Brad Shepik, among the most versatile and distinctive guitarists of his generation, has performed and/or recorded with such artists as Joey Baron, Bob Brookmeyer, Dave Douglas, Charlie Haden, Carla Bley and Paul Motian and is equally acclaimed his work in several bands performing various styles of world-jazz, including Pachora, Simon Shaheen, Tridruga, the Paradox Trio, Yuri Yunakov’s Bulgarian Wedding Band, and the Commuters. Human Activity Suite Part 2 – Code Red is a ten movement meditation on the degree to which the danger to the planet has increased over the past fifteen years and the disastrous effects on local populations around the world. It is also a response to Shepik's 2007 composition Human Activity Suite which was organized around the seven continents and the global effects of human activity on climate. By the summer of 2021 and the IPCC report on Climate Change it has become clear that the effects of climate change will increase in severity and continue to be felt by everyone in every corner of the world. This new suite Human Activity Part 2- Code Red will focus on local effects of climate change and will aim to inspire people to take action locally within their community to both preserve local ecosystems and adapt in a sustainable way for future generations. The piece features an ensemble of five musicians who are are improvisors and multi-instrumentalists (guitar, tambura, saz, violin, piano, bass and percussion).
Singer and actor Dan Olivo is a regular on the Southern California jazz scene. He performs with his combo at such high-end venues as The Bar Nineteen12 at The Beverly Hills Hotel, The Ritz Carlton at Corona Del Mar and Rancho Mirage, The Riviera Hotel, and the Frank Sinatra House in Palm Springs. For his debut album, Day By Day, Olivo wanted to blend his sophisticated, elegant sound with the feel of a big band recording but performed by a smaller combo. Day By Day contains a mix of styles, from pop songs, like “This Guy’s in Love with You,” featuring Joe Bagg on organ, to bluesy rock including Fats Domino’s “I’m Walking.” Some songs go back a long way. "How Come You Do Me Like You Do?" was written in 1924 by a vaudeville comedy duo, while "It's Only a Paper Moon," written in 1932 for an unsuccessful Broadway play called The Great Magoo, features vocals by Medeiros and Cibelli. "It Had to Be You" was composed in 1924 by Isham Jones with lyrics by Gus Kahn. Other songs are straight out of the Great American Songbook, including the title track “Day by Day,” “Sway,” “Time After Time,” “All the Way,” and “More,” which was the theme song from the movie Mondo Cane. “L.O.V.E.” has not been recorded by many singers. It was written in 1965 and appeared on Nat “King” Cole’s last album of the same name. Because Harry Connick, Jr. has been such an important influence on Olivo, he recorded Connick’s “Come by Me,” as an homage to the singer and bandleader. Olivo knows how to swing and delivers the lyrics with clear enunciation and a lot of feeling. His training in stagecraft allows him to tell the story of a song directly and honestly, much like the crooners he so admires. The musicians on this album put forth a superb performance and successfully created the deep, rich big band sound that Olivo envisioned for his debut.
Blue Engine Records releases the first recording of Blues Symphony (Symphony No. 2), an innovative and colossal work from Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Wynton Marsalis. In the hands of The Philadelphia Orchestra under the direction of celebrated conductor Cristian Măcelaru, Blues Symphony (Marsalis's second symphony) takes the 12-bar blues and explodes it into a lyrical, kaleidoscopic history of American music. Blues Symphony (Symphony No. 2) is available globally on all digital platforms from Blue Engine Records. The symphony's seven movements are each infused with different influences—a ragtime stomp here, a habanera rhythm there—and, collectively, they take listeners on a sonic journey through America’s revolutionary era, the early beginnings of jazz in New Orleans, and even a big city soundscape that serves as a nod to the Great Migration. This 2019 performance, recorded live in Verizon Hall at Philadelphia's Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, builds upon the legacies of Scott Joplin, James P. Johnson, George Gershwin, and other American masters, demonstrating the genius and breadth of Marsalis's imagination. “The blues helps you remember back before the troubles on hand and in mind,” says Marsalis, “and they carry you on the wings of angels to a timeless higher ground.” With the exquisite palette provided by The Philadelphia Orchestra, Blues Symphony (Symphony No. 2) is a triumphant ode to the power of the blues and the scope of America's musical heritage.
Far Out Recordings releases two previously unreleased tracks of glorious Brazilian sunshine music. Written and recorded in 1978 by pianist, composer, sound engineer, studio owner and former amateur skateboarding champion Ricardo Bomba, ‘Eu Sei’ and ‘Flutuando’ were almost doomed to total obscurity when the master tapes were binned following a ruthless studio clear out. Luckily Bomba kept a cassette tape copy from which Far Out has remastered the release for 7” vinyl/ digital. Throughout a varied career, which included a four year stint as bandleader of Jorge Ben’s live show (78-82), Ricardo Bomba had a string of idiosyncratic, underground pop hits throughout the 80s, including ‘Você Vai Se Lembrar’ which recently featured on Soundway’s Onda De Amor (Synthesized Brazilian Hits That Never Were 1984-94) compilation, as well as his then award-winning, now obscure solo album Ultralight (1988).
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