LIONSGATE ANNOUNCES THE WORLD PREMIERE OF LA LA LAND IN CONCERT: A LIVE-TO-FILM CELEBRATION

Lionsgate has announced that the world premiere of LA LA LAND IN CONCERT: A LIVE-TO-FILM CELEBRATION will take place at Los Angeles' iconic Hollywood Bowl on Memorial Day weekend Friday, May 26 and Saturday, May 27.  Composer Justin Hurwitz will conduct his Oscar®-winning score and Oscar®-winning song "City of Stars" (with lyrics by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul) performed live-to-film by a 100-piece symphony orchestra, choir, and Jazz ensemble, accompanying the film's original vocal recordings. LA LA LAND is written and directed by Damien Chazelle, who won the Oscar® for Best Director.

"For me, one of the most thrilling and fulfilling parts of making LA LA LAND was scoring the film to a live orchestra: a hundred phenomenal local musicians playing in real-time to the Technicolor images, bringing Justin's compositions to vivid life. I couldn't be more excited to share that experience with audiences this summer, let alone in a setting as epic and as quintessentially 'LA' as the Hollywood Bowl," said Chazelle.

"Damien made a beautiful tribute to Los Angeles with LA LA LAND, and I couldn't be more excited to celebrate the film's music at an LA landmark with incredible LA musicians," said Hurwitz.

This world premiere event at the Hollywood Bowl will celebrate the film and embrace the legendary venue with unique pre-show photo opportunities and an array of delights including a grand fireworks spectacular. LA LA LAND or vintage Hollywood-inspired dress is encouraged.

"We could not be more excited about what will be the first live orchestral presentation of LA LA LAND. And what better place to do it than at the magically dreamy Hollywood Bowl? We're thrilled about this exciting next chapter of the movie's life," said lyricists Pasek & Paul.

Tickets go on sale on Friday, March 10 at 12:00pm PST via www.ticketmaster.com, Ticketmaster outlets, (800) 745-3000, and the Hollywood Bowl box office. Doors will open at 6:30pm with the show beginning at 8:00pm. All acts and ticket prices subject to change without notice. Know Before You Go: www.hollywoodbowl.com/lease for parking information.

Following the world premiere, LA LA LAND IN CONCERT will debut in select locations across the globe including the UK, Canada, Mexico, Italy, Turkey, and Switzerland, with additional locations to be announced. In the United States, select cities include Atlanta (GA), Seattle (WA), Portland (OR), San Diego (CA), San Antonio & Dallas (TX), Indianapolis (IN), Nashville (TN), Milwaukee (WI), Minneapolis (MN), Denver (CO), and Washington, D.C., with additional cities to be announced.

Released by Lionsgate's Summit Entertainment label, LA LA LAND is the winner of 6 Academy Awards® including Best Actress Emma Stone, who stars alongside Ryan Gosling (Academy Award® nominee for Best Actor) and John Legend, whose recorded vocal performance will be featured in this event. The film has already grossed nearly $400 million at the worldwide box office.

"By preserving the film's unique recorded vocal performances of Emma Stone, Ryan Gosling and John Legend from the film's soundtrack and blending them with live musicians," said the concert's director Richard Kraft, "we are able to build a one-of-kind concert experience, which becomes a hybrid of film, pre-recordings and incredible live musicianship."

The LA LA LAND IN CONCERT: A LIVE-TO-FILM CELEBRATION AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL event is directed by Richard Kraft, who was the Creative Director of the acclaimed DISNEY'S THE LITTLE MERMAID IN CONCERT AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL and A WHOLE NEW WORLD OF ALAN MENKEN. 

Producing this event are Laura Engel & Richard Kraft and Tim Fox & Alison Ahart Williams following their previous successes of DISNEY'S TIM BURTON'S NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS LIVE IN CONCERT AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL, DISNEY'S THE LITTLE MERMAID IN CONCERT LIVE-TO-FILM AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL, DANNY ELFMAN'S MUSIC FROM THE FILMS OF TIM BURTON, A WHOLE NEW WORLD OF ALAN MENKEN, and the Emmy®-winning PBS special LIVE FROM LINCOLN CENTER: DANNY ELFMAN'S MUSIC FROM THE FILMS OF TIM BURTON.  Also producing are Andrew Hewitt & Bill Silva Presents.

Music Supervisor for the event is Steven Gizicki, who won the Guild of Music Supervisors top award for his work on the film LA LA LAND.

Pianist RANDY INGRAM To Release His Most Personal & Enlightening Recording to Date,THE WANDERING Featuring Bassist DREW GRESS

Pianist-composer Randy Ingram has put himself in a position to reveal more about his musical identity by scaling down to record The Wandering, a sophisticated, personal and enlightening duo album with bassist Drew Gress.

While other instrumentalists can choose a different mouthpiece or effects pedal to modulate and personalize their sound, pianists must develop their identity by how and what they play. Ingram has established his identity through his pianistic touch and sense of orchestration, earning many accolades over the years.  As Kevin Laskey of NYC's Jazz Gallery says, "It's hard to make a piano sing. You can't breathe into it, you can't slide from one note to another. The piano is a mechanical music-maker, and it takes a real artist-an Ahmad Jamal, a Bill Evans, a Fred Hersch-to make it come alive.  Pianist Randy Ingram is one of those artists. He has an immaculately honed touch and an unforced sense of lyricism."

Ingram explains, "A jazz pianist's true identity is defined equally by their tone and by the content of what they play:  the specific shades and colorations of their harmonies, the types of textures they favor and the way they think about orchestrating and stating melodies - especially in the context of 'standard' repertoire."

Ingram's thoughts were reinforced by the opening of a new NYC venue, Mezzrow, that featured stripped down performances, mainly by pianists and bassists, filling a void created by the closing in the mid-1990s of the famed Bradley's on University Place. Mezzrow has become an incubator and stage for pianists of all sorts to display their talents  with the minimum of dressings, typically in duos with bass.  The duo format resonated with Ingram, as one of the formative experiences in his musical development was a steady gig while at the University of Southern California with bassist Billy Mohler. Says Ingram, "I believe much of my stylistic identity started to form through playing that gig my last two years of college, and my memories of it have always made the duo format a very familiar and welcoming sound."

