NEW RELEASES: SADAO WATANABE – ROUND TRIP; BRIAN CHARETTE – GOOD TIPPER; KENNY SHANKER – ACTION CITY

SADAO WATANABE – ROUND TRIP

A pivotal record in the career of this brilliant Japanese saxophonist – a set recorded in New York with a trio players from the American scene – done in a style that's even more freewheeling than most of Sadao Watanabe's previous work! Watanabe had always worked with unusual tones and phrasing from the start – but this album has him really stretching out on long long tracks – working on both soprano sax and flute, with Chick Corea on acoustic and electric piano, Miroslav Vitous on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums! The title track is an open-ended jam that takes up all of side one – and Watanabe balances things out with a bit of lyricism from time to time, showing him to be as rich in conception as the regular sort of reed players who might have worked with a trio like this. Titles include "Round Trip – Going & Coming", "Sao Paolo", and "Pastoral".  ~ Dusty Groove

BRIAN CHARETTE – GOOD TIPPER

Great Hammond work from Brian Charette – served up in a style that's a bit different than most contemporary organ jazz sessions! The tracks here are sometimes short – like the old soul jazz organ singles back in the 60s – and Charette mixes things up nicely with a few great covers of soundtrack and pop moments – a bit like some Jimmy McGriff album on Sue Records! Yet Charette's also got a much wider range of sounds than McGriff ever did – a knowledge of the Hammond that embraces all the changes from Larry Young forward – worked out with a sweet trio that includes either Avi Rothbard or Yotam Silberstein on guitar, and Mark Ferber or Jordan Young on drums. Joe Sucato guests on tenor on the album's one long track – and titles include "The Kicker", "Good Tipper", "Another Quarter", "Standing Still", "You Only Live Twice", "Up Up & Away", and "Time Of The Season".  ~ Dusty Groove

KENNY SHANKER – ACTION CITY

Only the second album as a leader from altoist Kenny Shanker – and already a great leap forward! The record features all original material penned by Shanker – really wonderful tunes that bring a freshness to the album right from the get-go, and which hold up strongly throughout! Instrumentation is from a core quintet – with Mike Eckroth on piano and Daisuke Abe on guitar – but some numbers have added percussion, which helps create a rhythmic complexity that really matches Kenny's fluid colors and tones on the alto! The leadoff track features Peyman Samghabadi on trombone – and titles include "Times Square", "Another Morning", "Action City", "Punch", "Shadow Dance", "Midnight", "Marble Hill", and "Riverbank At Dawn".  ~ Dusty Groove