NEW RELEASES: ELLA FITZGERALD WITH THE LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA – SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME; FRANCESCO BUZZURRO & RICHARD SMITH – HEART OF THE EMIGRANTS; DIESLER FT. AFRIKA FUENTES - RED LIGHT

ELLA FITZGERALD WITH THE LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA – SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME

2017 is Ella Fitzgerald’s Centennial year. This new album features Ella’s vocals paired with new symphonic arrangements and accompaniment by the peerless London Symphony Orchestra. Classic tracks People Will Say We're In Love (featuring Gregory Porter);Someone To Watch Over Me; They Can't Take That Away From Me (featuring Louis Armstrong); Bewitched; I Get A Kick Out Of You; Misty; Makin' Whoopee!;These Foolish Things (Remind Me Of You); Let's Call The Whole Thing Off (featuring Louis Armstrong); What Is There To Say; Let's Do It (Let's Fall In Love); and With A Song In My Heart. Someone to Watch Over Me is part of Verve’s celebrations of Ella Fitzgerald’s centenary; the First Lady of Song was born on April 25, 1917.

FRANCESCO BUZZURRO & RICHARD SMITH – HEART OF THE EMIGRANTS

Since their initial meeting in 2005, the two have strived to create a presentation that combines their unique musical backgrounds into an anthology of tunes enjoyable and appreciated by the masses. Their first recording, 2011’s  Un Mondo, Due Chitarre takes its audience on a musical journey outside each respective player’s genres to explore new dimensions in the sound of two guitars.  The opening piece, an original composition from Buzzurro, “Paisaje” sets the tone as the music weaves through arrangements of both Buzzurro and Smith, as well as Chick Corea, Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, and The Who. On the surface, the two seem like an unlikely pair.  If you delve further, within each musician, there is a very deep love for not only the guitar, but for the unique music they create together.  Smith is an American born guitarist, best known for his numerous chart topping hits and achievements.  Sicilian virtuoso Buzzurro is best recognized as an award winning classical guitarist. He is also one of the world’s foremost authorities on Sicilian folk music.  His knowledge is so commanding that he is recognized by the Italian government as one of it's Ministers of Culture.

DIESLER FT. AFRIKA FUENTES - RED LIGHT

Having​ ​just​ ​returned​ ​from​ ​another​ ​successful​ ​songwriting​ ​trip​ ​to​​ ​​Nashville​​,​ ​the​ ​​Manchester​​ ​based,​ ​​Madrid​​ ​born​ ​songstress​ ​​Afrika​ ​Fuentes​​ ​lends​ ​her​ ​soulful tones​ ​to​ ​the​ ​infectious ​​Red​ ​Light​. On​ ​remix​ ​duties​ ​is​ ​​Athens​​ ​based​ ​house​ ​producer​ ​​George​ ​Kelly​​ ​bringing​ ​a​ ​​Classic​ ​US House​​ ​Rub​ ​to​ ​proceedings​ ​-​ ​a​ ​DJ​ ​in​ ​constant​ ​demand​ ​on​ ​the​ ​continent,​ ​being​ ​also​ ​the label​ ​owner​ ​of​ ​​Chopshop​​ ​and​ ​​Our​ ​Records​Diesler is Jonathan Radford from Burnley near Manchester. He's a producer and DJ that's been long affiliated with Tru Thoughts and Freestyle Records, in addition to being label manager for A Little Something Recordings. He presents his new single "Red Light" featuring homegirl Afrika Fuentes here. It is a groovy serving of deep and soulful nu-jazz with Fuentes amazing vocals taking centre stage. The remix up next by Greek nu-disco hero George Kelly (from Chopshop) is more streamlined for the dancefloor on this straight-up deep house makeover, with some strict garage rhythms to get the message through. It also comes with a handy dub version for those of you less keen on the vocals, plus an instrumental version of the original.

ScienSonic Laboratories releases historic large ensemble recording, made on the 50th anniversary of Sun Ra's classic Heliocentric Worlds - Heliosonic Toneways, Vol. 1

On April 20, 1965, one of the most adventurous and far-reaching recordings in jazz - or music - history was made in New York City. The great Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra convened in engineer Richard L. Alderson's RLA Studio and crafted The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, an amazing and enigmatic recording that continues to astonish listeners to this day. Somewhere between outer space chamber music and avant-garde jazz, it introduced listeners to sounds not normally heard in improvised music. The album's boundary-stretching jazz sounded like no other record made by anyone, ever.

Now, fifty years later, ScienSonic Laboratories has created Heliosonic Toneways, Vol. 1, an historic new recording in the intrepid spirit of the original Heliocentric Worlds. On April 20, 2015, original participant Marshall Allen (now 93 and still highly active as leader of the Arkestra) and longtime Arkestra member Danny Thompson joined an incredible cast of some of New York's most creative musicians at the behest of ScienSonic's founder, multi-instrumentalist Scott Robinson.