As Ingram was developing repertoire for the follow up to his previous Sunnyside release, Sky/Lift (2014), he began to feel a pull in a different direction. The music he was writing for his quartet focused on deeper interplay between piano and guitar, becoming more densely orchestrated and heavily structured. Ingram found himself thinking about ways that his pianistic voice could be more clearly and spontaneously be heard.

For Ingram's debut performance at Mezzrow, bassist Drew Gress was his ideal duo partner.  Universally praised as a master accompanist and soloist, Ingram had long admired Gress's playing, being familiar with the bassist's solo recordings and work with Fred Hersch. The duo's first gig together was exemplary: Gress's playing was wonderfully supportive but also motivating, pushing Ingram to explore new musical areas.  At the conclusion of the duo's first performance, Ingram's friend, the saxophonist Jeremy Udden, described what he had heard as a stripped down, truthful statement on the identity of, "Randy the player-Randy the pianist".

Ingram soon decided to record a duo album with Gress. They performed additional gigs and lined up a date at Brooklyn Recording with engineer Michael Perez Cisneros. "I knew that a duo record was not without its challenges: the format is incredibly exposed, and there's nowhere to hide, especially rhythmically," explained Ingram. "But I also knew that Drew was as great a partner as I could find for this project.  He has such a warm, nuanced sound and is a tremendously strong soloist, which I set out to feature as much as possible on the record. We chose to record in one session, in one room with no headphones or isolation, and the result, I hope, is an honest representation of who I am as a jazz pianist."

"I thought about how the journey to one's true identity could be described as wandering- a journey with no boundaries and no limits, and that certainly doesn't take a linear path, " says Ingram.  "In arriving at the album's title, I thought about the Japanese haiku poet Basho, the importance of wandering in the creation of his art, and how the same idea of wandering applied to my musical journey."

The Wandering is about this journey, the process of honing and expressing one's musical voice.

The recording begins with Gress's "Away," a composition with a lovely melody and beguiling harmonies that showcases Gress's unique writing.  Ingram's enchanting "Guimarães" was written for the Portuguese city, where the pianist was inspired by the juxtaposition of old and new, expressed here with his blend of classical harmony and voice-leading with modern harmonic and rhythmic ideas.

The spirited "Large Father" is Ingram's tribute to Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz in his last season; it takes a page out of Ornette Coleman's book on creating freedom without losing melodicism. Jimmy Rowles's "The Peacocks" is a favorite ballad of Ingram's, who delivers a wonderfully moody and evocative interpretation.

Ingram's version of Cole Porter's "Dream Dancing" is deceptive: it retains the brilliant lyricism of the melody but has been extensively reharmonized. The album's title track, "The Wandering," is a tribute to British piano great John Taylor, a player who developed his own language with an astounding melodic sense, crystal-clear touch and multifaceted harmonies, which Ingram represents with aplomb.

Wayne Shorter is one of Ingram's composing heroes and the saxophonist's "Chief Crazy Horse," with its insistent bass line, became the soundtrack of Ingram's half-marathon training program. It provides a rhythmic juxtaposition to the duo's repertoire. Ingram shows his lifelong appreciation for pianist Bill Evans through his up-tempo rendition of Evans' "Show-Type Tune," a favorite of Ingram's for its harmonic genius. The recording concludes with Kenny Wheeler's "Three For D'reen," a rhapsodic piece that is delicately balanced between ballad and jazz waltz under Ingram and Gress's impressive hands.

Wherever your path takes you, Sunnyside hopes that it leads you to as enchanting a place as does Randy Ingram and Drew Gress's music on The Wandering, a lovingly conceived and performed program that achieves new heights of ingenuity through musical collaboration.

www.RandyIngram.com

Vieux Farka Touré's newest album, Samba

When the producers of the Woodstock Sessions, a hybrid/live recording series in Saugerties, NY, asked Malian guitarist and vocalist Vieux Farka Touré to stop by in 2015, he didn’t have enough time to make it happen. Intrigued, he promised to return the following year. Making good on his word, the result of that incredible session is now Touré’s newest album, Samba.

The ten songs on Samba are all brand new. Given Touré’s natural musical curiosity, the far-reaching blend of Malian blues and praise song, funk, reggae, and rock make this his most mature, well-rounded effort to date. The live element, where Touré excels as a performer, shines through on every track, even though the band stopped whenever they wanted to change something up. This was not your average performance.

“It was not a regular studio session nor was it a concert,” Touré says. “It was somewhere in between. We were recording the album, but we had an audience of about fifty people in the room with us. The audience understood it was to witness the process of recording an album, not to present a concert in a studio, which was a very good thing because we got the energy of a live concert with the quality of a studio recording. It was an interesting idea but I did not know how it would go. Luckily everything was perfect. There was a great ambience there for the session and we were able to capture this unique energy for the album.”

Fans of Touré will rejoice at the quality and energy of this fantastic record. His solos are exceptional. The hypnotic grooves his band creates allows him to let loose with a sense of ease and grace.

Samba means “second born,” his place in his family, which of course was to legendary Malian artist Ali Farka Touré. While many cultures award the head position of a family to the first-born, it is the second child who is often conferred with power in Touré’s tradition. “Samba is one who never breaks, who never runs from threats, who is not afraid,” Touré says. “It is said that Samba is blessed with good luck.”

Over the last few months Touré has traveled across Australia and China spreading his energetic and gorgeous evolution of Malian blues. Now he’s returning to where he built his name, with tours in the United States and Europe planned for 2017.

Trombone Shorty has announced an April 28 release date for Parking Lot Symphony

Trombone Shorty has announced an April 28 release date for Parking Lot Symphony, his debut album for Blue Note Records. The album pre-order launched today along with the irrepressible first single “Here Come The Girls,” which is available now to download or stream. The album is a 12-track tour de force produced by Chris Seefried (Fitz and the Tantrums, Andra Day) featuring 10 new original songs along with covers of Allen Toussaint (“Here Come The Girls”) and The Meters (“It Ain’t No Use”). True to its title, the album contains multitudes of sound—from brass band blare and deep-groove funk to bluesy beauty and hip-hop/pop swagger—and plenty of emotion all anchored, of course, by stellar playing and the idea that, even in the toughest of times, as he says, “Music brings unity.” 

Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue have also announced new tour dates including album release shows at the Bowery Ballroom in NYC on April 24, and their annual Treme Threauxdown at the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans on April 29 that will feature special guests including Andra Day and Preservation Hall Jazz Band. The band is currently out on an extensive tour opening for Red Hot Chili Peppers including sold-out shows at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on March 7, 8 and 10. Trombone Shorty will also perform at the 2017 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, where he has inherited the festival’s prestigious closing set in the legacy of great New Orleans artists like the Neville Brothers and Professor Longhair. A summer co-headline tour with St. Paul & The Broken Bones will include a performance at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on August. 30.  

Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue – 2017 Tour Dates:

March 3 – Lensic Performing Arts Center – Santa Fe, NM

March 7 – Staples Center – Los Angeles, CA 

March 8 – Staples Center – Los Angeles, CA 

March 10 – Staples Center – Los Angeles, CA 

March 11 – Montbleu Resort Casino – Stateline, NV

March 12 – Oracle Arena – Oakland, CA 

March 15 – Moda Center – Portland, OR

March 17 – KeyArena – Seattle, WA 

March 18 – Rogers Arena – Vancouver, BC 

April 10 – Metro Theatre – Sydney, Australia

April 11 – 170 Russell – Melbourne, Australia

April 13-14 – Byron Bay Bluesfest – Byron Bay, Australia

April 22 – SweetWater 420 Festival – Atlanta, GA

April 24 – Bowery Ballroom – New York, NY

April 29 – Treme Threauxdown @ Saenger Theatre – New Orleans, LA

May 7 – New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

June 2 – Dominion Arts Center – Richmond, VA

June 3 – The Ritz – Raleigh, NC

June 4 – Greenfield Lake Amphitheatre – Wilmington, NC

June 6 – Ridgefield Playhouse – Ridgefield, CT

June 9 – Ocean City Music Pier – Ocean City, NJ

June 10 – Boarding House Park – Lowell, MA

June 11 – College Street Music Hall – New Haven, CT

June 15 – Sherman Theater – Stroudsburg, PA

June 16 – Westbury Theater – Westbury, NY

June 17 – Aura – Portland, ME

July 2 – ESSENCE Festival – New Orleans, LA

August 4 – Newport Jazz Festival – Newport, RI

August 14 – Wilma Theatre – Missoula, MT

August 16 – Red Rocks Amphitheater – Morrison, CO

August 19 – Edgefield – Troutdale, OR 

August 20 – Woodland Park Zoo – Seattle, WA  

August 22 – Mountain Winery – Saratoga, CA  

August 24 – Green Music Center – Rohnert Park, CA  

August 25 – Avila Beach Amphitheater – Avila Beach, CA  

August 26 – The Chelsea – Las Vegas, NV  

August 27 – Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre – San Diego, CA  

August 30 – Hollywood Bowl – Los Angeles, CA 

The track listing for Parking Lot Symphony is as follows:

1. Laveau Dirge No. 1

2. It Ain’t No Use

3. Parking Lot Symphony

4. Dirty Water

5. Here Come The Girls

6. Tripped Out Slim

7. Familiar

8. No Good Time

9. Where It At?

10. Fanfare

11. Like A Dog

12. Laveau Dirge Finale

Billy Porter's New Album - Billy Porter Presents The Soul Of Richard Rodgers features India.Aire, Ledisi, Leslie Odom

Tony and Grammy Award-Winner Billy Porter's new studio album, Billy Porter Presents The Soul of Richard Rodgers, will be released April 14, 2017 and is available for pre-order now, it was announced today by Bee & El and Sony Masterworks Broadway.  The album, which features new, soulful takes on classic Richard Rodgers songs, includes solos and duets from the following artists  (in addition to Porter himself):  Tony and Grammy Award winners Cynthia Erivo (The Color Purple), Renée Elise Goldsberry (Hamilton) and Leslie Odom Jr. (Hamilton), Tony Award-winner Patina Miller (Pippin), Grammy Award winners Pentatonix and India.Arie, Tony Award nominees Brandon Victor Dixon (Shuffle Along), Joshua Henry (Violet), and Christopher Jackson (Hamilton), alongside YouTube sensation and Kinky Boots star Todrick Hall and multiple Grammy Award nominees Deborah Cox and Ledisi.

The complete track listing for Billy Porter Presents The Soul of Richard Rodgers is as follows:

Oh, What a Beautiful Morning (Pentatonix & Billy Porter)

My Romance (Leslie Odom Jr.)

If I Loved You (Renée Elise Goldsberry & Christopher Jackson)  

With a Song in My Heart (Brandon Victor Dixon & Joshua Henry)  

I Have Dreamed (Patina Miller)  

My Funny Valentine (Cynthia Erivo)  

I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair (Todrick Hall & Billy Porter)  

This Nearly was Mine (Deborah Cox) 

Bewitched (Ledisi featuring Zaire Park) 

Carefully Taught (India.Arie & Billy Porter) 

Lady is a Tramp (Billy Porter featuring Zaire Park) 

Edelweiss (Billy Porter) 

"I like to think of this as the Richard Rodgers version of the Hamilton Mixtapes," Porter said.  "These are classic songs that everybody knows and loves, and I'm so excited for people to hear them in a brand new way."

Billy Porter Presents The Soul of Richard Rodgers marks Porter's fourth studio album, and his first as producer and content curator, with collaborators James Sampliner and Michael "Lofey" Sandlofer.

In March, Porter launches a national tour that kicks off in Bayside, NY on March 19. Full tour schedule below.

