ERIC CLAPTON – THE LIVE ALBUM COLLECTION 1970-1980

This spring sees the release of all of Eric Clapton's live albums from his recording period with Polydor/RSO,1970-1980. A vinyl-only title, it is a companion set to the January, vinyl-only box set release of all of his Polydor/RSO solo studio albums spanning the same period. Similarly, each album here has been newly remastered and pressed on heavyweight vinyl. Capturing live concerts in New York, California, Rhode Island, Tokyo and London, the collection includes Eric Clapton's 1973 concert at London's Rainbow with an all-star line-up featuring Pete Townshend, Steve Winwood, Ronnie Wood and Jim Capaldi.

                  

Eric Clapton, who recently celebrated his 70th year, needs little by way of introduction, as a renowned solo artist in his own right as well as a member of the Yardbirds, Cream and Derek and the Dominos. He is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame and is one of the most important and influential guitarists of all time. He has been the recipient of 17 Grammy Awards, 1 Brit Award and 1 Bafta.

1.Derek & The Dominos – Derek & The Dominos In Concert (00602547509475)

- Live double album, recorded in 1970, released in October 1973.

- Recorded at the Fillmore East in New York.

- Features – 'Why does Love Got To Be So Sad', 'Let It Rain' and 'Bottle Of Red Wine' amongst others.

2.Eric Clapton' Rainbow Concert (00602547423634)

- Recorded at London's Rainbow Theatre in January 1973.

- All star line up includes Pete Townshend, Steve Winwood, Ronnie Wood and Jim Capaldi. 

- First live performance where Eric used his famous Stratocaster guitar "Blackie".

- Features – 'Badge', 'Presence Of The Lord' and 'Pearly Queen' amongst others.

3.Eric Clapton – E.C. Was Here (00602537590940)

- Recorded in 1974 & 1975 at the Long Beach Arena,  California, London's Hammersmith Odeon and the Providence Civic Centre, Rhode Island.

- Peaked #14 in the UK chart and #20 in the US Billboard chart.

- Features – 'Have You Ever Loved A Woman' and 'Drifting Blues' amongst others.

4.Eric Clapton – Just One Night (00602547504968)

- Recorded at the Budokan Theatre, Tokyo, Japan.

- Certified gold, the album reached #2 in the US and #3 in the UK.

- Features – 'Cocaine', 'Rambling On My Mind' and 'Wonderful Tonight' amongst others.

                  

NEW RELEASES: THE THREE DEGREES - STRATEGY: OUR TRIBUTE TO PHILADELPHIA; THE SOUL SNATCHERS – WHERE Y’AT?; AMANA MELOME – LOCK & KEY: THE REMIXES

THE THREE DEGREES - STRATEGY: OUR TRIBUTE TO PHILADELPHIA

This legendary trio of singers go back to their Philly Soul roots of the 70s – and come across surprisingly well in the process! We'll be the first to admit that we were a bit wary, given the cover and relative age of the group – but Three Degrees really step up strongly here, thanks in part to some tight core arrangements that reprise the best Philly sound of the 70s, without ever trying too hard to update the style or give things a too-contemporary twist! The arrangements aren't credited, but production is by Buzz Amato, who also works in the backing group – and the grooves have a warm blend of funky currents and strings that really fit the reworkings of "Love Train", "If You Don't Know Me By Now", "Strategy", "Ain't No Stoppin Us Now", "You'll Never Find Another Love", "Me & Mr Jones", and "TSOP". ~ Dusty Groove

THE SOUL SNATCHERS – WHERE Y’AT?

Mighty nice work from The Soul Snatchers – a Dutch group, but one who've got a deep funk sound that matches a lot of combos in the American underground in recent years! These guys start with a very old school approach to the groove – a sound steeped in older modes of Memphis and Muscle Shoals – with all the burning organ lines, funky guitar, and soulful horns that reference might imply – and vocals are in English throughout, sung by a male singer with a surprisingly strong, raspy sound that comes across better than we remember from the group's last record! Easily their best material so far – with titles that include "Keep Workin", "Just Like Sly", "Stop Fightin", "Use It Up", "Little Love", "Foolishness", and "Humpin & Bumpin". ~ Dusty Groove

AMANA MELOME – LOCK & KEY: THE REMIXES

Soulful jazz-pop songstress, Amana Melomé has released "Lock & Key: The Remixes". Hot on the heels of her 2015 EP "Lock and Key", this remix EP sees the magic touch of producers Mark de Clive-Lowe, Opolopo, Daz- I-Kue (Bugz In The Attic), Filip, Slimbo and Firefly, who got their hands on Amana‘s sultry vocals and put their own signature spins on them. The original "Lock and Key" album was produced by grammy award nominated Adam Berg and Itai Shapira, known for their work with artists such as Aloe Blacc, Alice Russel and Rhye, to name a few. It showcased Melomé’s passion for all types of music, however the Euro-Caribbean-American artist’s roots are in jazz, having had her grandfather Jimmy Woode record with such greats as Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald. On the remixes EP the tracks of the original album get reimagined for the forward thinking soulful dancefloor. Mark de Clive Lowe’s soulful house remix of titletrack "Lock and Key" recently debuted on SoulBounce, and Essence.com featured Opolopo's remix of "Icarus" in their 'New and Next' column spotlights. From broken beat to house, from breaks to afrobeat and beyond, this EP is sure to find its way onto every party playlist!

Variations - the New Recording From Award-Winning Drummer/Composer STEVE GROVER

Brooklyn-based Red Piano Records is proud to announce the release of Variations by Steve Grover, a drummer and composer from Maine. This album features a stellar ensemble of jazz musicians from the New York City, Boston and Maine jazz scenes: Steve Grover (drums & compositions), Frank Carlberg (piano), Sean Farias (bass), Christine Correa (voice), Andrew Rathbun, George Garzone and Duncan Hardy (saxophones), and Chris Klaxton (trumpet). Variations is a song cycle largely dedicated to excerpts from The Monk Variations, a longer work by the poet and scholar Anthony Walton. Grover describes how he came to work with this piece by saying that, "It is a continuation of my interest in working with text, primarily poetry, and underscores a continuing fascination with how the interplay of text and music can affect the destiny of the composing process."

Grover's entry into the world of jazz composition began in 1985, when he composed Blackbird Suite, a song cycle based on the Wallace Stevens poem Thirteen Ways of Looking At a Blackbird. In 1994 Grover won the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz/BMI Jazz Composers Competition for Blackbird Suite. After a performance at the Kennedy Center in November, 1994, Grover recorded a CD of the music which was released in 1997 to excellent reviews. 

