PETE MCCANN EXPLORES THE BREADTH OF HIS FORMIDABLE ARTISTRY AS A GUITARIST ON HIS FIFTH RECORDING, RANGE

Range, available September 18, 2015 on Whirlwind Recordings, marks jazz guitarist Pete McCann's fifth release as a leader. Range, which finds McCann exploring the breadth and depth of his formidable artistry as a guitarist, composer and bandleader, features an incomparable cast of some of New York City's finest musicians; John O'Gallagher-alto sax, Henry Hey-piano, Rhodes and organ, Matt Clohesy-acoustic & electric bass and Mark Ferber-drums.

The music on Range encompasses a wide variety of musical styles and genres, showcasing McCann's and the ensemble's "range" as they expertly and delightfully delve into straight-ahead, post-bop, avant garde, Latin, and jazz-rock fusion. Range is the follow up to McCann's previous critically-acclaimed releases, Extra Mile (Nineteen-Eight), Most Folks (Omnitone), Parable and You Remind Me of Someone (both on Palmetto). Range opens with the driving, melodious, Kenny, an homage to the late, great, Kenny Wheeler, with whom McCann had the good fortune to study with in 1988 at the Banff Summer Jazz Workshop. He later performed and recorded with Wheeler in a large ensemble led by the Belgian saxophonist, Erwin Vann in 1997. Wheeler's unique sound on the trumpet and flugelhorn, and his beautiful compositional style, resonates with McCann on a very personal level, as reflected in this composition. Seventh Jar was inspired by the Indian spiritual tale in which a man finds six and a half jars filled with gold. He becomes obsessed with filling the seventh jar never realizing that he should stop and have gratitude for what he already has. McCann and the ensemble perfectly capture the mystery of this ancient story with a contemplative, searching melody. Realm "was written with the great pianist Richie Beirach in mind.  I am a longtime fan of Richie's playing and his dark harmonic sensibility," explained McCann. Like most musicians of McCann's caliber, he is an avid listener, and To the Mountains was inspired by a melodic fragment he heard on God Bless America. It is the guitarist's tribute to the true sonic genius of guitarist Bill Frisell, and will stand as a testament to McCann's talent in taking a small melodic fragment and crafting a beautiful, contemplative ballad from it. Mustard is a lively tune with an interesting set of odd meters at the end of the A section: 7/8, 6/8 and 7/8. The bass riff centers around the major 3rd axis split, Ab/C/E.

Other highlights on Range include Dyad Changes, written with Anton Webern in mind. A few years ago John O'Gallagher invited McCann to perform and record with the Anton Webern Project. "Studying O'Gallagher's take on Webern gave me the idea to write in that style over rhythm changes", said McCann; Numinous is based on a 12 tone row. Each of the 12 tones provides the roots for the underlying harmony of the A section, then the tone row comes back on its own in the B section as a backdrop for improvisation; Bridge Scandal, inspired by "Bridgegate" an unfortunate event that many suspect Chris Christie (governor of New Jersey), to have orchestrated. The underlying harmony of the A section is very similar to the middle section or 'bridge' of Bill Evans' Time Remembered; Rumble is an homage to the remarkable saxophonist, Lee Konitz. "I was very fortunate to work with Lee in the Lee Konitz Nonet, led by saxophonist Ohad Talmor, and also recently with saxophonist Grace Kelly," said McCann; Mine Is Yours is a composition that simply, but captivatingly, delves into McCann's fascination with harmony.

A native of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, McCann has been an integral part of the New York City jazz scene for more than twenty-five years, during which time he has been a first-call sideman, and an indispensable part of over eighty CDs. He has performed throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe from the most prestigious clubs and jazz festivals, to musicals, award shows, and even an opera. McCann regularly works with Grace Kelly, Chris Tarry, Melissa Stylianou, Dan Willis, Ben Kono, Asuka Kakitani and Alison Wedding, and has performed with some of the greatest in jazz, including Kenny Wheeler, Dave Liebman, Lee Konitz, Patti Austin, Bobby Previte, Brian Blade, and the Maria Schneider Orchestra. He received his Bachelors of Music degree from the University of North Texas, has studied at the Banff School of the Arts, and currently teaches at City College of New York and the New School in New York City.

www.Petemccann.com

DUKES of Dixieland Announce New Album: Live at 2015 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

One of New Orleans' flagship groups is captured live at the city's flagship event on The DUKES of Dixieland's rollicking new release, Live at 2015 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Due out September 18, the album spotlights the versatility and range of the iconic band with a set of classic Crescent City R&B and Latin-tinged jazz, all performed with crack timing and boisterous spirit.

The repertoire may come as a surprise to those who haven't caught one of the band's renowned nightly performances on the Steamboat Natchez, their home base on the Mississippi River for more than twenty years. Best known for the traditional jazz sound implied by their name, the DUKES of Dixieland casts a wide net to present the stunning diversity and celebratory soul of New Orleans music.

On Live at 2015 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, that "know it when you hear it" style is represented by hometown heroes like Louis Prima, Allen Toussaint, Dr. John, and Huey "Piano" Smith; as well as spiritual compatriots including Tom Waits and Jerry Lee Lewis. There are also several Duke Ellington pieces - which might seem to be an unlikely fit until you hear the ensemble's down-home, Latin Jazz reinventions of the legendary composer's work.

The band's R&B-focused set was recorded in front of a riotous crowd of thousands in the Jazz & Heritage Festival's Economy Hall Tent, named for the former home of an early twentieth century mutual aid and benefit society. Performing for the always-enthusiastic Jazz Fest crowd brings something special to the band's well-honed sound, according to trumpet player and bandleader Kevin Clark. "Playing for that crowd, you know that when they're applauding and into it, you're doing it right. We always get a good response out there, and when that many people scream and yell, it's inspiring and amps the band up even more. It captures that over-the-top New Orleans vibe."

Before they ever reached those Jazz Fest ears, however, these songs were audience-tested in front of local and international audiences. The DUKES play the dinner cruise on the Steamboat Natchez seven nights a week, 45 weeks a year - and on their "time off" play 30 dates a year with orchestras and at festivals and performing arts centers in the U.S. and abroad. "All the tunes that we do on the new album are songs that the guests that we play for every day enjoy listening to," Clark says. "You can see them light up when we play those particular songs; they're fan favorites. Maybe that's because they don't expect us to make a departure from traditional jazz, though everything we do keeps one foot planted in New Orleans music."

That term is surprisingly hard to define, even for a longtime resident like Clark. "I think all of New Orleans music has a certain feel, a grittiness, to it," he says. "It's 'dirt under your fingernails' music."