March 19 – Queensborough PAC – Bayside, NY

March 29 – Embassy Theater – Fort Wayne, Indiana

March 31 – Ocean Reef Cultural Center – Key Largo, FL

April 2 – Aventura Arts – Aventura, FL

April 3 & 4 – Crest Theater – Delray Beach, FL

April 6 – Nugent-Custer Performance Hall – Columbus, IN

April 7 & 8 – The Columbia Club – Indianapolis, IN

April 21 – Adelphi – Garden City, NY

April 22 – Kean University – Union, NJ 

May 5 – Emelin Theater – Westchester, NY

May 14 – Venetian Room – San Francisco, CA

May 20 – Goodman Theatre Gala, Fairmont Hotel – Chicago, IL

June 17 – Playhouse Square Gala – Cleveland, Ohio

July 15 – Willow Valley Communities Cultural Center Theater – Lancaster, PA

August 14 – Bay Street Playhouse – Sag Harbor, NY

August 19 & 20 – Paramount Theater – Provincetown, MA

BILLY PORTER is a Tony® and Grammy® Award-winning singer, composer, actor, playwright and director from Pittsburgh, PA. As a recording artist, Porter's solo albums include his first CD, Untitled, on A&M records, At the Corner of Broadway + Soul – LIVE on Sh-K-Boom Records, and Billy's Back on Broadway, on Concord Records. He originated the role of 'Lola' in the Broadway hit Kinky Boots, which won him 2013 Tony, Grammy, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards. Other theatre: Shuffle Along, Miss Saigon, Five Guys..., Grease, Smokey Joe's..., Dreamgirls, Angels in America, The Merchant of Venice, Radiant Baby, Birdie Blue, Songs for a New World, Ghetto Superstar (one-man show), Topdog/Underdog, King Lear. His play, While I Yet Live, premiered in 2015 at Primary Stages. As a director, his credits include Topdog/Underdog and The Colored Museum (both for Huntington Theatre Company); Film/TV: "Law & Order: SVU," "So You Think You Can Dance" (as a guest judge), "The Broken Hearts Club," "Shake Rattle & Roll," "The Big C," The Humbling, starring Al Pacino, Baz Luhrmann's The Get Down. Porter's concerts credits include opening act for Rosie O'Donnell and Aretha Franklin, Carnegie Hall, John McDaniel and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, as well as The Buffalo Philharmonic, Peter Nero and The Philly Pops, soloist for President Bill Clinton and various benefits throughout the United States.

BILLY PORTER

Website: https://billyporter.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BillyPorterofficial/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/theebillyporter

Instagram: http://instagram.com/theebillyporter

NEW RELEASES: JUNIE - THE WESTBOUND YEARS; AKI TAKASE / DAVID MURRAY – CHERRY SAKURA; IZO FITZROY - SKYLINE

JUNIE - THE WESTBOUND YEARS

Walter "Junie" Morrison had the great honor of being a member of both of Westbound's biggest collectives (although not necessarily at the same time) – the hard funky Ohio Players, and the cosmic brotherhood of Funkadelic/Parliament. During the mid-70s, though, Junie embarked upon a solo career, and cut a few wild LPs for the label which mixed funk, soul, and even some strange rock-oriented leanings. The resulting recordings were some of the more messed-up that Westbound ever issued, with moments that are delightfully funky, and others that are downright silly. This sweet 20 track compilation brings together most of the best moments of Junie's Westbound Years, and includes cuts like "Johnny Carson Samba", "Walt's Third Trip", "Tight Rope", "Cookies Will Get You", "Super J", "Super Groupie", and the great "Granny's Funky Rolls Royce", featuring the Funky Granny from "Funky Worm"!  ~ Dusty Groove.

AKI TAKASE / DAVID MURRAY – CHERRY SAKURA

As much as we love reedman David Murray in a group, we almost love him even more in a spare setting – especially a duet album like this, where he can both stretch out on his horn, but also soulfully interact with another player! Pianist Aki Takase provides lines that are sometimes sharp and angular, sometimes long and flowing – and Murray balances the sound out with beautiful work on both tenor and bass clarinet – sometimes with an approach that's almost traditional tenor ballad, sometimes a bit more freewheeling. The sound is great, and takes us back to David Murray projects like this from years back – on titles that include "Cherry Sakura", "A Very Long Letter", "Stressology", "A Long March To Freedom", "Blues For David", and "To AP Kern".  ~ Dusty Groove

IZO FITZROY - SKYLINE

Izo Fitzroy may look like a languid country singer on the cover (we're not sure why – maybe it's the old American car) – but she comes across with a deeply soulful sound on the album, and a strong raspy edge in her vocals that comes as a mighty nice surprise! The set's definitely going for a late 60s/early 70s funky soul vibe – but Izo's approach is maybe a bit different than some of the younger "funk girls with band" albums out there – nicely lean, with sharp instrumentation that never tries to hard to push any sort of agenda – which leaves the strength of Fitzroy's singing to really bring most of the power to the tunes. Given her voice, we're sure that the lady could sparkle in whatever style she chooses – and titles include "Break The Levee", "Shadowlands", "Reckoning", "Here I Come", "Hope You Can Wait", "Day By Day", "Say Something", "Heads Held High", and "I Keep You Guessing".  ~ Dusty Groove

 

NEW RELEASES: FREDDIE HUBBARD - BACKLASH; PHIL FRANCE – THE SWIMMER; CHICO MANN / CAPTAIN PLANET – NIGHT VISIONS

FREDDIE HUBBARD - BACKLASH

One of Freddie Hubbard's greatest records – a soaring bit of soulful modernism that's almost a precursor to 70s sounds on record labels like Black Jazz or Strata East! Freddie's at his early best here – stepping aside from some of the more serious Blue Note modes, and definitely feeling himself more strongly – reaching out with this righteous vibe that's quite different than later electric work in the 60s – and which, quite honestly, almost comes through best on this record than anywhere else! The group are wonderful too – and James Spaulding turns in some killer flute and alto work for the date – perfect for Freddie's lines on trumpet. Titles include "Backlash", "The Return Of The Prodigal Son", "Little Sunflower", and "On The Que Tee". (SHM-CD pressing!)  ~ Dusty Groove

PHIL FRANCE – THE SWIMMER

Beautiful keyboard lines from Phil France – served up here in a mode that's partly jazz, maybe partly more laidback – and often in the kind of slow-building style we love on other records on the Gondwana label! There's almost a meditative vibe to the music – somewhere in the Carlos Nino/Miguel Atwood-Ferguson mode, but maybe more compact – as Phil's keyboards are mixed with light use of violin and cello, plus some additional sound elements as well – all in a way that makes us almost think that France would be great at scoring soundtracks, although these instrumental tunes have a nicely changed-up sense of complexity overall. Much deeper than just the usual "soundscape" album you might mistake this one for – with tracks that include "December", "Animator", "London Park Hotel", "Kubrick", "Joy Of Brass", and "The Swimmer".  ~ Dusty Groove