The songs on Variations use developmental excerpts from the larger, more complete Walton poem. Grover explains, "At the time Anthony sent me these excerpts, he was still working on the piece. We independently developed our creations, and so his much more complete finished piece elaborates on the textual excerpts that I used as the basis of the songs completed for Variations. I think it is an opportunity for the listener and reader to experience how two artists from two different disciplines can come to arrive at separate but compatible artistic conclusions."

The songs on Variations reflect a variety of musical perspectives. Here is a description of the music contained within:

Prelude is a medium-up tempo 'freebop' melody in two-part harmony that hints at, but never fully suggests, an underlying chord structure. The vibrant opening solos and free interplay help to introduce the listener to the musicians on the CD.

Darkness With Light begins a series of eight songs drawn from the text. After a moody, descending chromatic bass and piano line, Christine Correa sings the melody, its chromatic movement moving in the opposite, ascending direction, expanding into wider intervals. Increasingly intense improvising over the swinging form by Rathbun and Carlberg helps to stimulate some rhythm section interplay.

Let There Be Darkness follows, with a brooding, slightly latin straight 8th groove underlying a minor key melody sung by Correa. The shifting modalities of the song help to stimulate strong improvising from Rathbun, Carlberg and Farias, with an animated contribution from Grover's drumming helping to provide the group with shifting dynamics over its eight minute journey.

Illumination is a jazz waltz with an ambiguous melodic and harmonic scheme and a surprising elision at the end of the form. Following the introduction, Correa comes in with the wide-ranging melody. Correa also participates in the group interplay over the groove, which ends with Carlberg intoning the opening vamp. Saxophonist George Garzone's sensitivity on this piece displays another aspect of his musicality. Trumpeter Chris Klaxton also plays with a high level of grace and maturity.

Seeing This has two melodies: the first is an instrumental introduction played by Klaxton and alto saxophonist Duncan Hardy, and the second is the poem melody sung by Correa over the same form. The medium tempo rock feel is loose and allows for an energetic discussion between the participants.

In The Undivided Darkness begins with a haunting free improvisation by Carlberg before he plays the chromatic introduction, cueing the vocal by Correa. The melody takes a swift turn to underscore the lyric, moving into a jazz ballad section. After a return to the top, there is a brief free improvisation before the recapitulation and a repeated coda.

Space is a swinging, medium tempo jazz form that mirrors the playfulness of the text. Correa gets a chance to freely interpret the melody with her deft rhythmic phrasing and expressive gift, while the rest of the song is highlighted by some chorus-trading by Carlberg and Grover before the out-head. Also, the young alto saxophonist Duncan Hardy displays his maturing jazz intelligence and swinging, creative approach.

As A Dark Star is the most open and free of the pieces on Variations. It is initially characterized by a rubato rhythmic landscape and a repeating bassline, over which the melody emerges, first with Correa's vocal, then joined by Klaxton and Garzone. A languid collective improvisation ensues over the vamp, followed by a declamatory line signaling a second, more intense free section. A separate nine note horn line eventually brings us back to the original vocal melody, and the piece closes on the vamp.

As In Night suggests, in its sensitive introduction, a more lyrical respite from the preceding composition. Correa sings the melodic line with an appropriate balance of expression and restraint, and Garzone follows with the melody again on saxophone, followed by a beautiful solo in the classic tenor tradition. The melody returns before the simple ending on this spacious, sensitive ballad.

Scales is a medium jazz waltz. Following the introduction, a melody emerges comprised of a series of notes and their intervallic variations. The piece climaxes with a two-horn duet and a motivated rhythm section before the return to the vocal and the coda.

Postlude concludes Variations.It is a straight eighth piece in 6/4 time. Although the structure is a conventional AABA form, the open fifths of the melody help to create an ambiguous tonal framework, paving the way for a concise free section before returning to the melody and an improvised fade.

 

RareNoiseRecords Presents THE BEAUTY OF DISASTER by German composer and producer J. PETER SCHWALM

The well-known slogan "One picture is worth a thousand words", created by the advertising industry in the early nineteen-twenties and now a general cultural meme, could equally sensibly be applied to the field of music. Instrumental music, in particular music generated by electronic means, has, over the last several decades, become of central importance to popular culture: you only need to think about Brian Eno's "Music For Airports", which helped define the genre of "Ambient" music and create a permanent bond between music and everyday reality. Similarly, the compositions and music productions by J.Peter Schwalm are testament to the power of tones without words.

Since 1998 and for six years, Schwalm worked continually with Eno, releasing numerous joint works, including the album "Drawn From Life" and the soundtrack to the film "Fear X" by Nicholas Winding Refn, all the while giving celebrated joint performances in Europe and Japan.

Since 2006, Schwalm has been repeatedly invited by the Punktfestival in Kristiansand, where he performed as celebrated live-remixer. As one of the most respected exponents of this particular art form, he collaborated with several well known music ensembles, including the Ensemble Modern from Frankfurt.

In 2013, the London New Music Icebreaker Ensemble commissioned Schwalm to write a piece of music from material originally composed by Kraftwerk; the resulting composition, "Kraftwerk Uncovered - A Future Past", was successfully toured by both in Germany and Ireland.

The new album by J.Peter Schwalm, The Beauty Of Disaster, continues this tradition, by exemplifying the suggestive powers of instrumental music, while drawing inspiration from contemporary images: "I had been deeply impressed by satellite images of the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico while composing new pieces for this album. These surprising photos, which so reminded me of paintings, seemed to embody the very same deep duality between the dark melancholia they depicted and a continuous, meshed sense of hope, an embedded ray of light, as did the compositions I was working on." As such, these compositions of J.Peter Schwalm seek to balance the aesthetics of electronic with that of orchestral music. His swelling arrangements mark the difference between opulence (desired) and bombast (to be avoided at all costs), while his electronic sounds highlight his unique techniques, developed way beyond what is achievable by regular plug-ins. Many passages are completely devoid of beat, thus achieving a deep sense of contemplation in music.

