Friday, September 16, 2016

NEW RELEASES: ROBERT GLASPER EXPERIMENT – ART SCIENCE; JOHN HOLT – MEMORIES BY THE SCORE; TONY BENNETT – THE BEST IS YET TO COME

ROBERT GLASPER EXPERIMENT – ART SCIENCE

Tremendous material from Robert Glasper – a set that takes us back to the brilliance of his first few releases for Blue Note – while also encompassing all the changes he's gone through in recent years too! There's definitely some vocals on the record – but this time around, instead of being sung by a rotating cast, they're mostly handled by Casey Benjamin – who plays saxes and additional keyboards on the set – and helps give the whole thing a nicely unified vibe. Glasper sings a bit, too – but mostly concentrates on giving us some incredible lines on Fender Rhodes – in those soulful shapes that have made his keyboard work a delight since day one – and which continue to open up into so many wonderful directions. Benjamin uses a vocoder at times, which slides in great next to the Rhodes – and the group also features wonderful bass from Derrick Hodge, who also sings on one track too. Really wonderful material – as if the Experiment side of Glasper's work was folded into his small combo ethos – with tracks that include "No One Like You", "Day To Day", "Tell Me A Bedtime Story", "Find You", "This Is Not Fear", "In My Mind", "Hurry Slowly", "Written In Stone", "Human", and "Thinkin Bout You". ~ Dusty Groove

JOHN HOLT – MEMORIES BY THE SCORE (5-CD)

A stunning collection of work from the mighty John Holt – easily one of the most soulful singers in Jamaican music, presented here in a 5CD set that's overflowing with classic cuts from his best years! The collection features 100 tracks in all – almost all produced by Bunny Striker Lee, who was Holt's best partner in the studio during these years – which even include some early tracks done with The Paragons, the group from which John sprang. But most of the work here features Holt as a solo act – tripping lightly over grooves that begin in rocksteady, and continue a similar stepping vibe throughout the 70s – often with themes that are more personal than the message-oriented music of the roots generation. The package is a hell of a deal at this price – and a hell of a high-quality collection – and titles include "A Little Tear", "Mr TV Man", "Left With A Broken Heart", "Yesterday", "Walk Away", "The Tide Is High", "Rain From The Skies", "For The Love Of You", "Why I Care", "I Need A Veggie", "Up Park Camp", "No Man Is An Island", "The Clock", "Lonely Boy", "What Life's About", "Stick By Me", "Lost Love", and "My Desire".  ~ Dusty Groove

TONY BENNETT – THE BEST IS YET TO COME

Rare Tony Bennett material from a really unique source – a series of recordings that originally appeared on the Let's Go To Town radio show – a program sponsored by the National Guard, and never issued on any sort of commercial recordings! Bennett is at a wonderful point in his career – shaking off some of the more bombastic modes of his youth, and really opening up to the more jazz-based side of his style – working with pianist Ralph Sharon, and larger backings from the orchestras of Larry Elgart and Buddy Morrow. The Sharon backing recalls some of Tony's more intimate sides for Columbia – and five of the set's sixteen titles feature only piano behind the vocals – leaving the others to hit a bigger band mode, not unlike some of Bennett's material with Count Basie. Titles include "You Can't Love Em All", "Marry Young", "What Good Does It Do", "The Best Is Yet To Come", "This Could Be The Start Of Something", "Blue Moon", "Happiness Is A Thing Called Joe", "Just In Time", "That Old Black Magic", and "Love Walked In". ~ Dusty Groove


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