. 4 in D Minor “The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple”: and the all-embracing Ciacona, the piece culminating with Sonata No. 5 in A Major “The Finding of Jesus in the Temple”: and the gripping Praeludium, the delightful swirls and twirls that drive Allaman, and both the upbeat Guigue and the embodied Saraban – Double.

The next work brought forth is invigoratingly dutiful The Sorrowful Mysteries which opens on Sonata No. 6 in C Minor “The Agony in the Garden”: and the aching Lamento and then the focused Adagio, and next we get Sonata No. 7 in F Major “The Scourging at the Pillar”: the delicacy of Allamanda – Variatio and the stirring waltz within Sarabanda – Variatio.

Up next is Sonata No. 8 in B flat Major “The Crowning with Thorns”: which opens with the flourishing Sonata: Adagio – Presto – [Adagio]and finishes with the thriving Guigue – Double (Presto) – Double II, then we get Sonata No. 9 in A Minor “The Carrying of the Cross”: which itself opens on the delicacy of melody within Sonata, the pleasurable Courente – Double – [Double II], culminating on the blooming Finale, the final act being Sonata No. 10 in G Minor “The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus”: the sculptured Praeludium leading the way, closing on the profuse Aria – Variatio.

Disc 2:
The Glorious Mysteries
Sonata No. 11 in G Major “The Resurrection”
1. I. Sonata
2. II. Surrexit Christus hodie
3. III. Adagio

Sonata No. 12 in C Major “The Ascension”
4. I. Intrada
5. II. Aria Tubicinum
6. III. Allamanda
7. IV. Courente – Double

Sonata No. 13 in D Minor “The Descent of the Holy Spirit”
8. I. Sonata
9. II. Gavott – Guigue
10. III. Sarabanda

Sonata No. 14 in D Major “The Assumption of Mary into Heaven”
11. I. [Praeludium]
12. II. Aria – Aria II – Guigue

Sonata No. 15 in C Major “The Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth”
13. I. Sonata
14. II. Aria – [Variatio]
15. III. Canzon
16. IV. Sarabanda

Sonata No. 16 in G Minor “The Guardian Angel”
17. Passacaglia

The second disc opens on the majestic The Glorious Mysteries and its Sonata No. 11 in G Major “The Resurrection”: the simply delightful Sonata, the guided Surrexit Christus hodie and then the subtly-hued Adagio, and then comes Sonata No. 12 in C Major “The Ascension”: the first of the quartet being the quietly boisterous Intrada, the forthright Aria Tubicinum, the tender Allamanda, and finally the gently frisky Courente – Double.

Along next is Sonata No. 13 in D Minor “The Descent of the Holy Spirit” which opens on the emphatic Sonata, the confident Gavott – Guigue and ends with the somewhat sombre Sarabanda, and then comes Sonata No. 14 in D Major “The Assumption of Mary into Heaven”: and a distinctiveness found within Praeludium and the sweeping Aria – Aria II – Guigue.

The simply magnificent recording Sonata No. 15 in C Major “The Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth” is up next and opens on the impressive Sonata before bringing us the engaging stillness of Aria – [Variatio], the stirring flair of Canzon and the emotional Sarabanda rounds out the work, itself closing on Sonata No. 16 in G Minor “The Guardian Angel” and a rather grippingly sentimental Passacaglia.

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com





Title - Requiem
Artist - Christopher Tyler Nickel

The world-premiere recording of Canadian composer Christopher Tyler Nickel’s Requiem marries the placidity of plainchant to complex rhythmic energy, powerfully communicating an intensely personal listening experience.

“In my music, peace and restlessness co-exist continually”. So explains award-winning Canadian composer Christopher Tyler Nickel, describing his setting of the Requiem, which marries the placidity of plainchant to complex rhythms and meters.

Scored for chamber orchestra, choir and solo soprano, and setting the complete standard Latin text, this world-premiere recording possesses a steady current of energy that propels the work ever-forward, whilst Chris’ contemplative musical language enhances a sense of intimacy that makes its communicative power feel intensely personal.

Requiem
1. I. Introit
2. II. Kyrie
3. III. Gradual
4. IV. Tract
5. V. Dies Irae
6. VI. Tuba Mirum
7. VII. Liber Scriptus
8. VIII. Rex Tremendae
9. IX. Juste Judex
10. X. Confutatis
11. XI. Lacrimosa
12. XII. Pie Jesu
13. XIII. Offertory
14. XIV. Sanctus
15. XV. Benedictus
16. XVI. Agnus Dei
17. XVII. Lux Aeterna
18. XVIII. Responsory
19. XIX. In Paradisum

Recorded between August 21–24 2022 in St Thomas Chapel at Bastyr University, Kenmore, Washington, USA, this impassioned recording opens on the calmness personified within Introit, the more strident Kyrie, the guided Gradual and Tract both, and they are then followed by the gently flourishing Dies Irae, the harmonious Tuba Mirum, the ornately sculpted Liber Scriptus, and then we get the organically-channeled Rex Tremendae.

Along next is the spirited Juste Judex, the upbeat and rhythm-led Confutatis, the beautifully-hued Lacrimosa and the vocally-led Pie Jesu, and they are in turn backed by the gripping Offertory, the layered complexities of Sanctus, the embodied Benedictus, the recording rounding out on the impassioned Agnus Dei, the fervidly sung Lux Aeterna, closing on the chorus-led righteousness of Responsory and the veritably cinematic In Paradisum.

Featuring:
Catherine Redding, soprano
Northwest Sinfonia
Clyde Mitchell, conductor

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com





Title - Ravel: Complete Works for Solo Piano Vol. 1
Artist - Vincent Larderet

French pianist Vincent Larderet inaugurates a definitive, four-volume series of the composer’s complete works for solo piano, signifying Vincent’s fulfillment of a decades-long devotion his compatriot.

This first-ever Urtext compilation of Ravel’s complete works for solo piano is a landmark collection that embraces numerous world-premiere renditions. Many works, whilst familiar, are prepared and recorded from personal scores that were annotated by pianist and pedagogue Vlado Perlemuter during his private study and close collaboration with the composer between 1927 and 1929.

These scores reveal invaluable insights to interpretation of such aspects as tempi, pedalling, phrasing and tonal colors. Through his tutelage under Perlemuter’s student Carlos Cebro, Vincent Larderet is a direct inheritor of Ravel’s ethos and interpretive style.

Volume 1 of Vincent’s Ravel survey includes original solo piano versions of the popular Valses nobles et sentimentales and Pavane pour une infante défunte, alongside the five-movement suite Miroirs and Sonatine.

Miroirs, M.43
1. I. Noctuelles
2. II. Oiseaux tristes
3. III. Une Barque sur l’océan
4. IV. Alborada del gracioso
5. V. La vallée des cloches

6. Jeux d’eau, M.30
Valses nobles et sentimentales, M.61
7. I. Modéré, très franc
8. II. Assez lent, avec une expression intense
9. III. Modéré
10. IV. Assez animé
11. V. Presque lent, dans un sentiment intime
12. VI. Vif
13. VII. Moins vif
14. VIII. Épilogue. Lent

Sonatine, M.40
15. I. Modéré
16. II. Mouvement de menuet
17. III. Animé

18. Pavane pour une Infante défunte, M.19

Recorded between April 25–27 2023 at Alter Sendesaal, Bremen, Germany, this recording opens on Miroirs, M.43: the sparkling Noctuelles, the delicate Oiseaux tristes, the veritably glistening Une Barque sur l’océan, the perky and playful Alborada del gracioso and then the dutiful gossamer sewn throughout La vallée des cloches, and then we get a memorable Jeux d’eau, M.30.

Along next is Valses nobles et sentimentales, M.61: the sterner fare of Modéré, très franc, the stoically sculpted Assez lent, avec une expression intense, the pleasing Modéré, the flourishing Assez animé, and then we get the comforting nature of melody within Presque lent, dans un sentiment intime, the lively Vif, the profound Moins vif and the warm embrace discovered within Épilogue. Lent.

This impeccably structured recording then closes on Sonatine, M.40, which opens on the beautifully ornate Modéré, the simply divine Mouvement de menuet, the free flowing Animé, before closing on the resonant Pavane pour une Infante défunte, M.19.

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com





Title - Hidden Flame
Artist - Yoshika Masuda & Hyejin Kim

Japanese-American cellist Yoshika (“Yoshi”) Masuda makes his recording debut with Hidden Flame, an album containing music by Amy Beach, Clara Schumann, Rita Strohl, Nadia Boulanger, Maria Theresia Paradis, and a world-premiere by Reena Esmail.

The works on Hidden Flame span over two centuries and collectively tell a story of how women have moved from the margins of the classical repertoire to somewhere closer to the center. Whilst the quality of the music these women composed is indisputable, there are also fascinating background stories for all these pieces which often illustrate the personal and societal pressures faced by creative women in history.

Yoshi describes the album’s concept: “to present the compositions of women as masterpieces by truly great composers. Musicians and music lovers often feel confident that great works that exist in this world must already be a part of the standard repertoire.”

“However, this album proves that there are hidden gems that deserve more recognition are still out there! It is my aspiration that, in encountering both the familiar and the unfamiliar within this collection of pieces, listeners will transcend considerations of gender or race and recognize these compositions simply as expressions of profound beauty crafted by masterful composers.”

AMY BEACH (1867–1944)
1. Romance, Op.23 6.27

CLARA SCHUMANN (1819–1896)
3 Romances, Op.22
2. I. Andante molto 3.24
3. II. Allegretto: Mit zartem Vortrage 3.18
4. III. Leidenschaftlich schnell 4.13

RITA STROHL (1865–1941)
Great Dramatic Sonata ‘Titus et Bérénice’
5. I. Allegro moderato 14.03
6. II. Vivace – Molto movimento 5.30
7. III. Lento, tristamente 8.31
8. IV. Allegro molto movimento 10.45

REENA ESMAIL (b. 1983)
9. one word makes a world 5.56
world-premiere recording

NADIA BOULANGER (1887–1979)
3 Pieces for cello & piano
10. I. Modéré 2.51
11. II. Sans vitesse et à l’aise 1.39
12. III. Vite et nerveusement rythmé 2.33

MARIA THERESA PARADIS (1759–1824) attrib.
13. Sicilienne 3.32

Recorded between June 10–12 2022 at Cammilleri Hall, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, this dutifully impassioned new recording opens on the aching yearn of Amy Beach’s Romance, Op.23 and then we get Clara Schumann’s 3 Romances, Op.22: the sombre Andante molto, the cautious Allegretto: Mit zartem Vortrage and the flourishing Leidenschaftlich schnell, before we are brought forth Rita Strohl’s quartet within Great Dramatic Sonata ‘Titus et Bérénice’: the desiring Allegro moderato, the sprightly Vivace – Molto movimento, the shying Lento, tristamente, and then comes the opulent Allegro molto movimento.

Along next is the world-premiere recording from Reena Esmail of the layered majesties found within one word makes a world and that in turn is followed by a trio from Nadia Boulanger entitled 3 Pieces for cello & piano: which itself opens on the refined elegance of Modéré, the light and airey Sans vitesse et à l’aise and the forthright Vite et nerveusement rythmé, the recording closing on the all-embracing Sicilienne from Maria Theresa Paradis.

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com





Title - Monteverdi: Tutti i madrigali - Complete Madrigals
Artist - Rinaldo Alessandrini

In the forty years that he has been working on Monteverdi, Rinaldo Alessandrini has revealed the beauty, poetry and genius of the music. Today, naïve publish a box set containing the entire collection of his recordings of the madrigals with Concerto Italiano: 12 hours of music on 11 CDs, including previously unreleased books I and IX.

Rinaldo Alessandrini’s vast discography with his Concerto Italiano has included Monteverdi’s madrigals, presented whenever he wished, interlinked themes and personal dramaturgies. This complete, non- chronological collection, which began in 1993 with book IV, then gradually increased over the years up to books I and IX, recorded last year, as yet missing from their catalogue, has now culminated in the publication of a dense, full and well-documented box set.

The further Rinaldo Alessandrini advanced in his demanding and exhaustive quest, the more he discovered and mastered the inexhaustible richness of a musical art intimately linked to the theatre and the emotions. “A theatre,” he says, “made of humanity, of aspiring to the sublime and the joyful resolution of life’s sorrows through love, the curative power of song and the energetic exaltation of dance.”

Today, the Italian conductor and harpsichordist is one of the undisputed masters of this exceptional vocal heritage, the best-loved of which is the famous book VIII devoted to madrigals of love and war, with the Combattimento de Tancredi e Clorinda, the Lamento de la ninfa and Hor che’l ciel e la terra, book VI with its Lamento d’Arianna and Zefiro torna, voted Editor’s Choice by Gramophone, and book II, winner of a Gram phone Award.

All the subtlety of the intimate intermingling of text and music unfolds, in ever renewed variety. Each recording has also contributed to the methodical, fascinating and detailed construction of a personal vision of Monteverdi’s work, aided by the unfailing commitment and inspired voices of Concerto Italiano.

These recordings of the whole opus, with the addition of two hitherto unpublished books, complete a monumental work, already widely and unanimously praised, and also crown a Monteverdi cycle which began at the Barcelona Liceu in 2021.

Madrigals, Book 1: SV23-39
Madrigals, Book 2: SV40-59
Madrigals, Book 3: SV60-74
Madrigals, Book 4: SV75-93
Madrigals, Book 5: SV94-106
Madrigals, Book 6: SV107-116
Madrigals, Book 7: SV117-145
Madrigals, Book 8: SV146-167 Madrigals of Love and War
Madrigals, Book 9: SV 168-178

Simply put, if you are looking for a complete set of Monterverdi Madrigal recordings this is by far the greatest set to date, in my humble opinion. For this set by Naïve Records we get the result of the work to be as similar as possible to how it was played in the lifetime of Monteverdi. He lived from 1567 until 1643, a long period with major changes and which saw transition from Renaissance to Baroque in music.

The set includes all the nine books of Madrigals, and all culled within their most strict of sense, but what makes this set feel very much like a unified effort is all the variety of styles that Monteverdi used are well matched by the ensemble’s sensitivity to text, style, flair for the dramatic, and the excellent instrumental accompaniment.

Indeed, the set makes a musical, stylistic, and textual journey, with hardly a dull moment. The combination of countertenors, tenors, baritones and basses provides a fascinating mix of timbres, never heard on previous recordings at such a level, I would like to think.

Furthermore, artwork design is truly beautiful, all 11 CDs houses elegantly within an excellent box, which comes complete with a highly informative booklet.

Thus here on Monteverdi: Tutti i madrigali - Complete Madrigals, it is evident from the off that he himself explores themes of love, war, and the pain of loss. A madrigal was a term for all sorts of secular song forms, styles, and subjects. Lighthearted and rustic 3, and sometimes 4, voice works aplenty.

Then later came more voices and textual expressiveness with sensitivity and an experimental approach to chromaticism. Indeed, Monteverdi began his earliest works with a blend of light pastoral texts and weightier emotional texts, but here he uses striking harmonic twists to bridge between moments.

His second and third books show a freer sense of expression and intensity whereas his fourth and fifth books reveal an increase in dissonance and chromaticism, unusual harmonic choices, textural contrasts, and impassioned delivery.

He even uses long sections for 1, 2, or 3 voices within the fuller polyphonic texture, all with instrumental accompaniment, the Madrigals aligned at certain moments themselves with basso continuo ambiance.

The seventh book, titled Concerto by Monteverdi himself takes the innovation that there are no traditional 5 voice madrigals, but simply pieces from 1 to 4 voices. Also included are the Love and War Madrigals (CD 10).

Overall, and in closing, the sound throughout is exceptional and the whole package simple feels just so luxurious upon the ears as the Madrigals play out before us.

Official Purchase Link

Rinaldo Alessandrini @ Instagram





Title - Beyond Belief
Artist - Albare

At the heart of Albare’s new album Beyond Belief lies a theme of exploration and discovery, both within the realms of music and the human experience. Albare uses his guitar voice and compositional collaboration with Phil Turcio who have now worked together for the past thirty years, to guide listeners through a series of soundscapes that are as varied as they are cohesive.

