Taken from the album ‘Strata Records – The Sound of Detroit – Reimagined by Jazzanova’, BBE Music, DJ Amir and 180 Proof records present the 3rd single from this monumental project. This release features remixes by Japanese Club Jazz pioneers Kyoto Jazz Massive, and Genre Blending New Yorkers, musclecars. Kyoto Jazz Massive were enlisted to remix the Jazzanova reimagining of Sam Sanders’s iconic song Face at my Window. Their mix adds an intimate Jazz Club feel to vocalist Sean Haefeli’s recording, which highlights the dynamics of Sean’s voice. The subtle tempo increase maintains the feel of the original and adds a punch to the brass section, making the track an entirely new experience. Musclecars add that traditional New York / Chicago House vibe to Jazzanova’s reimagining of Kenny Cox’s ‘Beyond the dream’, and the result is a skippy afro/latin dancefloor filler which can go on forever. Musclecars demonstrate their genre blending superpowers on this mix which adds a garage swing to a jazz record, definitely going to be a jam for the dancefloors in 2023. Both remixes showcase the importance of DJ Amir’s unearthing of these strata gems, and Jazzanova’s reimagining, how they have breathed new life into one of Detroit’s hidden gems – Strata Records. They will definitely on board new audiences to the treasure trove that is Strata, and the iconic stories surrounding the often overlooked record label.
A fresh new chapter of the long legacy of drummer Joe Chambers – a key instrumental force in the hipper reaches of the Blue Note label in the late 60s, but an artist who seems to finally be catching up with his own work as a leader after all these years! Joe is every bit as wonderful here as on his famous recordings, and his more recent dates for Blue Note – a wonderfully inventive percussionist, and an inherently rhythmic player who's got this ability to spin sounds out in all these different directions, yet always make things feel wonderfully unified too. His group on the set has excellent vibes from Michael Davidson, almost recalling Joe's work with Bobby Hutcherson – and other players include Caoilainn Power on alto, Andres Vial on piano, Eli Miller Maboungou on ngoma drums, and Ira Coleman on bass. Titles include "Dance Kobina", "Intermezzo", "Gazelle Suite", "City Of Saints", "Moon Dance", "Power To The People", and "Caravanserai". ~ Dusty Groove
A great album from Astrud Gilberto – one that has her pushing past the simple bossa of early years, running through a range of 60s styles that all sound great – really opening up, finding new confidence in her vocals, and bridging a few different musical worlds in the process! Arrangements are by Deodato and Don Sebesky – and handled with this growing sophistication that holds on to bossa elements, but elevates the style with some of the cooler late 60s touches we love on Verve Records – all at a level that's completely sublime, and which does really wonderful things for Astrud's vocals. There's still plenty of Brazilian tunes in the mix – like "Oba, Oba", "Canoeiro", "Bossa Na Praia", "Nao Bate O Corocao", and Marcos Valle's great "The Face I Love" – and the album also features great versions of "Misty Roses", "You Didn't Have To Be So Nice", and "Stay". ~ Dusty Groove
Trumpeter Josh Lawrence has a nicely compressed approach to his trumpet – a sound that's sometimes got the more focused vibe of an early Miles Davis, along with all the sense of sparkle that might imply – yet with a delivery that's got a lot more space between the notes, and which really catches the best sort of energy from his hip bandmates on the date! Willie Morris III provides some sharper lines on tenor, and the rhythm work is wonderfully warm and fluid – with Art Hirihara on piano, Boris Kozlov on bass, and either Rudy Royston or Jason Tiemann on drums. Lawrence contributed some great original material to the record – "Left Hanging", "Cantus Firmus", "North Winds", and "Black Keys" – and Morris contributed the cuts "Grit" and "Hole In The Wall". ~ Dusty Groove
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