Made up of well-studied musicians with hundreds of songs in their repertoire and countless performances under their belt, the DUKES make it a point to balance their virtuosity with that grit, never losing sight of the elements that make the Big Easy special. "Every night I hear, 'This is what we came to New Orleans for,'" Clark says.

"There's something about every song that we do that makes it different than any other band. It's the difference between grabbing a po'boy and eating a fine meal at Commander's Palace."

The modern DUKES of Dixieland trace their history back 41 years, when trumpeter and cornetist Connie Jones left Pete Fountain's band to reform the band. They opened their own nightclub later that year in the French Quarter and have been a New Orleans institution ever since, taking up residency on the Steamboat Natchez in 1992. Clark, who had previously served a thirteen-year tenure in the band before leaving in 2002, returned to take the helm in 2010. He brought integral experience from playing at Disney World and booking shows for Toronto venues with him.

"The band has always had great players," Clark says, "but what I bring to the table is the conviction that people want to be entertained; they don't want a history lesson. We're like a show band that plays New Orleans music: everything's tight and there's no down time to explain what we're doing."

That attitude is well-represented on Live at 2015 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, which flows organically from opener "Mama Inez," through a trio of Duke Ellington compositions, to a mash-up of Louis Prima's iconic "Sing, Sing Sing," with his song from Disney's The Jungle Book, "I Wanna Be Like You." The set continues with Alan Broome's gravelly vocal on Tom Waits' "I Wish I Was in New Orleans," evoking both the songwriter and the city's musical godfather, Louis Armstrong.

Pianist/singer Joe Kennedy takes a killer turn on a medley of Jerry Lee Lewis tunes and returns to the spotlight for a run-through of New Orleans R&B favorites, including Dr. John's "Such a Night;" "Down Home Girl," originally recorded by New Orleans singer Alvin Robinson; Huey "Piano" Smith's oft-recorded "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie-Woogie Flu;" and Bobby Goldsboro's "Voodoo Woman." Allen Toussaint's familiar "Java" offers a taste of a more classic New Orleans sound.

"There's a lot of different music under the umbrella of New Orleans music," Clark sums up. "What we're trying to do is be that band. You want to hear Jelly Roll Morton? We'll play Jelly Roll Morton like you want it to be done. Want to hear Fats Domino? Louis Prima? The Meters? The Neville Brothers? I think the essence is versatility, presenting lots of different options for people with depth while remaining accessible and fun."

www.DUKESofDixieland.com

Bass Legend Ron Carter Debuts Original Compositions with Extended Orchestra, The WDR Big Band, on My Personal Songbook

Ron Carter's elegant, sophisticated and delicate tone, as well as his extraordinary sense of timing, have informed generations of bassists and have had a tremendous impact on the musical genre as a whole.

My Personal Songbook is the first recording of the grand master's original compositions performed by an extended orchestra to be released. This exceptional recording took place in January 2013, when Carter appeared with The WDR Big Band in Cologne. Three acclaimed concerts with The WDR Big Band in Geneva, Zürich, and Essen followed and strengthened the master bassist's wish to extend the collaboration.

Naturally, The WDR Big Band acceded to his wish, because apart from the fact that Carter is one of the leading bassists in the history of jazz, the musical vibes between the WDR Big Band and the famed guest soloist were highly compatible from the start. One may wonder why such a diligent musician as Carter did not work with the large format before; it was only in 2011 that he formed a big band of his own. With the WDR Big Band and the album My Personal Songbook, he goes further in presenting himself as a brilliant double bass player and innovative soloist.

Being cast with truly exquisite soloists, the WDR Big Band is a perfect match for Carter, who is full of praises: "It honors a radio station to insist on this music and to make such a large band format happen. Being professional, flexible and having the brilliant musicality of these musicians also add to this project." Carter chose ten pieces for the project, which were, and still are, of tremendous influence in his life. Richard DeRosa, principal conductor of The WDR Big Band, contributed the arrangements for his orchestra. The result is a sound which pays attention to the lush big band tone as well as to the sophisticated solo parts and allows both to fully bloom. An extra highlight is the additional DVD with tracks as well as film footage.

  

Carter was born on May 4th, 1937, and at the age of ten, very shortly after he started to play the cello, he switched to the double bass. After his collaboration on the Gil Evans's masterpiece, "Out Of The Cool," he became recognized by wider audiences in 1960. In '63, he achieved international recognition, playing with jazz legend Miles Davis' second quintet, of which he was a member until 1968.

Carter can be heard on more than 2,500 recordings. He not only contributed to the jazz genre, but to the history of the music of the 20th and 21st centuries in general. Musicians such as Cannonball Adderley, Freddie Hubbard, Quincy Jones, Herbie Hancock and McCoy Tyner have appreciated his exquisite tone and professional craftsmanship during his illustrious career. His extraordinary bass lines have also contributed to hip hop music, in particular A Tribe Called Quest's The Low End Theory, ushering Carter in as a front line supporter/recognizer of the jazz/hip-hop convergence.

Milestones of his truly exceptional, vital and multifaceted career are on the set list. It is Carter's virtuosic technique, his sensitivity for sounds and his brilliantly performed timing that make his bass voice so outstanding and classic. Carter guarantees consistency and premium quality. Since the early 1960s, when he was part of the Miles Davis Quintet, he tirelessly goes for the utmost perfect double bass sound. That is why colleagues, experts and audiences alike have appreciated Carter for decades.

www.RonCarter.net

Featured This Week on The Jazz Network: Vocalist, Lainie Cooke ~ "The Music Is The Magic"‏

Lainie Cooke made her first record—when she was 3. Her next recording—a 12-tune jazz CD titled Here’s to Life!—was recorded when she was 60! And now, at age 73, Cooke is releasing her third CD, The Music Is the Magic, a masterpiece of jazz vocal art produced by drummer and trumpeter Ralph Peterson and issued on his Onyx Productions label.

Cooke never stopped singing during that 57-year gap, however. She made her radio debut at 6 in her native Minneapolis, first appeared on television at 11, and sang with local dance bands during her high school days. After studying theater for two years at the University of Minnesota, she moved to New York City when she was 20 and soon began a hugely successful career as voice-over artist for commercials, documentaries and motion pictures that kept her busy for four decades.

Cooke has been a resident of New York City since she was 20, save for relatively brief periods in Jamaica and California. “I went to New York to find out what I could actually do with all of the stuff that was inside me,” she reflects. “I wasn’t sure what I wanted to be—a musical theater performer or a nightclub singer.”  After working an office job for a period, she got fingerprinted for a cabaret card and played a few New York clubs, but upon doing her first out-of-town gig in Hartford, Connecticut, she developed an instant distaste for being on the road. Voice-over work, which allowed her to stay home in New York City, became her calling and kept her steadily employed for most of the next 40 years.

