Euro Soul Duo Cool Millions Returns With "Stronger"

Five albums, sixty tracks and still counting. Cool Million are back with a new album!

Ten years ago the euro soul duo Cool Million released their first album ‘Going Out Tonight’ on UK soul label Expansion Records. The album took the soul crowd by surprise, cause who were these guys that out of the blue, could recreated the soulful sound of the 80’s hey day like no other?

The answer to that question is; Rob Hardt and Frank Ryle. One a super musician from Germany with skills you can only dream of. The other a Dj/musicfreak from Denmark with a masterplan – both of them with tons of dedication and passion for thier craft.

Thier passion and ambition have kept them in the came for a decade and they have worked with a long list of artists, some known some not, some forgotten some on their way up! The list include names such as: Jean Carne, Keni Burke, Shirley Jones, Eugene Wilde, Meli’sa Morgan, Rena Scott, Leroy Burgess, Peggi Blu, Yvonne Gage, Marc Evans, Alton McClain, Kenny Thomas, Lisa Stansfield, Tom Moulton, Joey Negro, Dimitri From Paris and John Morales, Glenn Jones, Marc Sadane, Tim Owens, Gavin Christopher, Michael Jeffries.

Cool Million tells that they feel privileged and humble when they look at the list of names they have worked with over the ten years. Futhermore they add; ‘Who would have thought that two dudes from northern Europe would be able to create music with people that talented, we hope we could do it, when we started but that we actually done it, is amazing and wonderful’.

Reflecting on the first decade of Cool Million it’s fair to say that Rob & Frank are two determined and ambitious gentlemen with extraordinary talent.

So what can Cool Million tell us abouth their new album? ‘It’s a classic Cool Million album where we work/collaborate with various artists, staying true to our original concept both in terms of genre and how we think a album works best. Having say that we think that our fans will be a little surprised with the fact that this is our slowest album to date. We believe we have more variety than ever and it’s a fact that the music on the new album is slowed down in terms of more ballads and mid-tempo songs compared to our other albums’.

‘The reason for this development is that we wanted to try something that was a little out of our comfort zone. Also we felt that we wanted to prove that we can do quality slow jams aswell. You could also argue that is’s beause we both turned fifty this year.. haha’.

Vocalist and composer Deb Bowman’s loving tribute to her late sister, Patti – FAST HEART, releasing August 29th on Mama Bama Records

An award-winning singer, actor, composer, and cabaret artist, DEB BOWMAN’s multi-faceted talents shine through on her newest album, FAST HEART. The project comprises a mix of jazz standards and four original tunes penned by Bowman. This is her debut as a songwriter. Bowman originally hails from Alabama, but lived in New York City for several years, pursuing an acting and singing career. 

She has performed in theatre, Off-Broadway, national tours and regional productions as well as television, films, and commercials, and continues to create her own unique jazz cabaret shows that are well received in NYC and at sea on world cruise ships, where she has traveled to over 60 countries. FAST HEART is a tribute to Bowman’s beloved sister, Patti, who died of ovarian cancer. She was with her sister throughout the brutal 18 month battle and was devastated by her loss. Bowman relocated to Atlanta several years ago and has continued both her acting and singing career. 

Bowman is releasing FAST HEART in concert on the 10th anniversary of Patti’s passing at Birdland on September 22nd, 2019.Patti loved butterflies, and from the teal butterfly on the cover (a symbol of ovarian cancer awareness) to references in several songs, the album is replete with butterfly allusions. Bowman will also be donating a portion of the revenue to Ovarian Cancer Research. Bowman has a rich, warm voice that was shaped by her earliest performances as a Gospel singer. She is adept at a number of different musical styles, while her acting background clearly informs her approach to lyrics. FAST HEART is a beautiful and loving commemoration of her late sister Patti.

 

Miguel Zenón - new quartet album Sonero: The Music of Ismael Rivera

“He wasn’t just one of the guys. For me, he was beyond that” said Miguel Zenón about Ismael (“Maelo”) Rivera (1931-1987), the subject of his latest project, Sonero. “He exemplified the highest level of artistry. He was like Bird, Mozart, Einstein, Ali – he was

that guy.”

Zenón knows something about musical greatness. He’s one of jazz’s most original thinkers, known for his harmonic complexity, and for being one of the most recognizable alto saxophonists of his generation. His great subject is his homeland of Puerto Rico, and he brings a fresh take on it every time out, combining reverence for cultural tradition with strong compositional chops. No one else’s Puerto Rico – and no one else’s jazz – sounds like Miguel Zenón’s.

Sonero: The Music of Ismael Rivera might be Miguel Zenón’s strongest album yet, and that’s saying a lot. For his twelfth album as a leader, Zenón and his quartet offer a tribute to a musician who influenced him from childhood: Ismael Rivera, who grew up in Santurce, not far from Zenón’s home turf. Familiarly known as Maelo, he’s a popular hero in Puerto Rico today, even more than 30 years after his death. “When people talk about him, they talk about him as you would about a legendary figure,” says Zenón. On the other side of the Caribbean, in Colombia, Venezuela, Panamá, he’s as popular as he is in Puerto Rico. But in

the wider world, he’s not as well known. “One of my main goals here,” Zenón says, “is that I want everyone to know about him.” 

Ismael Rivera’s musical background was in folkloric Afro-Rican music. He grew up together with future bandleader Rafael Cortijo, and became the lead vocalist of Cortijo y Su Combo,

 with whom he became a household name appearing regularly on the Puerto Rican daily TV

El Show del Mediodía in the 1950s. Tutored in the repertoires of bomba and plena by the patriarch Don Rafael Cepeda, the two men stand at the head of a movement that turned those rhythms into contemporary dance-band music, which at the time was mostly in the Cuban style.

Rivera had a distinctly Puerto Rican style of soneo, or improvisation. The word comes from son, the Cuban style of music that is the mother form of salsa. The album’s title, Sonero, means the lead singer who improvises melodies and lyrics over the repeating coro. It’s one of the highest forms of artistic performance, calling on the performer to display musical and textual erudition while making people dance. Rivera was known to his fans as

El Sonero Mayor – the greatest sonero.

But, says Zenón, “Sonero to me doesn’t only mean an improviser. It exemplifies a persona. It’s someone who embodies the genre. 

“I grew up in salsa circles as a kid,” he continued, “and when folks talked about all the great singers – Héctor Lavoe and Cheo Feliciano, Marvin Santiago, Chamaco Ramírez, people like that – they always talked about Maelo in a different  way. Rubén Blades talks about Maelo as a revolutionary rhythmic genius.” Coming from a percussion background, Rivera developed a unique style of singing that used vocal percussion phrases – ¡rucutúc, rucutúc, rucutúc, rucutác! — to fill out lyrical lines, making for a new level of rhythmic complexity on the part of the singer.