The album weaves together a tapestry of influences, from the intricate rhythms of world music to the soul-stirring harmonies of modern jazz, creating a unique sonic palette.

The overarching concept of the album is one of journeying beyond the known and the ordinary. Albare invites listeners to join him in pushing past the limits of belief, exploring new horizons of emotion and expression. Each track contributes to this overarching narrative, offering its own unique flavor and perspective.

There’s a sense of introspection and wonder that permeates the album. It’s as if Albare and his comrades – Phil Turcio, Pablo Bencid and Phil Rex – are not just playing music, but also exploring the deeper questions of life, love, and existence.

The album’s fusion of different musical elements mirrors the complexity of these themes, creating a rich and multi-layered listening experience. The one track ‘I Believe’ featuring special guest vocalist Lionel Cole, you feel the voice of Lionel being used like a skilled instrumentalist in the tradition of the likes of the late Al Jarreau.

1. Missing in Action
2. Mad’s Happy Day
3. No Regrets
4. Feeling Moody
5. I Believe
6. Ladino Jazz
7. Sailing Away
8. Blue Bossa Reimagined
9. Hymn to My Friend
10. Hypothetical Retrospection

This beautifully manicured, dutifully sculpted new recording opens on the spirited Missing in Action and the romantic swirls and twirls within Mad’s Happy Day and then comes the impassioned No Regrets, the languishing beauty of Feeling Moody, and the playfully sculpted I Believe is along next.

Up next is a dutiful ebb and flow that drives Ladino Jazz and the Eastern-tinged Sailing Away, which are in turn followed by the aptly-named Blue Bossa Reimagined, the album rounding out on the ornate gossamer of Hymn to My Friend, closing on the joyously lavish Hypothetical Retrospection.

MUSICIANS: Albare: guitar, Phil Turcio: Piano, Phil Rex: bass, Pablo Bencid: drums, Lionel Cole vocals on “If I believe”

www.beyondalbare.com





Title - 10,000 Volts
Artist - Ace Frehley

Guitarist extraordinaire and former Kiss vociferator Ace Frehley’s tenth solo album 10,000 Volts is the sonic equivalent of Gakuryu Ishii’s bolshy film Electric Dragon 80,000 Volts - a massive, out-of-this-world experience that embraces the pure shreddage of the electric guitar, in an ultimate face-off between human and machine!

The analogy of overridden circuitry is unsurprisingly useful for evoking related emotions in Frehley’s case, as on the title track, on which a perfectly phased-out riff accompanies the lyric, She hit me like 10,000 volts, when I saw her face.

Then come the covers, such as Walkin’ On The Moon and the equally raw in-your-facers such as Cosmic Heart and Life Of A Stranger. No fillers here!

1. 10,000 Volts (3:24)
2. Walkin’ on the Moon (3:44)
3. Cosmic Heart (3:53)
4. Cherry Medicine (3:39)
5. Back Into My Arms Again (3:36)
6. Fightin’ for Life (3:20)
7. Blinded (3:53)
8. Constantly Cute (3:38)
9. Life of a Stranger (3:57)
10. Up in the Sky (4:27)
11. Stratosphere (3:05)

On this hyper-commercial hard-rock spirit of his former band, Frehley opens on the searlingly titular 10,000 Volts and the propulsive Walkin’ on the Moon and they are followed by the dynamic Cosmic Heart, the rythmically sturdy Cherry Medicine, before the mid-tempo, AOR balladry of Back Into My Arms Again is brought forth.

Along next on Frehley’s electrifying new studio solo album is the soaring Fightin’ for Life and the steadfast Blinded, and they are then backed by my own personal favorite, the melodically free flowing Constantly Cute, the album rounding out on the mesmerizing guitar work within Life of a Stranger, the rock out on Up in the Sky, closing on the atmospherically-charged Stratosphere.

Official Purchase Link

www.acefrehley.com





Title - Latin Jazz Sessions
Artist - Ron Rieder

This brand new album Latin Jazz Sessions is the debut recording by composer Ron Rieder. The album contains ten exciting compositions performed by an internationally recognized All-Star group of musicians, all of which are guaranteed to stir your soul!

After graduating from high school Ron came to a crossroads, he had to decide to follow his passion as a pianist-composer and study music or opt to continue his studies of the physical sciences.

Although he chose science, he never abandoned his love of music and composing music as a hobby.

After a successful career in the realm of the sciences, Ron is now fulfilling his lifetime ambition of recording his music. Rieder says: “Latin jazz makes one’s soul resonate, and body move” which is why he chose to have his music played by a formidable Latin jazz group consisting of the finest players in the Boston, MA area led by veterans Alain Mallet-piano and Mark Walker-drums.

1. Un Coco Loco
2. The Samba Moon
3. Mambo Jumbo
4. Samba Feliz
5. St John
6. Spring Serenade
7. Pescado
8. Gardenias
9. From Dawn to Dusk
10. Capitol Mayhem

This beautifully ordained, lushly vibrant new 10-track collection opens on the fervently impassioned Un Coco Loco and the rhythmically melodious The Samba Moon and they are then followed by the dedicated swirl and twirl of Mambo Jumbo, the late night embrace of Samba Feliz, and then comes the upbeat and joyous St John.

Along next is the precise nature found within the structured Spring Serenade and the drum-led Pescado and they are in turn backed by the dutiful hipsway found within Gardenias, the album rounding out on the organic feel of From Dawn to Dusk, closing on the all-embracing Capitol Mayhem.

MUSICIANS: Fernando Brandão - Flute, Gerson Lazo-Quiroga - Bass (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10), Alain Mallet - Piano Ricardo Monzon - Percussion, Claudio Ragazzi - Guitar, Ron Reid - Steel Drums (5, 10), Oscar Stagnaro - Bass (2, 4, 6, 8), Mike Tucker - Tenor Saxophone, Mark Walker - Drums All songs composed by Ron Rieder.

Official Purchase Link





Title - Strong
Artist - Albert Cummings

For those not in the know, Blues maestro Albert Cummings has just released his eagerly awaited album, Strong, set to captivate audiences worldwide. Released through Ivy Music Company, Strong promises to deliver a potent blend of blues, rock, and raw emotion.

Recorded at the prestigious Ocean Way Recording Studio in Nashville, Tennessee, and produced by the Grammy-winning virtuoso Tom Hambridge, Strong marks a pivotal moment in Cummings’ musical journey. With 12 exceptional tracks, Cummings showcases his unparalleled songwriting abilities and undeniable talent.

1. Emmylou
2. Live Strong
3. Lookin’ Up
4. Fallen For You
5. Let It Burn
6. Bad Reputation
7. Goin’ Down Slow
8. Just About Enough
9. Get Busy
10. Lately
11. Why Don’t We Do It In the Road? (John Lennon, Paul McCartney)
12. My Sisters Guitar

On this exhilarating new blues rock album, Cummings opens on the raunchy Emmylou and the flourishing Live Strong, and they are followed by the forthright blues of Lookin’ Up, the impassioned Fallen For You, and then we get the scenic Let It Burn and the playfully flirty Bad Reputation.

Along next is the piano-hued balladry of Goin’ Down Slow and the out on the range essence within Just About Enough, and they are in turn backed by the groove-laden Get Busy, the mid-tempo Lately, the album rounding out on his take on the Beatles’ Why Don’t We Do It In the Road?, closing on the ardent yearn that drives My Sisters Guitar.

All tracks on Strong are penned by Albert Cummings (BMI), with exceptions for “Emmylou” and “Lately,” co-written with Tom Hambridge, and “Why Don’t We Do it in the Road?” by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. All songs are published by Ivy Music Company (BMI).

www.albertcummings.com

Albert Cummings @ Facebook





Title - Somos
Artist - Julia Vari Feat. Negroni’s Trio

Regarded as one of the top jazz artists in Latin America (George Varga, San-Diego Union-Tribune), award-winning international recording artist Julia Vari immediately commands the stage with her sultry yet powerful vocals, uplifting and playful personality, and creative stylings on the piano.

Equally at home with jazz, pop, Latin, world rhythms and Broadway, Vari is a true entertainer who knows how to capture hearts and create unforgettable memories through music, and her shows range from an intimate piano-vocal one-woman show to a Big Band extravaganza, and everything in-between.

She performs in eight languages and delivers with energy and style, astounding and enchanting audiences with an extraordinary voice that can impeccably weave through different music genres and bring to life exciting and unique versions of everyone’s favorite tunes, as well as her own original music.

1.La Bikina
2.Nature Boy
3.Siboney
4.Song For My Father
5.Noche de Ronda
6.C’est Si Bon
7.Historia de Un Amor

On Somos, a stunningly impassioned new recording from Julia Vari featuring Negroni’s Trio, we are first greeted with the upbeat and sprightly La Bikina and the luxuriant Nature Boy and then comes the finger-snapper Siboney, the impassioned Song For My Father, an all-embracing depth and warmth within Noche de Ronda, rounding out on the dancefloor swirl and twirl of C’est Si Bon, closing on the cultured rhythm and melodies that drive Historia de Un Amor.

Musicians:
Julia Vari, vocals José Negroni, piano and musical direction Nomar Negroni, drums Rafael Valencia, bass Trumpet solo on “La bikina”.

www.juliavari.com

Juli Vari @ Facebook





Title - Broken
Artist - Walter Trout

Blues-rock icon Walter Trout is riding a creatively formidable wave and heading into 2024 with an album raucous, wild and poignant in Broken. The album features guest appearances from powerhouse singer Beth Hart, Twisted Sister’s Dee Snider and Harmonica virtuoso Will Wilde.

All of us are broken. But no one is beyond repair. It’s a philosophy that Walter Trout has lived by during seven volatile decades at the heart of America’s society and blues-rock scene. Even now, with the world more fractured than ever – by politics, economics, social media and culture wars – the fabled US bluesman’s latest album, Broken, chronicles the bitter schisms of modern life but refuses to succumb to them.

I’ve always tried to write positive songs, and this album is not quite that, considers the 72-year-old of an all-original tracklisting that rages and soothes. But I always hold on to hope. I think that’s why I wrote this album.

1. Broken (feat. Beth Hart)
2. Turn And Walk Away
3. Courage In The Dark
4. Bleed (feat. Will Wilde)
5. Talkin’ To Myself
6. No Magic (in the street)
7. I’ve Had Enough (feat. Dee Snider)
8. Love Of My Life
9. Breathe
10. Heaven Or Hell
11. I Wanna Stay
12. Falls Apart

On this amazingly vibrant new blues-rock recording, Trout opens on the languishing yearn that drives the titular Broken (featuring Beth Hart) and the country porch imbibed, harmonica-hued Turn And Walk Away, and they are followed by the low slung Courage In The Dark, the fiery rocker Bleed (featuring Will Wilde), and then comes the mid-tempo blues-country-rock of Talkin’ To Myself and the harmonica-driven beauty No Magic (in the street).

Along next is the frenetic guitar rocker I’ve Had Enough (featuring Dee Snider) and then, out of the blue, we get a beautiful yearn within the languishing ballad Love Of My Life and they are in turn backed by the rhythmic Breathe, the storytelling within Heaven Or Hell, the album rounding out on a dutiful low key hipsway found within the ballad I Wanna Stay, closing on some pleasing guitar work found on Falls Apart.

Official Purchase Link

www.waltertrout.com





Title - primrose was in season
Artist - Mackenzie Shivers

When Mackenzie Shivers creates music, it’s as if it demands to be heard. The Hudson Valley based singer-songwriter began writing music and playing piano when she was four years old, telling her mother she had “music locked inside of her that needed to come out.”

Her writing provides a conduit for complex emotions, untangling as they poke through the surface, yearning to be explored and set free.

Folk-pop artist Mackenzie Shivers brings out her fourth full-length album, primrose was in season, on March 1st, 2024. On the album, Shivers boldly gives a glimpse into her healing process after losing her first pregnancy, triumphantly capturing a depth of feeling that illuminates both her resilience and vulnerability.

Electric guitar, a mix of dance beats and organic drums, and Shivers’s trademark piano bolster her most adventurous work to-date.

1. a cautionary tale
2. nest
3. marigolds
4. hush now
5. pedestal
6. paper dolls
7. johnny gown
8. borrowed time
9. terracotta floors
10. whatever it takes

This highly impressive 10-track collection of new tracks opens on the, at first, hauntingly ethereal, latterly a translucent pop ballad opener of a cautionary tale and the veritably glistening nest and they are followed by the more organic piano fare of marigolds, the beautifully wistful hush now, and then comes the resonant pedestal.

Along next on this set of ten new compositions that combine magic with grief is the dutifully layered, structured hushed tones of paper dolls and the danceable, synth-driven foot tapper johnny gown, and they are in turn backed by the lighter fare of borrowed time, the set rounding out on a melodious pop line that drives terracotta floors, closing on the more astutely honed whatever it takes.

Musicians:
Mackenzie Shivers: vocals, grand piano, keyboard, pump organ, Farfisa compact organ
Kevin Salem: electric guitar, banjo, bass guitar (2, 3), drums (9), pot and pans
Yuka Tadano: electric bass, upright bass
Cody Rahn: drums

Official Purchase Link

www.mackenzieshivers.com





Title - 8 Concepts of Tango
Artist - Håkon Skogstad

For those unaware, pianist and composer Håkon Skogstad has just released his new album, 8 Concepts of Tango, the sequel to Norwegian Grammy-awarded Visions of Tango from 2021.

The album is the third installment of Skogstad’s tango trilogy, where the aim has been to develop a new musical style in the wake of Astor Piazzolla.

On 8 Concepts of Tango, Skogstad performs in the company of seven hand-picked musicians - all experts in the Argentine tango/classical music segment.

Håkon Skogstad (b.1989) is a prize-awarded pianist and composer holding degrees in classical performance from Oslo and New York as well as a PhD in Artistic Research from NTNU, Trondheim. He has performed in ensembles and as soloist throughout Norway and played concerts in the U.S., Argentina, Germany, Austria, Spain and Sweden.

He has also composed several large-scale works on commission. Skogstad released five critically acclaimed tango recordings both in groups and as soloist in the period of 2008-2021.

1. Caserón Porteño
2. Retroreflections
3. A Contemplative Rhapsody
4. Tango contra Tango
5. The Anvil
6. Romance para Ocho
7. Battaglia
8. Lamento

On this multifaceted, multi-layered new recording, Skogstad opens up on the spirited Caserón Porteño and then we are brought forth the more meditative Retroreflections, the aptly-titled A Contemplative Rhapsody, the fervently sculpted Tango contra Tango, and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the forthright endeavors found sewn within The Anvil, the recording rounding out on the delicately-hued Romance para Ocho, the euphorically-charged Battaglia, closing on the, for the most part stoic, and yet optimistically assured throughout, Lamento.

Musicians:
Håkon Skogstad – pianist & composer
Andreas Rokseth – bandoneón
Åsbjørg Ryeng - bandoneón
Sveinung Lillebjerka - violin
Anders Larsen - violin
Bergmund Waal Skaslien - viola
Marit Aspaas - cello
Ole Schøyen Sjölin - double bass

www.hmskogstad.net

Håkon Skogstad @ Facebook





Title - Live! One of the Greatest Jazz Singers of All Time
Artist - Bob Anderson

Bob Anderson has long been known as “The Great Impressionist” appearing on over 200 national TV shows and concerts in over 30 countries on 5 continents. He can do authentic impersonations of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr, Tom Jones, Johnny Mathis, and more, but NOW he wants you to hear his own voice and know him as Bob Anderson.

This new album Live! One of the Greatest Jazz Singers of All Time is a collection of Bob’s live performances as himself and the first time he has been heard purely in his own voice which really is his best voice. As Tom Jones put it, “The reason Anderson is the best at what he does is because he actually sings as well as the person he is doing.”

Without question, Bob Anderson is one of the greatest Jazz Singers of all time.