“I had a day job where I used my voice every day,” says Cooke, who wound up serving on the board of directors of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), eventually as the union’s National Recording Secretary. In 1973, Cooke began a three-and-a-half year adventure she calls “the very best and very worst times of my life” by joining her then-husband in running a 38-acre chicken farm in Jamaica that sold poultry and vegetables to hotels in nearby Montego Bay. She got to sing jazz once a month at a hotel there, but political turmoil on the island eventually caused the tourist industry to dry up, thus ending the couple’s business.

After getting a divorce, Cooke moved to Los Angeles in 1979 and began singing in clubs with such top jazz men as pianist Dick Shreve and bassist Bob Maize but moved back to New York in 1983 and resumed doing voice-overs. She returned briefly to L.A. to record half of her first CD, 2002’s Here’s to Life! on the Harlemwood label, with Shreve, Maize, and others. New York musicians, including Firth, bassist Cameron Brown, and drummer Matt Wilson, completed the album. Her second CD, 2008’s It’s Always You, also on Harlemwood, also featured Firth, Brown, and Wilson, as well as saxophonist Joel Frahm.

Lainie Cooke may have gotten off to a late start as a recording artist, but she has more than made up for lost time. With The Music Is the Magic, she again surrounds herself with some of the jazz world’s finest instrumentalists and further affirms her standing in the front ranks of jazz singers performing today. She’s got it all down—taste, technique, tone, and timing, a truly magical combination.

  

Visit THE JAZZ NETWORK WORLDWIDE "A GREAT PLACE TO HANG" at: http://www.thejazznetworkworldwide.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

"An Evening of Indigos," 2-CD Set by Saxophonist/Composer/Arranger Bill Kirchner, Recorded Live at the New School in October 2014

Bill Kirchner An Evening of Indigos Renowned as a renaissance man of jazz -- as an influential bandleader, sideman (on all of the saxophones, clarinets, and flutes), composer, arranger, record and radio producer, educator, writer, and editor -- Bill Kirchner is also one of jazz's most deeply soulful soprano saxophone stylists. He plays soprano exclusively on his forthcoming album An Evening of Indigos, a 2-CD package featuring Kirchner in the intimate company of pianist Carlton Holmes, a veteran of the leader's now-inactive nonet; Nashville-based bassist and vocalist Jim Ferguson; and longtime colleague Holli Ross on vocals. Jazzheads Records will release the set, Kirchner's fourth for the New York label, on October 16.

Recorded on October 7, 2014 at a concert in the 200-capacity performance space at New York's New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, where Kirchner has taught for the past 25 years, An Evening of Indigos presents the quartet in a set of seven Kirchner compositions and six standards. "The mood at this remarkable concert was indeed indigo but far from monochromatic," remarks Dan Morgenstern in the package notes. Kirchner also includes his own comments made at the New School that night in the program notes:

"Most concerts are, in a sense, variety shows. The standard idea in programming them is to come up with a multiplicity of tempos and moods, usually building to a climax. In this case, we're aiming to explore one mood, though in different facets. And to sustain that mood, we'll refrain from talking to the audience between songs. . . . Just let the music and emotions envelop you."

 Bill Kirchner From the album opener "Theme for Gregory," Kirchner's "simple jazz waltz with some nice chord changes," through the closing Rodgers & Hart standard "He Was Too Good to Me," the musicians explore many hues of indigo. Several of Kirchner's collaborations with lyricist Loonis McGlohon are included, among them "Gentle Voice in the Night" and "I Almost Said Goodbye," featuring Ross, and "Foolish Little Girl," with Ferguson on vocals. The vocalists take turns on a medley of Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Someone to Light Up My Life" and "This Happy Madness," both with English lyrics by Kirchner's late friend Gene Lees. Another vocal medley pairs Bacharach-David's "Close to You" (previously recorded as an instrumental on Kirchner's 1999 nonet album Trance Dance) and Buddy Johnson's blues ballad "Save Your Love for Me."

Also performed are Kirchner's (both words and music) "The Inaudible Language of the Heart," sung by Ross; his solo piano feature for Holmes, "Since You Asked"; and his musical setting of a poem by William Butler Yeats, "When You Are Old," sung by Ferguson. The bassist/vocalist and Kirchner duet on Bob Hilliard and David Mann's "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning."

Kirchner's concentration on the soprano, his favorite instrument, is not entirely by choice. In 1993 he suffered a major setback when he was diagnosed with a non-malignant but life-threatening tumor in his spinal cord. The tumor was removed after two major surgeries, but he was left with no feeling and only two working fingers in his right hand, a pronounced limp, and chronic pain. Forced to put aside his other reed and woodwind instruments, he gradually taught himself to play a soprano saxophone that had been redesigned and rebuilt to accommodate his disability.

"There's an economy to it that's by sheer necessity," he says of his current soprano style. "It's said that we're all stylistically a product of our limitations. I'm as good an example of that as anybody I know.

"It was kind of serendipitous that the only instrument that I can still play is the one I liked playing the most. I had to relearn ways of playing it, but not as much as you might think. I guess I just learned to play with fewer notes. I don't think that my conception of playing changed all that much. It's just sparer now, that's all."

 Bill Kirchner Born in Youngstown, Ohio, in 1953, Bill Kirchner started playing clarinet at age 7 and took up saxophone in junior high and flute in high school. While majoring in English at Manhattan College in New York in the early '70s, he studied music privately with saxophonist Lee Konitz and pianist Harold Danko. After college, Kirchner spent five years in Washington, DC, where he played and studied with arranger Mike Crotty and edited transcripts for the Smithsonian Institution's NEA jazz oral-history project.

Kirchner returned to New York City in 1980 and has remained there ever since. His nonet was active from 1980 to 2001 and recorded five albums for the Sea Breeze, A-Records, and Jazzheads labels. His sideman credits include work with the Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, Anita O'Day, Mario Bauzá, and Tito Puente. His arrangements have been recorded by Konitz, Dizzy Gillespie, Patti Austin, and the Smithsonian Jazz Repertory Ensemble. He has annotated over 50 projects for Blue Note, Columbia/Legacy, Mosaic, and other labels and was awarded a Grammy for "Best Album Notes" for Miles Davis and Gil Evans: The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings in 1996. He edited the books A Miles Davis Reader in 1997 and The Oxford Companion to Jazz in 2000. He produced and wrote four NPR Jazz Profiles and hosted 131 Jazz from the Archives radio shows for WBGO-FM. And he presently teaches jazz courses at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, the Manhattan School of Music, and New Jersey City University.

"This night is one of the highlights of my career," says Kirchner of the New School concert. "To have one's music so sensitively and beautifully performed by Holli, Carlton, and Jim is a composer-arranger's dream. And the audience was with us all the way." 