“Putting phrases on top of phrases, like threes over fours, stuff that’s so advanced that as a musician you can say, ‘okay, that’s five, then the four, then it crosses over and meets here’ – but I’m sure he wasn’t thinking  about that,” Zenón says. “He was just thinking about the way he felt it. But what he felt was so advanced and so ahead of his time that it was really transcendent. So a lot of the elements that I used to write these charts were things that were inspired by what he was doing rhythmically when he improvised.”

  

“I’m attracted to complexity, but in this case it’s complexity on top of a foundation of folklore and just plain grit. It was all there,” he continues. “His timbre, his voice, the way he dealt with lyrics as an improviser and on top of that his rhythmic genius.”

Zenón’s albums are conceived as integral works to an extraordinary degree. He’s been bringing out new full-length projects year after year, and his hyper-virtuosic quartet does hard roadwork playing around the world. On Sonero, the group captures the spirit of Maelo – but through its own distinctive lens.The album has the easily identifiable sound of the fully developed Miguel Zenón Quartet, which has remained with the same membership for fifteen years – an astounding stability in the world of jazz. They play a personalized jazz – their own unique style, collectively created under Zenón’s direction, built on the foundation of their easy musical communication.

The group’s unity was on display when they premiered the music from Sonero in a stunning  residency at the Village Vanguard in March 2019. “Luis and Hans and Henry – we all have a specific connection to this music,” Zenón said. “There’s a connection to it that goes beyond the page. It’s a personal  thing. Like Luis for example, he’s a salsa head even more than I am. He grew up with this music. When we play the arrangements I’m sure he feels what I feel. He hears those songs and he knows where the source is coming from.”

While the Maelo pieces included in Sonero are Zenón’s arrangements of other composers’ tunes, they’re so fully elaborated into large-scale works that they feel like his compositions. Listeners may recall his arrangement of Maelo’s signature Bobby-Capó-composed soliloquy “Incomprendido” that lit up the quartet’s groundbreaking Alma Adentro: The Puerto Rican Songbook (2011), an album which correctly treated standards by Puerto Rico’s greatest popular composers as part of the jazz repertoire. Sonero brings a similar approach, featuring versions of tunes by some of the same canonical composers from the repertoire of Ismael Rivera.

Some of the selections on Sonero are key tunes from Rivera’s repertoire: “Quítate de la Vía, Perico,” Rivera’s early hit with Cortijo, begins with an accelerating train rhythm; the upbeat

 feel of Bobby Capó’s “El Negro Bembón,” belies its lyric about the tragedy of a Black man murdered for having big lips; Catalino “Tite” Curet Alonso’s Black-is-beautiful anthem “Las Caras Lindas,” – one of Maelo’s signature tunes, covered by many artists; and “El Nazareno,” about his religious experience in the procession of the Black Christ in Portobelo, Panamá, where he was a regular pilgrim.

Others are less obvious choices – “Las Tumbas” (The Tombs), for example, with its lyrics about Rivera’s experience in prison; “Colobó,” about the pleasures of living in Loiza Aldea, Puerto Rico’s legendary Black town outside of San Juan where bomba thrives today; and “La Gata Montesa,” a bittersweet bolero-chá about a woman who’s a mountain lion and a “vampiress.”

When Miguel Zenón’s quartet gets to stretching the numbers out live, Sonero is a full evening of entertainment. Unheard but not unacknowledged, the lyrics

float in the heads of the musicians as they channel the spirit of Ismael Rivera into their own instrumental masterwork.

A multiple Grammy® nominee and Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellow, Zenón is one of a select group of musicians who have masterfully balanced and blended the often contradictory poles of innovation and tradition. Widely considered one of the most

groundbreaking and influential saxophonists of his generation, Zenón has also developed a unique voice as a composer and as a conceptualist, concentrating his efforts on perfecting a fine mix between Latin American folkloric music and jazz. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Zenón has recorded and toured with a wide variety of musicians including Charlie Haden, Fred Hersch, Kenny Werner, Bobby Hutcherson and Steve Coleman and is a founding member of the SFJAZZ Collective.

http://www.miguelzenon.com/

 

Soul-jazz flutist Ragan Whiteside’s hit streak continues with “Jam It,” her fourth consecutive Billboard Top 10 single

The sizzling summer heat. A backyard barbecue filled with food, family and friends. A tune comes on the radio that instantly sets bodies in motion. As people start moving and grooving, someone exclaims, “That’s my jam!” This scene is what soul-jazz flutist Ragan Whiteside envisioned when creating her latest single, “Jam It.” The hot track became her fourth consecutive Billboard Top 10 single when it hit the ninth spot on the chart for the week of August 3. At No. 9 with a bullet, it’s still rising like the mercury.  

Whiteside wrote “Jam It” with seminal urban-jazz artist Bob Baldwin, who produced the joint with Dennis Johnson (Marion Meadows, Freddie Jackson, Phil Perry, Melba Moore). The cut previews Whiteside’s forthcoming fifth album, “Five Up Top,” slated to drop this fall from Randis Music, an indie label run by Whiteside and Johnson.  

“Your favorite party song comes on the radio and someone claims it as their jam. I wanted ‘Jam It’ to give you that feeling and get people dancing - whether you're at a backyard barbecue or just driving to work. Wherever you're listening, you should turn up your speakers and JAM IT!” said the Atlanta-based Whiteside. 

Whiteside’s hit streak began when her 2017 “Treblemaker” album sent all three singles into the Billboard Top 10. Another collaboration with Baldwin, “Early Arrival” featuring saxophonist Kim Waters, got things started when it checked in at No. 7. She scored her first Billboard No. 1 hit with “Corey’s Bop,” a clubby trek she wrote with Johnson and Baldwin. Her own boisterous party starter, “See You at the Get Down” celebrated at No. 5. 

Whiteside’s vibrant and velvety flute leaping amidst jazzy rhythms and funky beats is ushering her instrument back into the centerstage spotlight. She takes pride in being a completely independent artist who is flourishing while releasing her own recordings. A classically trained flautist and vocalist who grew up in Mount Vernon, New York, Whiteside took up the flute after first learning piano, violin and drums as a child. While studying classical music, she discovered her passion for songwriting and arranging. When Whiteside first became a jazz, funk and R&B mixologist, she won the Capital Jazz New Artist competition. She began collaborating with Baldwin and Johnson for her debut disc, “Class Axe” (2007), pouring splashes of classical into intoxicating jazz, funk and R&B cocktails. Whiteside incorporated fusion into the branded brew on subsequent sets: 2012’s “Evolve,” 2014’s “Quantum Drive” and “Treblemaker.” Among her honors, Whiteside was named Flutist of the Year at the Black Women in Jazz & Fine Arts Awards. 