CHICO MANN / CAPTAIN PLANET – NIGHT VISIONS

One of the most tuneful albums we've ever heard from Chico Mann – and a set that moves into much more song-based territory than some of his earlier work! The style here is a unique hybrid of beats, breaks, and Latin – almost in a mode that could crack a larger global market, if the right forces were in place – with very catchy Spanish-language songs that are perfect for the dancefloor! There's echoes of more mainstream modes in the approach, but the overall presentation is as hip as you'd expect from Chico and Captain Planet – on titles that include "Can't Let Go", "Somos Candela", "Oye Bien", "Como Me Miras", "La Oscuridad", "Cuentos De Anoche", and a remake of Manu Dibango's "New Bell". ~ Dusty Groove

NEW RELEASES: JOSH LAWRENCE – COLOR THEORY; SJOB MOVEMENT – FRIENDSHIP TRAIN; ANTHONY NICHOLSON – GRAVITY

JOSH LAWRENCE – COLOR THEORY

Maybe the first album we've ever seen from trumpeter Josh Lawrence – and a set that will definitely have us looking out for more! Lawrence composed almost every tune on the set, and works with a sense of color that really lives up to the title – on lines that are sometimes nicely compressed and subtle, and blown on flugelhorn – sometimes bold and vibrant, soaring out in the company of an excellent group that includes Caleb Curtis on some especially nice alto and flute! The keyboards shift throughout – as Orrin Evans plays acoustic piano on five titles, and Adam Faulk handles Fender Rhodes on seven more – creating a nice shift in color that furthers the spirit of the tunes, driven by rhythm work from Madison Rast on bass and Anwar Marshall on drums. Titles include "Black", "An Uptown Romance", "Yellow", "Presence", "The Conceptualizer", and "Green".  ~ Dusty Groove

SJOB MOVEMENT – FRIENDSHIP TRAIN

Fantastic funk from SJOB Movement – a 70s group who only cut a handful of records – all of them every bit as righteous and heavy as this one! The group have a perfect fusion of funk, psych, and other cool elements – all served up in a blend that's more straightforwardly soulful than some of their contemporaries, but not averse to trippier sidetracks too – especially when a bit of moogy keyboards come into the mix, and space things out nicely alongside the riffing guitars and tight horns in the groove! The sound is perfect – neither in a too-familiar Fela mode, nor in the too-dark style of some of the group's contemporaries – full of life, but never losing its focus – on cuts that include "Friendship Train", "Love Affair", "Odiaria", "let's Do It", "What Could It Be", and "Halleluyah". Also includes a bonus track – "Love Affair (Sol Power All-Stars rework)".  ~ Dusty Groove

ANTHONY NICHOLSON – GRAVITY

A great full length set from Anthony Nicholson – an artist who's done so many great singles and mixes over the years, but never gives us as many albums as we'd want! The album's steeped in the soulful currents and righteous modes that Nicholson's always had in his music – the kind of sophisticated groove that's always gotten him great respect on the global scene, even if he never full gets his due back home (although we're hoping this album might change that!) The set's fantastic – full of great keyboard work from Nicholson and William Kurk, who also sings a bit too – and whether the tunes are vocal or instrumental, they're brimming over with soul – almost kind of a 21st Century extrapolation of the Chicago spirit of Donny Hathaway, but through a legacy that also includes Windy City house. Titles include "Discojazzfunkdelite", "Over & Over", "Under Your Spell", "Gravitation", "Miquifaye El Tema", "Imagine", "We'll Survive", and "Too Late".  ~ Dusty Groove

BASSIST MITCHELL COLEMAN, JR. BRINGS ON THE JAZZ-FUNK FUSION ON HIS LATEST RELEASE PERCEPTION

Fans of slammin’ yet radio-ready, Jazz-Funk Fusion, will rejoice upon the discovery of bassist and composer Mitchell Coleman Jr.! Coleman, a disciple of the Stanley Clarke, Larry Graham, Louis Johnson and Marcus Miller schools of The Throwdown, is still in awe of the success of the 2015 release of his debut CD, Soul Searching. Soul Searching is described as a musical journey of self-exploration – which fulfilled Mitchell’s lifelong dream of expressing the music that’s been in his heart since he began thumpin’ basses at the tender age of 10.

Coleman is excited to announce the release of his new single “Journey”, a fan favorite off his latest album Perception. “Journey” features saxophonist Michael Bolivar, guitarist Josh Sklair, pianist Michael B. Sutton and backing vocals by Dionyza Sutton. “We produced it with the thought in mind of hoping people would feel the movement from one segment of the song to the other as it changes instruments from sax, to guitar, to piano solo (yours truly) to vocals” said Sutton. Get ready for the radio release date, slated for March 2017. Journey is available now via iTunes.

Perception, was independently released in April 2016 on Mitchell’s own Soul Revelations Records label. Once again partnering with veteran Motown producer Michael B. Sutton, Perception displays Mitchell’s musical growth and artistic development. His experimental sound genre-hops from Jazz to Hip Hop to R&B proving his versatility as an artist.

The album’s first single “Funkatized” premiered nationally on various Billboard Smooth Jazz radio stations, as one of the Top 5 most added tracks. In Mitchell’s own words “Funkatized” stimulates the soul inside of you, giving you an instantly danceable, funky, feel-good track.”

The new album brings the listener closer into the psyche of Mitchell Coleman Jr. as displayed in the infectious track “ Interfuse” and the ethereal “ Journey”. Mitchell also does a tribute to the “ Snarky Puppy” aficionado’s with the slammin’ “Redemption”. Perhaps two of the hidden gems on the CD are “Enchanted Summer” and a classic Crusaders/Randy Crawford remake of   “Street Life” sung by Dionyza Sutton (High School Musical, Cheetah Girls) who’s amazing voice embodies the legendary Randy Crawford. To top things off Mitchell brings hip-hop rapper Shorty Mac (Ray Jay, Moesha) on the track “Brand New Day”.

The album also features top industry legends including: Michael Bolivar (former saxophonist for The Ojay’s, Aretha Franklin), legendary guitar player David T. Walker, James Gadson (former drummer for Herbie Hancock, BB King, Quincy Jones), Josh Sklair (former guitarist for Etta James) and many more!