"Some works are based on the principles of "Live Remix" which I developed during and since my repeated appearances at the Punkt Festival" explains Schwalm "while others are rooted in the technique of Multi-track composing I developed." Also, emotional depth is more important than technical detail:

"While, for example, Zirkeltrilogie, was created on the basis of a traditional notion of harmonic resolution, I am less concerned with concepts and more with the question "How can I best express my inner feelings, my inner tensions?"" continues Schwalm "If anything, I have focused my attention primarily on the philosophical notion of attraction towards the Limitless, towards Change, which has influenced so many writers and composers. I feel in fact most germane to a thought formulated by the psychologist Robert A. Johnson: "Death, which awaits us in romantic love, is not destruction of life, but the blossoming of the inner world".

The abandonment of speculative noisiness, which thoroughly characterizes Schwalm's nuanced, atmospheric music, is nonetheless also a conscious choice in opposition to the spirit of our times: "I find a number of my pieces to be already quite loud or at least tempestuous" says Schwalm "while others only reveal their emotional loudness after several listening sessions. All in all, I compose music with inquisitive posture, and I am not interested in generating adverse of positive reactions by means of quick, overwhelming noise."

J.Peter Schwalm, was born in Frankfurt am Main in 1970, where he conducted his studies in music and drumming. He founded his first electro-jazz music project 'Slop Shop' in 1993, positioning himself firmly between music genres. A number of maxi-single releases were followed by the ensemble's first album in 1998, 'Makrodelia', which eventually reached Brian Eno's hands, leading to an offer of collaboration. The two met and performed a few months later in the German Hall for Arts and Exhibitions, together with Kraut-rock legend Holger Czukay. Two albums and film scores later, the two went their separate ways. In the following years, Schwalm composed music for the Stuttgarter Ballett, for the Lyceum Theatre in Sheffield, for London choreographer Hofech Schechter and the Series "Das Neue Werk" of German radio NDR. Since 2008, Schwalm has been regularly playing with Norwegian electric guitarist and sound-sculptor Eivind Aarset and with bassist Tim Harries. In 2013, Schwalm was commissioned to write and perform a piece by the Deutsches Jazzfestival in Frankfurt.

Schwalm counts jazz innovator Miles Davis as early significant influence, as well as film work by Stanley Kubrick: "In a certain way" he laughs gently "I am still inspired by Bitches Brew. The piece "Himmelfahrt" arose following similar principles: there is a rhythm, a theme, but rather than studio improvisations, a large number of live cuts which I injected into the piece."

Other pieces, such as "Zirkeltrilogie" or "Endknall" were rather more influenced by György Ligeti: "Since seeing Lux Aeterna at the age of 15, I became deeply fascinated by his compositions made of tonal surfaces." It was of course Ligeti's music which significantly contributed to the metaphysical depth of Stanley Kubrick's 2001 Space Odyssey.

The Beauty Of Disaster is J.Peter Schwalm's most personal work to date: Its partly microscopically developed, partly dynamically driven tonal landscapes absorb the listener into an unconventionally modern, yet timeless world; His use of abstract form serves purposes of beauty and elegance, rather than complication, as he invites the listener into a voyage of discovery of new perspectives rather than excite her with conundrums. Herein lies the meaning of the pictures of the Gulf of Mexico described at the beginning of this piece, when the discovery of a new perspective allows perception of the beauty of disaster.

TRACKS

1. The Anxt Code

2. Himmelfahrt

3. The Beauty of Disaster

4. Numbers Become Stories

5. Stille, Blitz und Donner

6. Zirkeltrilogie

7. Wunschklangregister

8. The End and the Beginning

9. Angstphantasie

10. Endknall

Free Jazz Icon ROSWELL RUDD Joins Pianist JAMIE SAFT and Colleagues TREVOR DUNN and BALAZS PANDI on Strength And Power

In a remarkable example of uncanny group-think, pianist-keyboardist and RareNoise regular Jamie Saft (Metallic Taste of Blood, Slobber Pup, Plymouth, The New Standard, Red Hill) joins with longtime collaborators Trevor Dunn on bass and Balazs Pandi on drums and master trombonist Roswell Rudd on the astounding, purely improvised Strength and Power. Recorded live in Saft's home studio near Woodstock, New York, this intergenerational offering features the 44-year-old pianist, 47-year-old bassist, 32-year-old Hungarian drummer and 80-year-old avant-garde pioneer blending organically, telepathically on a set of conversational music running the gamut of dynamics and emotions.     

           

As Saft explains, "All the music was completely improvised in the studio. No predetermined compositions at all. No hand signals, no charts: nothing but trust, deepest intuition, and mutual respect."         

       

The key to this highly interactive session, says Rudd, was not chops but rather the participants' highly attuned listening skills. "The really important thing, especially with collective improvisation, is that you're playing off of each other. So the music comes as a result of listening to each other and your response to the other players. I really found myself delving deeply on this occasion because the other musicians were

not only putting it out there but they were also responding in depth. When you're lucky enough to be in the company of very proficient musicians who not only can play but also can listen deeply, this is what I think I love more than anything else in the performance of music."         

        

The revered trombonist, who came up playing Dixieland or trad jazz music while attending Yale University in the mid 1950s and later made his mark in the free jazz world through collaborations with Cecil Taylor, Archie Shepp, John Tchicai and longtime collaborator Steve Lacy, is a formidable presence on this RareNoise recording. Whether it's his lyrical playing on the spacious ballad "Luminescent," his unrestrained blowing on a surging "The Bedroom," his conversational plunger work on "Cobalt Is a Divine" and the title track or his early New Orleans tailgate-styled testifying on "Struttin' for Jah Jah," Rudd's trombone resounds with history, humor and humanity. Dunn provides thick grooves and potent contrapuntal lines throughout (particularly when he is paired in a duet with Rudd on "Dunn's Falls") while Pandi propels the proceedings with kinetic backbeats and swinging momentum. Saft, performing on his 1966 Steinway Model L piano at his home studio, adds spiky comping, cascading call-and-response lines and some exploration inside the piano. "This piano has a unique sound," he says. "It's darker than most modern pianos. Sometimes I will use paper and pen if they are handy as tools to modify the acoustic piano, but mostly it's just real time manipulation of the inside of the piano with these two hands."

"The piano is a strange and opulent instrument," adds Saft. "It is a physical object which requires adherence to the basic laws of physics. The greatest pianists understand how to harness the power of gravity and understand the internal mechanisms of the instrument and how they relate to the laws of gravity. I always work to use gravity to my advantage as an instrumentalist. With proper understanding of the way the piano and the human body interact, one can constantly push the instrument into new areas while retaining a deep and rich tone. Whether I'm seated at the piano or working inside the piano, I'm still always dealing with laws of physics. The idea is to let gravity do all the work for you. This gives a deep and crisp tone and maximum technical flexibility."     