Either on her recordings or as a guest artist, Whiteside has flanked urban/contemporary jazz cohorts Earl Klugh, Kirk Whalum, Rick Braun, Marion Meadows, Walter Beasley, Patrice Rushen, Chieli Minucci, Frank McComb, Eric Darius, Baldwin and Waters. Her spirited stage performances have made her a popular draw at festivals and cruises such as the Seabreeze Jazz Festival, Mallorca Smooth Jazz Festival and the Capital Jazz SuperCruise. Catch Whiteside in the coming weeks at the Derby City Jazz Festival in Louisville, KY on August 10; Fourth Avenue Jazz Festival in Birmingham, AL on August 24; and at the Gulf Coast Jazz Summer Fest in Pensacola, FL on September 1. For more information, please visit http://www.raganwhiteside.com.

 

“Sunny Skies” help urban-jazz saxophonist Reggie Codrington endure with a smile

When the burden of caring for aging and ailing parents is added to the daily stresses and strains, sometimes simply seeing sunny skies is enough to help get through the day. That scenario is what inspired urban-jazz saxophonist Reggie Codrington’s new single, “Sunny Skies,” which he wrote with bassist-producer Darryl Williams. The hopeful mid-tempo R&B groove, mixed by hitmaker Euge Groove and going for playlist adds on August 12, features Codrington’s soulful soprano sax expressions and trumpet play from his 82-year-old father who is battling Alzheimer’s.    

Afflicted with Ataxic Cerebral Palsy that required nine major surgeries even before he became a teenager, Codrington is returning the loving care he received from his parents, Joyce and Ray Codrington. The grind is a challenge physically and mentally, but the optimistic artist awakens each day seeking beauty and blessings in his life that put a smile on his face.

“The song (‘Sunny Skies’) makes me feel happy. I find beauty all around me, even in the rain. But seeing sunny skies makes me feel especially peaceful and happy. Blue skies make me feel close to nature. I’m a pretty simple guy. Life is complicated enough and so are all the things going on in life. Sunny skies keep me moving forward,” said Codrington. 

After an intro from Codrington’s label, M.A.N.D.A.T.E Records, Codrington and Williams hooked up a few years ago at a jam session. Williams sent a track to the saxman who then wrote the buoyant melodies for “Sunny Skies.” With Williams programming the drum tracks, playing piccolo and synth basses and keyboards, Codrington emotes smilingly on a special curved horn designed to overcome his physical limitations. Guitarist Darrell Crooks, who has recorded with Grammy winners Eric Clapton, Boyz II Men, Ledisi, Gregory Porter and Kirk Whalum, adds rhythmic licks while Rymand Entezari contributes electric piano touches. Codrington gets emotional when talking about his father, who has played with Little Richard, Gladys Knight and Jackie Wilson, making a guest appearance on the single. 

“Yeah, man, he’s an inspiration for me. It means a lot (to me) to have him on the record with all that he’s going through with Alzheimer’s. There’s great beauty in that as well as inspiration for me. Taking care of my parents as their health fails, I try to find the bright spots in each day to keep from feeling down. Everyone has got to find their own ways to get through the day. It could be as simple as looking up in the skies. Just seeing beautiful blue skies makes me feel like I can take on the world,” said the Fayetteville, North Carolina-based Codrington who studied music at Howard University.   

Last year, Codrington dropped a single, “Cherry Sweet,” a song that sprang from helping his mother feel better by giving her cherries. It appeared on his “Against The Odds” disc, titled for the improbable story of how he overcome a rare disability and found a home in music. Ataxic Cerebral Palsy is the least common form of the disorder and is a chronic condition that affects movement and muscle coordination, sparking tremors and walking difficulties. Muscles were cut and transferred from his elbow, wrist and triceps to improve the functionality of his fingers. To make walking easier and enhance mobility, muscles were sliced from his legs. The curved sax enables him to play comfortably. Codrington has performed for President Barak Obama, recorded with Jeff Lorber, Paul Jackson Jr. and Nils, and opened for Ramsey Lewis, Charlie Wilson, Frankie Beverly & Maze, Peabo Bryson, Kenny Latimore, Kim Waters and Kevin Toney. He’s too modest to know what an inspiration he himself is for others. For more information, please visit https://www.ReggieCodrington.com.

 

Nao Yoshioka celebrates reclaiming her undeniable soul with smooth self-reflective vocals and vicious R&B grooves on Undeniable

Last year, Japanese soul and R&B phenomenon Nao Yoshioka broke several industry molds when the U.S. re-release of her 2016 album The Truth (her third record in three prolific years) received overwhelmingly positive reviews across the board, making her the first Japanese soul singer to cause major waves in the birthplace of the genre. Rolling Stone had called the album “impeccable neo-soul” and the lead single “I Love When” had jumped to #32 on the Urban Adult Contemporary Billboard chart, signaling that American audiences were eager for the earnest, soulful style she was bringing.

But the fact that Nao had not produced a new album in two years at the time betrayed an underlying creative discontent with the already substantial success she’d achieved up to that point, both in Japan and on the international festival circuit. “All these amazing things had happened with my music career in Japan” she reflects, “But between who I am and who I’m expected to be, I had completely lost my way.”

That restless yearning for personal authenticity would serve as the catalyst for Nao to take bold action and relocate herself to the U.S. in 2018 to make her name in the place where the soul and R&B that she’d been singing her entire career had originated. The result is her much-anticipated fourth album Undeniable (out 08/16/19 on SWEET SOUL RECORDS), a record that celebrates that universal existential moment of coming back home to the core of oneself, rediscovering one’s own intrinsic and undeniable true nature after losing it somewhere along the way.

“The journey from my last album to here, it's like I was kind of reborn in a sense, I needed to throw away everything that I had become at that moment. I had to face myself, talk to my heart and ask myself who I really am and what I really want. So that's why my new album is about those undeniable feelings. Because I needed to know what I most desire, and what my desire wants me to do.”

With this universally relatable concept of undeniable as the starting point, Nao worked side-by-side with her long-time producer/manager and SWEET SOUL RECORDS CEO, Naoki Yamanouchi, to break the larger message into smaller constitutive themes around which the individual songs would be composed. Each appropriately titled track represents a distinctive component of that undeniable true self that Nao could no longer deny. For example, “Boundaries” is an upbeat track encouraging us to transcend the social divides that confine us and to surpass our own self-imposed limitations that keep us from becoming who we want to be; “Liberation” a song about how fear compels us to make mistakes in life, with a powerful message that we should not live fearing our future, but rather, live like we have already achieved it in order to liberate ourselves from fear; “Celebrate” a song about celebrating diversity of love, and accepting one’s differences as strengths: and “Up and Away” an empowering track about starting over fresh in a new place. Fourteen tracks, each celebrating a unique avenue of self-rediscovery.