1. So Much Music in Me
2. Come Rain or Come Shine
3. The One I Love Belongs to Somebody Else
4. Streaks of Lavender
5. Midnight at Malibu
6. My Heart Stood Still
7. I Won’t Send Roses
8. I Do Not Know a Day I Did Not Love You
9. I Remember You
10. I Still Miss You
11. What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life
12. You Make Me Feel so Young
13. Some Other Time
14. All I Lost is You
15. To Love and Be Loved

On this wondrously vibrant, wholly impassioned new recording, Anderson opens with the beloved So Much Music in Me, the aged fine wine of Come Rain or Come Shine and the dutifully harmonized The One I Love Belongs to Somebody Else, and they are backed by the beautiful Streaks of Lavender, the veritably cinematic Midnight at Malibu, and then we get the sweeping My Heart Stood Still and the absolutely delightful I Won’t Send Roses.

Up next is the sweeping I Do Not Know a Day I Did Not Love You and the romantically-hued I Remember You and they are in turn followed seamlessly by the dutifully crafted I Still Miss You, the artful craftsmanship of What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life, then comes the buoyant ebb and flow of You Make Me Feel so Young, the timeless Some Other Time, the album rounding out on the empowered All I Lost is You, closing on a great song with a powerful ending, To Love and Be Loved.

Bob Anderson @ YouTube

www.bobanderson.com





Title - The Gal That Got Away: The Best of Jack Wood
Artist - Jack Wood

Jack Wood has long been a popular attraction in the Southern California jazz scene. His warm voice and tasteful swinging style have won over many fans due to his classy treatments of classics from the Great American Songbook.

The Gal That Got Away consists of some of Wood’s finest recordings. On several of the numbers he is featured with the Salt Lake City Jazz Orchestra (performing Tom Garvin arrangements) while other selections have him singing swingers and ballads with a combo.

At various times his supporting cast includes altoist Greg Floor, flugelhornist Buddy Childers, guitarists Ron Anthony and Doug MacDonald, and pianist Tom Ranier among others.

1. The Gypsy In My Soul
2. The Gal That Got Away
3. I Will Wait For You
4. Secret Love
5. A Foggy Day
6. The Shadow Of Your Smile
7. Come Rain Or Come Shine
8. A Day In The Life Of A Fool
9. One For My Baby
10. Someone To Watch Over Me

On this dutifully sculpted new recording, Wood opens his set with the low slung finger-snapper The Gypsy In My Soul and the languishing The Gal That Got Away (actually made famous by Judy Garland in A Star Is Born as “The Man That Got Away”), and then we get the pure dreamy gossamer of Michel Legrand’s I Will Wait For You, the playfully flirty Secret Love and the dutiful, rising piano balladry of A Foggy Day.

Next up is the delicately hued The Shadow Of Your Smile and the soulful Come Rain Or Come Shine, and they are in turn backed by the gentle swirls and twirls within A Day In The Life Of A Fool, the album rounding out on the pleasing One For My Baby (inclusive of the late jazz trumpeter, composer and ensemble leader Buddy Childers), coming to a close on the delightful Someone To Watch Over Me.

Official Purchase Link

www.jackwoodmusic.com





Title - Invocazioni Mariane
Artist - Scholl, Tampieri & Bizantina

Invocazioni Mariane is a new CD from counter-tenor Andreas Scholl and his long time collaborators the Accademia Bizantina and their conductor Alessandro Tampieri.

It consists of 18th century music from Naples; all of which is in some way connected with the Virgin Mary and is mostly drawn from oratorios or similar pieces designed to be performed during Holy Week.

Back in the day, with women not permitted on the stage in Naples (or the Papal States) the high parts would have been sung by castrati. That, of course, is where Scholl comes in.

1. Porpora: Il trionfo della divina Giustizia ne’ tormente e morte di Gesù Cristo
2. Vinci, Leonardo: Oratorio Maria dolorata: Sinfonia
3. Vinci, Leonardo: Oratorio a 4 voci
4. Anfossi: Salve Regina
5. Pergolesi: Concerto per violino in si bemolle maggiore in B-Flat Major
6. Vivaldi: Stabat Mater, RV621
7. Ragazzi: Sonata a 4 in F minor, Op.1

On this elegantly crafted, majestically-hued new recording, it opens with Nicola Antonio Porpora’s Il trionfo della divina Giustizia ne’ tormente e morte di Gesù Cristo: and the opulent Ouverture, the stirring Occhi mesti and finally the gently boisterous Per pietà, turba feroce, and that is itself backed up by a pair from Leonardo Vinci: the fervently-charged Oratorio Maria dolorata: Sinfonia and then a majestical pairing that makes up Oratorio a 4 voci: the ornate Chi mi priega and the flourishingly fresh Tutti son del materno mio seno.

Along next is the sextet that makes up Pasquale Anfossi’s Salve Regina: the swirls and twirls within the titular Salve Regina, the spirited Ad te clamamus, the playful Ad te suspiramus, the flirtacious appeal of Eja ergo advocata nostra, and then we get both the adamant Et Jesu benedictum and the strident O clemens, and then comes Giovanni Battista Pergolesi’s three-part Concerto per violino in si bemolle maggiore in B-Flat Major: the skittish Allegro, the languishing beauty of Largo, and then comes the dutiful Allegro.

The album rounds out on Antonio Vivaldi’s Stabat Mater, RV621: opening on the warming Stabat Mater dolorosa, the delicate Cuius animam gementem, the intricate O quam tristis, and the we get brought forth the sumptuous Quis est homo, the veritably stoic Quis non posset contristari, the free flowing nature of Pro peccatis suæ gentis, the set ending on the jaunty Eia Mater, fons amoris, the luxuriant Fac ut ardeat, and the embodied Amen, closing on three parts from Angelo Ragazzi’s Sonata a 4 in F minor, Op.1: the sheer elegance of No.4, Imitatio in Salve Regina mater misericordiæ: in C Minor: I. Andante, the impassioned Adagio, the collection finishing on the almosy crystalline nature of Allegro.

Official Purchase Link

www.andreasscholl.org





Title - Love Music
Artist - Yeol Eum Son & Svetlin Roussev

Following her lyrical and witty complete recording of Mozart’s Keyboard Sonatas, issued by naïve in March 2023, Yeol Eum Son invites Svetlin Roussev to join her in the enticingly subtle harmonic intricacies of Germanic post-Romanticism entitled Love Music.

For their second recital as a duo, the Bulgarian violinist and the Korean pianist follow the course taken by works written over a period of slightly more than half a century by composers or famous performers upon whom Richard Wagner exercised crucial influence.

They take on almost every genre - cinema, opera, chamber music, transcription - treating it in the lyrical, large-scale manner of the Bayreuth master.

During their unexpected, fascinating journey, Svetlin Roussev and Yeol Eum Son chart a variety of pathways, from Waxman to Strauss.

1. Waxman, F: Tristan and Isolde Fantasia
2. Korngold: Glück, das mir verbleib Marietta’s Lied (from Die Tote Stadt)
3. Korngold: Much Ado About Nothing, Op. 11: suite for violin (or cello) & piano
4. Kreisler: Alt-Wiener Tanzweisen
5. Strauss, R: Violin Sonata in E flat major, Op. 18
6. Wagner: Träume (No. 5 from Wesendonck-Lieder)

Featuring music by Waxman, Korngold, Kreisler, Richard Strauss and Wagner, their delightfully impassioned new recording opens the delicate gossamer of Moderately Slow (from Franz Waxman’s Tristan and Isolde Fantasia) and then backs that up with a pair from Erich Wolfgang Korngold: the languishing beauty found within Langsam (Version for Violin and Piano) from Glück, das mir verbleib Marietta’s Lied (from Die Tote Stadt) and the quartet from Much Ado About Nothing, Op. 11: suite for violin (or cello) & piano - the stirring Maiden in the Bridal Chamber, the more strident affair of Dogberry and Verges. March of the Watch, the sheer elegance of Scene in the Garden, culminating on the playfully perky Masquerade. Hornpipe.

Their take on almost every genre – cinema, opera, chamber music, transcription - continues onward with a trio from Fritz Kreisler’s Alt-Wiener Tanzweisen, the veritably cinematic swirls and twirls within Liebesfreud, Allegro, the congenial fare of Liebesleid, Tempo di Landler, and finally we get brought forth the nurtured elegance of Schön Rosmarin, Grazioso.

However, the keystone of the program is unarguably the magnificent Sonata for Violin and Piano that Richard Strauss composed in 1887, Violin Sonata in E flat major, Op. 18, whose trio we listen to now are the intricately woven Allegro, ma non troppo, the aching yearn of Improvisation, Andante cantabile and the sombre fare, at first, yet later flourishing notes that reside within Finale: Andante Allegro, the collection closing on Richard Wagner’s emphatic-hued Träume (No. 5 from Wesendonck-Lieder).

Official Purchase Link

www.yeoleumson.com





Title - Schubert
Artist - Anja Linder

By virtue of her exceptional destiny and her radiant personality, Anja Linder has become one of the most popular and charismatic harpists of her generation. Born into a family of artists, Anja Linder began playing the harp at the Strasbourg Conservatoire. Her encounters with Marie- Claire Jamet and Marielle Nordmann, as well as her literary studies (she obtained a degree in modern literature), were decisive in her career choice.

Alongside the soprano Nathalie Gaude-froy, she won first prize for chamber music at the Arles International Chamber Music Compe- tition in 1999. In 2001, a serious accident forced her to give up her instrument. This event inspired engineers Jean-Marie Panterne and Marc Lamoureux to create a computer-controlled electro-pneumatic harp, the Anjamatic.

This new instrument, which simplifies the use of pedals and opens up new musical possibilities, was taught by Anja at the Strasbourg Conservatoire from 2013 to 2020 and is now being taught in masterclasses throughout Europe.

The prestigious Banque Populaire Foundation selected her as one of its prize-winners in 2010. Passionate about words and music, Anja conceived a musical reading of Milan Kundera’s The Unbearable Lightness of Being.

With the author’s exceptional permission, this project was released by Klarthe Records in 2015 and a year later, President François Hollande awarded her the Chevalier de l’Ordre national du Mérite.

Anja Linder’s new album, in collaboration with cellist Julie Sévilla-Fraysse and violinist Laurent Korcia, is called Schubert and is now available. This album, a tribute to Schubert as its name suggests, presents a selection of pieces that have accompanied the harpist over the years, each resonating in its own way in the artist’s career and life.

1. Schubert: So lasst mich scheinen, D877 No. 3
2. Schubert: Sonata in A minor Arpeggione, D821
3. Schubert: Nachtstück, D672 (Mayrhofer)
4. Schubert: Piano Trio No. 2 in E flat major, D929 - 2nd movement

This dutifully impassioned recording opens on the ornate gossamer of Schubert: So lasst mich scheinen, D877 No. 3 and then brings us the three part Schubert: Sonata in A minor Arpeggione, D821: which first delivers the preciseness of Allegro moderato, the delicate Adagio, and the finery of Allegretto, and they are backed seamlessly by the sheer elegance of Schubert: Nachtstück, D672 (Mayrhofer), closing out on the near ten minute, gracefully tender orchestrations that bring Schubert: Piano Trio No. 2 in E flat major, D929 - 2nd movement forth.

Official Purchase Link

Anja Linder @ Instagram





Title - PSA
Artist - PSA

In the pulsating heart of the Boston jazz scene, a musical alchemy transpires whenever Pritesh Walia’s guitar, Sharik Hasan’s keys/organ/synths, and Avery Logan’s drumsticks collide.

The result? A spellbinding trio, known collectively as PSA, poised to redefine the boundaries of the traditional organ trio.

The genesis of this musical union reads like a serendipitous tale — Walia, Hasan and Logan naturally gravitated towards each other, driven by an insatiable passion for jazz and a shared ambition to breathe new life into the classic organ trio format.

Their collaborative process is the stuff of legend. Almost daily, one of them would bring a musical fragment to the table, a tantalizing kernel of inspiration. What ensued was a collective workshop where each member contributed his unique perspective, refining and sculpting the music until it resonated with the collective essence of PSA. It’s this organic, iterative approach that sets PSA apart, allowing their music to organically evolve into a genre-defying sonic experience.

In anticipation of their self-titled debut album PSA, available Feb 23rd, 2024, PSA beckons listeners into a realm where tradition and innovation dance in harmonious tandem. Far more than a mere collection of tracks, this album is a manifesto — a bold declaration of intent to contemporize the organ trio while paying a respectful homage to its roots.

1. Circle Around
2. Cliff Dunes
3. Dogwood
4. Don’t Look Down
5. Hymn
6. Onward
7. Troxy Fot

Redefining the organ trio with a fusion of classic swing, groove, and jazz, the new recording opens on the frenetically-charged Circle Around and the free-flowing melodies within Cliff Dunes and the lounge-lite Dogwood.

This modernist perspective on the organ trio continues onward with the furtively playful Don’t Look Down, the organ-hued Hymn, and then rounds out with the flirtatious Onward, closing on the organically-cultured Troxy Fot.

www.psatrio.com

PSA @ YouTube





Title - Big George
Artist - One for All

Acclaimed sextet One for All makes its much-anticipated return with Big George, its first release in seven years and its 17th.

The album reunites Eric Alexander, Jim Rotondi, Steve Davis, David Hazeltine, John Webber, and Joe Farnsworth, who are joined on three tracks by a very special guest saxophonist, their mentor and hero, NEA Jazz Master George Coleman.

Called “New York’s premier hard-bop supergroup” by JAZZTIMES, One for All has evolved over the course of its quarter-century history from a sextet of young torchbearers to an assemblage of the music’s most revered traditionalists.

Just how in-demand these six artists have become can be traced by the span of time that elapses between albums. 2016’s THE THIRD DECADE followed its predecessor by five years; seven years of that decade have now passed before the band’s long-awaited follow-up, BIG GEORGE.

1. Chainsaw
2. In the Lead
3. Edgerly
4. Oscar Winner (feat. George Coleman)
5. My Foolish Heart (feat. George Coleman)
6. This I Dig of You (feat. George Coleman)
7. Cove Island Breeze (bonus track)
8. The Nearness of You (bonus track)
9. Leemo (bonus track)

On this delightfully impassioned new recording, we are first brought forth the flourishing Chainsaw and the dutifully-paced In the Lead, and they are backed by the smoothly sculpted Edgerly and the euphorically-charged Oscar Winner (featuring George Coleman).

Along next are a couple again featuring Coleman, the languishing My Foolish Heart and the frenetic This I Dig of You, and they are in turn followed by a delightful trio of bonus tracks in the aptly-titled, low slung Cove Island Breeze, the beautifully aching balladry within The Nearness of You, and the playful Leemo neatly closes things out.

Musicians:
Jim Rotondi - trumpet
Eric Alexander - tenor & alto saxophones
Steve Davis - trombone
David Hazeltine - piano
John Webber - bass
Joe Farnsworth - drums
With special guest: George Coleman - tenor saxophone

Official Purchase Link

One For All @ Facebook





Title - Being Human
Artist - Lynne Arriale Trio

Being Human, pianist-composer Lynne Arriale’s 17th album as a leader, is her fourth for Challenge Records International. Joining Lynne are bassist Alon Near and drummer Lukasz Zyta in a suite of original compositions that explores life-affirming facets of humankind.

Being Human is dedicated to the things that define our better nature, and to those individuals, whether celebrated or unsung, who personify them.

In recent years, Lynne’s compositions and albums have reflected current social issues. Chimes of Freedom (2020) highlights the worldwide immigration crisis and the experiences of refugees who risk everything to find a better life for themselves and their families.

The Lights Are Always On (2022) examines the life-changing events wrought by COVID-19. Some compositions are named in honor of heroes, including those who served as caregivers on the front lines of the pandemic and those who defended American democracy.

In Being Human, Lynne’s compositions celebrate the ways our lives are enriched by passion, courage, love, persistence, heart, soul, curiosity, faith, and joy. Responding to the negative effects of polarization in society and culture, Lynne created this album as an affirmation of love, hope, and unity.

It is a musical inspiration to fully appreciate the incredible potential in each of us, and to live our lives individually and collectively as the best expression of what it means to be human.

I wrote this suite in response to the division and turmoil in our world, she reveals. The music focuses on qualities we all share; that define our humanity. I hope this album will be uplifting and convey a sense of unity and optimism. The dedications reflect my admiration for those who I feel personify the traits that inspired the music.