Along with trombonist Frank Lacy, trumpeter Philip Harper, bassist Pat O'Leary, saxophonist Yosvany Terry, bass trombonist Tim Newman, drummer Matt Wilson and bass clarinetist JD Parran, Robinson and the Arkestra vets reentered the orbit of that landmark recording created a half-century earlier.

Heliosonic Toneways is not a recreation or remake of Heliocentric Worlds; instead of duplicating the original music, Robinson's goal was to use the extraordinary sonic template of the original recordings - the same instrumentation and distinctive sounds - to create new and imaginative music that would honor the spirit of the original sessions while also setting off into new and completely uncharted terrain. This is ScienSonic's most ambitious project yet, and the results are remarkable.

One of the unique facets of Heliocentric Worlds was the album's use of an expanded palette unprecedented in even the most experimental jazz, incorporating such unusual instruments as timpani, piccolo, and the haunting bass marimba. Some months later, Volume Two followed with the addition of chromatic sets of "tuned bongos" and the eerie, electronic Clavioline. The distinctive aural environment of these two recordings, along with an offbeat musical methodology which blurs the lines between composition and improvisation, makes for utterly singular music which truly lives up to the admonition on the back of the original LP jackets: "YOU NEVER HEARD SUCH SOUNDS IN YOUR LIFE."

Robinson's ScienSonic Laboratories was the most fitting locale in which to record these extraordinary sessions; his converted garage houses one of the world's most extensive collections of obscure musical instruments, the fruits of years spent combing flea markets and junk shops. Among the lab's treasures is the original bass marimba that Sun Ra played on Heliocentric Worlds, heard here in the hands of Scott Robinson and Marshall Allen himself.

Also returning from the 1965 recording is original engineer Richard Alderson - who had not worked with Allen since the Heliocentric sessions but was tracked down and recruited to engineer the date. This made for a truly historic three-way reunion - fifty years later to the day! - between Allen, Alderson, and the original instrument that figured so prominently on the 1965 LP. A strange twist was added when news arrived during the sessions of the passing of Bernard Stollman - whose ESP label had issued the original Heliocentric LPs - on the very same day.

The results include Marshall Allen's first-ever recordings on piano and bass marimba, in addition to his customary alto sax and EVI. It was captured in a marathon session, resulting in enough material for two releases - look out for Volume Two in 2018. Despite many setbacks including pouring rain, technical difficulties, and long delays in the mixing process, the results of this massive effort can finally be heard.

This is startling and unforgettable music, captured with extraordinary clarity and sonic detail - music that could only have taken place at ScienSonic Laboratories, with these musicians, these sounds. This is music that takes you somewhere... somewhere utterly unfamiliar, yet strangely inviting. Or, as Sun Ra used to say, "Somewhere there." From an audiophile standpoint, Alderson calls it "the best recording I have ever made." And while it is unlike any other Laboratory production to date, this music certainly lives up to the ScienSonic motto, "Worlds of Tomorrow Through Sound."

Russian-Born Saxophonist/Composer Lena Bloch Creates a Beautiful, Thrilling Blend of Freedom and Wide-Ranging Inspiration on Heart Knows

True artists know to trust the instincts of their hearts before the knowledge in their heads. The title of Heart Knows, the new album by Russian-born, Brooklyn-based saxophonist Lena Bloch and her quartet Feathery, expresses that sentiment with succinct assurance. The same could be said for the music made by these four remarkable musicians, which conjures a singular and striking group sound from four individual voices given the freedom to follow their own hearts.

With one significant change, Feathery the group is an evolution of the quartet that appeared on Feathery, Bloch's 2014 debut. Heart Knows, out September 25 on Fresh Sound New Talent, welcomes back bassist Cameron Brown and drummer Billy Mintz, while adding pianist Russ Lossing, who also contributes half of the album's compositions (Bloch herself penned the remaining half). Though each of the pieces begins with written material, the sole guiding principle for Feathery was to leave plenty of space for what Bloch calls "spontaneous collective composing and instant musical communication."

In part that approach was inspired by one of Bloch's mentors, the legendary saxophonist and innovator Lee Konitz, who she says "taught me that improvising and spontaneity is what makes our music so fresh and timeless." But to a perhaps even greater degree, the spark that ignites in Feathery comes from her collaborators - whom she refers to, borrowing one of Lossing's titles, as her "Three Treasures" - whose fearlessness spurs one another on to ever greater heights of invention.

"We're not trying to produce something already contrived beforehand," Bloch insists. "Jazz doesn't have to be risk free - on the contrary, I think risk is a great factor! Because I trust the professionalism and experience of these people, risk and challenge only facilitate the result. The less safe we all feel, the better it is for the music."

The unique combination of following a spontaneous instinct wherever it might lead and creating a sound that stands on its own distinctive merits is captured by the band's whimsical name. It suggests something lighter than air, diaphanous - and Feathery's music is that, certainly. But as Bloch also points out, "A feather is something that drifts in the wind. At the same time it is a very beautiful, concrete object. The beauty of a feather is in its submissiveness and its openness to change, but at the same time it has beauty in itself."