           

Saft explains that this collaboration with Rudd was partly born out of proximity. "Roswell and I live five miles or so from each other in Kerhonkson, New York. Roswell and Verna Gillis, his brilliant partner, have recorded a number of times at my studio Potterville International Sound. This is how we initially met. It was clear very quickly that we needed to make music together."                

Rudd says that the Strength And Power session is a continuation of "the pursuit of mystery" that he has tirelessly been on throughout his entire career, from his days as a collegiate Dixielander to the present. "This river that runs through all of my performing and recording from the earliest times, it's essentially what we did over at Jamie's that day. It's a special recording and I look forward to getting back together with the musicians, Balazs, Trevor and Jamie, and doing more, taking it out and playing for audiences somewhere. I'd love to play it for a bunch of people with thirsty ears."

Adds Saft, who has also racked up numerous credits on various John Zorn projects over the years, "It's a great privilege to make music with a true legend of improvised music such as Roswell. His compositions are deep and vast, his sound is unmistakably brilliant, and most of all he's a truly beautiful human being. The last point is crucial here: when one improvises with such a beautiful person all is possible. Roswell constantly strives to impart his love of sounds to humanity. His positivity and shining vibe make this clear, obvious, and essential."

TRACKS

1. Strength & Power

2. Cobalt is a Divine

3. The Bedroom

4. Luminescent

5. Dunn's Falls

6. Struttin' For Jah Jah

Bassist Marcos Varela Bridges Releases Debut CD San Ygnacio, Features Veterans George Cables, Billy Hart and Clifton Anderson

New York City is a long way from tiny San Ygnacio, Texas - not only measured in miles (around 2,000, for the record) but also in temperament. Born and raised in Houston, bassist Marcos Varela nonetheless traces his roots back to the historic Texas town where his family has lived on the same ranch since at least the 1750s. Based in New York for the last 12 years, Varela takes stock of how far he's come on his leader debut, San Ygnacio, due to be released March 18 on Origin Records.

Drawing on collaborators from throughout his time in New York, Varela assembles a stand-out cast of veterans and peers. The album's core rhythm section is composed of two jazz giants: pianist George Cables, a key mentor, and drummer Billy Hart, one of Varela's earliest employers. They're joined by another longtime employer, trombonist Clifton Anderson, as well as two of Varela's most gifted contemporaries, saxophonists Dayna Stephens and Logan Richardson. On two tracks, Varela features his one-time collective quartet with up-and-coming players Arnold Lee (alto, son of bassist/composer Bill Lee and half-brother of director Spike Lee), Eden Ladin (piano) and Kush Abadey (drums).

Varela is a graduate of Houston's renowned High School for the Performing & Visual Arts, where his fellow alumni include Jason Moran, Robert Glasper, Eric Harland, Chris Dave, and Beyoncé. He arrived in NYC to continue his studies at the New School, leading to opportunities to perform with a wide range of artists including Cables, Hart, Anderson, Moran, Geri Allen, The Last Poets, the Mingus Big Band, Kendrick Scott, Billy Harper and Tyshawn Sorey, among countless others. He has also composed music for several film and TV projects, including director Domenica Cameron-Scorsese's film "Roots in Water."

"This record is a culmination of my New York experience," Varela says of San Ygnacio. "It features some of my favorite people to play with and recalls some of the positive experiences I've had during my New York days."

Legendary bassist Ron Carter contributed the album's liner notes, where he writes that Varela's "tone, choice of notes and compositions will place his playing and name on the list of bassists to be heard." A hero turned mentor, Carter is just one of the jazz elders who have taken note of Varela's talents and encouraged the bassist along his path. While still in college, he was invited to join longtime Dizzy Gillespie drummer Charlie Persip's big band. Around the same time, Hart included Varela in a sextet of young players that also featured rising stars Theo Croker, Sullivan Fortner, and Irwin Hall.

"Billy encouraged us to challenge him and keep him young, and then he wanted to impart his experience and knowledge onto us as well," Varela says. "It was a great learning experience."

Three of the tracks on San Ygnacio come from the repertoire of Hart's sextet: "Pepper" and "Picturesque" are both George Mraz compositions, while "Lullaby for Imke" is a gentle ballad that the drummer recorded on a 2006 quartet release, presented here in a new arrangement by pianist Ezra Weiss. "Picturesque" is the album's sole trio piece, with Varela and Cables doubling up on the angular melody, while the brisk "Pepper" is highlighted by the pairing of Dayna Stephens' tenor and Varela's arco playing.

The album opens with its only standard, Cables' bold arrangement of "I Should Care." Varela says, "Especially on a debut record, the jazz community wants to hear you play over a standard and know that you have that ability. If you can't play a standard, it negates your jazz legitimacy. Besides, I've spent a lot of time playing that music, I loved George's arrangement, and I wanted something that everyone could get together and be creative on immediately."

Varela's "Colinas de Santa Maria" is named for his family's ranch in San Ygnacio, which has been in his family's possession since at least a mid-18th century Spanish land grant. While he grew up in Houston, Varela spent plenty of time visiting family at the ranch and enjoying the town's unchanged Spanish architecture. He evokes a sense of nostalgia for that time and landscape, while saxophonist Arnold Lee contributes a vivid, wistful solo. The same quartet, whose members Varela continues to play with in other contexts, returns on Eden Ladin's simmering "Red on Planet Pluto."

The leader takes the spotlight on "Mitsuru," a bass feature composed by Anderson, who often used the tune to feature Varela in the trombonist's own band. Anderson also contributes and plays on the mid-tempo swinger "Sister Gemini." Cables, who Varela met through the auspices of Betty Carter's Jazz Ahead program at the Kennedy Center, wrote the intoxicating waltz "Looking For the Light," which Varela calls "one of my favorite George pieces - it really encourages you to play lyrically."

The album concludes with Varela's "Where the Wild Things Are," a modern burner named for his favorite childhood book. Following a darkly atmospheric introduction, the piece erupts into a bristling melody, finally leading into a raucous solo showcase for Billy Hart. The tune is the prime example of Varela's approach to bridging the generations represented in his band. "I wanted to take the veterans out of their comfort zone," he explains. "I wanted to flip the script a little bit and try something different, have them be adventurous and play some songs they wouldn't normally be heard playing. I wanted to push people in different directions to create a new sound."

