Late Bloomin' Jazzman, the newest album by vocalist and songwriter Mark Winkler, is an homage to growing older and all the blessings and drawbacks that come with it. The album is Winkler’s 20th CD as a leader. Each of his previous projects has received stellar reviews and consistently topped the jazz charts. Rex Reed has said, “Mark Winkler is a musical marvel and a true original! At last, a writer who sings and a singer who swings!” Winkler wrote lyrics to eight of the 12 tunes and covers a lot of personal topics on this album. He writes about his love of George Gershwin, film noir, and the songs of Rio. He also writes about losing his husband, finding love again, and about a close friend ravished by Alzheimer’s disease. Although Winkler is a popular performer and recording artist, he is also a very successful songwriter, and Late Bl;oomin' Jazzman is a wonderful showcase to highlight both. To paraphrase his lyrics in “Late Bloomin’ Jazzman,” his “finest flower may finally be here."
On Wouldn't Be Here Without You, guitarist Brent Laidler presents ten eclectic, original compositions that celebrate the friends, mentors, and fellow musicians who have helped and supported him on his journey through music and life. The album is Laidler’s second project as a leader and follows No Matter Where Noir (2017). All About Jazz said, “This is an album where the gestalt is king, and one that gets more enjoyable with repetition as that gestalt sinks into the listener's bones.” Laidler does not have the national name recognition his playing warrants because his many music-related activities prevent him from extensive touring. Besides being a jazz guitarist, he is also a film/commercial composer, arranger, clinician, radio host, and successful small business owner. Laidler was originally going to name the album after his composition, “A Second Chance,” referring to the fact this is his second jazz album as a leader. But while he was planning material for the album, he lost both his father and friend and mentor Tony Zamora, the beloved director of the Black Cultural Center at Purdue University, within a day of each other. Their passing caused Laidler to rethink his concept. With influences that include Jim Hall, Kenny Burrell, Barney Kessel, Pat Martino, and Ed Bickert, Laidler eschews pyrotechnics on Wouldn't Be Here Without You for a warm, more accessible sound. This album is a wonderful introduction to a musician who deserves wider recognition.
Although his name is not known to jazz fans nationwide, Cuban-born guitarist Jorge Garcia has worked with many esteemed musicians, including Tony Bennett, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Chuck Redd, Jon Faddis, and Ignacio Berroa. Garcia’s new self-released album, Dedicated To You, celebrates his collaborations with two other jazz icons, Richie Cole and Hendrick Meurkens, along with some of his favorite local musicians from South Florida. Garcia’s association with the late alto saxophonist Richie Cole dates back to the late 1990s, when Cole was living in Key Largo, FL, and in the process of forming a new edition of his Alto Madness Orchestra. Garcia was not only a member of the band, he also performed with bassist Rick Doll and drummer James Cotmon on Cole’s big band gigs. Richie Cole played clubs and concerts in the Miami area on several occasions, and whenever he was asked to assemble a band, Garcia would be Cole‘s first-call guitarist. In 2009, Cole was back in Southern Florida, and Garcia offered to pay for the studio rental if Cole would be willing to record. Cole readily agreed, and the band’s rhythm section of Garcia, Doll and Cotmon were reunited for the date. While the tracks on Dedicated To You seem retrospective in nature, Garcia continues to perform regularly, and we should expect to hear more fine music from Jorge Garcia and his very talented friends.
Table For Five! features Quintero’s longtime musical compatriots Eddie Resto/bass, Joe Rotondi/piano, Aaron Serfaty/drums, Joey Deleon/percussion, and Quintero on electric guitar. Quintero, who is known for his stylish, tasty work on the nylon string guitar, decided to record for the first time on the semi-hallow electric guitar to highlight the new direction of his music and label. Rather than focusing on the Latin repertoire, Quintero performs jazz standards, expanding the scope to include World Music as well as music from the Great American Songbook. Table For Five is the first of his own albums that Quintero produced since his debut album in 1988. “Participating as a player while being responsible for all aspects of this recording was a daunting task,” says Quintero. “But my bandmates, my brothers, had my back in every way.” Although Quintero was the sole producer, the arrangements were a collaborative effort shared by the entire band. Quintero says, “We all had input in the process. We basically worked from an outline of the arrangements, improvising the music as we went. I didn’t want to over arrange the songs so much that we changed them into something completely different. I feel you need to trust the composer and honor his or her intention. The core of the music needs to survive your treatment.”
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