The music itself draws on a wealth of inspirations - as Bloch points out in the liner notes, there are aspects of 20th and 21st-century classical music, Eastern European and Middle Eastern traditions, and of course modern jazz and improvised music. But all of these have been absorbed and emerge organically from the group's interactions with one another, with an intriguing freedom that calls to mind the work of the Tristano School or Paul Motian. The music moored by the compositions in the way a kite is moored by its string - kept in tenuous touch with the ground but allowed to float free and be carried along by the prevailing winds of the moment.

Another key touchstone is paid homage in the album's 12-minute opening track, "Lateef Suite." Bloch studied with the late Yusef Lateef in the 1990s, and there's no doubt that the revered multi-instrumentalist and composer made a lasting impression on her as a saxophonist and as a composer. But "Lateef Suite" doesn't draw on his teachings - which drew upon 12-tone serialism as well as Asian and Middle Eastern modes - as much as it does Bloch's more personal memories of her departed teacher. "It's not theoretically related to what he taught," she says. "It's more of an emotional impression of how I felt about his impact."

The title track follows, rife with an enticing but elusive lyricism. Mintz's shimmering brushwork sets the ethereal stage for Bloch's supple, keening tenor and the mysterious musings of Lossing's pianism. The aforementioned "Three Treasures" insistently returns to its exotic opening melody, putting the quartet through tensely recursive paces. Lossing's "French Twist" reharmonizes J.S. Bach's French Suite in D Minor, playfully referencing a stylish hairdo in its title.

"Esmeh" translates to "name" in Farsi, pointing to another unexpected shift in the wind that guided Bloch to a study of Persian music. Middle Eastern influences also emerge in "Munir," a dedication to the iconic Iraqi oud master Munir Bashir. Lossing's opening on muted piano strings evokes the sound of the oud, while Brown's bass line is an interpretation of a Bashir improvisation. Significantly for Feathery's ethos, Bloch says, "In the Middle East improvisation is equal to composing. Just like in jazz, you can't generally distinguish between composer credits and improviser credits. Bashir was a genius composer-improviser and I always loved his playing."

Lossing's "Counter Clockwise" is the album's most traditional composition, a poignant ballad that takes its time unfolding. The album closes with "Newfoundsong," which captures the pianist's first impressions of the remote and beautiful Newfoundland. As throughout the album's eight tracks, Bloch and her quartet freely blur the lines between composition and improvisation while maintaining an alluring cohesiveness - by trusting, always, what the heart knows.

Born in Moscow, Russia, Lena Bloch immigrated to Israel in 1990 to attend Rubin Academy of Music and Dance - and since then has traveled the world, performing in Israel, Holland, Italy, Germany, Belgium, England, Canada, Russia, Slovenia and the United States. Lena has studied with Yusef Lateef, Billy Taylor, Joe Lovano, Kenny Werner, Dave Holland, and her most important mentor, Lee Konitz, at such institutions as UMass Amherst, Cologne Conservatory, Germany, and the Jazz Workshop in Banff, Canada. Since 1993 Lena has been leading her own quartet and trio, combining influences from the European Classical tradition, Middle Eastern and Turkish music, and jazz. She moved to Brooklyn in 2008, releasing her debut album Feathery (Thirteenth Note) in 2014. The quartet from that album has evolved into the band of the same name, which features the gifted improvisers Russ Lossing, Cameron Brown and Billy Mintz. Lena is also an active woodwinds and jazz improvisation instructor and clinician, a member of the Jazz Education Network, and a faculty member at Slope Music in Brooklyn.

Lenabloch.com

Acclaimed Torchbearer of Hard Bop, Richie Cole Presents "Latin Lover"

Alto saxophonist Richie Cole has covered a lot of stylistic ground since he left the Berklee School of Music in 1969 to join the Buddy Rich Band at age 21. Long known as a torchbearer for bebop, Cole started referring to his style of playing as "Alto Madness" in the 1970s, and that has been his motto ever since.