1. Passion
2. Courage
3. Love
4. Faith
5. Curiosity
6. Soul
7. Persistence
8. Heart
9. Gratitude
10. Joy
11. Love (Reprise)

On this beautifully crafted new recording, Arriale opens on the ornately sculpted Passion (dedicated to Greta Thunberg) and the forthright Courage (dedicated to the Ukrainian people), and they are followed by the quieter, more methodical fare of Love (dedicated to humankind), the free flowing Faith (dedicated to those of faith), and then we get the playfully perky Curiosity (dedicated to Jacob Barnett) brought forth.

Along next is the quietly spirited Soul (dedicated to Amanda Gorman) and the textured Persistence (dedicated to Malala Yousafzai) and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the ambient Heart (dedicated to Khrystyna Lopatenko), the pure gossamer of Gratitude (dedicated to Mattie Stepanek), the album rounding out on the unrestrained Joy (dedicated to Brené Brown), closing on am almost Choir-hued Love (Reprise).

Official Purchase Link

www.lynnearriale.com





Title - Born to Get Down/Doin’ It to the Bone/Shine On
Artist - Muscle Shoals Horns

The legendary Muscle Shoals Horns played with some of the biggest artists of all time including James Brown, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, Robert Palmer, Elton John and Paul McCartney to name but a few.

Furthermore, Muscle Shoals Horns were inducted into Nashville’s Musicians Hall Of Fame And Museum in 2019.

Summing up the group’s achievements and pinpointing the reason for their success, Ronnie Eades highlighted the quartet’s strength as a unit, their camaraderie, and their “one-for- all, all-for-one” ethos. “We were a team, a well-oiled machine,” he stated with perceptible pride. “We worked together, ate together, slept together, did everything together. We knew each other’s thoughts… We did well and really had a good run.”Born to Get Down/Doin’ It to the Bone/Shine On 2CD includes sleeve notes by Charles Waring who writes for MOJO, Record Collector and uDiscover Music.

If you have never heard these albums before, trust me when I say that you are in for a real treat.

Disc One: “Born To Get Down”
1. Open Up Your Heart
2. Break Down
3. Where I’m Coming From
4. Hustle To The Music
5. Who’s Gonna Love You
6. Bump De Bump Yo Boodie
7. Born To Get Down (Born To Mess Around)
8. Get It Up
9. Give It To Me
10. Bump De Bump Yo Boodie (7″ Version) [Bonus Track]
11. Where I’m Coming From (7″ Version) [Bonus Track]
12. Born To Get Down (Born To Mess Around) (7” Version)[Bonus Track]

“Doin’ It To The Bone”
13. Dance To The Music
14. Addicted To Your Love
15. I Just Wanna Turn You On
16. A Love For You [And A Love For Me]
17. What’s Goin’ Down
18. Sexual Revolution
19. Can’t Break The Habit

The first disc features “Born To Get Down” which was their debut album for Bang Records. Produced by Barry Beckett and backed by the cream of the Muscle Shoals studio talent, this set was a complete surprise to come out in the day.

Who would have expected a horn-based outfit to debut with so much enthusiasm. The album was simply terrific and they avoided the dreaded trap of disco banality to perfection.

Containing the fervent joy of Break Down and the magnificently soulful Where I’m Coming From, the Swampers also added the aptly-named Hustle To The Music, the moody R&B of Who’s Gonna Love You, and one of my own personal favorites, the ode to an amazing era of music within Bump De Bump Yo Boodie.

After all that we next get “Doin’ It To The Bone” which was the Muscle Shoals Horns’ second album for Arlola Records. The members of Muscle Shoals Horns were Harrison Calloway (trumpet), Harvey Thompson (saxophone, flute), Charles Rose (trombone), Ronnie Eades (baritone saxophone).

The Muscle Shoals sound in the 1960’s and 1970’s became legendary hard southern soul and hard southern funk. Very raw and bluesy, whereas in Detroit or in Philly, soul artists were using lavish orchestration and string sections back then.

The Muscle Shoals Horns didn’t record a lot of albums of their own, but they backed a lot of major soul and rock artists and the best of the best from this album include the diligently hued Addicted To Your Love, the soul ballad Love For You [And A Love For Me], and both the R&B hipsway of What’s Goin’ Down and the invigorating Sexual Revolution.

Disc Two: “Doin’ It To The Bone” (Continued)
1. Keep On Playin’ That Funky Music
2. Doin’ It To The Bone
3. Beware Of The Rip-Off
4. I Just Wanna Turn You On (12” Version) [Bonus Track]

“Shine On”
5. Celebrate, Recreate, Participate
6. Don’t Bust Yo’ Bubbles
7. She Was Once My Woman
8. Get Down Tonight
9. We Can Work It Out
10. Shine On
11. Shoalin’ (Funky N’ Half-Hip)
12. More Than Ever Now
13. If You Don’t Want My Lovin’ (Give It Back)

The second disc continues onward with more of “Doin’ It To The Bone” and, in particular, the soulful funk of Keep On Playin’ That Funky Music and a brilliant, fresh 12” version of I Just Wanna Turn You On.

And then comes the third album “Shine On” which was also the Muscle Shoals Horns’ last album for Monument Records. Shine On contains the musical highlights such as Celebrate, Recreate, Participate, Don’t Bust Yo’ Bubbles and She Was Once My Woman.

Delicious horn arrangements are what grabs the listener instantly throughout the recording, and becomes the kind of production you would never expect in 1983, a year dominated by the electro feel. This surprising fusion of the nasty JB’s with the smooth Shakatak is a real treat to the hardcore lovers of Soul Music.

Muscle Shoals Horn were smoothly earthy and jazzy but cleverly brings out you wild side by blowing your party head off with contemporary killer grooves like the aforementioned Don’t Bust Yo’ Bubbles.

Official Purchase Link

www.cherryred.co.uk





Title - We Need The Wind
Artist - Brian Scarborough

Brian Scarborough is a standout trombonist who has made a mark for himself both as a performer and composer. With music described as “…simultaneously stimulating and accessible, refreshingly modern and rooted in tradition,” (Chicago Jazz Magazine), Scarborough continues his trend of blending tradition with innovation as he presents his second album as a bandleader, We Need The Wind.

Lauded by trombone legend Michael Dease as a recording that “beautifully capture[s]… Scarborough’s attractive tone and vibrant melodic playing,” We Need The Wind once more showcases the brilliantly organic melodies that Scarborough is known for, yet steps boldly into an exploration of new colors and harmonies.

Conceptually inspired by Scarborough’s own restorative healing process as an artist following the COVID-era pandemic, We Need The Wind paradoxically stands as both deeply introspective yet universally appealing.

1. Broken
2. 3E
3. We Need The Wind
4. The Long Road Back
5. Strange Bird
6. One Of Time
7. Central Standard Time
8. Sevens
9. The Way It’s Supposed To Be

The album opens on the quietly furtive, stealthy Broken and then brings us the upbeat 3E, before bringing us the laid back We Need The Wind and the sumptuous The Long Road Back.

Along next is the groove-laden, upright bass-led Strange Bird and the languishing One Of Time and they are in turn backed by the indelible Central Standard Time, rounding out on the late night lounge vibe of Sevens, closing on the flirtatiously upbeat The Way It’s Supposed To Be.

Autobiographical in concept, We Need The Wind is an emotive, honest album that wears its composer’s heart on its sleeve. Steeped in the earnest feelings Scarborough experienced at the point each composition was created, the album – and its intentional track placement – allows a listener to step into the shoes of the artist as he wrestles with the world changing, begins to understand and hope again, and takes steps to grow ever higher through the experience that had once felt shattering.

“Inspired by experiences and emotions felt during the global pandemic, and reflecting upon the state of society and the world at large, this project reflects on my experiences during this deeply troubling time,” Scarborough says. “We Need The Wind documents my journey through this experience and the healing process, personally and artistically.”

www.brianscarboroughmusic.com

www.outsideinmusic.com





Title - Words Unspoken
Artist - John Surman

The album title – Words Unspoken – alludes to the instant musical understanding found by the members of this nimble quartet assembled by great British reedman John Surman.

“My idea was to put together some musical ideas that would offer a collective sense of purpose but still be open enough to allow each of us to suggest other ways of developing the material together. Everything fell into place immediately. But I soon realized it wasn’t so much the musical ideas that made it work, it was the musicians.”

Surman and US vibraharpist Rob Waring – both residents of Oslo – had previously collaborated in John’s Invisible Threads trio with Nelson Ayres, but the associations with Norwegian drummer Thomas Strønen and UK guitarist Rob Luft were new.

With these four quick-witted players, all debate takes place in the music, stimulated by Surman’s strongly melodic themes and improvisational imagination. Words Unspoken is issued as the quartet gears up for international touring.

1. Pebble Dance (6:18)
2. Words Unspoken (6:34)
3. Graviola (6:07)
4. Flower In Aspic (5:22)
5. Precipice (5:28)
6. Around The Edges (4:19)
7. Onich Ceilidh (8:06)
8. Belay That (7:22)
9. Bitter Aloe (5:11)
10. Hawksmoor (6:52)

This vibrantly alive, dutifully hued new album opens on the sprightly, at first, cultured and empathic thereafter Pebble Dance and the fluctuating, low slung, titular Words Unspoken, and they are followed by the beautiful evenflow of Graviola, and then we get the embodied Flower In Aspic and the confident Precipice.

Along next is the shimmering Around The Edges and the delicately hued Onich Ceilidh and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the stoically ethereal Belay That, the recording rounding out on the quietly playful Bitter Aloe, closing on the sensitively sculpted Hawksmoor.

Surman, who turns 80 in 2024, has been a vital force in European jazz and adjacent genres for more than half a century, already establishing himself as a unique soloist in the 1960s in groups led by Mike Westbrook and Chris McGregor.

The band called just The Trio, with Surman and Americans Barre Phillips and Stu Martin, was one of the defining improvising groups of its era, and it was with this line-up that Surman first appeared on ECM, on Barre Phillips’s Mountainscapes in 1976. This was followed, in 1978, by Surman’s Upon Reflection.

Since then, he has appeared on ECM in the broadest range of contexts. These range from solo recordings (including the acclaimed Private City and Road To St Ives) to large ensembles - among them the John Surman/John Warren Brass Project, the Proverbs and Songs project with the Salisbury Festival Chorus, and Free and Equal with London Brass.

And from duos (with Jack DeJohnette, Howard Moody) to transcultural projects (Anouar Brahem’s Thimar trio with Dave Holland, and John Potter’s early music-aligned Dowland Project). Surman has collaborated with the string quartet Trans4mation (on The Spaces In Between and Corruscating), and fronted his own groups on the albums Nordic Quartet (with Karin Krog, Terje Rypdal and Vigleik Storaas), Stranger Than Fiction (with John Taylor, Chris Laurence and John Marshall) and Brewster’s Rooster (with John Abercrombie, Drew Gress and Jack DeJohnette).

He has also been an important contributor to projects led by Paul Bley, Miroslav Vitous, Tomasz Stanko, Misha Alperin and Mick Goodrick.

In all, a richly creative discography.

Unspoken Words was recorded at Oslo’s Rainbow Studio in December 2022, and is issued as the band embarks on its first European tour.

Official Purchase Link

www.ecmrecords.com





Title - Touch Of Time
Artist - Arve Henriksen & Harmen Fraanje

A striking musical rapport between Norwegian trumpeter Arve Henriksen and Dutch pianist Harmen Fraanje is palpable in the duo’s quietly lyrical investigations on Touch of Time.

These are delicate melodies and textures, flowing between two musicians, who are deeply in tune with nuances of tone-shadings and the detailed development of a musical idea.

In both freely improvised forms and carefully wrought themes, their instruments connect gracefully, picking up and finishing each other’s phrases. Touch of Time, recorded in January 2023 at the Auditorio Stelio Molo in Lugano, was produced by Manfred Eicher.

1. Melancholia (3:58)
2. The Beauty Of Sundays (3:29)
3. Redream (8:45)
4. The Dark Light (4:00)
5. What All This Is (3:51)
6. Mirror Images (2:48)
7. Touch Of Time (3:18)
8. Winter Haze (1:10)
9. Red And Black (2:39)
10. Passing On The Past (4:13)

This beautifully crafted opus of notes opens on the aptly-titled aching yearn within Melancholia and the delicate gossamer of The Beauty Of Sundays, and they are followed by the reaching, the impassioned Redream, and then we get the touching The Dark Light and the stirring What All This Is.

Along next is the compelling notes brought forth within What All This Is and the subtly fragile Mirror Images and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the ornate, titular Touch Of Time, the recording rounding out on the graceful Winter Haze, the slightly sterner fare of Red And Black, closing on the glistening Passing On The Past.

Arve and Harmen: “We consider Touch of Time to be exactly where we meet in music. Although there are solid structures within these pieces, we form the material very freely, as a holistic process, rather than a static approach borne from preconception.”

The music was shaped together with Manfred Eicher, who produced the album, recorded at the Auditorio Stelio Molo in Lugano in early 2023.

Official Purchase Link

www.ecmrecords.com





Title - The Blue Land
Artist - Matthieu Bordenave

For the follow-up of his ECM-leader-debut La traversée, French saxophonist Matthieu Bordenave expands his trio of German pianist Florian Weber and Swiss bassist Patrice Moret with the unique sensibilities of drummer James Maddren, whose unrelenting pulse adds deft counterpoint to the group’s already idiosyncratic sound.

Besides the soulfully angular rendering of John Coltrane’s “Compassion”, the quartet tackles eight Bordenave-originals that bridge the gap between chamber-jazz dynamics and post-swing designs. Weber and Bordenave’s oblique approach to their instruments – Bordenave can be heard on both tenor and soprano sax – coalesce seamlessly, spinning unanticipated lines over a highly interactive rhythm section.

The Blue Land was recorded in Pernes-Les-Fontaines in 2022, and produced by Manfred Eicher.

1. La Porte Entrouverte (5:43)
2. The Blue Land (5:21)
3. Compassion (5:32)
4. Cyrus (3:41)
5. Refraction (4:42)
6. Distance (4:01)
7. Three Four (6:04)
8. Timbre (4:41)
9. Three Peaks (4:16)

This magnificent sculpted, melodic majesty of sounds opens on the delicate elegance of La Porte Entrouverte and the foreboding, titular The Blue Land, and they are followed by the rangy John Coltrane cut Compassion, and then we get the gracefully tender Cyprus.

Along next is the heartwarming Refraction and the rhythmically-driven Distance and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the limber Three Four, the recording rounding out on the gently euphoric Timbre, closing on the deep-seated melodies formulated within Three Peaks.

Matthieu and Florian have been playing together for about ten years, originally collaborating on a project revolving around on the music of Edith Piaf – The Blue Land is their second studio collaboration to date.

The same is true for Patrice Moret, who joined the duo just before La Traversée. James Maddren can be heard here for the second time on the label, after his contribution as part of Kit Downes’s trio on 2022’s Vermillion.

The Blue Land was recorded in Pernes-Les-Fontaines in 2022 and produced by Manfred Eicher.

Official Purchase Link

www.ecmrecords.com





Title - Don’t Follow Me, I’m Lost Too (Expanded)
Artist - Pearl Harbour

“I am happy to report that I had too much fun making this album,” Pearl Gates reveals. “I moved to London from San Francisco in May of 1980 at the suggestion of my friend Kosmo Vinyl, who was the personal manager for both The Clash and Ian Dury & The Blockheads. I had just finished touring with my San Francisco band, Pearl Harbor And The Explosions, and I wanted a change. I wanted to sing rock and roll songs, but they weren’t up for it. So off to London I went to pursue a solo career and meet and work with some of London’s greatest rock and roll musicians.”

“My record label, Warner Bros, changed the spelling of my last name from Harbor, to Harbour, as that is the British way of spelling the name. Kosmo made all of the arrangements for members of both The Clash and The Blockheads, as well as a cast of other talented characters, to record this album with me. I had a blast! Sex and drugs and rock and roll.....Yah Hoo!”