An intriguing mix of personalities and influences, generations and sounds, San Ygnacio traces Marcos Varela's journey from Houston to New York, a trek rich with experiences and opportunities. It's a striking debut that points the way toward even more music - and miles - to come.

www.marcosvarelamusic.com

SWISS-BORN US-BASED VOCALIST GABRIELA MARTINA RELEASES DEBUT ALBUM NO WHITE SHOES

Great art often arises out of transition and displacement. For the extraordinary Swiss-born, Boston/New York-based vocalist and composer Gabriela Martina creating a body of original music in her new setting has meant grappling with big questions and forging a singular sound out of a disparate array of influences, from jazz, funk and pop to gospel and Alpine roots music (as a child Martina yodeled in her family's Swiss singing group). Martina's arresting and utterly personal debut album No White Shoes introduces a rapidly evolving artist steeped in jazz but unfettered by the music's prevailing conventions. 

Martina has cultivated a powerfully evocative sound with her crystalline voice, honed through concerts throughout the world.  She's performed with Meshell Ndegeocello, Jack DeJohnette, and Angelique Kidjo, and recorded with veteran drummer J.R. Robinson. In addition, she performed at the 2009 Montreux Jazz Festival in guitarist Lee Ritenour's band as a semi-finalist in the Shure Voice Competition.

Though No White Shoes includes a couple of brilliantly interpreted jazz standards, Martina focuses on improvisation-laced originals that combine singer/songwriter introspection with sophisticated harmonies. Informed and inspired by the quietly tumultuous process of acculturation, she uses music as a vehicle to wrestle with her protean identity.

The album opens with "Narcissus," a song that elaborates on the symbolism of the album's striking cover art, with Martina's face obscured by a mirror. More than a source of expression, Martina's music is a vehicle for hard-won self-knowledge.

Sassy, mesmerizing, and tinged with funk, the celebratory "No White Shoes" speaks to Martina's eagerness to break free from mainstream conventions. As it builds to an ecstatic climax, it's easy to see why this plea and declaration became the album's centerpiece. Conceived as a rejection of Switzerland's cozy cultural cocoon, the song speaks to Martina's insistence on hewing to her own path.

"In Switzerland everything is so comfortable and so beautiful on the surface," Martina says. "It's a song about breaking boundaries and questioning traditions and musical conventions. It's a positive message. It stands for new ways, for something other than the mainstream, for being your own self, and walking your own way."

More than a singer/songwriter, Martina is also a savvy bandleader who has attracted a core band featuring some of Boston's finest players. A working ensemble for about four years, her band is built upon the supple rhythmic support of drummer Alex Bailey, a player with the chops to join heavyweights like Oscar Peterson and David "Fuze" Fiuczynski. He forms a potent rhythm section tandem with another rising young Boston star and recent Berklee grad Kyle Miles on acoustic and electric bass, a highly versatile player who has accompanied Angelique Kidjo, Patrice Rushen, Greg Osby, and Roy Hargrove, among many others. 

The brilliant Czech-born pianist Jiri Nedoma, a prolific accompanist who has collaborated with the Grammy Award-winning drummer Terri Lyne Carrington and vocalist Gabrielle Goodman, brings a probing harmonic sensibility and canny use of space into the ensemble. And internationally raised Finnish guitarist Jussi Reijonen, whose credits include work with drum star Jack DeJohnette, flamenco legend Pepe de Lucia, Palestinian oud/violin master Simon Shaheen, and fretless guitar pioneer David Fiuczynski, reaches effortlessly across genre conventions.

Born in Lucerne, Switzerland, Martina was no stranger to urban settings before moving to Boston. But she spent her childhood in a bucolic idyll, amidst a family dairy farm surrounded by orchards. The third of four children in a tight-knit working class family, she grew up in a highly musical environment. At the age of five, she discovered her passion for singing while yodeling with her family's traditional Swiss group.

Before coming to Berklee College of Music in 2008, Martina studied at the Vocaltech Music School in London and the Jazzschool in Lucerne.  While there, she became a ubiquitous presence on the Swiss scene, performing with an array of bands including Talking Loud, Soulvirus, the pop-rock group PinkBliss, the electro/urban trio Aromat, an a cappella duo Not2help, and her own jazz duo with pianist Luzia von Wyl.

In 2010 Martina released a critically hailed EP Curiosity, which included her original song "Ain't Nobody", a finalist in the ASCAP Foundation Young Jazz Composer Awards 2012. Performing around US East Coast and beyond, she has honed her original repertoire with her band at clubs around the region. She's also the co-founder of IMS, an ongoing, bi-weekly free improvisation concert series which began in 2013 in Cambridge, MA.

Her album No White Shoes represents a major step in the singer's sojourn as a 21st century musician exploring an array of influences, styles and issues, a journey that's intoxicating and utterly unpredictable.

www.gabrielamartina.com

RONNIE SPECTOR SIGNS WITH 429 RECORDS NEW ALBUM ENGLISH HEART DUE APRIL 2016

With hits like “Be My Baby,” “Baby I Love You” and “Walking in the Rain,” Ronnie Spector ruled the pop charts worldwide as lead singer of the archetypal 1960s girl group, the Ronettes. Now the iconic vocalist and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee has signed with 429 Records and is set to release ENGLISH HEART – her first album of new material since 2006 – on April 8, 2016.  The Wall Street Journal premiered the first single “I’d Much Rather Be With the Girls” today.  Check it out here:

Produced and mixed by Grammy Award–winning producer, songwriter, and musician Scott Jacoby (Vampire Weekend, Sia, Coldplay), ENGLISH HEART is Ronnie’s personal love letter to 1960s Britain – where she toured with the Ronettes in 1964-1966, supported by the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, and the Yardbirds (with Eric Clapton) among other acts. The eleven tracks of ENGLISH HEART comprise a collection of Ronnie’s hand–picked favorites including songs recorded by the Kinks (“Tired of Waiting”), the Animals (“Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”), the Beatles (“I’ll Follow the Sun”), and Gerry & the Pacemakers (“Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying”).

Leading up to the April 8 release of ENGLISH HEART, the first single serviced to radio will be the Rolling Stones rarity “I’d Much Rather Be With The Boys,” written by Keith Richards and Andrew Loog Oldham in 1964 but with the song’s title now changed to “I’d Much Rather Be With The Girls.” Ronnie will support the new album with performances in the U.S., Great Britain, and Europe.