 In the course of a prolific career fast approaching the half-century mark, Cole has included Latin jazz tunes on many recordings, but surprisingly -- given his affinity for that style -- has never devoted an entire album to Latin jazz. Cole has now remedied that oversight with Latin Lover, his new album for Richie Cole Presents, which will be released on October 20. What's not surprising is the highly original stamp Cole places on arrangements and repertoire throughout. He's put together a wonderful and witty program of music that, in addition to four of his own compositions (including a reprise of "Island Breeze" from his classic 1978 outing Alto Madness), features versions of the traditional Mexican children's song "Cielito Lindo," a Mariachi band staple today; "Lonely Bull," a smash hit for Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass in 1962; Great American Songbook classics "Almost Like Being in Love" and "Harlem Nocturne"; and unexpected items such as "If I Only Had a Brain" from The Wizard of Oz, arranged as a samba, and Neil Sedaka's 1974 pop hit, "Laughter in the Rain." "I've always had a passion for Latin music and Latin-flavored embellishments, so it was time," Cole explains, though in keeping with his sense of humor he admits the album's title is ironic. "I doubt anyone would consider me a Valentino-type Lothario," he quips. As for some of the unconventional song choices on the new album, they share a common denominator: "What matters is that these tunes have great melodies and I can swing my ass off on them." As a teenager, Cole played in Machito's big band for two summers at the Concord Hotel, a famed resort in New York's Catskill Mountains. "Playing with Machito was my first real exposure to this music," he recalls. "I was kind of lost at first. The bassist never played on the one and that took a lot of getting used to. But eventually I got it. It was a great learning experience." 
Cole has played plenty of Latin jazz since cutting his teeth with Machito, including in an all-star festival band with Tito Puente alongside Dizzy Gillespie and Stan Getz. Coming of age on the East Coast, he was exposed to all manner of Latin sounds and has also toured Mexico numerous times (his son-in-law is from there), most recently with veteran trumpeter Luis Gasca. Bassist and producer Mark Perna is one of the "angels" who have been instrumental in facilitating Cole's artistic output since the saxophonist moved to Pittsburgh in 2014. "We really put a lot of thought into how to follow Richie's ballads album," Perna says, referring to last year's well-received Richie Cole Plays Ballads & Love Songs. Perna reassembled the simpatico cast from the Ballads album -- guitarist Eric Susoeff, who's worked with artists ranging from Dizzy Gillespie to Ivan Lins, and whose primary focus is his Latin Jazz quintet Salsamba, founded in 1984; versatile drummer Vince Taglieri, whose extensive experience includes work with big bands, theater productions, and jazz artists such as Bobby Shew and Sean Jones; and Perna himself, a veteran musician who's recorded six albums under his own leadership and has worked with Don Aliquo, Emily Remler, and Ron Affif, among many others -- with the addition of pianist Kevin Moore, a Berklee alum whose musical travels have taken him to 60 countries and back to his native Pittsburgh. "The songs on Latin Lover aren't heavily arranged," says Perna, "but they're very much tailored to Richie. He's really one of a kind." Richie Cole was born on Leap Day in 1948 in Trenton, NJ. His father, a big band enthusiast, ran the Harlem Club, a local jazz joint, and the Las Vegas-style showroom, Hubby's Inn. Cole was 10 when he started playing the saxophone. At 16, he attended a music camp directed by alto legend Phil Woods before heading for Boston's Berklee School of Music on a full scholarship from DownBeat magazine.

After coming up in the big bands of Buddy Rich, Lionel Hampton, and Doc Severinsen, Cole formed his own quintet. In the early '70s, he began a long association with the great vocalist Eddie Jefferson that lasted until Jefferson's tragic death in 1979. Over the ensuing decades, Cole has toured regularly, recorded prolifically in myriad settings, and resided in numerous cities on both coasts and in between. Now comfortably ensconced in Pittsburgh, he's free to pursue his muse and unleash his creativity, Alto Madness and beyond. 

 

    

Erica Papillion-Posey to release new jazz recording: “From the DEEP”

Having released and co-produced her 2015 debut recording, “The Standard Reimagined, when jazz…” a carefully curated collection of love and heartbreak jazz favorites, “…an excellent first outing.”— [C. Michael Bailey | All About Jazz], Papillion-Posey has taken her talents further in From the DEEP with a bold journey into executively producing and songwriting on the new, global, vocal jazz album. Fashioning the text, as lyrics, from her 2015 book of poetry and prose, Musings from the Mind of a Mezzo, she has crafted five original tunes for the recording like the opening track, “War of Art”, a personal declaration on the constant battle of being an artist. The tune has a dual face that oscillates between neo-soul and a double-time swing and sets the tone for what is to come in the nine track album.

Papillion-Posey keeps stellar company on this global jazz recording with her writing partner and pianist extraordinaire, Tenia Nelson (who also teaches percussion), Brooklyn’s own, Eric Wheeler, a beast on upright and electric bass, Alex Tripp, a quiet storm on drums with special guests: Eric Natsuhiro Jordan, sax and clarinet, Natalia Perez del Villar, castanets, Zay Alejandro Ríos, djembe/conga and Al Chesis, harmonica. “These collaborations, these musicians were everything…: fun, fire and easy. I couldn’t be more pleased with the result.” says Papillion-Posey.

When discussing the album, Papillion-Posey exclaims, “Each selection is my Deep calling out to DEEP”, a cellular, bottomless expression of self through percussive rhythms, words and sounds most obvious in “JuJu”, a Zydeco-ish, second-line romp that pays homage to her Creole, Southwest Louisiana roots and “Tell Me”, a poignant, funk anthem that speaks to her, sometimes, hopelessness at the current racial and civil climate often ending in the senseless taking of black and brown bodies or “Chemistry”, a lush ballad wrapped in smoldering lyrics that you nestle into (“Meet me where the Alchemist dwells, between liquid heavens and Dante’s hell” ) with an elegant piano solo by Nelson and punctuated by delicate, ethereal flute figures.

