New Music Releases: Tenderlonious, The Black Art Collective, Diazpora

Tenderlonious - The Piccolo: Tender Plays Tubby

22a founder, producer and multi-instrumentalist, Tenderlonious, head's up this incredibly special release for Jazz Detective Records, paying homage to the British jazz legend Tubby Hayes. A chance sequence of events lead to Tenderlonious, getting his hands on Tubby Hayes' Piccolo, resulting in this outstanding re-interpretation of four classic Tubby Hayes tracks. Features some of London's finest jazz musicians, with the hope; to introduce a whole new generation of jazz fans to a true great of British jazz. Personnel: Ed 'Tender' Cawthorne (piccolo, flute, soprano saxophone), Nick Walters (trumpet), Hamish Balfour (piano, vibes, Fender Rhodes), Pete Martin (bass guitar), Aidan Shepherd (accordion), and Tim Carnegie (drums). ~ Dusty Groove

The Black Art Jazz Collective - Ascension

The Black Art Jazz Collective was founded in 2012 by Wayne Escoffery and Jeremy Pelt with the aim of honouring and preserving the art of some of the progenitors of jazz who inspired them, hired them and mentored them first-hand. And while the band does pay homage to the greats of the past they also continue the evolving tradition of jazz with a body of work that remains firmly entrenched in the modernism of today. From the angular melody of Escoffery's "Involuntary Servitude," to the ingratiating groove of Pelt's "For the Kids," the ensemble extends the range and potential established by their illustrious predecessors with innovative original compositions, solos that run the gamut from thoughtful to virtuosic and a shared sense of purpose that is unique on today's jazz landscape. Personnel: Wayne Escoffery (tenor saxophone), Jeremy Pelt (trumpet), James Burton III (trombone), Victor Gould (piano), Rashaan Carter (bass), Mark Whitfield Jr. (drums). ~ Dusty Groove

Diazpora - Ping Pong Powerplay

No time for table games here – as Diazpora jump right in the groove from the very first note – working with a sweet 70s funk approach to their music, which means lots of riffing guitar, funky basslines, and horns punctuating the keys – all while lead singer Axel Maximilian Fiege sings in this very strong way – able to go deep one minute, inflect a falsetto the next – all with these twists and turns that make him way more than just another soul singer working with a funk band! Axel's strong presence in the lead really gives the whole thing a heck of a lot of power and shape – and titles include "Hit Me", "The Bachelor", "Hangin On", "Ready To Go", "Play The Ball", "The Olympians", and "You Shot Me Down". ~ Dusty Groove

Erroll Garner's Gershwin & Kern

In his original 1976 liner notes, concert impresario George Wein concluded fittingly, “To put it simply, Erroll Garner is a great musical genius.” On this final album released during Garner’s life, he shows yet again his complete mastery of his instrument and his unmatched ability to interpret songs and make them his own. This newly restored album includes a previously unreleased Garner original, worthy of the two composers to which this album is dedicated.

The newly minted bonus tracks in the series are all Garner originals, eight of the 12 being previously unreleased compositions. “It’s truly shocking, and one of the greatest joys of this work, to find these fully realized tunes just sitting there on tape,” says Peter Lockhart, senior producer of the Octave Remastered Series.

One of the most prolific composers and performers in the history of jazz, as well as a courageous advocate for African American artistic freedom through the ownership and control over his own works. Garner is a legend among jazz pianists. His unique approach melds bebop and swing influences into a unique, unrivaled mastery.

Garner is also a notable figure in popular music history for the hard-won precedents he set for artistic freedom that still stand today. In 1959, because he had rights of approval on what was released, Garner successfully sued Columbia Records to remove an album they had released without his permission.

His victory was the first of its kind for any American artist in the music industry. Garner and his manager, Martha Glaser, subsequently founded and launched Octave Records, whose 12 releases make up the Octave Remastered Series.

Erroll Garner was a rare musician who was equally adored and respected by peers and devoted fans alike. He and his art were best summed up by the late trumpeter Clark Terry: “The man was complete. He could do it all.”

One of the most prolific composers and performers in the history of jazz, as well as a courageous advocate for African-American empowerment and artistic freedom, Garner is a legend among jazz pianists. His unique approach melds bebop and swing influences into a unique, unrivaled mastery.

In addition to his brilliant keyboard artistry, Garner is also a notable figure in popular music history for the hard-won precedents he set for artistic freedom that still stand today. In 1959, because he had rights of approval on what was released, Garner successfully sued Columbia Records to remove an album they had released without his permission.

His victory was the first of its kind for any American artist in the music industry. Garner and his manager, Martha Glaser, subsequently founded and launched Octave Records, whose 12 releases make up the Octave Remastered Series.

Erroll Garner was a rare musician who was equally adored and respected by peers and devoted fans alike. He and his art were best summed up by the late trumpeter Clark Terry: “The man was complete. He could do it all.”

La Lucha Releases Debut Recording: Everybody Wants To Rule The World

The trio’s music ventures boldly into a wide variety of musical styles, offering an appealing and fun mix of genres under the jazz umbrella. The combination of their musical versatility and varied musical influences makes for compelling virtuosic performances. Through an engaging stage presence and high level of interaction, La Lucha brings the audience into their world.

La Lucha has built an impressive resume performing with jazz legends including Randy Brecker, Dick Hyman, Charles McPherson, Wycliffe Gordon, Marty Morell; as well as, the renowned guests that appear on this album: Melissa Aldana, Ken Peplowski, Chuck Redd, Diego Figueiredo, and Houston Person.