Pianist and Vocalist Ariel Pocock Releases Uniquely Versatile Debut, Touchstone

At 22-years-old, Ariel Pocock has received international acclaim as a captivating jazz pianist, vocalist, and composer. Recognized by notable institutions such as Downbeat, the Kobe-Seattle International Jazz Vocal Competition and the Essentially Ellington Competition at Lincoln Center, where she won both the outstanding pianist award as well as the Ella Fitzgerald Outstanding Vocalist Award. Pocock is steadily gaining momentum as a uniquely gifted and versatile musician with both her "true facility for...sinewy jazz piano [and] breezy, achingly plain-spoken vocal chops..." (Seattle Times).

Touchstone, Pocock's debut album features fresh takes on classic jazz standards, original compositions, and her own arrangements of singer-songwriter material. She worked with producer Matt Pierson to compile this interesting mix of songs.  The inclusion of some of her favorite jazz standards like "Devil May Care," "Exactly Like You," and "Ugly Beauty" as well as some of the singer-songwriter material are a glimpse into the music Pocock loves as a musician.

Although the music is diverse by category, it is tied together with the distinctive playing and vocal style that Pocock exudes.

Pocock is not the only musician that shines on Touchstone. The featured musicians include saxophonist Seamus Blake, guitarist Julian Lage, bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Eric Harland.  This all-star band also helped shape the reflective and meditative feel to the album as well. Although this particular group of musicians had never played together, the communication and musical dialogue on this album is apparent from its onset. With some of the arrangements being improvised in-studio with all the musicians contributing ideas and crafting parts, it is easy to tell that all the musicians believed in communicating Pocock's love for the songs.

On teaming with such a great lineup of musicians Pocock states, "Working with Larry, Eric, Julian, and Seamus was incredible. They are truly some of my favorite musicians alive today. I've looked up to them all for years and it was quite surreal getting the opportunity to actually record with them. I arrived at the studio on the first day with some fairly serious nerves, but after meeting the band and showing them my ideas for the recording, I was totally at ease and so excited to get started."  

A captivating performer, Pocock has headlined many notable venues and music festivals, including Ronnie Scott's London Club, Iowa City Jazz Festival, Elkhart Jazz Festival, Twin Cities Jazz Festival, Stanford Jazz Festival, Bellevue Jazz Festival, and in July 2015 had the opportunity to perform at the prestigious Festival International de Jazz de Montréal.

A recent graduate of the University of Miami's Frost School of Music where she studied under the Stamps Family scholarship - Ariel Pocock is based in North Carolina where she continues to compose and maintain an active performing schedule.

The Sun Ra Centennial Arkestra to Release Babylon Live, Documenting 2014 Centennial Tour Recording Marks First Album Released in Eight Years

Forever alterable, young again and freshly strengthened, The Sun Ra Centennial Arkestra under the direction of Marshall Allen presents itself on Babylon Live, the only live recording from the Centennial Arkestra tour. Recorded at Istanbul's Babylon music club, marking the hundredth birthday of it's founder, Sun Ra, the tour kicked off in 2014 and lead the band around the globe. The ensemble sparked with a briskness that is a testimony to the timelessness and infinity of their mission.

Babylon Live is an aural illustration of the enthusiasm of the brothers Mehmet and Ahmet Uluğ. The tenacious Sun Ra fans indeed made it happen. They wanted to bring the Sun Ra Arkestra to Istanbul for the first time since 1990. Both, however, were inexperienced promoters. They drove the band on a flat bed trailer down the arterial road to Taksim-Square and the nearby concert hall they had booked. The unusual promotion campaign drew thousands of curious spectators. Sun Ra's blessing turned out to be fruitful with the concert being a great success. In consequence, the Uluğ brothers founded the music promotion enterprise Pozitif and later on the Babylon. An Istanbul myth had come to life. Therefore, this CD/DVD special edition is dedicated to the late Mehmet Uluğ, whose untimely death occurred in 2012.

Terrific talents grew up in the well-kept house of 91-year-old Maestro Allen in Philadelphia, including piano player Farid Barron, Ra's current representative on planet Earth. Barron's exceptional sense of timing, phrasing and timbre puts him on the same level as piano players such as Art Tatum. Before he started to travel to the opposite side of the jazz continuum, Barron had contributed to the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra under the direction of Wynton Marsalis. It was Allen who also discovered violin player and highly gifted vocalist Tara Middleton, whose vibrant and velvet, impressive alto voice is capable of claiming the chairs of two Arkestra legends; June Tyson and Art Jenkins. Within the sequence of brilliant solos, James Stuart convinces with a mighty overblown, circular-breathing stream of strength on tenor saxophone. Band veteran Vincent Chancey, Sun Ra's favorite on the French horn, displays archaic charisma in sounding like a siren's singing or conch shell trumpet. With Wayne Anthony Smith Jr. on the drums, Allen took in a young and versatile timekeeper, who is potent to act as the kicking and the supporting leg while also simultaneously providing a confident rhythm base for the music spectacle. The entire rhythm section dives deep into the band's history, which has always closely tied together place and time to gain singularity.

Attracted by rhythm layers which reach into each other, the listener gets into the musical cosmos in a quite gentle way, as if sleepwalking. The pieces build upon each other and grow into each other. Microtonal sequences oscillate across the entire interplay of compositions, they emerge and dive, change perpetually, as if the tones were alchemical ingredients of a lively and ever more self-generating primeval soup. The merit goes to Allen, who is tirelessly evaluating and interpreting the immeasurable treasure of the tone-documents Sun Ra left behind. These recordings stem from the never-ending rehearsals in Sun Ra's headquarters, and their musical treasure has never before been unveiled in front of an audience. Being reconstructed from the original compositions such as "Ra #2" and "Carefree #2," the Arkestra is an experience of splendid resurrection whether it is the live concert or on the recording Babylon Live. It is a sensation. It is Sun Ra rediscovered.

JEFF LORBER FUSION TO RELEASE “STEP IT UP” / FEATURES 11 NEW TRACKS CO-PRODUCED BY JIMMY HASLIP

Jeff Lorber Fusion, whose previous release Hacienda was praised for its “impeccable musicianship and deep grooves” by JazzTimes and its “funky, rollicking jams” by All About Jazz, returns on September 25, 2015, with Step It Up on Heads Up, a division of Concord Music Group. The fourth consecutive collaboration between GRAMMY®-nominated keyboardist, composer, and producer Jeff Lorber and GRAMMY®-winning bassist, composer and producer Jimmy Haslip since the two virtuosos reactivated Jeff Lorber Fusion five years ago, Step It Up features 11 new Lorber compositions, several co-written with Haslip. The longtime colleagues also co-produced the recording.