Adding to its international appeal, From the DEEP comes full circle with some hip arrangements of well-known standards. Having played Clara (“Summertime”) in a 2016 production of Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Papillion-Posey reimagines the now jazz standard with an affecting, transparent voice and bass-only-performance which more than delivers. Included are sexy, bossa renderings of the Italian standard, “Estate” (Summer), sung in Italian, a love-letter to her favorite country and her extensive travels there and the “Habanera” (sung in French) a complete, fiery reinterpretation of the opera aria, “L’amour est un oiseau rebelle” (Love is like a rebellious bird) from Bizet’s Carmen, a signature role of the, also, classically trained Papillion-Posey. And there is so much more!

NEW RELEASES: BROWNSWOOD BUBBLERS VOLUME 12 COMPILED BY GILLES PETERSON; JUSSARA SILVEIRA & RENATO BRAZ – FRUTA GOGOIA: UNA HOMENAGEM A GAL COSTA; MARTIAL SOLAL & DAVE LIEBMAN – MASTERS IN BORDEAUX

BROWNSWOOD BUBBLERS VOLUME 12 COMPILED BY GILLES PETERSON

A dozen volumes in – and this wonderful series is still going strong – an incredibly solid, incredibly trustworthy collection of all that's great in the global underground! Gilles Peterson has been opening up our ears for decades, and he's never let us down – and, as before, there's a rich array of forward-thinking music here – from lyrically poignant club-ready soul, to neo classic spiritual jazz, to modern funk, and beyond – all tracks that have a sound that's way hipper than the mainstream, and a sense of class that few artists can touch. Titles include "Stop Rewind" by Slim with Ella Mae, "Refugee Song" by Buttering Trio, "Rosie" by Wayne Snow, "No Time To Lose" by Madison McFerrin, "Could You Be Me" by Kathy Kosins & Paul Randolph, "Gotta Get Out" by The Pendletons, "Red Planet" by Chip Wickham, "Are You In Peace" by Selebyone, "La Mano" by Stimulator Jones, "Flute Song" by Wildflower, "Love Falls Down" by Poppy Ajudha, "Turn My G Down" by God Colony, "2 Sides" by Oscar Jerome, "Should You Go" by Skinny Pelembe, "Above The Clouds" by Yisrael Trio, "Anxious Party People" by Blood Wine Or Honey, and "Differences" by Elisa Imperilee & Srigala. ~ Dusty Groove

JUSSARA SILVEIRA & RENATO BRAZ – FRUTA GOGOIA: UNA HOMENAGEM A GAL COSTA

A great little record – one that offers up a tribute to the music of Gal Costa in a style that's as evocative as its cover – and which finds all these wonderful ways to take off from the inspiration of the originals! Vocals are by Jussara Silveira and Renato Braz – sometimes singing together, but often alternating on different tracks – already a great approach in the mix of male and female voices on these tunes. Yet the singers also have something special, too – that way of capturing the simple, understated charms that Gal had in her later years – often in a style that's subtle, but completely powerful – maybe even more so when turned towards some of the songs from earlier years. Backing is by a small group on all numbers – Dori Caymmi plays guitar throughout, and other instrumentation includes a bit of accordion, solo alto from Teco Cardoso, and a small sax group on a few numbers – coloring in the tunes with some beautiful tones. The album's the best sort homage album in the Brazilian tradition – which, if you know it, is light years better than any sort of American modes – and titles include "So Louco", "Nao Identificado", "Baby", "Teco Teco", "Perola Negra", "Volto", "Passarinho", "Tema De Amor De Gabriela", and "Estrada Do Sol". ~ Dusty Groove

MARTIAL SOLAL & DAVE LIEBMAN – MASTERS IN BORDEAUX

Two giants in modern jazz, coming together here beautifully – on a record that may well be one of the most compelling from either musician in recent years! Martial Solal has definitely returned to the limelight with a strong string of releases over the past decade or so – but he sounds even more amazing here, next to the angular genius of Dave Liebman – whose way of crafting reed lines in the setting really blows us away! There's a really special sort of pairing going on here – like Mal Waldron and Steve Lacy – and the amazing thing is the way these guys can both be totally loose, yet also swong – coming together on brilliant reworkings of "Solar", "All The Things You Are", "On Green Dolphin Street", "Lover Man", and "Night & Day". ~ Dusty Groove

NEW RELEASES: JEAN-MICHEL BERNARD – JEAN-MICHEL BERNARD PLAYS LALO SHIFRIN; THE KANDINSKY EFFECT – PAX 6; BURNT SUGAR – ALL YOU ZOMBIES DIG THE LUMINOSITY