“Be My Baby” was approaching the peak of the UK charts in January 1964 when Ronnie Spector stepped onto the tarmac at London’s Heathrow Airport to begin the Ronettes’ first British tour. With her inimitable voice, distinctive style, and exciting live performances, Ronnie soon found herself welcomed into the inner circle of British pop royalty.

“I’ll never forget my very first impressions of England in that winter of ‘64,” Ronnie recalls. “I’d never traveled outside the US before. To arrive at Heathrow and be welcomed by those kids was an amazing feeling. We’d never had fans waiting at an airport to greet us.”

ENGISH HEART is a musical homage to that magical time and an expression of Ronnie’s desire to sing from the most honest and intimate part of herself: Her performance is so raw and so real that the listener may seem to hear Ronnie’s life story in her interpretations of these songs. Scott Jacoby has preserved the timeless spirit of the material while bringing a distinctly con­temporary yet subtle touch.

This is the Ronnie Spector whose indomitable spirit and singular talent have inspired the admi­ration of countless peers including Bruce Springsteen, Patti Smith, Joey Ramone, and Amy Winehouse. This is the REAL Ronnie Spector!

  

ENGLISH HEART Track Listing:

Oh Me Oh My (I’m A Fool For You Baby)

Because

I’d Much Rather Be With The Girls

Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying

Tired Of Waiting

Tell Her No

I’ll Follow The Sun

You’ve Got Your Troubles

Girl Don’t come

Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood
How Can You Mend A Broken Heart

GRAMMY-NOMINATED CLARINETIST DAVID KRAKAUER AND HIS BAND ANCESTRAL GROOVE RELEASE "CHECKPOINT"

David Krakauer is considered to be one of the most singular clarinet virtuosos on the planet. But beyond that he brings a point of view to the table that is uniquely his own. Continuing on a path of constant self discovery, Krakauer introduces the music of his latest CD Checkpoint (Table Pounding Records), on two consecutive nights, April 7 and 8, at Brooklyn's newest hot spot, National Sawdust.

Krakauer, a category-defying instrumentalist, uses his cultural heritage as a powerful inspiration for his music, informing and enabling his stylistically compelling projects. His is a singular vision, encompassing the diverse worlds of classical, klezmer, avant jazz, funk and electronica.

For the past 25 years Krakauer has been on a musical journey tracing his Eastern European roots. This voyage has found him revisiting his "ancestral homeland," from where his Russian/Polish grandparents and great-grandparents immigrated at the end of the 19th century. Traveling east through Berlin before the Wall came down, the checkpoint experiences became momentous creative touchstones for Krakauer.

Like a travel guide on a literal and metaphorical search, on Checkpoint he bears witness to the deep, joyous, human encounters he experienced. With his long-time band members of Ancestral Groove, he reveals the next step in his musical evolution - sharing with us all stories about the human condition.

Ancestral Groove, with Sheryl Bailey on electric guitar, Jerome Harris on electric bass, Michael Sarin on drums/percussion, and Keepalive on electronics, creates a bridge between Krakauer's singular take on jazz and world music, and guides us to another musical adventure. His threespecial guests on the CD Rob Curto, John Medeski and Marc Ribot add their own signatures to the mix.

Here's Krakauer remixing Krakauer, hitting the road with his unmistakable sound, new arrangements and an electrifying 4-piece band.

Born and raised in New York City, Krakauer experienced early exposure to diverse cultural influences. He earned his reputation as a Klezmer specialist, then showcased his formidable talents in other musical arenas, such as classical music, electronica and jazz. He has shared stages as a group member and soloist with a wide array of artists, string quartets,chamber ensembles and symphony orchestras - among them, the Klezmatics, John Zorn, Fred Wesley, Dawn Upshaw, Itzhak Perlman, Osvaldo Golijov, Eiko and Koma, Leonard Slatkin, Iva Bitova, Kronos Quartet, Tokyo, the Emerson Quartet, the Orchestre de Lyon, the Orquestra Sinfonica de Madrid, the Phoenix Symphony, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, the Dresdener Philharmonie and the Detroit Symphony.

TRACKS

1. Kickin' It For You, 5:33

2. Krakowsky Boulevard, 5:00

3. Tribe Number Thirteen, 5:37

4. Checkpoint Lounge, 5:42

5. Elijah Walks In, 5:37

6. Moldavian Voyage, 4:42

7. Synagogue Wail, 3:30

8. Border Town Pinball Machine, 4:10

9. Tandal, 5:23

10. Tribe Number Thirteen, 5:12

 

Grammy® Award-Winner Bill Charlap Debuts on impulse! Records with Notes From New York

Playing a melody is an art in itself, one that necessitates experience, intuition and humility. In the jazz capitol of the world, New York City, Bill Charlap is considered one of the great interpreters of melodies, songs written for musicals, and Broadway shows or films that when moved from their original source, become the standards that jazz artists make their own.

For his debut impulse! recording, Notes From New York, Charlap has defined and refined his position in the pantheon of New York piano stylists, whose highly influential jazz piano icons include Tommy Flanagan, Hank Jones, and Jimmy Rowles. Tony Bennett, with whom Charlap has recently collaborated with on the Grammy® Award-winning album The Silver Lining: The Songs of Jerome Kern, effuses further that "in the tradition of Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson, George Shearing, Count Basie and Duke Ellington - Bill Charlap joins them as one of the greatest American musicians of our time."

Charlap has hundreds of songs at his fingertips and he does justice to each one. He is capable of highlighting the subtlety of a phrase, mining the depth of a harmony, while allowing the meaning of the lyric to come through, even in an instrumental context. His touch has a rare elegance, and in this respect he is one of the heirs to a jazz piano tradition whose essential figures include the aforementioned, Jones, Flanagan and Shirley Horn - whom Charlap has known personally - as well as Teddy Wilson, Art Tatum, Ahmad Jamal, Bill Evans and Sonny Clark.

The nine tracks of Notes from New York present the longstanding Bill Charlap Trio (featuring Kenny Washingon and Peter Washington) in peak performance, recorded immediately following a two-week run at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola. The opener is the familiar "I'll Remember April," featuring the spirited brushwork of Kenny Washington, and the closer is a transcendent, solo ballad interpretation of the well-known, "On the Sunny Side of the Street."