The title Step It Up, says Lorber, “reflects the music: optimistic, energetic and an attempt to ‘step up’ our game—our compositions, production and improvisation—to the next level. This record puts us back in a more familiar Jeff Lorber Fusion groove while we explore some new uncharted areas.”

“We were motivated to find a new direction following Hacienda,” adds Haslip. “That one was a full-on experimental recording. Step It Up is more inside the Jeff Lorber Fusion box but has some new and interesting twists.”

Assisting the pair in creating those twists is a team of world-class musicians, including two former bandmates of Haslip’s in the award-winning fusion band Yellowjackets: saxophonist Bob Mintzer and guitarist Robben Ford. Also lending a hand are drummers Ash Soan, Gary Novak and Vinnie Colaiuta; saxophonist Gary Meek and guitarists Michael Thompson and Paul Jackson Jr. David Mann provides horn arrangements and Lenny Castro percussion. The album was recorded primarily at JHL Sound in Pacific Palisades, California, with additional recording done at other studios in the U.S. and Europe.

As on all past Jeff Lorber Fusion releases, dating back to its 1977 self-titled debut, Step It Up effortlessly mines and merges elements from multiple genres, including jazz, funk, rock and R&B. The original Jeff Lorber Fusion took an extended hiatus in the early ’80s, reemerging and recharging in 2010 with an updated approach that incorporates contemporary rhythms, technology and instrumentation. Prior to Step It Up and Hacienda, Jeff Lorber Fusion released Now Is the Time (2010) and Galaxy (2012), both also via Heads Up. But as they began working on what ultimately became Step It Up, Lorber and Haslip realized they were heading to some new places in their music.

“I’m always writing new stuff and I got together with Jimmy to play him some of the music I was working on,” says Lorber. “My compositions were a bit diverse and Jim suggested focusing more. We came up with the idea of ’70s modal jazz.” Inspired by the classic recordings of such greats as Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Lee Morgan, Joe Henderson and Weather Report, Lorber and Haslip followed their collective muse, drawing conceptually from the influential output of those legends but filtering it all through their own sensibilities—several of the co-written tunes developed directly out of bass parts Haslip had created.

“We eventually put a list of original tunes together that we thought made a statement and had this modal thread running through it,” says Haslip. “We also have a modern approach to this and we wanted to make sure that there would be strong elements of excitement and uplifting melodic motifs.”

Among the 11 tracks featured on Step It Up, Lorber cites “Fire Spirit,” “Starfish,” “Tenth Victim” and the title track as “having that modal center/freedom, along with some powerful grooves like some of those tracks from the ’70s. Then along with those we have some cool blues tunes like ‘Arecibo’ and ‘Deep Green,’” the latter among three tracks featuring Robben Ford. Another highlight is “Get Up,” about which Lorber says, “Jimmy discovered this one while listening to some older demos on his computer. We had written the sketch a number of years ago and forgotten about it. We both thought it was great when we heard it and wanted to put it on the album, however we didn’t have a melody. I wrote a number of melodies for it but ended up trying to simplify and minimize it as much as possible to not take away from the funkiness of the basic track, which we liked so much. Ash played some really cool drums and David Mann came up with an outstanding horn arrangement.”

Lorber’s composition “Up on This” has its roots in what Jeff calls “a mean modern groove kind of reminiscent of Chaka Khan’s ‘Ain’t Nobody,’” while “Mustang” sports a syncopated melody and superb playing from Mintzer. “Right on Time” is a hard-hitting, fast but highly melodic swing tune with some Hammond B3 organ accents, topped off by a fiery Gary Meek sax solo at the end and sweet horn arrangements by Mann. The album is rounded out by the self-explanatory “Soul Party,” featuring Gary Novak’s solid drum groove and Michael Thompson’s greasy and inventive guitar accompaniment.

Both Lorber and Haslip are quick to heap praise upon the other for his vital contributions to the final product. With decades of expertise between them in every area of composing, playing and recording, they know each other’s strengths inside out. “I’m more of a detail guy and Jimmy is more of a big picture guy,” says Lorber, who plays Fender Rhodes, Moog, mini-Moog and piano on the album. “He helps a lot with figuring out which musicians we might call to complement and develop the songs (in this case Bob Mintzer and Robben Ford).”

Adds Haslip, “Jeff and I have really good chemistry and we have a lot in common with a love of many different styles of music. So together, we form a strong, positive union of ideas and creative energy.”

Never has that chemistry been more evident than on Step It Up. Where they will head next from here is anybody’s guess, but both Jeff and Jimmy are excited about the possibilities. Says Lorber, “I think the direction we’ve charted out from the last few records and this one is a creative, positive one. These records have been about combining the old and new, taking the original Jeff Lorber Fusion sound of funky fusion with bebop and R&B elements and reaching both forward and backward to explore new territory. There’s a renewed sense of exploration, harmonic and melodic adventure and jazziness. The idea of fusion seems fresh again.”

Jeff Lorber web: http://www.lorber.com/

Jeff Lorber Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JeffLorberMusic

Jeff Lorber Twitter: https://twitter.com/jefflorber

NEW RELEASES: JOHN MCLAUGHLIN - BLACK LIGHT; HOMMAGE A EBERHARD WEBER; CHICK COREA / BELA FLECK - TWO

JOHN MCLAUGHLIN - BLACK LIGHT

As a musician, composer, and bandleader, John McLaughlin's vast contributions to contemporary improvisational music are only just beginning to be fully understood, appreciated, and absorbed by artists and enthusiasts alike. From Mahavishnu Orchestra, Shakti and his collaboration with Paco De Lucia, to his current band the 4th Dimension, McLaughlin's music has extended across the boundaries dividing jazz, rock, and innumerable global traditions, encompassing a number of genres while emerging fully formed as his own, uniquely personal expressive medium. Now, McLaughlin is prepared to break through yet again, with what he feels is his most personal statement today: Black Light. Black Light includes 8 original McLaughlin compositions, including a heartfelt homage to his departed colleague, collaborator, and friend Paco De Lucia - with whom McLaughlin had intended to compose an album's worth of new material just before De Lucia's untimely passing. McLaughlin has returned to acoustic guitar for a tribute to his friend, entitled 'El Hombre Que Sabia' and brings forth from the instrument a depth of sadness and admiration beyond words. Mclaughlin adds, 'I have explored ways in music and recorded them with happiness. 'Black Light' has opened a portal that is neither Jazz nor Rock, nor Indian nor Blues, and yet all of these: it's an open door. Otherwise electric, Black Light features the 4th Dimension - 'my three favorite musicians,' in McLaughlin's word - in full flight, with their empathy and precision honed on stage and in the studio. The 4th Dimension is composed of the remarkable multi-instrumentalist Gary Husband on keyboards and drums, Etienne Mbappe's nimble, effervescent electric bass, and the powerhouse drumming of Ranjit Barot. ~ Amazon

