JAMIE
CULLUM – INTERLUDE
The
hippest, coolest work we've ever heard from Jamie Cullum – a wonderful
collaboration with Nostalgia 77, who bring a lot of deeper jazz tones back to
Cullum's music! The members of the group shift from track to track, but really
give the whole thing a soulful vibe that's been missing from some of Jamie's
work in the past – a move back to his roots in jazz, with a sensibility that
almost even steps farther back – and links him to hip 60s British talents like
Georgie Fame or Zoot Money. Cullum's voice is wonderful, as always – but it's
especially great to hear it in a setting like this, which is quite far from
some of the more poppy directions he'd been heading on previous records. Titles
include "The Seer's Tower", "Walkin", "Don't You
Know", "Interlude", "Lovesick Blues", "Come &
Get Me", "Out Of This World", "Make Someone Happy",
"Good Morning Heartache", "Sack O Woe", and a version of
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" done with Gregory Porter. ~ Dusty
Groove
RON
BLAKE – COCKTAILS AT DUSK: A NOIR TRIBUTE TO CHRIS CONNOR
A really
unique little album from pianist Ran Blake – and that's saying a lot, given
that all of his music is pretty darn unique! The album features Blake at his
warmest – serving up a tribute to the vocalist Chris Connor, but at a level
that's mostly instrumental – as a good number of the tracks just feature Ran on
solo piano – creating dark, moody shapes from the bare bones of songs that were
a big part of Connor's famous 50s recordings for Bethlehem Records – really
blue, melancholy numbers that sound completely different in Blake's hands, but
which have the same sort of haunting feel as Chris' vocal versions. Laika
Fatien sings on 3 of the album's 13 tracks – with a very mellow, almost icy
style that we've never heard from her before – and 2 more tracks feature Ricky
Ford on tenor, playing with an approach that's surprisingly well-suited to
Ran's piano. Titles include "All About Ronnie", "Why Can't
I", "Where Are You", "Moon Ride",
"Driftwood", "Speak Low", and "Go Way From My
Window". ~ Dusty Groove
HENRY KAISER / RAY RUSSELL - THE CELESTIAL SQUID
Two
avant guitar giants – coming together here in an album that's got a decidedly
progressive feel overall! The record's quite forward-moving and focused – with
almost a rockish energy at the bottom – no surprise, given that both Henry
Kaiser and Ray Russell have plenty of ties to that side of the spectrum – and
almost revive a sort of 70s prog mode here as they jam together with a larger
group that includes reeds from Steve Adams, Aram Shelton, and Joshua Allen –
plus acoustic and electric bass, and work from two drummers – Weasel Walter and
William Winant! The album's way more of a jam than you might expect – but also
certainly has enough out moments to appeal to longtime fans of that side of the
music of Kaiser and Russell. Titles include "Disinterested
Bystander", "That Darn Squid", "In Another Life",
"Gukten Limpo", and "The Enumeration". ~ Dusty Groove
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