The remainder of the album is comprised of standards that are rarely performed, some of them truly hidden treasures. For example, "Make Me Rainbows" is from the original soundtrack of the 1967 film Fitzwilly, which was written by John Williams a few years before he made his name alongside Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. The depth of the groove on this track is a testament to how these three musicians swing as one. "Not a Care in the World," written by Vernon Duke, was a staple of Bobby Short's repertoire at the Café Carlyle. Charlap plays a dancing solo that doubles in intensity when Kenny Washington picks up his sticks. The sublime, "There Is No Music" develops with a poetic sense of space as Charlap expresses a full range of tonal colors. With "A Sleepin' Bee," Charlap delivers a solo that is filled with humor and, it seems, all the unpredictable character of a bumblebee in flight.

Charlap first discovered "Little Rascal on a Rock" on the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis album, New Life. Years later, he received a copy of the piece from Thad's older brother, Hank. On this track, the trio swings with elasticity and precision. The most interior track of the album is the haunting "Too Late Now" by Burton Lane and Alan Jay Lerner, with Peter Washington's poignant bass solo being a highlight. Written by guitarist Tiny Grimes and made immortal by Charlie Parker, "Tiny's Tempo," reminds us that bebop is an integral part of the trio's musical world.

Charlap has drawn material from the American Popular Songbook for many of his recordings, including albums devoted to the music of George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, Duke Ellington, Hoagy Carmichael, Irving Berlin, Richard Rodgers and Cole Porter. He continues to celebrate his love of song, while leading the trio he formed in 1997, with bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington. The trio has a peerless understanding of the major figures of their respective instruments, and the chemistry between them stands as one of the great rhythm sections of our time. Their integrity is unwavering, and they project an effortless virtuosity. The experience of hearing the Bill Charlap Trio live is electrifying.

Early in his career, Charlap was championed by two saxophone giants - Gerry Mulligan and Phil Woods - who appreciated his talent, his assurance as an accompanist, the finesse of his playing, and his unfailing sense of swing. Charlap's connection to standards is in his blood: his father was Broadway composer Moose Charlap, and his mother, Sandy Stewart, is a Grammy® Award-nominated singer who toured with Benny Goodman.

Composers and lyricists including Yip Harburg, Charles Strouse, and Alan and Marilyn Bergman would often visit Charlap's family home, and yet that context only partly explains the intimate nature of the relationship that the pianist shares with this repertoire. Charlap also learned from his experiences playing with such elder masters as Benny Carter, Clark Terry, Jim Hall, Dick Hyman, Eddie Locke and Frank Wess who further taught him how to reveal the riches that exist in this music.

From the Village Vanguard to the Café Carlyle, Bradley's, The Knickerbocker, High School for the Performing Arts, The 92nd St Y, Lincoln Center, The Hit Factory, Nola Studios, Carnegie Hall, The Village Gate, Town Hall, The Algonquin, and The Apollo Theatre, Bill Charlap is the sound of his city. Notes from New York is confirmation that the Bill Charlap Trio has arrived at its destination.

Bill Charlap · Notes From New York

impulse! Records · Release Date: April 1, 2016

www.BillCharlap.com

NEW RELEASES: NANCY WILSON – THE EARLY YEARS 1956-62; QUINCY JONES AND HIS ORCHESTRA – LIVE IN LUDWIGSHAFEN 1961; WEATHER REPORT - LIVE IN OFFENBACH 1978

NANCY WILSON – THE EARLY YEARS 1956-62

Nancy Wilson is one of the finest vocalists to emerge in the post-war era to take over the mantle of great jazz, cabaret and pop singers such as Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald and Peggy Lee, and compete with them on their own terms. Achieving her early recognition in the era when the long-playing stereo album was becoming a universal format, she was always primarily an album artist, especially with her focus being as much on jazz and easy listening as the pure pop market, although she had chart success in the pop, R&B and adult contemporary markets from the '60s through to the '90s. This collection takes a thorough look at the formative years of her career, comprising as it does her complete performances on five LPs - Like In Love, recorded in 1956 when she was just 19, Something Wonderful, The Swinging's Mutual with jazz pianist George Shearing, the equally jazz-oriented Nancy Wilson With Cannonball Adderley, and Hello Young Lovers. In addition, it includes an early single with R&B artist Rusty Bryant, two of her singles from 1960 and a couple of very jazzy 'live' performances from 1961. It showcases the breadth and distinctiveness of her talent, and her sophisticated artistry even in these early days, as she delivers material across the jazz, blues and pop spectrum.

QUINCY JONES AND HIS ORCHESTRA – LIVE IN LUDWIGSHAFEN 1961

The Ludwigshafen Experience allows further insight into the artistic inner life of Jone's superb and uncommonly vital orchestra. The team consisted of a number of young luminaries of the time: trumpeters such as Freddie Hubbard and Benny Bailey, saxophonists such as Sahib Shihab. The program included evergreens like Summertime and compositions like Stolen Moments that were to become such. The mood on stage was relaxed, if only because the orchestra was hailed in Europe as a groundbreaking big band. There are experts who believe that this short phase was for Quincy Jones his best as a jazz musician. The Ludwigshafen Experience only lends support to this judgement.

WEATHER REPORT - LIVE IN OFFENBACH 1978

By September of 1978 Weather Report's headlining status afforded them the opportunity to play a very long set amounting to two hours in length. Given the previous year's success with the poll winning Heavy Weather album one might have expected them to concentrate on this more or less exclusively, but instead, fans were treated to material from right across the bands career and solo spots by everybody. Black Market opens this concert and straight away it's apparent that the energy level is high and the relaxed pace of the studio version has been superseded by a slightly faster tempo. An explosive tenor and drum duet by Shorter and Erskine also forms part of this and must have surely put an end to the feeling in some quarters at the time that the saxophonist was no longer at his best. Also on board were flamboyant electric bassist Jaco Pastorius, a genuine innovator, and newly arrived drummer Peter Erskine a master technician brought into the group to add more of a jazz feel. Joe Zawinul was keen to stress that Weather Reports music was their music, a product of the group's identity, and not simply jazz-rock akin to that of many bands of the time. Although he was known for his strong opinions it's clear that no other group mixed improvisation, formal structures and electronics quite like them. One night in Germany is clear proof of this.

 

FREDDIE HENDRIX IS THE "JERSEY CAT"

Many know New York City as the Mecca of jazz. Very few recall the illustrious players hailing from just across the Hudson in New Jersey. Many of the greatest jazz names hailed from the Garden State, including Wayne Shorter, Count Basie, James Moody and trumpeter Woody Shaw. It is to correct this oversight that the fantastic trumpeter Freddie Hendrix presents his new recording Jersey Cat, a wide ranging collection that represents the unique swagger and groove of the Jersey jazz musician.