A dream-list of producers and musicians was curated to align the perfect musical collaboration for each theme, paring Nao with producers and musicians who resonated with the message behind each song. In addition to bringing on key collaborators from her last album like Musicman Ty, producer of “I Love When” and Khari Mateen (Jill Scott, The Roots) back at the engineering helm, Undeniable adds King of Indie Soul, Eric Roberson, Lorenzo Johnson (Ledisi, Maysa), Chris Dave and The Drumhedz keyboardist Daniel Crawford, and A Touch of Jazz production team alumni and Grammy-winning producer Vidal Davis (Ne-yo, Usher) to the lineup. The album also features young and upcoming producers/artists like Devin Morrison and Kiah Victoria.

“I would always write down the concept first and break down all the messages,” says Nao. “I’d come with some lyrics or some ideas and we would listen to the demo tracks, then construct the melody and the lyrics around that. That’s how “Invest in Me” and “Liberation” were done in collaboration with Eric Roberson. Other times, like when working with Musicman Ty, we’d just write it all from scratch. The workflow for each track was entirely different depending on the artists or producers that I was working with for that particular piece.”

The album’s lead single, “Got Me”, produced by Musicman Ty, is what Nao refers to as a “grey-area love song of mixed feelings” that is a departure from her typically positive outlook on love. The song describes a doomed relationship plagued by codependence and the inability to leave someone, even when deeply hurt, because one can’t find the courage to be alone.

“When I write love songs, I typically always talk about the positive side, but I wanted to dig into my painful past because of the concept that I have undeniable feelings. And it’s a reminder that undeniable feelings are not only on the positive side. I think, when we struggle, we don't struggle with a black and white, we always struggle with the in-between. And we often cannot decide which feeling to go with."

Nao’s commitment to the philosophy of making this album truer to that grey zone of organic human experience also translates to the production element of Undeniable. While the previous album only used track sound, this one needed to be a combination of live instrumentation and gritty, cutting-edge digital beats. Nao felt the need for a live musical element for its ability to “come straight to my heart and make me feel something when I listened to it, but at the same time, I needed to have a strong, driving beat.”

As such, tracks were programmed by the talented pool of producers, then vocal and instrumental elements were recorded live at the legendary Philadelphia studio, MilkBoy the Studio, a site that is  historically relevant as the epicenter of the Neo-Soul movement of the early 2000’s, and was originally opened by SalSoul cellist and Philly Soul legend Larry Gold. Several tracks were reconstructed live in The Studio with members of Philly favorite duo Killiam Shakespeare and some string arrangements composed by Larry Gold himself.

“Philadelphia is a very special place for me because it’s the first city that I performed in when I came to the United States as a professional artist. Since then, I always work with Philly musicians whenever I perform in the United States, so I feel there is a strong connection. In Philadelphia, I love the musicians. I love the sound.  And recording at The Studio is one of the things I've always wanted to do. And it's finally happened.”

New Music Releases: Butch And Rhonda Coleman – Moment Of Your Time; Kim Scott - Free To Be; Nelson Rangell – By Light

Butch And Rhonda Coleman – Moment Of Your Time

A spiritually grounded husband and wife duo that recognizes music as a universal healer, Maryland based Butch & Rhonda Coleman create a fascinating dual sound around the plucky thump of his bass and her versatility as a sultry pop/R&B singer and jazz keyboardist. The title of their third album MOMENT OF YOUR TIME doubles as an invitation to get to know them and their deft blend of old school soul-jazz, breezy and heartfelt balladry and buoyant urban-flavored Smooth Jazz. Adept at creating a variety of moods, the Colemans like to say that their music tells a story. Here, that’s paying homage to past influences like Bill Withers while making sure we’re hip to their eclectic, very contemporary sexy, funky flow. ~ Smoothjazz.com 

Kim Scott - Free To Be

An integral member of the all-female ensemble Jazz in Pink, Kim Scott has been one of a handful of visionary artists making Smooth Jazz delightfully flute-friendly since her debut album CROSSING OVER in 2011. After a three-year recording hiatus, the Alabama-based performer is back in action on FREE TO BE, a multi-faceted album balancing her tight, infectiously grooving pop/urban jazz flow with other tracks that showcase her formidably soulful vocals and textured, more nuanced jazz flute expressions. As you listen, you’ll get the sense that her album title is truly her musical philosophy. In addition to an emotionally intense classic ballad duet on "The Prayer" with gospel-jazz saxophonist Cameron Ross, Scott vibes magnificently with all-star guests Jazmin Ghent, James Lloyd and on a Billboard #1 hit with Jonathan Fritzen. ~ Smoothjazz.com 

Nelson Rangell – By Light

Bringing deep R&B inspired passion to the sax and masterful/improvisational energy to the flute, Nelson Rangell has been one of Smooth Jazz’s most dynamic and versatile reed players over the past 30 years. Launching eloquently and emphatically into his fourth decade, the multi-talented composer/musician’s latest album BY LIGHT finds him exploring some fresh and exciting creative concepts. True to its title, the collection balances bright, instantly engaging melodies and optimism with intensely muscular, deeply emotional playing. Beyond the edgy, sax driven, mostly up-tempo pop, funk and soul melodies and horn textures, Rangell shares his deeper artistry on several flute centered pieces that showcase his stunning virtuosity and otherworldly improvisational abilities on that instrument. ~ Smoothjazz.com     

New Music Releases: Patrick Barnitt; Brandee Younger; Eddy Senay

Patrick Barnitt - Sway

Sway, the second album by Los Angeles vocalist, composer and actor Patrick Barnitt, is a project comprising swing, pop, and blues tunes. Barnitt has a warm, intimate voice, somewhat in the tradition of the Great American Songbook crooners but with a more contemporary edge. The vocals were recorded at Capitol Studios. Barnitt is a mainstay on the L.A. jazz scene. He performs regularly at the Dresden, a quintessential Hollywood nightclub. He also gigs regularly with drumming legend Frank Devito, a member of the famous The Wrecking Crew. Barnitt is accompanied by The Paul McDonald Big Band, a 17-pieceband that features some of the top West Coast players. Barnitt’s musical tastes are wide-ranging. His classic tenor voice, top-notch musicianship, and big band arrangements create a thematic whole that is by turns swinging and romantic.

