BILLY
TAYLOR TRIO – SLEEPING BEE
Great
sounds from Billy Taylor – a player who was definitely big in the mainstream at
the time of this late 60s date, but who really finds a way to return strongly
to his roots! Taylor's playing here with that nicely punctuated style that made
him one of the biggest groovers in the early 50s – and the group has this
really great MPS/Saba sort of vibe – never too over the top, but always with an
undercurrent of soul – as you might expect with rhythm work from Ben Tucker on
bass and Grady Tate on drums! Taylor turns in a few lyrical moments, which are
alternated with more left-hand swinging numbers – and titles include "La
Petite Mambo", "Theodora", "Paraphrase", "Bye
Y'All", and "Don't Go Down South". ~ Dusty Groove
RODRIGO
LIMA - SAGA
A great
debut from Rodrigo Lima – a double-length set that has the guitarist working in
modes that range from Brazilian roots to samba jazz, with lots of stops in
between! Lima plays acoustic throughout, and with a deftness that rivals some
of his Brazilian predecessors – and that includes some of the best bossa and
choro talents as well – and the range of settings in the album is varied, but
extremely unified too – thanks to a coherent sense of production and
presentation that really holds our interest throughout. Rodrigo invited a
surprising range of legends to work with him on the album – including Hubert
Laws on flute, Hugo Fattoroso on keyboards, Raul De Souza on trombone, Anat
Cohen on tenor and clarinet, Mike Mainieri on vibes, and the great Hermeto
Pascoal on piano – and songs range from shorter melodies to these lovely long
introspections. Titles include "Porta Aflora", "Vida Nova",
"Pilotos", "Opa", "Anima 2", "Cancao
Praieira", "A Velha Sozinha", and "Nosso Borogodo
Coio". ~ Dusty Groove
ANGLES 9
– INJURIES
Wonderful
work from this Swedish collection – a group of players you might know from
their excellent work on the Moserobie label, coming together here in one of
their most ambitious projects ever! The lineup is relatively large, but the
sound is nice and lean – as many musicians often work together in this rhythmic
pulse that's quite strong – almost undercurrents of funk or 70s Afro modes, but
with all the sharp edges you'd expect from soloists like Matthias Stahl on
vibes, Johan Berthling on bass, Magnus Broo on trumpet, Mats Aleklint on
trombone, Martin Kuchen on alto and tenor sax, and Goran Kajfes on cornet.
Kuchen wrote all the tracks on the record, and produced the set too – so we'll
assume he's the leader – and titles include "European Boogie",
"Eti", "Ubabba", "Injuries",
"Compartmentalization", and "In Our Midst". ~ Dusty Groove
No comments:
Post a Comment