“I hadn’t been to London since I was eleven years old, so I had a lot to learn. I wasn’t familiar with the pub scene, where you arrive at the pub at lunchtime, have a few pints, go home or back to work, and then return to the pub at dinner time. It was great! I conducted all of my music business in various pubs in the East and West Ends of London. Very civilized, if you ask me!”

“I met all kinds of interesting characters in London, including Nigel Dixon, front man of the rockabilly band Whirlwind. Rockabilly was popular in certain old school circles and I thoroughly enjoyed going to those clubs and watching everyone in their ’50s clothes, line dancing and jumping about like Jerry Lee Lewis on speed! What a culture shock...., I’d never seen anything like it. This scene had a big influence on me and the making of this album. The rockabilly scene was still more of an underground scene back then.”

“This was before the Stray Cats arrived and it, like punk, was fresh and exciting. There were amazing ’50s record stalls in some of the flea markets that had the best, most obscure records I had ever seen. I was impressed! Nigel’s band Whirlwind were one of the only rockabilly bands playing and recording at that time, so when Kosmo introduced me to him, it was a dream come true. We got together a few nights a week to write songs for this album and talk about ’50s music. I told him I wanted to “speed up” old school rock and roll and rhythm and blues to create a new sound.”

“After we had enough material to record an album, Kosmo and I put together an amazing group of some of the best rock and roll musicians in London. The result is what I would call a new version of old school music, three-minute songs with minimal overdubs and rehearsals, and all recorded and mixed in only three weeks! This was at a time when most people took months to make an album. We all felt that real rock and roll should be short and sweet with little or no frills attached.”

1. ALONE IN THE DARK
2. FUJIYAMA MAMA
3. EVERYBODY’S BORING BUT MY BABY
4. YOU’RE IN TROUBLE AGAIN
5. DO YOUR HOMEWORK
6. COWBOYS & INDIANS
7. LOSING TO YOU
8. FILIPINO BABY 9. LET’S GO UPSTAIRS
10. ROUGH KIDS
11. OUT WITH THE GIRLS
12. HEAVEN IS GONNA BE EMPTY
13. AT THE DENTIST
14. NERVES
15. YOU GOT ME ALL WRONG
16. VOODOO VOODOO
17. YOU DON’T FOOL ME
18. WHAT I SHOULD HAVE SAID
19. I CAN’T TELL YOU ON THE PHONE

This emphatically-charged live set opens on the hauntingly rambunctious ALONE IN THE DARK, the alt-punk rocker FUJIYAMA MAMA and the horn-driven EVERYBODY’S BORING BUT MY BABY, and then come the rhythmic hipsway of YOU’RE IN TROUBLE AGAIN, the sax-driven rock of DO YOUR HOMEWORK, the countrified twang that flows throughout COWBOYS & INDIANS, before we are brought forth the languishing heartbreak sewn within LOSING TO YOU, the upbeat FILIPINO BABY, the drum-led rocker LET’S GO UPSTAIRS and then the propellant ROUGH KIDS.

Up next is the guitar fest that drives OUT WITH THE GIRLS, the melodic finger-snapper HEAVEN IS GONNA BE EMPTY, the fun storytelling within AT THE DENTIST and then we get the frenetically-charged NERVES, which are in turn backed by the alt-pop-rocker YOU GOT ME ALL WRONG, the southern blues rock that drives VOODOO VOODOO, the recording rounding out on it’s B-side, the foot-tapping YOU DON’T FOOL ME, the emphatic WHAT I SHOULD HAVE SAID, coming to a close on the free flowing alt-pop I CAN’T TELL YOU ON THE PHONE.

Continuing her story, she also makes it clear that each musician added their own personal style to make Don’t Follow Me, I’m Lost Too a very special album and that she is truly thankful to have had them play on this album.

Indeed, these following six musicians were the core of the band that played on every song:

Wilko Johnson (Dr. Feelgood/Ian Dury & The Blockheads), provided steady, machine gun rhythm guitar
Nigel Dixon (Whirlwind) played rockabilly twang and rhythm guitar
Steve New (Rich Kids) played some of the weirdest, off the wall guitar solos
Paul Simonon (The Clash) played his signature simple, bouncy bass lines
Topper Headon (The Clash) played some of the best drum beats in rock and roll
Steve Goulding (Graham Parker and The Rumour), who along with Topper, played pounding simple beats that complimented each other. Minimal cymbals and heavy on the toms!

Some of the special guests that played on this album were: Mick Jones (The Clash) on lead guitar; Geraint Watkins (Nick Lowe, Dave Edmunds) on keyboards; BJ Cole on pedal steel guitar, and Gary Barnacle on saxophone.

The album was produced by Micky Gallagher, the keyboard player with Ian Dury & The Blockheads.
“I loved making this album, but unfortunately the record company wasn’t happy with it and, as a result, only pressed a minimal amount of records and provided little to no promotion.”

“Therefore, I am super thankful to now have this opportunity to re-release Don’t Follow Me, I’m Lost Too. Play it LOUD, and ENJOY !!!”

Official Album Purchase

www.liberationhall.com





Title - 1980
Artist - The Contractions

For those unaware, several U.S. cities hosted punk and new wave scenes in the 1970s; in many ways, San Francisco’s was among the most wide-encompassing and egalitarian. But for every act that broke through nationally, several others of merit stayed largely a local secret. Among the most significant of those was an all-woman trio known as The Contractions.

During their time together (1979 – 1984), The Contractions not only built a local following, but toured nationally, and released a pair of singles and an album. Now – with the cooperation of the group’s three founding members, and thanks to the live recording endeavors of archivist Terry Hammer – this live compilation from two SF dates comes as a worthy addition to the group’s catalog.

In her youth, Mary Kelley was inspired in equal parts by her mother’s collection of 1940s pop and jazz, orchestral music, San Francisco counterculture radio and concerts featuring British Invasion bands like Pink Floyd, The Who, The Kinks and Led Zeppelin. After years playing piano and French horn, Mary switched to guitar, and when punk started bubbling under in the Bay Area, she was hooked.

Deb Hopkins, on the other hand, first picked up her drumsticks as a child. “I got my first drum kit the summer between sixth and seventh grade,” she recalls. Her dyslexia would prove a creative advantage, as she created her own drum parts and committed them to memory rather than reading musical notation. At one point she auditioned for No Sisters, but she didn’t get the gig. “They told me they didn’t think I was strong enough, hard hitting enough, to play their music,” she says. Taking that rejection as a challenge, Deb bought the fattest drum sticks she could find. “I got strong,” she says, “and I got strong fast.”

Deb recalls that her drumming prowess impressed her friend Lisa Wexler, daughter of legendary record producer Jerry Wexler. “She repeatedly said to me, ‘You should be playing with Mary!’” Lisa brought the two of them together in her living room with the goal of having them jam on Mary’s original songs. “And we hit it off,” Mary says. The two agreed to meet again, acknowledging that they’d need a bassist to complete the trio.

At the time, Mary leased a warehouse in the heart of SF’s Mission District, The Manor (later rechristened Contraction Manor), where she hosted a sculpture show by renowned artist Paul Lindhard. One attendee was Kathy Peck. “She told me she played bass and wrote songs,” Mary recalls. “I kinda lied,” says Kathy. In fact, Kathy had taken piano lessons starting at age five, and started writing songs immediately. By the time she met up with Mary and Deb, she was plugged into the nascent punk scene, thanks in part to husband Don’s gig with punk pioneer Mary Monday.

“So we invited Kathy to a practice at Iguana Studios,” Deb recalls. “It was clear immediately that the chemistry was there, and that Kathy had what we were missing: punk style.” She also had some original songs. But what Kathy didn’t have was a great deal of experience on bass. “I saw that as an advantage,” Deb says. “Her being a novice musician gave us the rough edges and simplicity that helped us fit in. We were all three so different, but we had immediate chemistry. And we laughed a lot.”

There was never any plan for The Contractions to be a group of woman musicians. “I don’t think we ever talked about it,” Deb says today. “It just happened.” And from the beginning, they were adamant that their all-female lineup not be viewed as a gimmick.

1. Shut the Door (Slam It)
2. Breaking Up Is Not Hard to Do
3. No Questions
4. Water Beast
5. Shadow Boy
6. Tribute to Industry
7. Magazine Phobia
8. End of the World
9. Secretary Sacrifice
10. Saw My Baby
11. Rules and Regulations
12. You Touched Me
13. Early Warning
14. Bewitching Me

This thunderously active alt-punk live set opens on the pulsating foot-tapper Shut the Door (Slam It), the drum-led, rhythmic alt-rock of Breaking Up Is Not Hard to Do, and the Debbie Harryesque sung No Questions, and they are in turn backed by the low slung, bass-imbibed Water Beast, the alt-punk reach that drives Shadow Boy, and the propulsive Tribute to Industry and the powerfully melodic Magazine Phobia.

Up next is the bass-led beauty End of the World, the foot to the floor, melodic rocker Secretary Sacrifice and the rousing Saw My Baby, and then we get brought forth the on point Rules and Regulations, the mid-tempo ballad, for the most part, You Touched Me, the set rounding out on the rhythmically winding Early Warning, closing on the pop-prog-AOR of Bewitching Me.

Continuing their story, and each of the women wrote songs on her own; the musical arrangements were collaborative. “We thought of ourselves as a three-legged chair,” Mary says. “Always a team. It wasn’t The Contractions without the three of us.” The group worked out of Truth and Beauty Labs, the rehearsal/recording studio built by Mary and her business partner Joe Schlesinger.

Kathy and Mary wrote most of the band’s material, but Deb contributed “You’re Making Me Crazy” and others. And while The Contractions were punk in attitude, their music wasn’t pure punk: Mary characterizes some of her songs – like “Breaking Up is Not Hard to Do” and “Water Beast” – as orchestral or cinematic.

The band’s first gig was at Deaf Club, opening for the Offs and No Alternative. “I recall feeling like a fish out of water, but the audience was appreciative,” says Deb. Their success there led to spots playing on bills with many legendary Bay Area groups including Dead Kennedys, The Offs, No Sisters, SVT, Jim Carroll, Flipper, and The Mutants. The Contractions also shared stages with no-wave pioneer Glenn Branca, The Go-Go’s, Duran Duran, and Bush Tetras.

The Contractions 1980 is culled from two performances at Ness Aquino’s Mabuhay Gardens. By day a Filipino restaurant, at night the space became Ground Zero for Bay Area punk and new wave. Notorious emcee Dirk Dirksen was a friend of the band, but as was his wont, he teased them endlessly, and would often introduce them this way: “And here they are, the Contraptions!”

“People described us as ‘musically dangerous,’” says Deb Hopkins. “Years later, I am still meeting women who tell me that they decided to learn an instrument and start a band after seeing us. And that is what I hope our legacy is: empowering females to play music, and to expect to be treated and respected for their music and not treated like sex objects.”

“We had fun and I learned a lot,” says Kathy Peck. “I feel very fortunate that I could play with Mary and Deb: it was like ‘no net below us.’”

“I look from inside the band, so I don’t have a pure sense of what The Contractions’ legacy is,” says Mary Kelley. “For me, we showed up, kicked ass and took names. We were out there. We happened.”

Official Album Purchase

www.liberationhall.com





Title - Scarlet: The Old Waldorf August 1979
Artist - Shakin’ Street

For those unaware, Scarlet (out now via Liberation Hall) is the 1979 live album from the hard rock band Shakin’ Street that featured female singer Fabienne Shine and Ross “The Boss” Friedman (The Dicattors, Manowar) on lead guitar.

In 1975, alongside guitarist Eric Lévi, she formed a group in Paris that eventually became known as Shakin’ Street. After releasing the debut album Vampire Rock on CBS Records in 1978, Shakin’ Street relocated to San Francisco to cut a follow-up LP.

Shine asked Sandy Pearlman to produce, impressed by the hard, metallic sound he routinely captured for Blue Öyster Cult.

In 1980, Shakin’ Street embarked on The Black and Blue Tour as openers for the Ronnie James Dio line-up of Black Sabbath, alongside Blue Öyster Cult. Scarlet: The Old Waldorf, 1979 was recorded during the same period as the Automatt sessions for 1980’s Shakin’ Street LP. The group was opening for the Jim Carroll Band and the show was captured by KALX radio deejay and producer Terry Hammer.

The title track, “Scarlet” was never previously released anywhere, fans loved it when performed live during the 1979 American tour with Sandy Perlman. This release is extremely special for fans of Black Sabbath, Blue Oyster Cult, Joan Jett and The Plasmatics.

1. Solid As A Rock
2. Soul Dealer
3. Generation X
4. Where Are You Babe
5. Blues Is THE Same
6. Scarlet
7. Every Man, Every Woman Is A Star
8. Suzie Wong
9. No Time To Lose
10. I Want To Box You
11. No Compromise
12. I Want To Be Your Dog
13. Vampire Rock

This deliciously dated alt-punk live set opens on the fist in the air, anthemic Solid As A Rock and the rhythmic rocker Soul Dealer and then we get the propulsive guitar rocker Generation X, the alt-rock gem Where Are You Babe, the languishing Blues Is THE Same, before both the foot-tapping rocker, titular Scarlet and the melodic hipsway that threads throughout Every Man, Every Woman Is A Star is brought forth.

Along next is the mid-tempo ballad Suzie Wong and the ferocious, guitar-fused No Time To Lose, and they are in turn backed by the spiraling I Want To Box You, the aching reach of the organically-imbibed No Compromise, the set rounding out on their impassioned rendition of Iggy Pop’s I Wanna Be Your Dog, closing on the frenetically-charged, vivaciously-hued Vampire Rock.

By the early ‘70s globetrotting Shine had befriended members of Led Zeppelin. She became romantically entangled with guitarist Jimmy Page; he and Robert Plant encouraged Shine’s musical pursuits, urging her to put together a group of her own.

“I had always been singing with bands,” Shine recalls. “But little bands, for a month or two or three; not really seriously. I didn’t know what to do, plus I didn’t meet someone with whom I could record or compose songs.” One night she went to a Paris club to see a band featuring some friends including Jean-Louis Aubert, who would soon form influential francophone rock band Téléphone.

At one point during the sparsely-attended show, Shine joined the band onstage. Afterward, she was approached by a young man. “This guy asked me, ‘Do you want to make a band?’” Shine recalls with an incredulous laugh. “Very presumptuous!” But Shine was intrigued, and so she and guitarist Eric Lévi put together a group, initially called Speedball. “Stupid name,” Shine admits. “Embarrassing.”

The hard-rocking band would feature original songs composed by Shine and Lévi. “You can’t imagine what a beautiful voice I had,” Shine says. But anyone hearing the band in its earliest days might not have picked up on that quality. “We [plugged] the microphone into a guitar amp,” she recalls with a laugh. The band practiced in a small space at a local university, and built up a set of songs.

Working with their first manager Mark Zermati, the new group landed high-profile opening slots across the Channel in England, supporting The Damned and other groups in the nascent punk scene. And from the very start, Shine sang in English, not French. “Always in English,” she emphasizes.

Fabienne Shine cut an imposing figure onstage, her background as a model and actor serving her well. “I knew how to pose,” she says. But her focus was primarily on the music. As an actress, I knew how to interpret the songs,” she says. “When I sing the songs, I really feel [them]. When I sing a song like “Solid as a Rock,” it feels like a revolution.”

By 1976, rock music was undergoing a revolution of its own. Bands like Sex Pistols, the Ramones and Television were stripping away the polish and filigree, serving up a rawer brand of rock. And while Shine’s group was something of a kindred spirit with such groups, Shine never considered her group a punk band. “Hard rock,” she insists. “I always loved hard rock.”

Nevertheless, Shine’s songs often dealt with lyrical subjects more akin to punk. “I wrote a song about rats once,” she recalls. “Living up in the hills, I had some; they would come and eat the fruits, and they came inside the house. So I had to write a song about them!”

Zermati “hated our name,” Shine says, so he had rechristened the band Shakin’ Street. But the band found out about their new name in an unusual way. Shine recalls how it happened: “He told us, ‘You’re going to do a festival with all these fabulous artists: The Police, Eddie and the Hot Rods, the Clash.’”