JEAN-MICHEL BERNARD – JEAN-MICHEL BERNARD PLAYS LALO SHIFRIN

New takes on the famous soundtrack work of the great Lalo Schifrin – served up in a mode that's every bit as jazzy and groovy as the original! The set begins with some key cop and crime themes from Lalo's breakout years of the 60s and early 70s – and that music really sets the stage for the album, which unfolds in a set of tracks that stand as a strong tribute to the tonal color and rhythmic genius of the maestro! Jean Michel Bernard plays Fender Rhodes, piano, and Hammond – in a core group that also includes vibe, muted trumpet, and some reeds – and there also seems to be larger orchestrations on most numbers, but in a way that really lays in the background, and never gets in the way of the instrumental energy in the lead. Schifrin himself plays a bit of guest piano – and titles include "Mannix", "Bullitt", "Dirty Harry Suite", "The Cat", "Lalo's Bossa Nova", "Manteca", "Mission Impossible", "That Night", and "The Plot". ~ Dusty Groove

THE KANDINSKY EFFECT – PAX 6

A jazz trio, but one with a very unique vibe – given that, in addition to familiar saxes, bass, and drums – the group also uses a fair bit of effects as well! The drums are often echoey and thunderous, the basslines nicely bumping, and the tones of the saxophone can go off in all sorts of directions – always tuneful, but often with darker currents too – nice little sonic twists and turns that certainly make the instrument sound different than usual! Saxophonist Warren Walker also plays a bit of keyboards too, although those often seem wrapped up with the larger electronic palette of the album – and titles include "Astoria", "We Make Our Own Holidays", "Loops", "Iron Lion", "Re: Jungle", "Musicbox", and "Glass Bottles". ~ Dusty Groove

BURNT SUGAR – ALL YOU ZOMBIES DIG THE LUMINOSITY

The Burnt Sugar sound just gets more and more complex over the years – to a point where it's even more mindblowing than when it started, and where it's hard to tell where one influence starts and another one ends! In a way, the approach here is like a fully righteous extension of some of the modes explored by the black rock generation in the New York scene of the 80s – and its way of folding together soul, funk, avant jazz, and lots more. But under the helm of Luqman Brown, the Burnt Sugar groove moves onto whole new planets of sound – using a rich tapestry of funk, fuzz, wisdom, and knowledge to lay down sheets of sound that might take others years to create. Vocals are by a variety of singers – including Shelly Nicole Jefferson, Abby Dobson, Christina Wheeler, Julie Brown, and Mikel Banks – and titles include "That Bent Arc Do Be Slow", "Ziploc Latex", "RU Insane", "There Is A G", "Young Black & Vague", and "Ride Ride Ride". ~ Dusty Groove

NEW RELEASES: VIVIAN GREEN – VGVI; HOLOPHONOR – LIGHT MAGIC; CHARLOTTE DOS SANTOS - CLEO

VIVIAN GREEN – VGVI

A fantastic new direction for Vivian Green – and a record that seems to have the singer setting her sound on fire all over again! In the notes, Green credits co-producer Kwame Holland for giving her career all new energy – and that claim definitely comes through in the music, which bristles with vitality throughout, while still holding onto the strong tradition of songwriting that Vivian's given us on her previous albums! There's a crisp crackle here that's really inspiring – a clarity that's followed through in every aspect of the record – and while we've always loved Vivian, the set has us taking new notice of her music all over again. Titles include "Vibes", "I Don't Know", "Sunglasses", "Supa Dope Fresh Beat Show", "Mutal Feelings", "Just Like Fools", "The 1st Time", "Happy With You", and "That's What Love Can Do". ~ Dusty Groove

HOLOPHONOR – LIGHT MAGIC

A group with vibes in the lead – which might already have been enough to win us over – save for the fact that everything else about the record is great, too – including its production by Wayne Shorter! Forget all about Shorter, though – because although he champions the group, they hardly need his help at all – as they're a wonderfully strong, very soulful ensemble who are very much headed in the right direction – with that kind of fresh, young voice in jazz that we maybe heard years ago when Black/Note first appeared on the scene – although these guys have a vision that's all their own, and a sound that gets nicely spiritual at times too. The group features vibes from Diego Urbano, alto from Josh Johnson, trumpet from Mike Cottone, trombone from Eric Miller, piano from Miro Sprague, bass from Dave Robaire, and drums from Jonathan Pinson – a big group, but one with a razor-sharp focus throughout – on songs that include "Santa Ynez", "Choose Your Adventure", "Three Song", "Pioneer", "Dream Space", "Light Magnet", "E Force 3", and "Invisible Cities".  ~ Dusty Groove

CHARLOTTE DOS SANTOS - CLEO

Charlotte Dos Santos is a hell of a singer, and one with a really amazing range – able to float to the top of heavenly spaces with her light inflections in the music, but also tied strongly to the planet with a mellow-stepping soulful groove! The blend of lightness and depth here is wonderful – a nice change from the usual underground soul material, as is Charlotte's lyrical approach – almost as lightly poetic as her voice, but more solid too – with a vibe that's completely unique, and which (we hope!) means that we'll be hearing plenty from her in years to come! The album's got this wonderful recasting of Freddie Hubbard's classic "Red Clay" – plus the tracks "Summer Is Icumen In", "Good Sign", "King Of Hearts", "It's Over Bobby", "Watching You", and "Move On". ~ Dusty Groove