Brandee Younger - Soul Awakening

Really beautiful work from Brandee Younger – maybe one of the few artists to mix together jazz and harp since the generation of Dorothy Ashby and Alice Coltrane! The record's even hipper than Brandee's last – richer, deeper, and with these strongly spiritual currents that get great support from an excellent lineup that includes Ravi Coltrane on tenor, Sean Jones on trumpet, Dezron Doglas on bass, and EJ Strickland on drums! The music is sharp and focused, but also has a wonderful sense of flow – perfect for Younger's deft fingers on the strings of the harp – which, as in the hands of Ashby or Coltrane, is completely transformed from its usual instrumental role. Titles include "Soulris", "Games", "Sae The Children", "Soul Awakening", "Linda Lee", "Respected Destroyer", "Blue Nile", and "Love's Prayer". ~ Dusty Groove

Eddy Senay - Step By Step

The second smoking Sussex album from guitarist Eddie Senay – and arguably even better than the first! The tracks here are all instrumentals – played with a style that's tight, right, and very on the money – mixed with keyboards from Rudy Robinson, who also arranged the numbers on the set. There's kind of a choppy early 70s soundtrack funk groove to the whole set – like a funky 45 groove, but stretched out a bit more – with Eddie's guitar bad-stepping its way over Rudy's sweet keyboards – all in a relatively lean mode that's laidback and loose, but still supremely funky! Titles include "Cameo", "Delgado", "Soul Preachin", "Shakeero", "Safari", "Sarko East", "Shakedown", and "Phase 1". ~ Dusty Groove

Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Adrian Younge: The Midnight Hour Tour 2019

Ali Shaheed Muhammad (A Tribe Called Quest) and Adrian Younge–the pair behind the unforgettable score for the Netflix series Marvel’s Luke Cage—have announced an extensive North American fall tour for their acclaimed 10-piece ensemble, The Midnight Hour, featuring very special collaborative opening sets from the group’s incredibly talented vocalists Loren Oden and Angela Muñoz, and guitarist Jack Waterson. The Midnight Hour is Black Excellence: an ode to the cultural sophistication that the Harlem Renaissance established for its people. Performing with their jazz rhythm section and an orchestral section, reminiscent of maestros such as David Axelrod and Quincy Jones, The Midnight Hour is sophisticated hip hop.

Peep is a video of The Midnight Hour performing with Black Thought of The Roots.

Linear Labs is set to release the follow up album to The Midnight Hour’s self-titled 2018 debut this fall, as well as albums from Oden and Muñoz. Earlier this year, Linear Labs also released Waterson’s psych rock album "Adrian Younge presents Jack Waterson:"

Tour Schedule:

September

11 St Petersburg, FL. The Palladium Theatre

12 Jacksonville, FL. 1904 Music Hall

13 Atlanta, GA. Aisle 5

15 Nashville, TN. City Winery

17 Durham, NC. Motorco Music Hall

18 Charlotte, NC. Amos Southend

20 Asheville, NC. Asheville Music Hall

23 Philadelphia, PA. Johnny Brendas

24 Brooklyn, NY. Brooklyn Bowl

25 Washington D.C. City Winery

26 New Haven, CT. Toads Place

27 Boston, MA. Scullers

28 Ithaca, NY. The Haunt

October

1 Pittsburgh, PA. Club Cafe

2 Chicago, IL. Thalia Hall

6 St Paul, MN. Turf Club

23 Lincoln, NE. Duffy’s Tavern

24 Tulsa, OK. The Vanguard

25 San Antonio, TX. Paper Tiger

26 Austin, TX. Flamingo Cantina

27 Fort Worth, TX., Shipping and Receiving

28 Kansas City, MO. The Record bar

30 Denver, CO. Globe Hall

November

4 Seattle, WA. Nectar Lounge

5 Portland, OR. Mississippi Studios

6 Eugene, OR. WOW Hall

7 Sacramento, CA. Harlow’s

10 Oakland, CA. New Parish

14 Santa Barbara, CA. Soho Restaurant

16 Palm Springs, CA. The Alibi

17 San Diego, CA. Soda Bar

21 Los Angeles, CA. Lodge Room

Vocalist/ Sara Gazarek Embraces The Light & The Dark On Her Sixth Album "Thirsty Ghost"

On vocalist and composer Sara Gazarek's previous five, critically-acclaimed albums (Yours-2005, Live at The Jazz Bakery-2006, Return To You-2007, Blossom & Bee-2012, Dream In The Blue-2016), we hear an accomplished artist steeped in the history of jazz and blues, who effortlessly explores complex rhythmic and harmonic ideas, expressive phrasing, to-die-for range, exquisite tone, and authentic story-telling, and so much more. On her sixth recording, Thirsty Ghost (due out on August 23, 2019), we hear Gazarek's soul. Over twelve select tunes (plus bonus tracks) we experience an un-caged Gazarek, flush with the courage, artistic volition, and musical acumen to be able to offer her audience a transformative, revelatory album that explores a more honest, messy, beautiful place - of hunger, thirst, and of wanting more.  More connection, more transparency, and a more wholehearted experience that is welcomed only when one can finally address the exultation and lamentation that comes with taking a deeper look at adulthood.

Stumbling into a recording contract right out of college in 2004 not only came with big management and an even bigger booking agency - it also came with a lot of responsibility for a twenty year old artist. Gazarek quickly found herself recording, touring, and interacting with press and new fans. And, while everything seemed to be moving in the right direction, this level of visibility at such a young age actually created a certain amount of pressure to be the carefree, light-hearted girl that her mentors and managers expected. Gazarek explains, "I had been told that the ultimate goal was to craft a set of fun, light music that left people feeling happier than when they'd come in the door. And my band and I were giving it to them."

Four years ago, Gazarek found herself standing at a fork in the road regarding her artistic direction and raison d'être. The vocalist elaborated, "I had experienced a near-death trauma in my family, there was palpable tension in my long time musical partnership, and my marriage was crumbling. I was singing mostly straight ahead songs about light hearted things, and, in a genre that prides itself in authenticity and expression, an incessant knot in my stomach told me something was about to explode. It was my dear friend and mentor Kurt Elling who, after a performance at Birdland in NYC, metaphorically took me by the shoulders and shook my soul with these very poignant words:"

"I see who you are... And it's so much bigger, so much deeper, so much more multi-dimensional than your music is right now. Don't be afraid to walk away from what you think people want from you - and to step into all of the depth, darkness, and radiance of who you really are. That's what we are thirsty for. The honest, messy, beautiful YOU." 

 

As the dust began to settle, Gazarek stood in a state of bewilderment - and, like any artist, she did all she knew how to do: she took a deep breath, and turned headlong into her art. She listened, wrote, read, improvised, traveled, sought, leapt, learned, and watched. Gazarek explained, "I finally felt ready to explore new songs and sounds, hoping to give voice to very specific experiences and, in some instances, wounds that I wanted to heal." Gazarek worked alongside Stu Mindeman, Josh Johnson, Geoff Keezer, Larry Goldings, Erin Bentlage, and Alan Ferber, in an attempt to reconnect with her own authentic creative voice. "We began to perform these songs, and it was entirely terrifying, but necessary. And most importantly, it felt exhilarating to finally be making art that reflected what I was experiencing - music that was vulnerable and human. In the end, I internalized the idea that 'a forest never grows, higher than the depths it knows // the warmth of sunlight comes and goes, but beauty only grows, When It Rains. (Distant Storm)"

In retrospect, Gazarek is now able to acknowledge that, while her world was falling apart, it may have felt wildly chaotic - but that now, looking back, she sees a beautifully orchestrated ballet that brought her exactly where she needed to be. "I'm finally here, living wholeheartedly in the light and the dark," explains Gazarek. "We decided to record these songs, in the hopes that people might see their own human experiences reflected back at them, through these songs and these arrangements." 