The band was backstage in a former bullfighting ring in Mont-de-Marsan in the south of France when they heard an announcement over the PA: Shakin’ Street would be appearing next. “Nobody was going onstage, of course,” Shine laughs. “So Mark came backstage and said, ‘Shut up! Just go and sing and play!’ And that’s how we became Shakin’ Street.”

The group’s debut album Vampire Rock was released on CBS Records in 1978. All but two of the record’s nine songs were co-written by Shine and Lévi; the others were a Shine solo composition (“Where Are You Babe”) and a roaring rock cover of the Rolling Stones’ Between the Buttons album track “Yesterday’s Papers.”

Mark Zermati brought the band members to a Blue Öyster Cult concert. After the show – “absolutely fabulous,” gushes Shine. “I was blown away by their hard rock, metallic sound” – Fabienne made a point of seeking out the group’s manager/producer/sometime songwriter. It took some effort, but she found Sandy Pearlman (“He was very shy,” Shine explains).

“And so I said to him, in my then-very big French accent, ‘Are you Sandy Pearlman?” When he answered yes, Shine continued. “I want you to produce our next album!” Pearlman asked for a copy of Vampire Rock to help in his decision. Once he heard the band’s music, he said yes. “That changed our lives, my life especially,” Shine says. “Because I ended up leaving France and becoming American.”

By the time sessions got underway with Pearlman producing at The Automatt in San Francisco for the second, self-titled LP, the band’s original lead guitarist was gone. “He was absolutely wonderful,” Shine says, “But unfortunately he sold his guitar for some drugs. So we had to say, ‘Bye bye!’” In his place came Ross “the Boss” Friedman of the Dictators and Manowar. “We had love at first sight,” Shine says. “He was really crazy about us… and he was good.”

Shakin’ Street quickly developed a dedicated following in their new adopted home of San Francisco. “We stared playing small clubs,” Shine recalls, “but we couldn’t [keep playing there] because there was a one kilometer line; people couldn’t get in!” One of those small clubs was the 660-seat Old Waldorf at 444 Battery Street. The show captured by broadcaster and rock archivist Terry Hammer and featured on this release dates from the period before Shakin’ Street’s second LP hit the shelves.

“We opened for Jim Carroll that night,” Shine recalls. Shakin’ Street’s high energy set featured four songs from their debut, seven songs from their then-upcoming second album (all written by Shine and Lévi), and two songs that aren’t documented on any officially-sanctioned release: the original “Scarlet” and a cover of the Stooges’ “I Wanna Be Your Dog.”

The band soon found itself opening for BÖC. “And then we did a full American tour with Black Sabbath,” Shine says with pride. And while she is rightly proud of both of her band’s studio releases from those early years, Fabienne Shine agrees that live onstage is the best way to experience Shakin’ Street. “I really think we’re a live band,” she says. “We’re really good on stage. Always have been.”

Official Album Purchase

www.liberationhall.com





Title - People & Love (180 Gram Vinyl LP)
Artist - Johnny Lytle

Available on vinyl for the first time since its original release 50 years ago, the downtempo-funk extravaganza People & Love is a crate-digger’s treasure chest, filled with soul-jazz grooves and mesmerizing vibraphone textures laid down by Johnny Lytle, who was touted as the greatest vibes player in the world by the big band legend Lionel Hampton.

The album was cut from the original analog tapes (AAA) by Kevin Gray, pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI, and comes packaged in a tip-on jacket.

Side A:
1. Where Is The Love?
2. Libra
3. Family

Side B:
4. Tawhid
5. People Make The World Go ’Round

I would hope by now that everybody knows that rock and soul music changed dramatically when psychedelics came on the scene! Much jazz, though, with the exception of Creed Taylor’s R&B fused KUDU label, continued on a straight ahead, traditional path, even dwindling from Big Bands to quartets or trios.

But this superb Johnny Lytle album People & Love, is full of shimmering surprises as he works away on his vibraphone, unleashing a whole smorgasbord of fantastical musical colors to come to the fore and capture the imagination.

All his followers knew he was a soul man from the word go, and thus People & Love finds him diving ever deeper into the soul-jazz groove. The results are successful, to say the least. The term soul-jazz commonly invokes visions of dripping Hammond’s and syrupy guitars, but by 1972, as aforementioned, things had changed a bit.

The kind of soul-jazz represented here is a hazy, swirling, and ultimately much deeper vibe than that heard on, say, the classic Blue Note and Prestige sessions usually associated with this tag.

For me personally, the stand out tracks include the luxuriant Libra, the heavily impassioned funky grooves that ebb and flow within Tawhid, and a track that was actually sampled in 1997 by alternative hip hop duo from Queens, New York Organized Konfusion, the affluently-sculpted Family.

In short, what we have here is a fantastically trippy collection of a quintet of high caliber material, which is highly recommended for listening directly along with at any time, or even as shimmering background music to have you smiling throughout your day to day tasks.

Official Purchase Link

www.craftrecordings.com





Title - Save Me [Expanded Edition]
Artist - Silver Convention

Silver Convention (named after songwriter Sylvester Levay’s nickname of “Silver”) was formed in Munich, Germany and burst onto the music scene in 1975 with their recording of “Save Me” — a track originally sold into 16 countries (including the US) at MIDEM, the global music business conference.

It became the title track of their debut album, which hit #1 on the Billboard R&B chart and #10 Pop, introducing the world to “The Munich Sound,” which would soon be known as Eurodisco.

The album’s second single was the smash hit “Fly Robin Fly.” It not only topped the disco charts for three weeks, it did the same on the pop charts the following month. The single sold over one million copies and was award a gold disc by the R.I.A.A. in December of 1975. It became the band’s signature song, winning Best R&B Instrumental Performance at the 1976 Grammy Awards.

Omnivore Recordings, in association with Good Time Records, is proud to announce an expanded reissue of this classic debut. Save Me returns with five bonus tracks, including both commercial and promotional 12″ mixes of songs including the ubiquitous “Fly Robin Fly.”

Packaging features the original international cover art (with the US artwork replicated inside), a 12-page color booklet featuring photos and ephemera, and new, insightful liner notes from writer, Joe Marchese outlining the genesis of the project and the global hit record it became.

1. Save Me
2. I Like It
3. Fly, Robin, Fly
4. Tiger Baby
5. Son Of A Gun
6. Always Another Girl
7. Chains Of Love
8. Heart Of Stone
9. Please Don’t Change The Chords Of This Song
10. Fly, Robin, Fly (12” Version) [Bonus Track]
11. Tiger Baby (12” Version) [Bonus Track]
12. Always Another Girl (US Promo 12”) [Bonus Track]
13. I Like It (Special Disco Edit) [Bonus Track]
14. Save Me Again [Bonus Track]

Although the first two Silver Convention LP’s were available on CD for a short time in the early 1990’s, they quickly disappeared from the market. Now re-released as an Expanded Edition via Omnivore Recordings, Save Me is now back out and ready for its next turn in the spotlight.

As for some inside information garnered down the years, and with regard the single Fly, Robin, Fly, on the record were Penny McLean, Ramona Wulf and Linda Böseherr aka “G. Thompson” (a singer who was in many groups, such as Love Generation, Les Humphries Singers, the Hornettes and, of course, here in Silver Convention).

The track was already getting some serious radio play, but word quickly spread that when Save Me also became a big hit, that attractive people were needed to represent the group on stage and in videos. Personally, and that aside, Silver Convention would have sounded oh-so much better with a string orchestra backing them, but that’s just my personal opinion.

Anyway, as with other songs on the album, the female singing was reduced to a minimum, these very same-named ladies barely featuring in the videos and live performances, but that might have been down to the fact that it was too expensive for the producers - Silvester Levay and Michael Kunze (alias Stephan Prager) - who had these ladies under contract with Jupiter; and so others were chosen for presentation on TV and such.

Another single from the album was Always Another Girl/I Like It, but it was not as successful as the other two. Indeed, the successor to Fly, Robin, Fly was the newly produced Get Up And Boogie, which (like the album of the same name) was also sung by Penny, Ramona and Linda. Two songs have also been added here as 12” versions - Fly, Robin, Fly and Tiger Baby - but, in truth, Fly, Robin, Fly is just one part Fly, Robin, Fly, Up, Up To The Sky and one third time the string intermezzo has been extended, and the same applies to Tiger Baby; which was simply stretched from 4:16 to almost 9 minutes through endless repetitions.

The bonus tracks also feature a differently mixed single version of Save Me, which is missing the entire saxophone intermezzo along with a quite stunning Always Another Girl (US Promo 12”) and a even-more-disco Special Disco Edit of I Like It.

Official Purchase Link

www.omnivorerecordings.com





Title - It Was A Short Summer, Charlie Brown
Artist - Vince Guaraldi

For the 55th anniversary of the 5th animated Peanuts special, It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown, LMFP, for the first time, is releasing the full soundtrack.

It’s 28 minutes of wall-to-wall brassy versions of the entire soundtrack from the special, which originally aired on September 27th, 1969 on CBS-TV, and the special is currently available for streaming on Apple TV+.

This includes classic Peanuts themes and songs made directly for this special. Also included are 6 never-before heard takes, that were not used in the special.

The recording features Guaraldi (piano), Monty Budwig (double bass), Jack Sperling (drums), Conti and Pete Candoli (trumpet), Frank Rosolino (trombone), Victor Feldman (percussion), Herb Ellis (guitar), Willian Hood and Peter Christlieb (woodwind), and John Scott Trotter as the orchestra leader. The soundtrack was produced by Sean Mendelson and Jason Mendelson and restored and re-mastered by Vinson Hudson.

This entire soundtrack plus never-before-heard bonus tracks not even used in the Special, opens on the beloved Charlie Brown Theme, the renowned Linus and Lucy piece and then we get the jaunty, titular run of It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown, the fun, playful Oh Good Grief, the romantically-charmed You’re In Love, Charlie Brown, the free-flowing Schroeder, and then we get the aptly-named Bus Blues thereafter.

Along next is a reprise of the titular It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown, the cute Frieda (With the Naturally Curly Hair) and a short reprise of Oh Good Grief, and then comes the more adamant Come and Get It, a most wondrous Hash and then Hash with Horn, before we are brought forth the perky AM Break, the upbeat Tah Dah, a perkily emphatic He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown, and both a romanticized Peppermint Patty and an endearing Will Come.

A slightly different version of He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown is then backed by the smooth Pebble Beach, a reprise of You’re In Love, Charlie Brown, a reprise of He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown, before the dashing The Masked Marvel and the fluctuating Air Music are unleashed, and they are followed by two reprise’s of The Masked Marvel, a second reprise of You’re In Love, Charlie Brown, and a reprise of Linus and Lucy.

This delightful musical flashback to a time less stressful, continues onward with a second reprise of Oh Good Grief, a short reprise of Charlie Brown Theme, a second reprise of It Was a Short Summer, then comes a lovely alternative take of Linus and Lucy, an interesting Working on It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown, the recording rounding out on alternative takes on Bus Blues, Pebble Beach, Masked Marvel Music and Linus and Lucy.

1. Charlie Brown Theme 2. Linus and Lucy 3. It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown 4. Oh Good Grief 5. You’re In Love, Charlie Brown 6. Schroeder 7. Bus Blues 8. Bus Blues (Reprise) 9. It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown (Reprise) 10. Frieda (With the Naturally Curly Hair) 11. Oh Good Grief (Reprise) 12. Come and Get It 13. Hash 14. Hash with Horn 15. AM Break 16. Tah Dah 17. He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown 18. Peppermint Patty 19. Love Will Come 20. He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown 21. Pebble Beach 22. You’re In Love, Charlie Brown (Reprise)
23. He’s Your Dog, Charlie Brown (Reprise) 24. The Masked Marvel 25. Air Music 26. The Masked Marvel (Reprise) 27. The Masked Marvel (2nd Reprise) 28. You’re In Love, Charlie Brown (2nd Reprise) 29. Linus and Lucy (Reprise) 30. Oh Good Grief (2nd Reprise) 31. Charlie Brown Theme (Reprise) 32. It Was a Short Summer (Reprise 2) 33. Linus and Lucy (Alternate Take) 34. Working on It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown 35. Bus Blues (Alternate Take) 36. Pebble Beach (Alternate Take) 37. Masked Marvel Music (Alternate Take) 38. Linus and Lucy (Reprise Alternate Take)

Watch “Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown” 1975

Watch “A Charlie Brown Valentine” 2002

www.mendelsonproductions.com/





Title - Struttin’
Artist - Ronny Smith

The mellow-toned guitarist Ronny Smith has always had the ability to play with great passion solos over infectious grooves, resulting in music that is both accessible and full of subtle creativity.

Inspired by Wes Montgomery and George Benson, Smith’s sound is quite attractive and, even as he builds up his solos, he keeps the melodies in mind.

Two of his early albums were titled Got Groove (2006) and Just Groovin’ (2009), and the track “City Groove” – from his 2013 release Can’t Stop Now – hit #1 on Billboard’s BDS New and Active smooth jazz chart and ultimately reached #25 on the Billboard BDS Top 30.

In addition to playing guitar for small ensembles, pop and jazz groups, Ronny also displayed his clarinet skills in the Army’s symphonic concert and ceremonial bands. His first stop was the Army’s school of music. He stayed there eight months and then immediately played with bands all over Germany (Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Heidelberg). Throughout his career, Smith played everywhere from Nijmegan, Holland to La Paz, Bolivia.

As a composer/producer, one of Ronny’s trademarks is creating conversation pieces and “question and answer” dynamics with other instruments. He engages in this exciting approach here on his brand new album Struttin’, out April 19th, 2024.

1. Get Up
2. In My Eyes
3. Rubik’s Cube
4. Struttin’
5. Groovin’
6. OBO
7. Pocket Algorithm
8. A Pretty Smile
9. Laura
10. Angel

This vibrantly impassioned new recording opens on the jubilant Get Up and then brings us the dutifully cool In My Eyes, the free flowing Rubik’s Cube, and then both the vibrant, titular Struttin’ and the aptly-titled Groovin’.

His quest to continually fulfill his artistic calling throughout this album continues onward with the soaring rhythms within OBO and that is in turn backed by the melodic Pocket Algorithm, the laid back, low slung A Pretty Smile, the album rounding out on the languishing Laura and the upbeat Angel.

www.ronnysmith.com

Ronny Smith @ Facebook





Title - Duke’s Place
Artist - Mercer Hassy Orchestra

The third album by this miracle band of working professionals, whose two albums have successively ranked high on the U.S. and North American charts since their shocking debut, is a collection of the late, great Duke Ellington’s works.

Their debut album, the aptly-named Sir Duke and their second album Don’t Stop The Carnival reached #34 and #43 on the U.S. (Jazz Week) chart and #7 and #10 on the North American (Roots Music Report) chart, respectively. The Mercer Hassy Orchestra, a big band of working people and students in Sapporo, Japan, was the only Japanese band to be selected for the North American Jazz Albums Chart (Jazz Category) in 2022.

The next release to the world will be a collection of works by Duke Ellington, whose death will mark a century since his first recording in 1924. The original arrangements and exquisite mixing by Mercer Hassy here on Duke’s Place, showcase a leader who reveres Ellington as a musical god, where the tunes intertwine to create a one-of-a-kind interpretation of Ellington that is fun, terrific, musically deep and wide-ranging, and a must-hear!

1. Daybreak Express
2. Satin Doll
3. Don’t Get Around Much Anymore
4. U.M.M.G.
5. In A Sentimental Mood
6. Hot And Bothered
7. Bakiff
8. Passion Flower
9. Apes And Peacocks / Queen’s Suite
10. Prelude To A Kiss / Solitude
11. Duke’s Place
12. Happy Go Lucky Local

This deliciously ambient, delightfully hued new recording opens on the fervently atmospheric Daybreak Express and the funkily grooved Satin Doll and then brings us the playfully-hued Don’t Get Around Much Anymore, the drum-led swing that drives U.M.M.G. and then we get both the deep yearn within In A Sentimental Mood and the upbeat and skittish Hot And Bothered.