Growing up in Teaneck, Hendrix was originally attracted to music by the way of doo-wop and R&B, most notably that of local legends, the Isley Brothers. His initial foray into playing was on the guitar, a struggle that led him to trumpet and junior high band. It was under the tutelage of teachers like Dave Brown, Dave Rogers, Robert Hankle and his church organist Dr. Maredia Warren that Hendrix s love of jazz blossomed. A failed audition for a Teaneck area big band led to a renewed commitment to his studies, which finally led to Bachelor s and Master s degrees in Music Performance and, ultimately, to performing for two United States Presidents.

Out of school, Hendrix hit the ground running, playing with pop groups and jazz luminaries, including Christian McBride, Alicia Keys, Jimmy Heath and Wynton Marsalis. It was his work with the Count Basie Orchestra and Teaneck resident Rufus Reid that led to his first forays outside of the States, influencing much of his writing for Jersey Cat. But it was his relationships in his home state that really made the recording possible.

The members of the ensemble that Hendrix assembled were friends and regulars at drummer Cecil Brooks III s beloved, but now closed, Cecil s Jazz Club, in West Orange. Brooks not only plays on Jersey Cat , but also produced the recording. The rest of the cast includes all former or current New Jersey residents, including saxophonists Bruce Williams and Abraham Burton and pianist Brandon McCune, along with Manhattan resident trombonist David Gibson and the lone Brooklynite, bassist Corcoran Holt. The ensemble is talented and flexible, as Hendrix provides compositions for amalgamations of all sizes, including a octet that allowed him to use his arranging and part writing skills in an Art Blakey Jazz Messenger vein.

For the album, Hendrix wanted to provide a mix of original compositions and standard pieces that represented the strongest material in his book. He also wanted to make sure to represent the spirit of New Jersey, a more relaxed vibe that can jump off at any moment. The way he did this was to incorporate influences outside of jazz, namely R&B and hip-hop, into his music, creating music that grooves but also swings and is simultaneously current and retro.

NEW RELEASES: PETER HORVATH - ABSOLUTE REALITY; STEVE KUHN TRIO - AT THIS TIME; CHRIS STANDRING - TEN

PETER HORVATH - ABSOLUTE REALITY

Contemporary jazz pianist/keyboardist and composer, Peter Horvath has been perfecting his craft since the age of 6 when he began taking classical piano lessons. Born in Budapest, Hungary, he attended the Bela Bartok Conservatory of Music. At age 17, he won the National Jazz Combo Competition in Gyor, Hungary and two years later moved to Austria to attend the Vienna Conservatory of Music. In 1983, Peter moved to the United States, where he studied at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He has since performed, recorded and toured nationally and worldwide with a long line of world-class artist, including jazz greats Bobby Hutcherson, Joe Henderson, Richie Cole, Ernie Watts, Eddie Henderson, Charles McPherson, Benny Maupin, the Victor Bailey Group, Lenny White, Arturo Sandoval, Randy Brecker, Marcus Miller, Pee Wee Ellis Funk Assembly, Bob Mintzer, Bob Sheppard, Craig Handy, Tiger Okoshi, Lalah Hathaway, Melba Moore, Ledisi, Keith Washington, Rosie Gaines, Ray Obiedo, Pete Escovedo and the Oakland Symphony. Peter composed for and performed with David Garibaldi for his critically acclaimed Warner Brothers video/CD series and recorded the tracks for Aretha Franklin's performance of the National Anthem at the 1993 World Series. His new album, Absolute Reality has been in the making for some time now and it's featuring some of the greatest names in jazz, like Bob Mintzer, Randy Brecker, Victor Bailey, Lenny White, Dean Brown, the late Ricky Lawson, Ray Obiedo, Larry Kimpel, Walfredo Reyes,Jr, Karl Perazzo, Peter Michael Escovedo, etc... All original compositions, the music fuses a variety of elements from hard hitting funk jazz with horns, to pieces with latin and straight ahead jazz influences, along with some beautiful mid tempo tunes and ballads, even a solo piano performance to close the album with. The sound represents the musical diversity of the Bay Area along with the influence of years of touring and recording with some of the greats in jazz and beyond. ~ Amazon

STEVE KUHN TRIO - AT THIS TIME

Any chance that one has to hear a master musician in his or her preferred setting is a gift. For all the one-offs and ensemble by committee type of gigs that spring up, it is the reunion with familiar collaborators for a stint of a few nights that really becomes integral for the best performances. On his new recording, At This Time, pianist Steve Kuhn found himself just in the right time and place to record a trio record that feels timeless and truly inspired. The ensemble, which features legendary bassist Steve Swallow and drummer Joey Baron, was happy to find itself in an extended engagement at Birdland Jazz Club in New York in September 2015 and found time to get into the recording studio before heading to Europe on tour. Of course, Kuhn has been one of jazz s foremost pianists for over half a century. He has been fortunate to accompany some of the most important voices of his generation, including John Coltrane, Sheila Jordan and Kenny Dorham, but it is his work in the trio setting that has been where he has made his name. Kuhn s current trio features a contemporary, and an important innovator of a later generation. Steve Swallow has been at the forefront of contemporary music for decades. Whether performing alongside Jimmy Giuffre, Paul Bley or Carla Bley, Swallow has been one of the most important figures on both the acoustic and electric bass. Though twenty years younger than Kuhn and Swallow, drummer Joey Baron has cemented himself as one of the most well rounded musicians, at home in the most classic of jazz ensembles and in the most raucous of the avant-garde. ~ Amazon

CHRIS STANDRING - TEN

Chris Standring offers his tenth solo recording with a dazzling soul infused groove-laden jazz set. Digging even deeper into creative territory, Standring continues to stand out from the herd and blaze new trails in the contemporary jazz world. Celebrating the remarkable milestone of album number Ten, an ever evolving catalog that includes the 2011 re-issue of his 1989 first indie recording Main Course (The Early Tapes) - he's still got the cool, trippy sonics happening via a colorful fusing of live instrument and DJ sounds. But this time, while keeping his melodies, rhythms and arrangements as infectious as ever, the British born, L.A. based hit maker fashions them as the vehicle for him to unleash his deeper chops as a powerhouse jazz player and improviser. Soloing with a wild abandon he's been holding back way too long, the longtime Benedetto endorsee introduces us to the latest love of his musical life, his new, gorgeous white Bambino archtop jazz guitar. Perfect combination? Sounds like a perfect Ten. ~ Amazon