PAT METHENY / JAN GARBAREK / GARY BURTON / SCOTT COLLEY / DANNY GOTTLIEB / PAUL MCCANDLESS / MICHAEL GIBBS / HELGE SUNDE / SWR BIG BAND - HOMMAGE A EBERHARD WEBER

In January 2015 musicians and listeners converged upon Stuttgarts Theaterhaus for two consecutive nights to celebrate the 75th birthday of Eberhard Weber. The concerts centered around a specially commissioned 35-minute suite by Pat Metheny, with whom Weber had played and recorded back in the 1970s. Featuring Metheny, the SWR Big Band conducted by Helge Sunde, Gary Burton, bassist Scott Colley and Danny Gottlieb on drums, the composition was arranged around recordings of solos by Weber. Other performers during the two nights playing selections from Webers vast body of work were Webers longtime companions Jan Garbarek, Paul McCandless, Manfred Schoof and arranger Michael Gibbs, all drawing ovations from the packed house. A truly special event, this. - Michael Tucker, Jazz Journal.

CHICK COREA / BELA FLECK - TWO

Chick Corea & Béla Fleck, two master songwriters, musicians, and band leaders meet once again in a historic duet of piano and banjo. The Grammy-winning duet, combine Corea and Fleck s classic tunes with the music from their Grammy-winning album The Enchantment! With a mix of jazz and pop standards, crossing a myriad of genres, from jazz, bluegrass, rock, flamenco and gospel, this album captures the casual, intimate playing by both legends from different musical worlds. Fans of legendary jazz pianist Chick Corea and bebop and bluegrass banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck are well aware of the pair's previous collaborations (Corea guests on two Flecktones albums, and Fleck appears on Corea's Rendezvous in New York DVD), but on their full-length release in 2007, The Enchantment, the two went into the project with an intense seriousness of purpose. On Two, they continue to push each other in a live setting, adapting their instruments to genres (bluegrass, country, Latin, ragtime, classical, blues, and world) normally outside their idioms, Corea playing 'grassy banjo patterns on the piano on Fleck's mournful "Mountain" and Fleck stretching on Corea's suite-like "Joban Dna Nopia." With few exceptions, the compositions are only frameworks for vast improvisation, which might be expected. But instead of setting each other up for extended solos, Corea and Fleck join together with breathtaking precision and verve, weaving and intertwining through remarkable contrapuntal excursions, only to break and meet up again in perfect sync. ~ Amazon

NEW RELEASES: THE WRECKING CREW - THERE WAS ONLY ONE BAND BEHIND THEM ALL; CAECILIE NORBY / LARS DANIELSSON - JUST THE TWO OF US; CAROL WELSMAN - ALONE TOGETHER

THE WRECKING CREW - THERE WAS ONLY ONE BAND BEHIND THEM ALL

They were the studio musicians behind some of the biggest hits in the 1960s and 70s. From Be My Baby to California Girls Strangers in the Night to Mrs. Robinson You've Lost that Lovin Feelin to Up, Up and Away and from Viva Las Vegas to Mr. Tambourine Man the group dubbed The Wrecking Crew played on them all. Six years in a row in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Grammy for Record of the Year went to Wrecking Crew member recordings.

The talents of this group of first call players were used on almost every style of recording including television theme songs, film scores, advertising jingles and almost every genre of American popular music, from the Monkees to Bing Crosby. Notable artists employing the Wrecking Crew's talents included Nancy Sinatra, Bobby Vee, the Partridge Family, David Cassidy, Jan & Dean, the Mamas & the Papas, the 5th Dimension, the Association, the Carpenters, Glen Campbell, Cher, John Denver, the Beach Boys, Simon and Garfunkel, the Grass Roots and Nat King Cole. The record producers most often associated with the Wrecking Crew are Phil Spector, who used the Crew to create his trademark Wall of Sound and Beach Boys member and songwriter Brian Wilson, who used the Crew's talents on many of his mid-1960s productions including the songs Good Vibrations, California Girls, Pet Sounds, and the original recordings for Smile. Members of the Wrecking Crew played on the first Byrds single recording, Mr. Tambourine Man, because Columbia Records, namely, producer Terry Melcher did not trust the skills of Byrd musicians except for Roger McGuinn. Spector used the Wrecking Crew on Leonard Cohen's fifth album, Death of a Ladies Man. Two of their members, drummers Hal Blaine and Earl Palmer, were among the inaugural Sidemen inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000, while the entire Wrecking Crew was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame in 2007. According to Blaine, the name the Wrecking Crew was derived from the impression that he and the younger studio musicians made on the business older generation, who felt that they were going to wreck the music industry. ~ Amazon

CAECILIE NORBY / LARS DANIELSSON - JUST THE TWO OF US

Just the Two of Us is an intimate duo album by this husband and wife pairing. Apart from songs by Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen and Abbey Lincoln, the pair play their own compositions. The variety of expression that they achieve together, the sheer opulence of their musicality will amaze the listener. For many years Norby and Danielsson are a married couple but musically they went their separate paths for a long time: Norby was the pre-eminent funk and jazz singer in Denmark, until she took herself off to America, long before other Scandinavian singers followed her example. She became the first European female artist to be signed to the Blue Note label, a move which led to working with global stars such as Mike Stern and Chick Corea. Lars Danielsson, from Sweden, also has a major international career to his name, working alongside the likes of Charles Lloyd and the Brecker Brothers; but over and above that, he has developed as an artist (and also as a producer) through being a long-standing member of the ACT label family, and is now regarded as one of the most significant European jazz musicians. ~ Amazon

CAROL WELSMAN - ALONE TOGETHER

6-Time Juno (Canadian Grammy) Nominee, Carol Welsman launches Alone Together, showcasing the rhythmic swing of her piano playing, the warm, embracing sound of her voice, and her irresistible way with a lyrc. Early reviews have cited Alone Together as the album that will cement Welsman's ascendency to the upper levels of the contemporary jazz vocal world. Carol's voice and piano are backed by an assemblage of world class players that include trumpeter Wallace Roney, bassist Rufus Reid, drummer Lewis Nash and guitarist Jay Azzolina. Together, Carol and her musicians interact with the intuitive togetherness of jazz vocalizing at its finest. The songs sung and played by Carol Welsman are a thrill you can only feel and experience with awe but find hard to explain, like your first ride on a roller coaster. Blessed with so many musical gifts - taste, time, projection and a rhythmic sense of when to change chords - Carol's piano is beyond reproach, warm yet rhythmically sharp, giving her voice a perfect hammock of support to swing in. I'm not an easy pushover, but she's got what it takes to take me. - Don Heckman- International Review of Music