Along next is the veritably tribal Bakiff and the dutifully languishing Passion Flower and they are in turn backed seamlessly by the slap bass skewed, guitar-rocking, percussion soaring Apes And Peacocks / Queen’s Suite, the sweeping Prelude To A Kiss / Solitude, the album rounding out on another drum-led, horn-flavored track within the joyous Duke’s Place, the most wondrous musical proceedings coming to a close on the train-imbibed rhythms that drive Happy Go Lucky Local.

Official Purchase Link





Title - Acceding To The Apocalypse
Artist - Motu

MOTU is the project and stage name of Richard Michelson, which stands for Music Of The Universe, and here on his brand new album Acceding To The Apocalypse, it should be known that Michelson plays a variety of instruments on it, including acoustic guitar, electric guitar, dobro, pedal steel, bass, keyboards and harmonica.

Much like his 2023 release, The Water Is High, this new album features all original material, written, arranged and mastered by Michelson. And as on that earlier release, here he is joined by his wife Dee Michelson on vocals, and by Ed Modzel on drums, along with the addition of Rich Fry on vocals and guitar.

1. The Cost
2. Love Is All We Need
3. Too Much
4. When Your Smile Has Left The Room
5. A Test Of Our Love
6. You’re Just A Pile Of Crap
7. I’m Looking For Answers
8. I Can’t Be Denied
9. Acceding To The Apocalypse
10. History Repeats Itself

This dutifully ambient, and wholly impassioned new recording opens on a track that openly discusses global warming, poverty, pollution, racism, and gun violence, the constructively-hued The Cost and then brings us the veritable resolution within a veritable prog-grunge vibe that drives Love Is All We Need, then comes the harmonious rocker Too Much, and the harmonic soft AOR of When Your Smile Has Left The Room (a track that believes mankind is self-destructive even in relationships).

Up next, that theme is continued within the beautifully percussion within A Test Of Our Love and that is in turn backed by the Delta/Chicago-imbibed You’re Just A Pile Of Crap, and then we get a story about gun violence and politics within the powerfully sung I’m Looking For Answers, the album rounding out on the blues that drives both I Can’t Be Denied and the titular Acceding To The Apocalypse, closing on the hauntingly absorbent History Repeats Itself (a track that makes reference to the failed coup of Hitler in 1923 for which he was arrested).

www.motu.net

Motu @ Facebook





Title - Lost In The Future
Artist - Zanov

For those unaware, Zanov has been a French electronic artist since 1976 and continues to bring us all his very own new music experiences nearly fifty years later.

Acclaimed for the originality found within this very personal universe he has created, now Zanov is back, for the first time since his 2020 album Chaos Islands, and to coincide with his 76th birthday, brings forth his 7th album, Lost In The Future.

Lost In The Future is a progressive electronic music album that explores the idea of being immersed in the future world, suggesting a sense of adventure, uncertainty, and the enigmatic nature of what lies ahead.

1. Quantum World (8:41)
2. Conscious Machines (4:19)
3. Brain to Brain (7:58)
4. Extended Life (6:27)
5. Living with Robots (5:00)
6. Interstellar Travel (7:07)
7. Time Manipulation (5:22)

This delightfully musical, and wholly rhythmic new recording opens on the shimmering rock opus Quantum World and then brings us the artful, thoughtfully sculpted Conscious Machines, the veritably shimmering Brain to Brain, before we are brought forth the sweeping space synth that drives the opulent Extended Life, the atmospherically-charged Living with Robots, the album rounding out on the actively impassioned Interstellar Travel, closing on the all-encompassing Time Manipulation.

www.zanov.net

Official Purchase Link





Title - The Deacon Speaks
Artist - Steve Hunter

For those unaware, Steve Hunter (The Deacon) was born in Decatur Illinois in 1948, at age 19 he was drafted into the US army and deployed to Okinawa, Japan, where he worked as an x-ray tech in the air vac hospital. Having learned to play the lap steel from eight years old he had moved on to guitar and continued to play as much as he could whilst in the army.

Since the 70’s he has been quietly contributing his expertise, style and tone to other people’s albums, including Peter Gabriel, Dr John, Jack Bruce, Lou Reed, Tracy Chapman and Alice Cooper.

Starting with Mitch Ryder in 1971, when he did an arrangement of Lou Reed’s Rock and Roll for Ryder’s Detroit album, which caught the attention of Reed who promptly sought out both Ezrin (producer of Detroit) and Hunter for his follow up to Transformer, Berlin.

Hunter’s reputation grew through Rock but his heart has always been in Blues. He fondly remembers seeking advice from one of his idols, BB King.​

There’s something very liberating about reaching 75 and discovering a whole new way of being creative. That is what has happened to premier guitar player Steve ‘Deacon’ Hunter this year. The last time Steve sang on any recording was back in 1977 when he released Swept Away, the song was called Sea Sonata and he was never really happy with it.

But, after starting a new album at the beginning of 2023, he was working on an arrangement of Back Door Man when it crossed his mind that he could sing it, and that thought changed the direction of the whole album!

‘The Deacon Speaks’ now has him singing on eight tracks plus two instrumentals. Consisting of five covers and five original compositions, this is a bluesy, moody, vibe drenched collection with Hunters voice exuding a pinch of Dr John mixed with Tom Waites.

1. Back Door Man (4:44)
2. Tiresome Blues (5:07)
3. Independent Soul (3:39)
4. The Ballad of John Henry Gates (4:44)
5. Annabel’s Blues (2:30)
6. Up from the Skies (5:11)
7. Sweet Jane (4:53)
8. Waiting on a Friend (4:44)
9. Who is He and What is He to You (4:18)
10. In a Lonely Place (4:46)

This dynamically rousing new recording opens on the gruff growl that drives the low slung Howlin’ Wolf cut Back Door Man, the aching yearn found within Tiresome Blues and the free flowing Independent Soul and they are followed by the foot tapping storytelling of The Ballad of John Henry Gates, and the comes the sweeping Annabel’s Blues.

Along next is the playful blues of Jimi Hendrix’s Up from the Skies, his aptly-languishing take of Lou Reed’s Sweet Jane and a rather delightful take on the Stones’ harmoniously sculpted Waiting on a Friend, the album rounding out on the jaunty rock of Bill Withers’ Who is He and What is He to You, closing on the formidable instrumental balladry of In a Lonely Place.

Steve has contributed to ten Alice Cooper albums, starting in 1973 with Billion Dollar Babies and featured heavily on the new Welcome 2 My Nightmare. He completed a World tour with Alice in 2011 but left at the end of that year to write and record his solo album The Manhattan Blues Project He is also on the 2017 Alice Cooper release Paranormal and the 2021 album Detroit Stories.

Official Purchase Link

www.stevehunter.com

Steve Hunter @ Facebook





Title - Shadow Puppets
Artist - Spencer LaJoye

For those unaware, Spencer LaJoye (luh-JOY) is an East Coast singer/songwriter from the Midwest making queer indie folk music for everyone. The 2021 Kerrville Songwriting Competition winner spins crystalline vocals through a loop pedal while strumming an acoustic guitar in charming, banter-heavy performances that keep audiences laughing one moment and weeping the next.

LaJoye is also a classically-trained violinist with a proclivity for Broadway vocals, and a student of Americana music with a theology degree hanging in their studio. They’ve been writing and touring their own autobiographical folk/pop music for over a decade, but the virality of their 2021 anthem “Plowshare Prayer” secured them a permanent place in hearts and households across the world, as well as a peculiar career as a veracious songsmith with an unshakeable pastoral presence.

Spencer has a lengthy catalog of recorded music documenting their journey from Christianity through disillusionment, the earliest EP of which won the 2014 WYCE Jammie Award for Listener’s Choice in Grand Rapids, MI. However, after coming out as gender nonbinary and finding peace as a post-Christian, Spencer changed their name and released Remember the Oxygen, a 4-song EP featuring the Denver String Machine with arrangements by China Kent.

After appearing as an official showcase artist at Folk Alliance International 2023, Spencer released Plant a Piano, a solo EP of vocally theatrical piano ballads about decay, change, and beauty. As LaJoye’s first effort following the highly-anticipated and mammoth studio recording of “Plowshare Prayer,” this stark piano EP was an invitation for eager listeners to get up close and personal with Spencer and the craft of one song by one voice.

On February 16th, 2024, Spencer released Shadow Puppets, their first full-length album under their new name. Childhood memories, family patterns, shame, and desire form a cast of colorful characters in this 12-track, indie-folk tale of a formerly closeted queer kid from Southwest Michigan. The album was produced by Chris DuPont in Ypsilanti, MI, and is a clever synth-guided and lyric-driven departure from some of LaJoye’s more universally anthemic offerings.

1. Shadow Puppets (4:23)
2. Chaotic Neutral (4:54)
3. The Art of Feeling Lonely (4:16)
4. Good Man (4:37)
5. How Are You (4:44)
6. Reverie (3:07)
7. Convents (3:39)
8. The Joker (3:52)
9. Serial (4:45)
10. Surgery (3:53)
11. Someday You’ll Wake Up Okay (4:19)
12. Forgiveness (2:24)

This sensitively impassioned, honed and yet dynamically embroidered new recording opens on the sweet rhythmical hipsway of the titular Shadow Puppets and then we get brought forth the slightly sterner cathartic fare of Chaotic Neutral, the smooth gossamer of The Art of Feeling Lonely, and then come the peppy Good Man and the laid back, low slung How Are You.

Along next is the gently jaunty Reverie [you hold a gaze like a grudge] and the languishing duet Convents and they are in turn backed sweetly by the personally-imbued storytelling within The Joker, the veritably shimmering Serial, the album rounding out on the heart on the sleeve, revealing Surgery, the free flowing Someday You’ll Wake Up Okay, closing on the fibrous, melodically floating yearn that drives Forgiveness.

Official Purchase Link

www.spencerlajoye.com

Spencer LaJoye @ Facebook





Title - Slips of the Tongue
Artist - Katie Powderly

For those unaware, Katie Powderly’s Slips of the Tongue turns 10, and thus has now been released on most all streaming platforms.

I’ve been a musician for over a solid decade and I’ve never released my music on streaming platforms like Spotify. That is about to change. I admit I’ve been resistant to the streaming platforms.

I am a woman of Strong Opinions and I don’t like how companies like Spotify profit off of musicians’ work without compensating us fairly.

However. I want to reach a broader audience and give you access to my music wherever you are throughout your day when you want to listen. So I’m learning to compromise. - Katie Powderly.

Katie is an award-winning musician and songwriter, who has performed live on PBS & NPR stations, and has toured from New York to Colorado, Texas to Tennessee.

She has shared bills with Tony Rice, Del McCoury Band, Yonder Mountain String Band, The Steel Wheels, The Black Lillies, Lake Street Dive, Langhorne Slim, The David Mayfield Parade, and many others.

According to Local Sounds Magazine in Madison, WI, “Katie Powderly released one of the best albums [of the year], but Local Sounds’ Rick Tvedt has also hailed it as one of the best recordings to ever come out of the Madison area.”

The album they’re referring to is Katie’s debut LP, Slips of the Tongue (Red-Winged Blackbird Records), which features a hell of a lineup of supporting musicians, including Josh Oliver (Watchhouse/Mandolin Orange), Bryn Davies (Tony Rice, Guy Clark, Jack White), Tom Pryor (The Black Lillies), and Jill Andrews (the everybodyfields), and was recorded at Butch Vig’s famed Smart Studios in Madison, WI, with significant help from Scott Minor (Sparklehorse).

1. All The King’s Horses
2. Blue
3. Tables, Turning
4. Bridges, Burning
5. Hot Air Balloon
6. Let Me Go
7. Carry Me, Hold Me
8. Lullabye
9. Yet to Come

This dulcet, ambiance-hued new recording opens on the low slung twang of All The King’s Horses and then we get the aptly-titled balladry of Blue, an aching yearn that drives Tables, Turning and the veritably ethereal Bridges, Burning.

Up next is the gently meandering Hot Air Balloon and the impassioned Let Me Go and they are in turn followed by the front porch, sundown vibe of Carry Me, Hold Me, the album rounding out on the free flowing Lullabye, closing on the gentler fare of the beeautiful Yet to Come.

When I first released Slips of the Tongue, I illustrated all of the album artwork and created single covers for each song before that was even a commonplace thing. CDs and vinyl were still in use quite a bit and streaming hadn’t become as dominant as it is now.

As I approached the re-release, I decided I wanted to update the art to reflect the growth I’ve experienced both personally and professionally since its original release.

So I hired one of my favorite digital illustrators and designers. You may recognize the illustration work of Kelley Wills of Brainflower designs.

It was so nice to hire another designer to work on this project-one who I knew would create an homage to the original, but leave the indelible mark of her own unique style.

There are so many more surprises coming down the pipeline, but in the interim, go to the link in the button below and purchase Slips of the Tongue for yourselves. - Katie Powderly.

Katie now resides in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Maryland after a years-long sojourn across the country.

When she’s not performing with her electrified Americana band, The Unconditional Lovers, whose first album will be out in 2024, you can find her playing her songs as a solo artist.

Official Purchase Link

www.katiepowderly.com

Katie Powderly @ Facebook





Title - Live by the Song, Die by the Song
Artist - Katie Powderly

For those unaware, this expanded version of Katie Powderly’s Live by the Song, Die by the Song contains the original 5 songs written for this album + 5 bonus tracks for a total of 10 songs.

These 5 bonus tracks include the Live at Mystery Ton Studios sessions filmed live with Chance Hurley on guitar and mandolin.

These magic moments captured at Katie’s favorite studio deserved to be immortalized on physical media and now they all are.

From the Appalachian mountains of Maryland, Katie Powderly announces her 2nd studio album: a stripped-down, acoustic, bluegrass-adjacent EP entitled Live by the Song, Die by the Song.

The 5-song collection serves as a portrait of Katie’s emotional landscape, informed by a carefree summer spent splashing in the Shenandoah River, falling in and out of love. Through a series of Appalachian ballads, the EP documents the journey of the artist coming to identify the bouquet of red flags she’d at first perceived as simply roses and their thorns.

“If you devote your life to songs, like I have, music becomes a default way of communicating,” Powderly said.

1. “Tobacco” (feat. Chance Hurley)
2. “My Mourning Dove” (feat. Chance Hurley)
3. “High Horse” (feat. Chance Hurley)
4. “Revolving Door”
5. “Love Me One More Time Before I Go”

Bonus Tracks on vinyl and CD pressing:
6. “Bankrupt” (Live at Mystery Ton Studios) (feat. Chance Hurley)
7. “Live & Learn” (Live at Mystery Ton Studios) (feat. Chance Hurley)
8. “My Mourning Dove” (Live at Mystery Ton Studios) (feat. Chance Hurley)
9. “Tobacco” (Live at Mystery Ton Studios) (feat. Chance Hurley
10. “Revolving Door” (Live at Mystery Ton Studios)

The revitalized recording opens on the gently rambunctious “Tobacco” (which, as do the first three tracks, feature Chance Hurley, and is itself a song that earned Powderly the title of semi-finalist in a national songwriting contest in February) and then we get the impassioned “My Mourning Dove” and the streamed flow that drives “High Horse,” and then we get the strident “Revolving Door” and then an aching yearn is found within “Love Me One More Time Before I Go.”

Up next amongst these sweet, and yet stinging ballads for the lover who betrayed her (all recorded live at Mystery Ton Studios, and save for the final cut, all feature Hurley) is the mid-tempo “Bankrupt” and then the emotive “Live & Learn,” the album rounding out on the stoically-sewn gossamer of “My Mourning Dove,” coming to a close on two live cuts of both “Tobacco” and “Revolving Door.”

Katie is an award-winning musician and songwriter, who has performed live on PBS & NPR stations, and has toured from New York to Colorado, Texas to Tennessee.

She has shared bills with Tony Rice, Del McCoury Band, Yonder Mountain String Band, The Steel Wheels, The Black Lillies, Lake Street Dive, Langhorne Slim, The David Mayfield Parade, and many others.

Musicians:
Katie Powderly - guitar, vocals
Chance Hurley - guitar, mandolin
Scott Matlock - fiddle
Colin Shultzaberger - Rhodes, snare

It will be available for pre-order through her website (digitally, CDs, and vinyl) as well as Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, and more.