Lonely Hours - Gazarek first discovered this song through the Sarah Vaughan recording, "Lonely Hours." She explains, "I was record shopping with my friend Jeff Babko, and found this one - I thought, I love these orchestrators, and these songs. This is for me. I hadn't heard the title track before, and I fell in love. I approached Josh Johnson and asked him to arrange it for an upcoming show in Los Angeles. I explained that I wanted something that felt like that 'pacing the floor at 3am' feeling, living in that emotional rollercoaster of desire and mourning. I love what he came up with - the off kilter 5/4 meter and the explosive dynamic shifts are so evocative."

Never Will I Marry - Nancy Wilson's version of this song with Cannonball Adderley is iconic. Gazarek wanted a treatment of the song that felt more contemporary, but in a way that was less declarative, and more welcoming. "I was in a place where I had just come out of my own marital dissolution, and wanted to explore the world - all the while embracing the idea that I might not ALWAYS feel that way. There's a question in this arrangement, an openness that lends itself to change."

Easy Love - "I remember being at a point where I realized that I might actually be ready to open myself up to love again, but I didn't want it to be difficult. Any kind of relationship built on love is supposed to take work - but it shouldn't feel hard. Just like how a bird isn't aware that the wind and sky are there supporting it, I wanted something that felt free of muscle and force," said Gazarek.

I Get Along Without You Very Well - Exclusive to the U.S. release of Thirsty Ghost (not available on the Japanese release). This song is very special to Gazarek. She elaborates, "I remember sitting in Stu's living room in Chicago, talking to him about how heartbreaking this lyric is, but how meditative, raw, and open it felt to be in the space of denial - vacillating between the real truth and the truth we wished we were living."

I Believe When I Fall in Love - Gazarek uses this lyric and arrangement to embed a sense of unsteadiness and reality into the relationship, and to express it as equal parts declaration and question; "I Believe When I Fall In Love with you, it will be . . . forever?" The story and climax of this song, the tension and release of the arrangement, the driving instrumentation and percussion spin the song and story in an entirely new way.

Jolene - Gazarek's "Jolene" grabs you by the throat and never lets go. Gazarek laughs (now) that when she experienced her own "Jolene," her reaction was NOT to kindly ask her to "please don't take my man" - but rather to break things, and curb a great desire to burn down the house. "I told Geoff Keezer that I wanted something much more fiery, maybe slower than the original but with some double-time implications. He came back with what he called, 'Trent Reznor meets Game of Thrones', which I think (somehow) perfectly conveys what we wanted to get across," says Gazarek.

Gaslight District - If "Jolene" grabs you by the throat, this original composition conjures up emotions of haunting uncertainty. Gazarek elaborates, "I asked Larry to write this one with me, with this title in mind. It was a play on words - the Gaslamp District of San Diego, and being 'gaslighted' by a partner. The lyric takes an interesting turn from imagery to literal storyline, and I think Stu Mindeman, Alan Ferber, and Erin Bentlage were all able to capture the foggy undertones, lack of clarity, darkness, etc., that was needed to tell this story." The vamp at the end is worth the price of admission alone.

The River/River Man - This is a pairing of a Sara Teasdale poem (The River) with Nick Drake's "River Man". Gazarek shares, "the thing I adore about Nick Drake's writing is that it's poetic in an ambiguous way, leaving so much to the interpretation of the listener. I wanted to shed some light on what this story means to me, and paired the two with that intention in mind. The poem speaks about leaving something in search of more or better ground, but realizing, once you've left and arrived at this new destination, the idea was better than the reality. It's an anthem for being happy with what you already have, and the freedom in not constantly questioning it."

Cocoon - This Bjork song typifies how in tune, supportive, and loving Gazarek's musicians are throughout the entire album - every note is perfectly placed, played, and expressed for the sole purpose of framing and supporting her. "'Cocoon is one of the most terrifying songs on the album for me. It's incredibly exposed, and there are so many beautiful, vulnerable, flawed moments throughout the track. I've never felt so honest and bare on a recording before. This song speaks to finally experiencing love after such a long journey, and the blinding light finally coming through, after the dark. The joy that one can feel once you've processed so much hurt, and are finally able let go and breathe into the bigness of it all," explains Gazarek.

Distant Storm - This song (originally an instrumental composition by pianist, Brad Mehldau) essentially serves as the title track of the album. "Thirsty Ghost" is a lyric from the verse, and speaks to the over-arching lesson that was learned in the story of this record. Gazarek explains, "a Thirsty Ghost, to me, is someone who is searching to be satiated (desperate for feeling, emotion, validation, love, etc), but is unable to fully process said satiation because they are not whole - they're incomplete, a ghost, a shell. Once I wholeheartedly embraced the light AND the dark in my life and my art, I was finally able to feel this sweeping wealth of experience and emotion. And that's what this song - and this entire record - is about." The poem in the middle, sung by Kurt Elling, was also penned by Gazarek in an attempt to encapsulate what he shared with her all those years ago: "he's this voice, a distant gift, reminding me of who I am, calling me to step into that space... Thank goodness Brad Mehldau graciously approved the lyrics - the story of Thirsty Ghost wouldn't be complete without this song!"

 

Mike Holober & Gotham Jazz Orchestra's new double album "Hiding Out"

Composer and arranger Mike Holober's new double album Hiding Out with his all-star Gotham Jazz Orchestra is available August 9, 2019 via ZOHO Music.

The ensemble that breathes life into these stunning works spans the full history of the Gotham Jazz Orchestra, which made its recorded debut in 2004 with Thought Trains. Several of the instrumentalists on Hiding Out have been with the orchestra since that time, including woodwind players Dave Pietro, Jon Gordon, Charles Pillow and Steve Kenyon; trumpeters Tony Kadleck and Scott Wendholt; and trombonists Pete McGuinness, Bruce Eidem and Nathan Durham; while bassist John Hébert and drummer Mark Ferber are also longtime collaborators. This incarnation also features a number of more recent additions to the fold, among them names like reedists Ben Kono, Jason Rigby, Adam Kolker and Carl Maraghi; trumpeters Liesl Whitaker and James de LaGarza; trombonists Mark Patterson and Alan Ferber; guitarists Steve Cardenas and Jesse Lewis; drummer Jared Schonig; percussionist Rogerio Boccato; and trumpet master Marvin Stamm, the featured soloist on two tracks.