NEW RELEASES: DANILO PEREZ / JOHN PATITUCHI / BRIAN BLADE - CHILDREN OF THE LIGHT; NANCY WILSON / CANNONBALL ADDERLEY; NARADA MICHAEL WALDEN - THE DANCE OF LIFE / VICTORY / CONFIDENCE

DANILO PEREZ / JOHN PATITUCHI / BRIAN BLADE - CHILDREN OF THE LIGHT

Danilo Pérez, John Patitucci and Brian Blade have been three quarters of the extraordinary Wayne Shorter Quartet for more than a decade, whilst also leading their own projects and performing in various groups. Now, on 'Children of the Light', they step forward as a trio for the first time with an imagination and fearlessness in their approach that defies the roles and ways of a trio in both obvious and subtle ways. Daring and luminous, often an improbable mix of pointed, questioning turns and childlike joy, the music unfolds with mischievous unpredictability. The eleven tracks include original compositions by all three members of the trio and a fresh take on "Dolores", an old Shorter classic. It's a remarkable balancing act but even as they put their considerable talents to the service of the trio, each of the members maintains his distinct personality. "We can 'comprovise' (spontaneous composition) with dense harmonic and melodic forms, but we can also explore the beauty of a simple harmony," says Pérez. "And you can see the care each one of us put into the songs we brought in." ~ Amazon

  

NANCY WILSON / CANNONBALL ADDERLEY

Nancy Wilson and Cannonball Adderley had worked together on a number of live dates and had enjoyed the experience sufficiently well enough to agree to replicate it in the studio at a later point in time. That time came in 1961, when both were sharing the same manager and record label, thus making a recording collaboration so much easier to arrange. Recorded in New York City over the course of a four day session (vocals tracks were laid down on 27 and 29 of June, instrumental tracks on 23 and 24 August), the album was intended to feature Nancy as a sort of easy-going third horn. The vocal tracks (there are six vocal tracks) are the albums undoubted stand out tracks, with Nancys vocals floating on top of a wonderful musical bed provided by Cannonball and his excellent core musicians. Yet the five instrumentals are not to be overlooked either, with Joe Zawinuls expert piano playing a delightful bonus. The album was a major success when originally released in 1962, peaking at #30 on the Billboard chart, something of a breakthrough for both Nancy and Cannonball. Indeed the concept worked well enough for Nancy to record a further collaborative album with Ramsey Lewis more than twenty years later. ~ Amazon

NARADA MICHAEL WALDEN - THE DANCE OF LIFE / VICTORY / CONFIDENCE

Ex-Mahavishnu Orchestra, Jeff Beck and Tommy Bolin drummer and producer extraordinaire Walden’s fourth, fifth and sixth albums for Atlantic, released in 1979, 1980 and 1982 ‘I Shoulda Loved Ya’ from ‘The Dance Of Life’ was a UK Top 10 hit single All three albums made the Billboard Top 200 chart Walden’s production credits are impressive – he produced hits for Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin and Mariah Carey amongst many others Digitally remastered and slipcased Extensive new notes Also available on BGO Records: BGOCD1210 Garden Of Love Light/I Cry, I Smile/ Awakening. ~ Amazon

MARK GUILIANA FOLLOWS UP FAMILY FIRST with THE RELEASE OF FAMILY FIRST - THE ALTERNATE TAKES FEATURING FOUR ALTERNATE TAKES AND TWO NEW SONGS

With the June 4, 2015 release of Family First, drummer, composer, and bandleader Mark Guiliana and his Jazz Quartet featuring Jason Rigby (tenor saxophone), Shai Maestro (piano) and Chris Morrissey (bass), brilliantly created a melodic and rhthymic landscape that delighted audiences and provoked rave reviews from critics. Family First marked the third release in a year on his own Beat Music Productions (following up My Life Starts Now and Beat Music: The Los Angeles Improvisations), and Guiliana is now excited to announce the companion/follow-up release to Family First, Family First - The Alternate Takes. The Alternate Takes CD offers up a new listening experience, featuring alternate takes on "Long Branch", "ABED", "The Importance of Brothers" and Bob Marley's "Johnny Was", as well as two new tunes, Guiliana's "1980", and the Quartet's version of Rufus Wainwright's "Beautiful Child".

Guiliana's singular drumset and compositional artistry, once again setting the bar quite high, is on glorious display on Family First - The Alternate Takes, as is the playing of his collaborators. Once again Guiliana has used the freedom of running his own label to bring music to listeners that might never have been heard. "After two incredibly fun and productive days in the studio, I knew we had too much material to fit on one record, " said Guiliana. "Chris, Shai, and Jason consistently delivered inspired performances, making it difficult to choose 'the one,' and in several instances, I felt very connected to versions that didn't end up on the record. It's exciting to be able to share this material that would otherwise just be hiding on a hard drive somewhere in my apartment." 

The sound presented on Family First is quite different from Guiliana's 2014 releases, and Family First - The Alternate Takes presents yet another soundscape, giving the listener a different perspective on the music. This purely acoustic music is presented without edits or isolation, as captured in pristine detail by engineer John Davis at the Bunker Studio in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.While not a tribute recording in any way, this recording is another nod to the jazz drummers that have inspired and informed Guiliana's completely unique approach to the instrument. Guiliana elaborates, "the music that this Quartet plays embodies the deep inspiration I have taken over the years from my earliest drumming heroes, including Tony Williams, Roy Haynes, Elvin Jones, and Art Blakey, to name a few."   

Although this is a fairly new band, Guiliana shares a deep musical history with each musician. "These guys are some of my favorite musicians and I've been lucky to be building a musical bond with each of them over the past decade," he explains. "I've been playing with Chris in my electronic project Beat Music, with Jason in my first band Heernt, and I spent a handful of great years on the road with Shai in bassist Avishai Cohen's trio." Family First - The Alternate Takes encapsulates all the best that these musicians have to offer - abundant beauty, ardent propulsion and sheer love of improvisation.

Mark Guiliana Jazz Quartet On Tour:

September 30 - The Jazz Gallery, NYC(last NYC date before the European tour!)