Mitchell Coleman Jr. was born the day after Christmas of `67 in Meridian, Mississippi. He spent his early years in Cuba, Alabama. When his father returned home from Vietnam, he moved the family first to Hartford then Bloomfield, Connecticut. There, Mitchell fell in love hard with electric bass. “In Bloomfield, nobody was into basketball or anything like that - everybody played bass. My friend Greg Carrington was THE baddest bass player in town – a beast to bow down to. I begged him to teach me. He and Kevin Weaverbey laid it all out for me. The first song I ever learned was “Just the Two of Us” by Grover Washington, Jr. & Bill Withers with Marcus Miller on bass - then came the calluses and blisters.”

Mitchell received full support from his family, especially his mother Mary Ruth Coleman who bought him his first bass (a short-neck Sears special for kids that Mitchell wound up detuning to get the sounds he wanted – ironically helping him develop the sounds he gets now) and his Aunt Orcie Delaine who used her credit card to buy his first real bass. When his parents divorced, Mitchell moved back to Alabama but all his cousins and friends had moved away. “Bass became my babysitter,” Mitchell states. And once again Marcus Miller proved inspirational when Mitchell discovered what became the Funk-Jazz blend of his wildest dreams in David Sanborn’s LP, Straight From The Heart. It was really on now.

During a stint in the United States Air Force (45th Group - telecommunications), the outfit forced Mitchell into a talent show where he won First Place performing his original song, “That’s Life.” He began to gig around the Rome and Syracuse, New York blues clubs surrounding Griffith Air Force Base with a group led by Rick Montalbano (future MD for Lou Rawls). He also took two semesters of music theory classes to further improve his craft. And closely watching the sidemen of artists ranging from Be-Bop king Dizzy Gillespie to Quiet Storm queen Anita Baker further illuminated the art of the bass’ supportive role within the music.

Straight out of the service, Mitchell moved to Hollywood intending to study at B.I.T. (Bass Institute of Technology) but had to pay the bills with electrical engineering jobs. However, the universe found another way to provide Mitchell a final profound education upon his introduction to the music of master fretless electric bassist Jaco Pastorius, thanks to a music store clerk that sent him home with the artist’s self-titled debut LP. “At first, discovering Jaco depressed me by revealing how much I didn’t know,” Mitchell admits. “Then he inspired me by showing me how much further I could go. His song ‘Portrait of Tracy’ really messed me up. Learning how to play it took me to another plateau.” Soon after a chance meeting with Otis Williams, founding member of Motown’s The Temptations (to whom his military buddy Terry Weeks became a member),

Mitchell found himself in the mix of music’s unsung behind the scenes side. He began studio work with a group called Ninth Chakra led by Cario Johnson. And it was at one of those sessions that Mitchell met keyboardist Herman “Hollywood” Dawkins – a soul mate in the mission of Jazz-Funk Fusion. “The first time we hit, we were like Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups: ‘Man, you got jazz on my funk…and it’s soundin’ really good!’ Hollywood is the mastermind of making what’s in my head tangible. Our motto is: With Funk as our vehicle let Jazz be our journey.”

Together, Mitchell and Hollywood cooked up what became the initial tracks for his debut CD, Soul Searching, fortified by the presence of top shelf talents such as keyboardist Deron Johnson, guitarists Kayta Matsuno and Sean Fabian, saxophonists Tim Anderson and Sal Avila, veteran vocalists Jim Gilstrap, Pamela & Joyce Vincent, and newcomer singers Sean Thomas and Nodesha. After Mitchell pressed and sold copies of that first version of the CD on-line, a mutual friend steered veteran producer Michael B. Sutton his way who provided cherry on top polish to the proceedings. “Michael is a great guy – he spoke my language and I fell in love with him right away,” Mitchell says. “As a producer and consultant, he is a gatekeeper with great ideas which I needed and appreciate.” 

Essentially, Michael amplified the heart of Mitchell within three songs, including the funky single “Flow.” Deeper still were two others. First is the cinematically percussive “Ethiopia Love,” inspired by Mitchell’s wife Tsegereda. “I met her in Cali but I did not want to marry her without her father’s approval. So I made the 20-hour flight to Africa. When I arrived, it was like Eddie Murphy ‘Coming to America’ only in reverse - beautiful people, physically and spiritually. I dedicate ‘Ethiopia Love’ to the people of Ethiopia.” The other standout is “When Your Life Was Low,” another radio favorite featuring the voice of Michael’s daughter, Dionyza Sutton (pronounced dee-ahn-jah) with its profoundly moving lyrics. “In life, I’ve always been a giver…but givers always have to watch out for the takers,” Mitchell muses. “That song touched me in that respect.”

Now Mitchell Coleman Jr. is shakin’ things up again and giving fans a taste of Hip Hop, Jazz, Funk and R&B, further challenging himself as an artist. This time around Mitchell isn’t holding back- taking his swiftly expanding audience on a musical journey that has only just begun.

Geoff Alpert's "Open Your Heart' Hits All the Right Notes

Trombonist Geoff Alpert has loved music all his life, studying the craft, learning several brass/valve instruments, playing in bands and composing songs. Inspired by the likes of jazz legend J.J. Johnson, rock band Chicago’s James Pankow, and fusion greats such as Wayne Henderson and Raul de Souza, Geoff studied music as a major at San Diego State University while supplementing his income gigging near and far. Yet he walked away from music for 30 years in the early `80s to be an ideal provider as a husband and father. Following the painful passing of his wife from cancer in 2002, Geoff did some profound soul searching which led him to pick up his trombone again, gradually easing back into the scene where he met bassist Darryl Williams and musical director/keyboardist Gail Jhonson. Both pushed and assisted him in creating a musical statement that spoke to his emotional life story, his undying passion for the art form and the spiritual Eastern martial arts disciplines that guided him along his journey. That album is Open Your Heart.

Geoff Alpert’s Open Your Heart (co–produced with Gail Jhonson) is a 10–tune tapestry which lovingly places the trombone in a front and center position it rarely enjoys in the present musical landscape. Floating between Jazz, Pop, R&B and Latin sound signatures, it’s a bold yet highly accessible listen. Highlights include the Brazilian flight of the title track, a cover of The Jacksons’ “Heartbreak Hotel” (composed by the immortal Michael Jackson and specially arranged for Geoff by Gail), the transfixing and deeply touching trombone and keyboard duet “Thinking About You” (in memory of his departed mother and wife), “The Crusade” (a tribute to The Jazz Crusaders/The Crusaders emulating some of the progressive sounds of the band’s evolution over five groundbreaking decades), the groovin’ “Zen Funk” (featuring bassist Darryl Williams and dedicated to the Ken-Ka-Kung Fu Club, the martial arts school which Geoff has been both student and teacher for four decades), and an especially emotive cover of sister trio The Emotions’ 1977 hit “Don’t Ask My Neighbors” on which Geoff tips his hat to trombonist Raul de Souza, first instrumentalist to cover the song in 1978 (produced by the late George Duke) while placing his own heart piercing stamp on the Quiet Storm classic.