Hiding Out is the long-anticipated follow-up to the Gotham Jazz Orchestra’s acclaimed 2009 album Quake, which JazzTimes praised for “exquisite textures and evocative arrangements that recall Gil Evans, and an Ellingtonian balance between ensemble and individual excellence.” In the years since, Holober has found his talents in demand from a number of high-caliber ensembles: from 2007-2013 he served as Artistic Director for New York’s Westchester Jazz Orchestra; he spent five years as Associate Guest Conductor of the HR Big Band in Frankfurt, Germany; and has also written and conducted a number of projects for the WDR Big Band in Cologne among other orchestras. Throughout that time he worked with such notable guest artists as Kurt Rosenwinkel, Miguel Zenón, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Al Foster, John Scofield, Joe Lovano, Randy Brecker, Paquito D’Rivera, and many others.

The albums unveil two sweeping new Holober suites, inspired by the grand vistas of the natural world but invigorated by the pulse of the urban jungle where the music thrives. 

“There’s a double meaning to the title Hiding Out,” Holober says. “One is that I’ve been hiding out as a composer, arranger and sideman for other people and as an educator. But it also comes from the places where I wrote or that inspired these pieces – beautiful settings in the mountains and along the banks of beautiful rivers.”

Rick Braun's Crossroads Features New Originals Plus Songs By Stevie Wonder & Bruno Mars & Special Guests Peter White, Philipe Saisse, Richard Elliot, Greg Phillinganes & Others

“As musicians and people in general, we are all a collection of the places we've been, things we've heard, seen and done, and people who we've loved and who have loved us,” shares chart-topping contemporary jazz pioneer Rick Braun. The trumpeter will release Crossroads on Shanachie Entertainment on August 16, 2019. The 10-track recording is a thrilling musical expedition giving us an intimate glimpse into Rick Braun’s inspirations. “At this point in life,” states Braun, “I'm grateful for the opportunity to make music. I think I'm just very comfortable with where I am in life right now.” Somewhat of a musical chameleon, Braun’s vision and virtuosity have allowed him to stand at the crossroads of the music world. He’s amassed over 20 #1 Smooth Jazz hits and collaborated with Sade, Tom Petty and REO Speedwagon, among others. Braun has produced No. 1 hits for David Benoit, Marc Antoine and Jeff Golub. He’s also achieved collaborative success on massive hits with Boney James as well as with the group RnR, with saxophonist Richard Elliot and BWB, a powerhouse trio completed by Grammy® winners Kirk Whalum and Norman Brown. “When I think about the word ‘crossroads,’ says Braun, “I think about the possibilities for the future as well as the places I have been.” In keeping with this theme Braun enlists a cross-section of friends both old and new. He’s joined by dear friends, keyboardist Philippe Saisse, guitarist Peter White, bassist Nate Phillips, tenorman Richard Elliot, drummer Eric Valentine and percussionist Richie Garcia. He also welcomes some first time collaborators keyboardist Greg Phillinganes, guitarist Michael Thompson, and drummer Gregg Bissonette. Braun explains, “The common thread is the musicality that everyone brought to this project. I'm so thrilled with the playing on this record. Everyone stepped up and I think there are a lot of wonderful musical moments to be heard.”

Shanachie VP of A&R, Danny Weiss states, “Rick's tone, chops and phrasing link him to the jazz giants of the past. He can hold his own in any setting. Yet he communicates to a vast audience far beyond the jazz aficionado. His warmth, wit and musical spirit make him a great communicator - a hit maker!”



Crossroads, Rick Braun’s 18th recording as a leader, opens with the percussive and funky “Around The Corner.” The song, which was inspired by his daughter Emma, is the perfect intro as it illustrates Braun’s knack for crafting memorable grooves with fluid and soaring melodies that have a way of instantly drawing you in. “Since my daughter Emma was born every project of mine has included a song for her that she can go outside and just let loose and dance to,” says Braun. “These songs usually end up being some of the most well liked songs on the record!” Braun co-wrote the Latin-tinged and breezy composition “Brazz Street” with Chris “Big Dog” Davis, who he likes to refer to as the ‘Neil Simon of music production.’ “He is one of the most talented arrangers and producers I have ever met. If I reach out to him and I tell him what I need on a record, more often than not he delivers me a track that just gets the job done so beautifully within days of my request.” The album’s first single “Crossroads,” is a buttery-smooth swinger that showcases Braun’s joyous interplay with longtime collaborator, friend and co-writer Philippe Saisse on keys and vibes. “Philippe first brought it in and it had a very four on the floor disco eurobeat and after I listened to it with the help of my co-producer Bud Harner (who also plays drums on ‘Family’) Philippe and I went back to the drawing board and turned it into this wonderful song that ended up being the title cut for the record,” shares Braun. “Philippe is definitely one of the most talented people I've ever known in my life. He is one of those people that pushes me to the next level.”

The show-stopping “The Moment I Saw You” is a sensuous and gorgeous Burt Bacharach/Hal David tinged ballad that almost stops you in your tracks while Stevie Wonder’s 1976 hit, “I Wish,” from the seminal Songs In The Key Of Life, is one of two memorable covers on Crossroads. Tenor saxophonist Richard Elliot, guitarist Tony Pulizzi, keyboardist Greg Phillinganes and percussionist Richie Garcia cut loose creating an exhilarating version that will dare you to sit still. “On my Beat Street CD I recorded a song called ‘Coolsville’ featuring upright bass over top of a hip hop kind of a groove. That was the musical influence for my version of Stevie Wonder's’ ‘I Wish,’ shares Braun. He adds, “Kenny Wild played upright bass and really brings this song to life. As an interesting side note Greg Phillinganes plays keyboards on this song and worked with Stevie Wonder for many years as well as Michael Jackson. Greg definitely brought this to the next level.” Crossroads also features “Me And You,” an intoxicating composition featuring Peter White that swells with intense emotion and beauty. “Peter is one of my oldest and dearest friends,” confides Braun. “We have collaborated on so many projects throughout our careers. When Peter White puts his touch on anything it just sounds amazing.”

Rick Braun is the ultimate family man on and off the bandstand. Not only did he pen “Around The Corner” with his daughter Emma in mind, but he welcomes 17 year-old son Kyle to join in a reinvention of Bruno Mars’ hit “Versace On The Floor.”

Greg Phillinganes was actually a keyboardist on the original Mars track. “Kyle’s passion is actually basketball,” states Braun. “However, when he comes home from practice or just wants to relax he always sits down at the piano and starts playing. I'm so happy that Kyle has kept music alive in his life. It always warms my heart to hear him play.” The track also features Braun’s longtime friend and saxman Richard Elliot. “I’ve produced so many of Richard’s records and he is as good as it gets. It's so wonderful to have someone like Richard Elliot to be able to call when I need to have a tenor solo that lifts the whole track to a whole other level.” The exquisite opus “Family” was inspired by Rick’s childhood memories of his maternal grandparents. His grandfather was a country fiddle player and his grandmother played piano and sang. “One of the few memories I have is of them playing one of my grandmother’s favorite songs from the 1800s ‘Silver Threads Among The Gold,” recalls Braun. He built upon that memory and further drew rhythmic inspiration from a Maroon 5 song that his daughter Emma was listening to one day in the car. “When it came time to play melody on it, the only melody that felt right was inspired by ‘Silver Threads Among the Gold.’ It has a real Americana feel. Bud (Harner) helped the song evolve and I have to credit Michael Thompson with his amazing guitar work and my friend Kenny Wild, who played the fretless bass on the song.” The seductive Bossa Nova groove of “Bahia” transports us to a place of tranquility and the R&B flow of “Come With Me” delights from beginning to end. Braun shares, “The song ‘Bahia’ was inspired by the work that Philippe did with Gato Barbieri. To this day Gato’s Que Paso record is one of my favorite ever and so when we sat down to do something for this project we use that as a point of departure.”