Official Purchase Link

www.katiepowderly.com

Katie Powderly @ Facebook





Title - Bach Mass in B Minor, Cantata Collective [2CD]
Artist - Nicholas McGegan

For those unaware, San Francisco-based early music ensemble Cantata Collective continues its major series of J S Bach’s choral works with the Mass in B Minor, a towering testament of sacred music and the composer’s crowning achievement of his final years.

With celebrated conductor Nicholas McGegan, four of today’s most distinguished early music vocal soloists and a refined chamber choir, this live recording exudes a spontaneity that reveals the depth and passion of Bach’s glorious affirmation of faith.

Side 1:
1. Bach: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232: I. Missa (Kyrie & Gloria): 1. Kyrie eleison

Disc 2:
2. Bach: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232: II. Symbolum Nicenum (Credo); III. Sanctus; IV. Osanna, Benedictus, Agnus Dei et Dona nobis pacem

The first disc - Bach: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232: I. Missa (Kyrie & Gloria): 1. Kyrie eleison - is simply a most sumptuously impassioned, and wholly organic recording, and quite possibly one of the most seamless expressions of this art form that I have heard in the past decade.

It opens on the stoically sculptured Kyrie eleison and the flourishing Christie eleison and then brings us the more embodied Kyrie eleison II, the vibrant Gloria in excelsis Deo, the harmonious Et in terra pax, the delicately-hued Laudamus te, and then we get the forthright Gratias agimus tibi, a delicate, wood wind-imbued Kyrie eleison, the harmonious Qui tollis peccata mundi, the piece rounding out on the quietly playful Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris, the empowered Quoniam tu solus sanctus, and finally the rapturous Cum Sancto Spiritu.

The second disc - Bach: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232: II. Symbolum Nicenum (Credo); III. Sanctus; IV. Osanna, Benedictus, Agnus Dei et Dona nobis pacem - and free flows with such a sheer magnificence that it is hard to not be transfixed by its free flowing structures.

This opens on Bach: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232: II. Symbolum Nicenum (Credo), opening up to us first a free flowing Credo in unum Deum and the layered Patrem omnipotentem, and then brings us the sedate swirls and twirls found within Et in unum Dominum, the veritably ethereal Et incarnatus est, the hauntingly-hued Crucifixus, the enthusiastic Et resurrexit, the set culminating with a sombre Et in Spiritum Sanctum, an enthralling Confiteor, and a bold Et expecto.

Then we get a fearless five minutes spent within Bach, J S: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232 - III. Sanctus: XXII. Sanctus - Pleni sunt coeli, before the final piece, Bach, J S: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232 - Osanna, Benedictus, Agnus Dei et Dona nobis pacem opens on the joyous Osanna, the resoundingly beautiful Benedictus, the strength of belief that resounds within Osanna, the piece, and the collection therein, closing on the plaintively emotive Agnus Dei and the wistful, yet hopeful Dona nobis pacem.

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com

www.nicholasmcgegan.com





Title - Ysaye
Artist - Sergey Khachatryan

Sergey Khachatryan presents the first recording of Ysaÿe’s 6 Solo Sonatas Op.27 on the composer’s Guarneri del Gesù violin - a magnificent, hypnotic instrument!

Today aged thirty-eight, and the precocious First Prize Winner of the International Sibelius Competition in 2000 and the Queen Elisabeth Competition in 2005, the Armenian violinist here once more demonstrates his radiant maturity, along the same lines as he did in his sumptuous recording, so personal, of Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas.

Here Sergey Khachatryan delivers an interpretation of heightened feelings, where what might otherwise come across as impish is deliberately turned into something fierce (the Prelude of Sonata No. 2, which uses the opening motif of Bach’s Partita No. 3), or that which is merely imitative becomes wild and relentless (the Finale of Sonata No. 4).

He willfully emphasizes the popular inspiration underlying the complete collection, here replete with shadings and a sumptuousness previously unheard.

1. Ysaÿe: Sonata for Solo Violin No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 27
2. Ysaÿe: Sonata for Solo Violin No. 2 in A Minor, Op. 27
3. Ysaÿe: Sonata for Solo Violin No. 3 in D Minor, Op. 27: Ballade
4. Ysaÿe: Sonata for Solo Violin No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 27
5. Ysaÿe: Sonata for Solo Violin No. 5 in G Major, Op. 27
6. Ysaÿe: Sonata for Solo Violin No. 6 in E Major, Op. 27: Allegro giusto non troppo vivo - Poco lento - Allegretto poco scherzando - Allegro tempo primo

Paying homage to Ysaÿe, Sergey opens on Sonata for Solo Violin No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 27: and first the aching yearn within Grave. Lento assai, the infused Fugato. Molto moderato, the gradually playful Allegretto poco scherzoso. Amabile, closing on the sterner fare of Finale con brio. Allegro fermo; and follows that up with Sonata for Solo Violin No. 2 in A Minor, Op. 27: opening on the sprightly Obsession. Prélude. Poco vivace - Meno mosso - Tempo vivo, the languishing Malinconia. Poco lento, the perky Danse des ombres. Sarabande. Lento - Variation I - Variation II. Musette - Variations III, IV, V, VI, closing on the flourishinSonata for Solo Violin No. 3 in D Minor, Op. 27: Balladeg Les Furies. Allegro furioso; and then brings us the seven minute opus.

Along next is Sonata for Solo Violin No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 27: which begins with the the precisely-sculpted Allemanda. Lento maestoso, the delicately plucked majesties found within Sarabande. Quasi lento, culminating on the vibrant Finale. Presto ma non troppol then we get Sonata for Solo Violin No. 5 in G Major, Op. 27: which opens on the stoic fare of L’Aurore. Lento assai and closes on the impassioned Danse rustique. Allegro giocoso molto moderato - Moderato amabile - Tempo primo; the works ending with the enigmatically-charged Sonata for Solo Violin No. 6 in E Major, Op. 27: Allegro giusto non troppo vivo - Poco lento - Allegretto poco scherzando - Allegro tempo primo.

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com

www.sergeykhachatryan.com





Title - Eternity
Artist - Gülru Ensari / Herbert Schuch

For those unaware, Humans’ hope lies in art - the music of Schubert or Beethoven in particular, which gives us some idea of what worlds can still exist. What words can we use to make these works of art tangible? Not explainable, but tangible.

With this album, Turkish-born pianist Gülru Ensari and Romanian-born Herbert Schuch want to provide a space for experience, a place where they can carefully and tentatively approach the subject of eternity.

The connection between Messiaen and Schubert, Beethoven and Brahms? Nothing more or less than a perceived truth. An involuntary connection of lines that are already there, but are drawn into infinity and meet somewhere, like the parallel rails of a dead-straight track that stretches into infinity.

Ten years after his captivating recital, ‘Invocation’, the excellent German pianist, Herbert Schuch, born in 1979 in Romania, comes back to naïve. It is here, with his duo partner and wife, Gülru Ensari, that he presents his new album, ‘Eternity’.

As they did in their past collaborations with the SWR (‘Go East!’ in 2017, ‘Dialogues’ in 2018 and ‘in Search’ in 2022), they mix, within one programme, works for four hands and two pianos.

One of the Schubert’s late masterworks, the Fantasia in F minor, pairs here with the Variations on a theme by Schumann that Brahms composed on a theme that Schumann wrote in 1854. Three extracts from Messiaen’s monumental cycle Visions de l’Amen, composed in 1943 for two pianos, act as grandiose and contemplative interludes, and also as an introduction to the Große Fugue by Beethoven.

For Gülru Ensari and Herbert Schuch, each of these three works from the Romantic era connects with the divine part of Messiaen’s pieces.

In pushing back the limit of artistic creation, these four uncontested geniuses - Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert and Messiaen - expressed themselves outside of their times, creating bridges with worlds they would not have known, always expanding, in a never-ending quest for eternity.

1. Schubert: Fantasie in F minor for piano duet, D940
2. Messiaen: Visions de l’Amen: IV. Amen du Désir
3. Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Schumann in E-Flat Major, Op. 23
4. Messiaen: Visions de l’Amen for 2 pianos
5. Beethoven: Grosse Fuge in B flat major, Op. 134 (piano 4 Hands)

This masterfully-crafted recording opens on the abundantly delicate gossamer that flows within the simply beautiful Fantasie in F minor for piano duet, D940, and follows that up with the more crystalline Messiaen: Visions de l’Amen: IV. Amen du Désir, and then comes Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Schumann in E-Flat Major, Op. 23: which opens on the delicate Thema. Leise und innig and the enigmatic Variation I. L’istesso tempo - Andante molto moderato, before bringing us the playful Variation II, the confident Variation III, the languishing Variation IV, and then the strident flow that drives Variation V. Poco più animato, the adamant ebb of Variation VI. Allegro non troppo, the elegant Variation VII. Con moto - L’istesso tempo, the free flowing swirls and twirls of Variation VIII. Poco più vivo, culminating in the unabashed confidence shown within Variation IX and the joyfully crafted Variation X. Molto moderato, alla marcia.

Along next is the simply mesmerizing two-piece Messiaen: Visions de l’Amen for 2 pianos, which itself begins with the subtle, yet confidently assured Amen des Anges, des Saints, du chant des oiseaux, ending with the veritably ethereal Amen de la Création, the collection coming to a close on the powerful on minute, then delicate and wistful, but at all times organically sculpted, 15 minute piano work Beethoven: Grosse Fuge in B flat major, Op. 134 (piano 4 Hands).

Official Purchase Link

www.avie-records.com

www.gulruensari.com

www.herbertschuch.com





Title - Frank [Picture Disc 2LP]
Artist - Amy Winehouse

For those unaware, in celebration of the 20th anniversary of Amy Winehouse’s groundbreaking and highly influential debut album Frank, UMe has now released three EPs: In My Bed, Take The Box and F**k Me Pumps.

Previously released only on vinyl, they are now available digitally for the very first time. Each EP includes B-sides, alternate takes and live versions of her early singles, including “Best Friend (Acoustic)”, “(There Is) No Greater Love – AOL Session”, and “Take the Box (The Headquarters Mix).”

As for the brilliant album Frank, well, that has also been released as a simply beautiful 2LP picture disc, using the artwork from the original classic sleeve on LP1 and two beautiful images by renowned photographer Valerie Phillips from the original artwork photo session, shot in 2003 on LP2.

Recorded when Amy was still in her teens, Frank introduced a truly remarkable, supremely talented songwriter and a singer who would be treasured as one of the greatest of our time.

Side A:
1. Intro / Stronger Than Me
2. You Sent Me Flying / Cherry
3. Know You Now
4. F**K Me Pumps

Side B:
1. I Heard Love Is Blind
2. Moody’s Mood for Love / Teo Licks
3. (There Is) No Greater Love
4. In My Bed

Side C:
1. Take the Box
2. October Song
3. What Is It About Men?

Side D:
1. Amy Amy Amy / Outro
2. Brother
3. Mr Magic (Through the Smoke)

I think we can all agree that it is mighty rare for such a young performer to debut with such assurance, confidence and to such instant acclaim, but North London sensation Amy Winehouse already has a reputation that many far more seasoned artists would swap their gold discs for.

As for what Winehouse vocally brought to the table, well, she effortlessly combined a distinctive 20 a day voice with a serious appreciation of female jazz & soul heroes (Sarah Vaughan’s scatting style seeps through Amy’s vocal ad-libs as well as getting a name check). She also combined considerable jazz guitar ability with a classic approach which produced a contemporary, quirky, up front, tongue in cheek and risqué set of lyrics.

In particular, her version of the eternally hip jazz track Moody’s Mood For Love - which rides over a dub reggae rhythm - demonstrates this attitude, for it looks back in order to know where its going. And sure, this idea might raise a musical eyebrows, but in reality it sounds like a perfect partnership.

Featuring the singles “Take The Box,” “F**k Me Pumps,” “In My Bed,” and the first single “Stronger Than Me,” it’s most definitely this latter one that contains all of these qualities and proves that jazz influenced contemporary soul needn’t be safe, or perhaps even sullied by the smooth prefixes.

Lyrically fresh and uncompromising, the only occasional weaknesses across the collection are the sometimes obtrusive programmed beats, but that aside, this is an incredibly atmospheric recording, edging towards a small club rather than a studio, which gives the recording a warm intimate feel throughout.

Furthermore, the thirteen songs on Frank announced the arrival of a peerless artist, a phenomenal writer and performer, and a true once-in-a-generation talent, and the images on this release show the young Amy at the beginning of her incredible, but tragically short musical journey.

To my journalistic mind, this album just illustrates what a great talent this raunchy-voiced woman from London really was. She will be more and more of a recognizable loss to 21st century music as each year passes by. So enjoy Frank over and over again as the sensational timeless work of art that it truly is.

In closing, Frank launched the career of an artist whose inimitable voice set her apart from her contemporaries. Certified triple platinum in the UK, the album was lauded worldwide and deservedly so.

Official Purchase Links

www.amywinehouse.com

Amy Winehouse @ Facebook

www.amywinehousefoundation.org





Title - The Road Back Home [180 Gram Vinyl]
Artist - Loreena McKennitt

For those unaware, on March 8th, 2024, Juno Award-winning Canadian artist Loreena McKennitt, who has sustained international acclaim for over 30 years, will be releasing a new album that harkens back to the earliest days of her career and the most traditional of Celtic music.

The Road Back Home was recorded during the summer of 2023 when she performed at four folk festivals in southern Ontario. It was a return to her roots, a sort of musical winding back to where it all began. The early songs, the local musicians, the bursts of energy and spontaneity in those local performances are what inspired this new album that will now be on offer to a global audience.

Soon to be released on CD and 180g vinyl, and via digital music services including Dolby Atmos, the album features 10 songs, including many pieces that date back to McKennitt’s earliest days on the folk circuit and which have remained unrecorded until now.

In short, The Road Back Home is an homage to what feels like simpler times, offering comfort and familiarity. It’s like going home.

Side A:
1. Searching for Lambs (3:32) 2. Mary & The Soldier (4:04) 3. On a Bright May Morning (4:33) 4. As I Roved Out (4:54) 5. Custom Gap (3:56)

Side B:
6. Bonny Portmore (3:42) 7. Greystones (3:32) 8. The Star of the County Down (3:42) 9. Salvation Contradiction (4:22) 10. Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór/Wild Mountain Thyme (6:15)

In my humble opinion, this could be easily be named as Loreena’s masterpiece, lest we forget her incredible The Book of Secrets and the impassioned An Ancient Muse, of course.

That all said though, this recording is, perhaps, just a little more special within its overall creation, to my ear. For once you put the vinyl LP on your turntable, hear how it connects to the needle, close your eyes and settle into your comfy chair, you can immediately feel as if you have been to the places that Loreena has obviously been to in order to gather inspiration for these stunningly beautiful recordings.

The most wonderful soprano voice of Loreena, enhanced by some mesmerizing lyrics, open the first side of the vinyl with the haunting Searching for Lambs and then we get brought forth the pleasingly heartwarming Mary & The Soldier, the flutteringly ethereal On a Bright May Morning, and both the uplifting, spirited As I Roved Out and the Celtic-hipsway of Custom Gap.

Flipping the vinyl carefully over and the second side of ambient tracks begins with the stoic storytelling within Bonny Portmore and the free flowing musical melodies that gloriously ebb and flow throughout Greystones, and they are then in turn backed seamlessly by the embodied The Star of the County Down, the album rounding out on the richly all-embracing Salvation Contradiction, closing on the languishing beauty of Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór/Wild Mountain Thyme.

Every note performed by McKennitt and her new cohort of collaborators was recorded, capturing the deep affection and sense of community such musical events foster in the hearts of performers and folk festival devotees alike.

“There are many ways to define the word ‘home’,” observes McKennitt. “It may well be the structure in which we live, but it can also be the cultural expressions of community which somehow reach into our hearts and souls and draw us together without us completely understanding why.”

Official Purchase Links

www.loreenamckennitt.com

Loreena McKennitt @ Instagram

Loreena McKennitt @ Twitter





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