“This album - like my teaching of Ken–Ka–Kung Fu -is all about love, sharing and the willingness to open your heart,” Geoff explains. “Wherever you go in life, the center of your journey is always found within.Challenge yourself, maintaining your balance and focus as you navigate life’s obstacles on your way to becoming your truest, most humble best self…with honesty, integrity, discipline & respect.”

Born in North Hollywood, California on July 10, 1955, Geoff Alpert was raised in San Diego where his family moved when he was 2. His mother, Annette, was very musical having played clarinet and accordion. There was a piano in the house, and all of his 3 sisters and 2 brothers played musical instruments (none professionally). Geoff’s first instrument was trumpet which he took up at 7. After visiting his grandfather who had a huge collection of instruments, he gravitated to the E Flat euphonium then, by 7th grade, the baritone horn. By the time Geoff got to high school, Chicago’s explosive “25 or 6 to 4” and “Beginnings” were all over AM and FM radio dials featuring glissandos and solos by trombonist James Pankow. Along with the jazz greats he’d been admiring, this is what inspired Geoff to make the ultimate switch to trombone as his primary instrument, self taught to boot.

While attending Hoover High School, Geoff used money he’d saved from a paper route to buy an intermediate Conn large bore tenor trombone with an ‘F’ attachment. He desired the richest resonant tones of the horn, inspired by the great J.J. Johnson. Shunning sports, Geoff dovetailed into total absorption mode, immersed in studying, listening and intense practicing. He was regularly selected for and made a featured soloist in city wide honors jazz bands and began to hone his pop performing chops in groups of peers that played proms/after proms as well as with older cats playing covers of Blood Sweat & Tears, Tower of Power, Earth Wind & Fire, Average White Band, Stevie Wonder and Motown jams at San Diego hot spots such as Bacchanal, Halcyon, Spanky’s and Wallbangers. Among the musicians he crossed paths and performed with was bassist Nathan East.

Graduating high school in 1973, Geoff attended San Diego State as a Music major excelling in performance, theory and ear training. Even the aptitude tests that his successful CPA father gingerly asked Geoff to take all pointed to music as the way for him to go! And go he did, on the road with a number of self–contained groups that snuck in as many Seawind, Brecker Brothers and Dreams tunes as they could between the Top 40 hits club management demanded. In high demand, Geoff also gigged with name artists on jazz festivals in and out of town. Returning from a nasty gig in Alaska, Geoff faced the rude awakening that the music scene no longer supported large horn bands. He now faced a critical decision: move to L.A. and try to crack its lucrative studio scene or enter a more conservative career. Geoff put his bone down and began a 35-year career promoting up to District Manager for the City of San Diego while also developing a private landscaping business. He also married his wife Gladys in 1984 and was father to two daughters. Concurrently, he devoted serious time and energy into Ken-Ka-Kung Fu, receiving teaching credentials and permission to start a school that he still leads to this day.

Such sweet bliss was shattered in 2000 when Gladys was diagnosed with cancer. Geoff stayed faithfully by his wife’s side until she succumbed in 2002. Unsure of what he would do next, Geoff’s thoughts returned to music, the artful expression that had once so filled his life over three decades before. He found that even when he was deeply set in concentration with his martial arts, melodies and solos would be floating through his head. Geoff went deep into the woodshed in 2004, working diligently to return his skill to ‘A’ level. Anticipating retirement in 2012, Geoff vowed to involve himself solely in things he loved: martial arts, music, family and his longstanding love affair with Hawaii. In Oahu, he began playing 5/6 nights a week - sometimes at 3 venues a day - refusing pay, simply relishing opportunities to play with high caliber musicians such as Michael Paulo and Gregg Karukas.

A turning point for Geoff arrived upon meeting bassist Darryl Williams at an open mic night called “The Q” which Darryl hosted in Oceanside, as well as at Felix’s in San Diego where he became reacquainted with keyboardist Gail Jhonson: “First Lady of Smooth Jazz.” With both struck by how accomplished Geoff was on an axe played by so few as a leader/soloist, they both urged Geoff, “Dude, you ought to record!” Geoff wowed many players but biorhythmically speaking (and totally platonically) he really hit it off with Gail who became his co–producer. Since returning to music, Geoff has performed with notable artists such as producer Kenneth Crouch, violinist Karen Briggs and saxophonist Jessy J.

Work on Geoff ’s debut, Open Your Heart, began in March 2016 at Darryl’s house. This led to Geoff and Gail spending quality time collaborating to compose and arrange all 10 songs. The trio worked with “L.A. Collective” players Adam Hawley on guitar, Greg Manning on keys and Tony Moore on drums. Geoff reunited his old horn section mates Mitch Manker and Steve Nieves (plus Michael Parlett). Five selections feature vocalists Tamina Khyrah Joi, Aankha Nealand Maya Thomas. And special guests include saxophonist Michael Paulo (“Aloha Nights”) and flautist Althea Rene (“Open Your Heart”). 

“First and foremost in my mind doing this record was – as a bone player – can I interject something fresh against the set boundaries and push the envelope with a full, more than eight–layered sound,” Geoff concludes? I wanted a live flavor and the best of the best musicians–wise. Everybody nailed their parts from the rhythm session, the horns session, vocals, the guests, my overdubs, and all the mixing and mastering. It was an irreplaceable rush of groove, camaraderie and love.”