Rick Braun first picked up the trumpet at eight and felt an instant connection. “I loved the smell of the horn, the sound that it made and everything about it and I continue to love it. I am still inspired by many trumpet players,” declares Braun, who enjoys basketball with his son and playing tennis and golf when he can fit it in. "On a contemporary level I think Till Brönner continues to be a major influence. Looking back, the players who have influenced me most include Clifford Brown, Freddie Hubbard, Lee Morgan, and of course Chet Baker.” There was a time when Braun was contemplating pursuing medical school but luckily for us music won. Coming of age in Allentown, PA (about an hour outside of Philadelphia), Braun was acutely aware of the volume of jazz musicians who developed in his area. “The Brecker Brothers were a huge influence. My dear friend Jeff Lorber is also from Philadelphia and Keith Jarrett is from Allentown. There is a rumor in my family that Jarrett is actually my third cousin!” Rick Braun has enjoyed a career longevity that is rare in this business. He has crafted his own distinctive sound and become a staple on contemporary jazz radio. Braun has hosted an annual New Year’s Eve event for almost a decade that benefits autism. His daughter is autistic and Braun has made it a mission to bring awareness to autism. “One of my passions is just trying to help people who are affected by autism. It is really important for me to just reach out and help wherever I can,” shares the inspiring musician.

Rick Braun concludes, “As my fans listen to Crossroads, I'm hoping they can hear the sincerity in the music. I think the fact that I'm still around making music after all of these years is a testimony to how much I enjoy doing it. It's funny because musicians never retire. There is no reason to because we love our job so much to retire would be to leave something that we love. Most musicians just cancel the gig because, let's face it, we left the planet. I am most likely going to be one of those guys!”

Vocalist Orice Jenkins Celebrates 100th Birthday of Nat “King” Cole on New Album Centennial Cole

Given the substantial impact he had on the music and culture of his time, it can be shocking to remember that Nat “King” Cole only lived to the age of 45. March 17, 2019 marked the 100th anniversary of Cole’s birth in Montgomery, Alabama; to celebrate, vocalist, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist Orice Jenkins will release Centennial Cole, a deeply personal tribute to the legendary pianist and singer that reinterprets songs immortalized by Cole with modern jazz and classical influences.

Due out September 20, 2019 via Truth Revolution Recording Collective, Centennial Cole features Jenkins’ soulful vocals, which share Cole’s gift for moving fluidly between a wide variety of genres, with the Hartford string quartet Cuatro Puntos and a gifted cast of musicians including pianist Zaccai Curtis, bassists Frank Brocklehurst and Matt Dwonszyk, guitarist Susan Mazer, drummers Chuck Peterson and Jocelyn Pleasant, and percussionist Alvin Carter, Jr.

“Nat ‘King’ Cole changed the trajectory of the music world multiple times during his short life,” Jenkins writes in the album’s liner notes. “As a singer, composer, arranger, and Black American, I am proud to do my part in preserving [his] legacy.”

If it were only for his musical output, Nat “King” Cole would still be considered an iconic artist today. But in addition to releasing a steady stream of still-beloved hits over the course of his 25-year career, Cole was a Civil Rights pioneer, leading the way by example for later generations of African-American artists. His revered trio became the measuring stick for small jazz ensembles that followed in its wake. He directly inspired legends such as Michael Jackson, Ray Charles, Nina Simone, Marvin Gaye, and his own daughter, Natalie Cole, along with countless other musicians.

“It shouldn’t be surprising to learn that I’m a huge Nat Cole fan, given that we both worked successfully as pianists before the world realized our true calling,” Jenkins says. “We are both baritones, which is unfortunately uncommon in the modern pop music world. Nat is one of the few singers that I could look at to hear and see myself... Nat’s perfect pitch, creative arrangements, flashy piano playing, and legendary collaborations greatly influenced my musical palate.”

Centennial Cole opens with Jenkins’ intimately swinging take on “Let There Be Love,” a song that he discovered after watching Cole’s 1963 BBC television special. Jenkins sings the tune a cappella, accompanied only by the snap of his fingers. Though it’s been recorded countless times, “Mona Lisa” is synonymous with Nat “King” Cole. Taking his cue from Cole’s own revolutionary use of strings on his recordings, Jenkins enlists Cuatro Puntos to radically reimagine the piece.

Jenkins sings directly from Cole’s perspective on “Birmingham,” the album’s sole original composition. The protest song recounts an incident that occurred in the titular Alabama city in 1956, when members of the North Alabama Citizens Council, a local faction of the Ku Klux Klan, assaulted and attempted to kidnap Cole on stage. “Nat passed away before the end of the Civil Rights Movement, but I imagined that he could’ve written a song like ‘Birmingham’ if he made it to the 70s,” Jenkins says.

The djembe playing of Alvin Carter, Jr. adds an African undercurrent to the “hippie anthem” of Eden Ahbez’s classic “Nature Boy,” inline with what Jenkins calls his determination to remain “unapologetically Black at all times.” Jenkins then sits down at the piano, for the first time on record since his 2014 debut Around the Piano, for a closing-time rendition of Hoagy Carmichael’s “Stardust.”

Jenkins takes the title of Oscar Levant and Edward Heyman’s “Blame It on My Youth” quite literally, returning to an arrangement originally penned for his high school orchestra, reduced for string quartet. A tribute to Jenkins’ mother, it’s the first of three family dedications: “The Very Thought of You” is an homage to his great-grandmother, while the tender “For All We Know” is dedicated to Cole’s mother, Perlina Adams Coles.

Driven by Frank Brocklehurst’s electric bass groove, Jenkins’ funky arrangement of Charlie Chaplin’s “Smile” (a song whose lyric version was premiered by Cole) effectively closes out the set, before the epilogue of “Inseparable,” the title track from Natalie Cole’s 1975 debut album. The song is a soulful send-off to lost loved ones and musical heroes, as well as the family of musicians who helped Jenkins realize the album.

It’s been well over 50 years since Nat “King” Cole’s passing, yet his influence remains strong as generations pass. With Centennial Cole, Orice Jenkins helps ensure that Cole’s indelible genius will live on into the next century.

 

Orice Jenkins · Centennial Cole

Release Date: September 20, 2019