October 3 - Lantaren Venster, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

October 4 - Vrijstraat O, Ostend, Belgium

October 5 - Fasching, Stockholm, Sweden

October 6 - TBA

October 7 - Moods, Zurich, Switzerland

October 8 - Band on The Wall, Manchester, UK

October 9 - Bimhuis, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

October 10 - Paradox, Tiblurg, The Netherlands

October 11 & 12 - Duc Des Lombards, Paris, France

October 13 - Whelan's, Dublin, Ireland

October 14 - Ronnie Scott's, London, UK

Featuring:

Mark Guiliana (drums)

Fabian Almazan (piano)

Jason Rigby (tenor sax)

Chris Morrissey (bass)

 

www.MarkGuiliana.com

NEW RELEASES: MASTERPIECES OF MODERN SOUL VOLUME 4; KENYA – MY OWN SKIN; SOSPETTO – QUATTRO SPECCHI OPACHI

MASTERPIECES OF MODERN SOUL VOLUME 4

One of the most supremely soulful compilations we've heard in years – and easily the deepest in this series to date! From the start, Kent's Masterpieces Of Modern Soul collections have been all about bringing rare gems to fresh ears, and they've really outdone themselves here. A solid majority of the tunes have never been released before now, and even the tunes that were issued back in the day are pretty darn rare! Most of it was recorded in the 70s, when the more grandly arranged soul and R&B styles of the previous decade were being honed into a slightly stripped down, though still sophisticated modern soul sound. Fantastic stuff! Volume 4 takes a baby step or 2 into the 80s, without losing sight of the 70s-rooted groove – and the titles include "No Limit" by Darrow Fletcher, "It Takes Heart" by Greg Perry, "Baby You Got It All" by Street People, "Gotta Be Loved" by Herman Davis,"I'll Laugh Till I Cry" by Toussaint McCall, "Never Felt This Say Before" by The New Experience", "See Saw Affair" by Cesar, "I've Never Been In Love" by Alvin Robinson, "Don't Matter To Me" by Billy Cee & Freedom Express, "We Communicate" by Gail Anderson, "Midnight Affair" by George Soule, "Daddy Please Stay Home" by Obrey Wilson and more. 23 tracks in all! ~ Dusty Groove

KENYA - MY OWN SKIN

Kenya's plenty warm in her own skin – coming on with this full, rich quality right from the very first note – the kind of indie soul power we haven't heard this well in a while! The album's very down-to-earth and unassuming – just wonderful vocals from the lady herself, well-penned songs, and this straightforward approach to the music that takes us back to classic mellow soul of decades back, but with a very fresh, contemporary vibe throughout. Kenya gets some great help on production and songwriting from equally excellent talents – including Khari Cabral Simmons, Daz I Kue, Brandon McKenzie, and Kendall Duffie of Kloud 9 – and titles include "Be Here", "Let Me", "Wednesday Girl", "My Heart", "Brown Soul", "Sleepless", "Take Me Away", "Makeusmile", "I Can't Help It (Sugaboom rmx)", and "Never Giving Up". ~ Dusty Groove

SOSPETTO - QUATTRO SPECCHI OPACHI

Totally great work from Sospetto – the group's third album, and their best so far! The approach here follows in Sospetto's previous mode of remaking older soundtrack styles – but the album's even more elaborate and involved, given that the group create four different mini film scores in the process – imagined soundtracks for "films" that include Intrappolati Nel Harem Di Satana, L'Exposition De Genevieve, Schwarzes Licht, and Devil's Cops In Angel County – each with a different variety of music! Keyboards figure heavily into the mix – used in the best early 70s Italian style – but there's also lots of nice guitar, earthier percussion, and a broad pastiche of cool effects – those kind of other-worldly elements that can really illuminate a classic soundtrack. Plus, there's also some wordless female vocal bits – which trip nicely through almost half the album, creating an especially moody vibe at times! Titles include "Sabba", "Law Viper", "Le Jardin", "Sans Peau", "Scaramanzia", "Deserto Emotivo", "Condanna A Morte", "Fattaccio", and "La Fille Dans La Milieu Du Lac". ~ Dusty Groove

NEW RELEASES: SANTANA & MCLAUGHLIN - LIVE AT MONTREUX 2011: INVITATION TO ILLUMINATION; BOB BELDEN - ANIMATION; JOE MAGNARELLI – THREE ON TWO

SANTANA & MCLAUGHLIN - LIVE AT MONTREUX 2011: INVITATION TO ILLUMINATION

On September 18th, we'll see the release of the “Invitation To Illumination – Live At Montreux 2011”. This is the first ever release of the audio from this unique concert featuring the guitar talents of Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin and includes most of the tracks from their classic 1973 album “Love Devotion Surrender”. “Invitation To Illumination – Live At Montreux 2011” also features the late Claude Nobs, founder of the Montreux Jazz Festival, playing harmonica on the final track. The evening was a showcase of supreme musical virtuosity and spirituality and typified the approach of these two great artists. “Invitation To Illumination – Live At Montreux 2011” captures an incredible night of live music and is certainly a performance not to be missed. Tracks include: Echoes of Angels / Introduction; Downstairs Blues; The Life Divine; Venus / Upper Egypt; Duende; Let Us Go Into The House of The Lord; Peace On Earth / Dear Lord; Black Satin; A Hard Rain Is Gonna Fall; Smooth Criminal; Stairway to Heaven; Land of 1000 Dances; Lord's Prayer; Cindy Blackman Santana Drum Solo; Free America / The 8th of January; A Love Supreme; La Marseillaise; Montreux Boogie (inc. La Grange); Right Off; A Love Supreme; Guitar Interlude; Shake It Up And Go; Right Off; Vuleta Abajo; Vashkar; The Creator Has A Master Plan; Guitar Interludes; Naima; and  Lotus Land Op.47 No.1.        

BOB BELDEN - ANIMATION

Features Bill Laswell on electric bass & Kurt Elling on spoken word. Recorded over three days in the autumn of 2014 at Bill Laswell's Orange Studios in New Jersey, mixed by James Dellatacoma and mastered by Mike Fossenkemper, Machine Language is the last and possibly most ambitious work by American composer, orchestrator, arranger, saxophonist and all-round conceptualizer Bob Belden with his historical group Animation. Belden died on May 20th this year. In order to realize his vision, Bob Belden enlisted Bill Laswell on electric bass and renowned jazz singer Kurt Elling, who acts as narrator. As for the previous album by Animation, Transparent Heart, also released on RareNoiseRecords in 2012, the lineup also comprises Peter Clagett on electrified trumpet, Roberto Verastegui on keyboards and Matt Young on drums. 

JOE MAGNARELLI – THREE ON TWO

A killer from trumpeter Joe Magnarelli – an artist we've already begun to appreciate a lot for his recent work on the Posi-tone label – but a player who really wins us over with this sweet little set! The record sparkles right from the start with contributions from key labelmates – the mighty Brian Charette on Hammond, Mike DiRubbo on alto, and the great Steve Davis on trombone – all players who leap into the fray with Magnarelli right from the start, and come up with these lines that are sophisticated, but always swinging too – stunningly soulful at all the best moments, with a nice sort of sparkle,b ut no too-commercial polish. Solos are great, and Magnarelli's writing is very nice on the album's original tracks – and titles include "Easy", "26 2", "Central Park West", "Paris", "Outlet Pass", "Clockwise", and "My Reverie". ~ Dusty Groove