NEW RELEASES: KASAMI WASHINGTON – HARMONY OF DIFFERENCE; BENJAMIN CLEMENTINE – I TELL A FLY; KELELA – TAKE ME APART

KASAMI WASHINGTON – HARMONY OF DIFFERENCE

Pure fantasticness from the great Kamasi Washington – a set that's much more compact than his sprawling Epic, but which has an equally wonderful vibe overall! The album features material that Washington performed at the Whitney Biennial – to accompany paintings by his sister – but the whole thing stands alone beautifully, with that free-flowing, always spiritual vibe that's made Washington one of the strongest young jazz talents to emerge in recent years! The music resonates strongly with the work of some of his key LA contemporaries – like Ronald Bruner Jr, Miles Mosley, Cameron Graves, and Thundercat – all of whom perform in the large ensemble – helping Kamasi's tenor soar to the skies on waves of collaborative joy. Washington composed, arranged, and even produced the record himself – and in some ways, the tightness of the performance makes the whole thing even more satisfying than Epic – as we hope you feel too, on titles that include "Desire", "Humility", "Truth", "Integrity", "Knowledge", and "Perspective". ~ Dusty Groove.

BENJAMIN CLEMENTINE – I TELL A FLY

One of the most unique artists we've heard in years – and one who will no doubt be setting the world on fire for years to come! Benjamin Clementine's a singer, but also a poet – inspired by jazz and classical music, yet working here in neither – and instead, finding a path that's completely his own – borne out with incredible creative energy right from the very first note, and continuing through amazing territory with each new song on the set! There's some deft work on piano and electric harpsichord on the record – but there's lots more waves of dark textures and other tones – all to showcase Clementine's vocals, which are unlike any other singer we can think of. Benjamin's hardly just another voice with downtempo rhythms or modern production – as his lyrics are far richer, and his sound here already speaks volumes of his experiences on both the Paris and London scenes – although we're betting he's going to take the whole world by storm soon. Like nothing else you've ever heard – and we mean that in the best way possible – with songs that include "One Awkward Fish", "Farewell Sonata", "Better Sorry Than Asafe", "God Save The Jungle", "Phantom Of Aleppoville", "Paris Cor Blimey", "Jupiter", and "Ode From Joyce". ~ Dusty Groove

KELELA – TAKE ME APART

The stunning debut of Kelela – a singer who's been bubbling under for so long, she bursts out strongly right from the very first note! Kelela's ready to take on both the indie underground and the mainstream with this set – as the album's got a depth to rival some of the most compelling Neo Soul work from female singers in the past decade or so, but also has a tight crackle that could get her winning a lot more ears – especially given the strong reception for powerful female soul that's emerged in the past few years! The album's got a very layered sense of instrumentation – mostly produced by Jam City – and these sonic textures work really well with Kelela's voice, which slides into the mix perfectly – but never in a way that the lady buries the message in her music at all. Instead, the whole thing represents a real triumph of the contemporary – showing that there's still plenty of new territory to discover, if you know where to look. Titles include "Frontline", "Take Me Apart", "Jupiter", "Better", "LMK", "Onanon", "Turn To Dust", and "Truth Or Dare". ~ Dusty Groove

James Brown's legendary protégée Martha High releases her new album “Tribute to My Soul Sisters”

Record Kicks has signed James Brown’s original funky diva Martha High. Her new album “Tribute To My Soul Sisters” produced by Japan’s Osaka Monaurail is out November 17. 

Martha High has been an integral part of James Brown’s life and career for more than 30 years. After a lifetime spent shoulder to shoulder with the Godfather of Soul, she flew to Tokyo and teamed up with Japanese funk ambassadors Osaka Monaurail to record her new album “Tribute to My Soul Sisters” that hits the streets worldwide next November 17 on Record Kicks. You can now listen to the first single from the album “A Little Taste Of Soul”, originally recorded in 1962 by her soul sister Sugar Pie, available on digital download and limited edition 45 vinyl on October 20.

“Tribute to My Soul Sisters” was hatched back in 2014, when Martha High was visiting the producer Dj Pari, head honcho of the Soulpower organization and tight collaborator of soul legends like The Impressions, Lyn Collins and Marva Whitney. "I looked up to these ladies of soul" says Martha, "Given the opportunity and the pleasure to perform their songs, is my way of saying: thank you, you're not forgotten. To record the music of the Funky Divas would mean a lot to Mr Brown. He always wanted the world to know he had powerful women on stage that could hold his crowd while he was off the stage; they were just as powerful and funky as he was."

Without further ado, following DJ Pari’s advice, she partnered up with one of the hottest name of the new funk renaissance: Japan’s Osaka Monaurail. Deeply influenced by the work of James Brown, Bobby Byrd, Curtis Mayfield and with nine albums under the belt, Osaka Monaurail have been leading the international funk scene for more than two decades, appearing at festivals such as Montreal Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival and Womad’s, as well as recording and touring with funk legends like Marva Whitney and Fred Wesley.

