Thursday, September 04, 2014

New Releases: JASON MORAN / MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO - All Rise: A Joyful Elegy For Fats Waller; MEDESKI SCOFIELD MARTIN & WOOD - Juice; LEVIN BROTHERS

JASON MORAN / MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO – ALL RISE: A JOYFUL ELEGY FOR FATS WALLER

All Rise: A Joyful Elegy for Fats Waller, is a collaboration with the vocalist Meshell Ndegeocello that recasts the music of the legendary jazz entertainer Fats Waller as a modern dance party. The album which was produced by Ndegeocello and Blue Note Records president Don Was is the ninth in a formidable catalog that Moran has been building on Blue Note since 1999. 'Fats Waller is a special kind of provocateur,' says Moran. 'It stems mainly from the fact that he was a singer as well as a pianist. Sometimes he was like an MC. It has always amazed me that a pianist whose playing was so deep could sing and keep a running commentary of what was going on around him all at the same time.' All Rise features Moran hosting a changeable cast of musicians that includes vocalists Ndegeocello and Lisa E. Harris, his longtime trio The Bandwagon featuring bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Waits, and a funky horn-inflected ensemble anchored by drummer Charles Haynes that features trumpeter Leron Thomas and trombonist Josh Roseman, as well as guest saxophonist Steve Lehman. The album was recorded and mixed by Bob Power, known for honing the sound on classic hip hop records by A Tribe Called Quest, Common and The Roots. ~ Amazon

MEDESKI SCOFIELD MARTIN & WOOD - JUICE

The ever-evolving, genre-defying collaboration between Medeski Martin & Wood and John Scofield continues to flourish. Since first convening almost 17 years ago, Medeski Scofield Martin & Wood's kinship both onstage and off has fostered an escalating degree of musical interplay, exquisitely captured on Juice their third studio album available September 16, 2014, via Medeski Martin & Wood's Indirecto imprint. Juice combines the group's signature grooves with a newfound lyrical melodicism over a program of original compositions and four covers including a powerful hymn-like version of Bob Dylan's The Times They Are A-Changin' and a dizzying dub deconstruction of Cream's Sunshine of Your Love. Throughout, Juice showcases the quartet's dynamic interplay and razor-sharp improvisational acumen. Reacting to each other is really what it's about, says Scofield, and that's what makes this music work. We've gotten to the point where we can come together and make something that is identifiable and organic, yet it's growing and changing all the time. ~ Amazon

LEVIN BROTHERS - LEVIN BROTHERS

Tony Levin, (bassist with Peter Gabriel, King Crimson), has for the first time, joined up with his brother, keyboardist Pete Levin (Miles Davis, Gil Evans, Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter) to make an album (in both CD & Vinyl) of the music they loved listening to when they were kids - the 'cool jazz' of the 1950s. Tony's cello and bass share the lead voice with Pete's organ and piano, and they're joined by notable players on drums (Steve Gadd - 2 tracks, Jeff Siegel), guitar (David Spinozza) and sax (Erik Lawrence). Don't expect abstruse songs or long-winded solos - this album is all about great, melodic songs with high level performances by all the players. ~ Amazon


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