NEW RELEASES: AL DI MEOLA - MOROCCO FANTASIA; NORMAN BROWN - LET IT GO; SLY & ROBBIE PRESENT TAXI GANG DISCOMIX STYLE 1978-1987

AL DI MEOLA - MOROCCO FANTASIA

Al Di Meola's fantastic appearance in 2009 also represented a summit of different cultures and religions - Al Di Meola (guitar), Peo Alfonsi (2nd guitar), Fausto Beccalossi (accordion), Gumbi Ortiz (percussion), Victor Miranda (bass), Peter Kaszas (drums), and with special guests from Morocco, Said Chraibi (oud), Abdellah Meri (violin) and Tarik Ben Ali (percussion). On his third trip to Morocco, the public gave this exceptional guitarist a rousing reception and showed ist openness towards Western music - and Al Di Meola wowed the audience with a special repertoire. Includes live performances of Misterio; Siberiana; Double Concerto; Michelangelo's 7th Child; Gumbiero; Turquoise; Egyptian Danza (feat. Abdellah Meri, Tari Ben Ali); and Encore (feat. Said Chraibi, Abdellah Meri, Tari Ben Ali).

NORMAN BROWN - LET IT GO

Let It Go, Norman's inspired debut album for Shanachie Records, has something for everyone, whether an R&B fan or a jazz aficionado. From "Holding You," his sensuous collaboration with R&B great Chanté Moore and Norman's re-imagining of the Five Stairsteps classic "Ooh Child"  to the smoothly grooving "Remember Who You Are" and the serenely inspired "Let It Go," Let It Go is Norman Brown at his best. Tracks include: Lessons of the Spirit; It Keeps Coming Back; Let It Go; Ooh Child; Conversations; Living Out Your Destiny; Holding You; The North Star; Very Woman; Liberated; Remember Who You Are; and Man in the Mirror.

SLY & ROBBIE PRESENT TAXI GANG DISCOMIX STYLE 1978-1987

The selections on this compilation demonstrate exactly how much Lowell 'Sly' Dunbar & Robert 'Robbie' Shakespeare have learned from the roots of reggae, American rhythm & blues and soul, and these versions of contemporary and vintage soul songs show Sly and Robbie at their very best on covers of Little Willie John's Fever, Al Wilson's Show & Tell, Tony Joe White's Rainy Night In Georgia (as covered in soul by Brook Benton), The Delfonics' Don't Break Your Promise, The Impressions' You Must Believe Me, The Spinners' Could It Be I'm Falling In Love and a brace of Marvin Gaye covers in Sexual Healing and Inner City Blues. All are sung with panache and feeling by the various vocalists and backed up with superior rhythms, showcased here with full-length versions, from Sly and Robbie. For over forty years they have contributed so much to the body of reggae music that they can truly be seen as its backbone. Without Sly Dunbar & Robbie Shakespeare it is no exaggeration to say that reggae would not have figured anywhere near as prominently as it has done in popular music; long may they continue... Usually known as simply Sly & Robbie these two master musicians have a variety of names including The Dynamic Duo, The Rhythm Twins and even, on occasion, Drumbar and Basspeare. The role of backing musicians was exactly that... to stay in the background... but Sly & Robbie are the only reggae musicians whose names are internationally known and respected. These architects and builders of Jamaican music have constantly tested the boundaries of what could, and couldn't, be used in reggae but despite working extensively with stars of the international firmament including Joan Armatrading, Joe Cocker, Ian Dury, Bob Dylan, Serge Gainsborough, Gwen Guthrie, Herbie Hancock, Mick Jagger and Grace Jones their roots are firmly planted in Kingston's teeming reggae scene.

 

NEW RELEASES: KIRK WHALUM - #LOVECOVERS; CHRIS THILE & BRAD MEHLDAU; EERO KOIVISTOINEN & UMO JAZZ ORCHESTRA - ARTIC BLUES

KIRK WHALUM - #LOVECOVERS

In the spirit of Grammy Award winner Kirk Whalum's most popular cover album, For You (1998), he returns with a gospel inspired jazz album called #LOVECOVERS, featuring covers of gospel music's most inspirational hits, along with some newly reimagined popular songs. Inside are time-honored gospel selections from The Clark Sisters' You Brought The Sunshine to Donnie McClurkin s "Speak To My Heart," seamlessly paired with the likes of Stevie Wonder s Have A Talk With God," Beyoncé s Love on Top, and Marvin Gaye s God Is Love. #LOVECOVERS also includes Whalum s first ever studio recording of Dolly Parton's I Will Always Love You since his appearance on Whitney Houston s 1992 recording from the film, The Bodyguard.

CHRIS THILE & BRAD MEHLDAU - CHRIS THILE & BRAD MEHLDAU

Nonesuch Records labelmates mandolinist and singer Chris Thile and pianist Brad Mehldau, longtime admirers of each other’s work, first toured as a duo in 2013. At the end of 2015, they played a two-night stand at New York City’s Bowery Ballroom before going into the studio to record Chris Thile & Brad Mehldau, a mix of covers and original songs that Nonesuch released on January 27, 2017, on two CDs / LPs.  A US tour will be announced at a later date. The two musicians first performed together in September 2011 as part of Mehldau’s residency at London’s Wigmore Hall. The Guardian said of that performance, “Mehldau struck up his signature rocking chord vamp over which lightly struck motifs swell to sensuous extended melodies. Thile kept cajoling him with percussive snaps, flying runs, and chords strummed fast enough to sound as seamless as a purring strings section, inducing Mehldau … to bat back the playful provocation with stinging rejoinders.”

EERO KOIVISTOINEN & UMO JAZZ ORCHESTRA - ARTIC BLUES

Beautiful work from Finnish saxophone genius Eero Koivistoinen – a player who blew our minds with his experimental records at the start of the 70s, and continued to amaze us as the years go on! This set has Eero at the head of the larger UMO jazz orchestra – directing the group, but also taking off on plenty of solos as well – really richly-blown tenor lines that carve out a majestic space next to the deep colors of the group – a perfect blend, and one that's much better than some of the usual European albums of this nature. There's a few other great reed players in the lineup, and quartets of trumpet and trombones, too – and some other musicians get a chance to solo as well. The whole thing's got a sense of icy soul that almost feels like a tenor-based version of the Gil Evans experiments with Miles Davis – and most of the set was recorded in 2016, but the package also features a few bonus tracks from 2005. Titles include "Arctic Blues", "Meat Meat Blues", "Oshumare", "Nodiskt Samarbete", "2000 Fi", "Halling", "Northern Dimension", "Pictures In 3 Colors", and "Hallanvaara".  ~ Dusty Groove