Throughout her career Martha shared stages worldwide with some iconic artists like Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Temptations, Aretha Franklin, B.B. King, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Michael Jackson and George Clinton to name a few. Martha has been carrying the torch of soul music for her whole life, like a true Soul Sister. Now, with this new effort, she is keeping the music of the Funky Divas going, and we are sure that the Godfather of Soul and her faithful audience would appreciate it.

Born in Victoria, Virginia and discovered by Rock & Roll pioneer Bo Diddley, Martha took off her career with the soulful, legendary doo-wop group "The Four Jewels”, with whom she scored the national hit "Opportunity" in 1964. Soon, The Jewels caught the attention of James Brown and joined the “James Brown Revue” in 1966. The Godfather of Soul recorded and released several songs featuring The Jewels until the group disbanded. Nevertheless, Martha stayed with James Brown and continued to work with him as his personal vocalist for 32 years. She was with him at the Boston Garden during the iconic 1968 gig after Martin Luther King’s assassination, she was by his side when he performed at renowned ‘Rumble in The Jungle’ event in Zaire and was on stage with him and "The Legends of Rock & Roll". Mr Brown produced several of Martha’s singles on his own label “People” such as “Georgy Girl", "Try Me" and “Summertime”; meanwhile Martha launched her solo career in 1979 with the self-titled debut LP for “Salsoul Records”. 

Since then she released five albums under her name and, being one of the “hardest working woman in show business”, she became one of the leading singers of saxophonist Maceo Parker’s legendary funky music machine, working with him for 16 years.

ADAM RUDOLPH'S MORPHIC RESONANCES

Morphic Resonances is the third Meta/MOD Technologies co-release of Adam Rudolph's music and the 23rd as a leader featuring his compositions. It is also the final installment of Rudolph's trilogy of CDs following on the heels of 2 other Meta/MOD Technologies co-releases: The Epic Botanical Beat Suite (2015) by his electro-world percussion ensemble Hu: Vibrational and Glare of the Tiger (2017) by his Moving Pictures Octet. 

The three releases sound very different from one another and Rudolph explains the trilogy connection this way: "I drew upon the same intervallic and rhythmic materials in creating the music for all three recordings. Using these materials as kind of musical DNA allowed me to create this trilogy of CD releases. Each sounds so different from the other because I used a different process to create the music on each. I feel that when we generate our own creative processes, then the music is bound to sound prototypical. It is what I call "organic music" whereby the spirit and the feeling can project through the music unencumbered by styles of the past. It sounds like itself."  

Morphic Resonances also reveals a new side of Rudolph's musical journey by putting the spotlight on his through-composed music. Some of the pieces were commissioned by the ensembles on this release, while others were written when Rudolph was living in Copenhagen as a recipient of the prestigious D.I.V.A. award from the Danish government. "I tried to project my inner voice and spirit as well as my experiences as a hand drummer and improviser into the compositions. Being an autodidact, it was interesting to use the "Western classical" notational system to do that. I was fortunate to have outstanding musicians from both the USA and Europe to bring this music to life." 

TRACKS

Morphic Resonances / Momenta String Quartet  13:18

Syntactic Adventures / Momenta String Quartet  13:12

Garden, Ashes / Kaoru Watanabe & Marco Cappelli  8:55

Strange Thought / Sana Nagano  2:45

Orbits / Odense Percussion Group  10:30

Coincidentia Oppositorum / Figura / Kammeratorkestret Ensemble  3:59

Lamento / Kaoru Watanabe & Marco Cappelli  3:50 

TOUR DATES:

Monday, October 2  

University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Adam Rudolph with Hamid Drake and Ralph Jones

Tuesday, October 3 and Wednesday, October 4 

Jazz Gallery, New York City

ADAM RUDOLPH'S MOVING PICTURES

Thursday, October 5 

October Revolution Festival (opening for Sun Ra Arkestra), Philadelphia

Adam Rudolph with Hamid Drake and Ralph Jones

Saturday, October 7 

Angel City Jazz Festival, Los Angeles

ADAM RUDOLPH'S MOVING PICTURES and GO: ORGANIC ORCHESTRA 

conducted by Adam Rudolph and featuring Bennie Maupin  

Sunday, October 8 

Motherland Music, Inglewood

Adam Rudolph and Hamid Drake "Karuna Percussion Duet"

Tuesday, October 10 

Rhizome, Washington, DC

Adam Rudolph and Hamid Drake "Karuna Percussion Duet"

Wednesday, October 11

The Windup Space, Baltimore

Adam Rudolph and Hamid Drake "Karuna Percussion Duet"

Friday, October 20 

BOP STOP - The Music Settlement, Cleveland

ADAM RUDOLPH'S MOVING PICTURES

Saturday, October 21 

Edgefest Kerrytown, Ann Arbor 

ADAM RUDOLPH'S MOVING PICTURES

Sunday, October 22 

Lafontsee Galleries, Grand Rapids

ADAM RUDOLPH'S MOVING PICTURES

Friday, November 17 

Firehouse 12, New Haven

ADAM RUDOLPH'S MOVING PICTURES