La Lucha is a Tampa Bay based trio that consists of three best friends from three different parts of the world: Colombia (Alejandro Arenas), Mexico (John O’Leary), & United States (Mark Feinman). Their music ventures boldly into a wide variety of musical styles, offering an appealing and fun mix of genres under the jazz umbrella. The combination of their musical versatility and varied musical influences makes for compelling virtuosic performances. Through an engaging stage presence and high level of interaction, La Lucha brings the audience into their world.

Beautifully produced by clarinetist Ken Peplowski, Everybody Wants To Rule The World features a diverse and creative group of musicians with widely eclectic interests. From punk to heavy metal, salsa, jazz, world music, and even classical tuba, La Lucha melds their energies and unique musical and cultural backgrounds to create their sound. Having grown up in very different parts of the world with varied musical influences permeates throughout the music. “We find that jazz is the perfect vehicle for those differences to meld together, due to the freedom that exists within it. There is also a wonderful human and musical coexistence within La Lucha and that gives us a joy that sets the tone of what we do.” There's so much compositional strength in this trio.

With a name meaning ‘the fight or struggle,’ La Lucha positively reminds the audience to overcome whatever one needs, including the obstacles found in living with a commitment to an artistic life. “Trust is at the core of what we do. Each member of the group is an essential part of the La Lucha sound and brings something unique to the table. The sound we have is impossible to achieve without this particular combination of individuals, and that sound is the essence of our music.”

LAURA BENANTI - "SUCKER" 

LAURA BENANTI SHARES NEW SINGLE & MUSIC VIDEO HER TAKE ON THE JONAS BROTHERS' CHART-TOPPING HIT "SUCKER"
 
TONY® AWARD-WINNING STAR WILL DONATE 100% OF HER EARNINGS FROM THE RECORDING TO FOODCORPS ON THE HEELS OF LAURA'S SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN #SUNSHINESONGS

"I've been working on new music for a while and have been so looking forward to releasing it this year.  When it became clear to me that my first single would drop during the height of the Corona crisis, the only thing that felt right to me was to turn the release into a charitable endeavor. In keeping with the intention of the #SunshineSongs campaign (to bring light to a dark time) the accompanying video for ‘Sucker' is a compilation of how so many of us are spending our time; from quarantine to the frontlines. It is meant to be a love letter to America, especially our first responders and those being of service during this unprecedented time. We are all in this together."

In the midst of an illustrious career spanning Broadway, film, and television, Tony® Award-winning actress, singer, author, and philanthropist Laura Benanti now brings a longstanding dream to life as she gears up to release new solo music with Sony Music Masterworks.  With Broadway credits ranging from the My Fair Lady revival and Steve Martin's Meteor Shower to She Loves Me, Laura garnered a Tony® Award in the category of "Best Featured Actress in a Musical" for the 2008 production of Gypsy-among five career nominations to date. Meanwhile, her performance in Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown would be honored with the Drama Desk Award and Outer Critics Circle Award for "Best Featured Actress in a Musical." Simultaneously, she enchanted audiences on the small screen, appearing on Younger, Supergirl, Nashville, The Good Wife, Nurse Jackie, and more in addition to films including WORTH and the upcoming Here Today.

Together with communities, FoodCorps connects kids to healthy food in school. Now that the COVID-19 pandemic has forced school closures, our 250 service members, spanning 375 schools in 18 states and Washington, D.C., are helping with emergency meal services, remote food and nutrition lessons that reinforce academic priorities, and garden cultivation for community building and local nourishment. FoodCorps is also mobilizing its nationwide network of partners and allies to advocate for policies that will help schools keep kids nourished through this crisis and beyond. Through our service and advocacy, we seek to demonstrate the power of food in schools and ensure our country's policies and food systems work together to nurture every child's potential. Learn more at foodcorps.org.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nj1KTvZ1NZU

Bettye LaVette: Blackbirds

BLUES LEGEND BETTYE LAVETTE RELEASES POWERFUL RENDITION OF "STRANGE FRUIT" AHEAD OF SCHEDULE TO GIVE VOICE TO MODERN DAY LYNCHINGS 

Track to be featured on her upcoming album "Blackbirds," a tribute to iconic black women in music on August 28

Blues Hall of Famer Bettye LaVette has decided to release her stirring rendition of "Strange Fruit" ahead of schedule as it says as much about the history of American racism and the state of the country today.  "Strange Fruit" was originally recorded by Billie Holiday in 1939 and written by Jewish teacher Abel Meeropol who wrote the song based on a photo of two black men who were lynched as a crowd of white people looked in the camera pointing and smiling. LaVette's version will be featured on her album, "Blackbirds" (Verve) set for release August 28.

"It really is horrifying that nearly 80 years later, through Billie's lifetime and now my 74 years, the meaning of this song still applies. It might not be men and women hanging from trees, but these public executions are now on video and it feels like they're doing it for sport. I hope the song will be a reminder that we have had enough, and I support the Black Lives Matter movement," said LaVette.

"Blackbirds," features songs primarily popularized by some of her peers, other iconic women in music, who she personally respected and admired. Set for release August 28, the album finds LaVette in top form delivering powerful renditions of songs that touched her personally. It also re-unites her with producer Steve Jordan.

From Dinah Washington's "Drinking Again," Nina Simone's "I Hold No Grudge," Nancy Wilson's "Save Your Love For Me" and more, all delivered in LaVette's rich and raspy tone with a touch of the blues.

Bettye LaVette is a native of Detroit. Her first recording in 1962, at the age of sixteen, was on Atlantic Records. She later charted with such singles as "He Made A Woman Out Of Me" and "Do Your Duty," Since then she has recorded ten albums. Her most recent album Things Have Changed, also produced by Steve Jordan (John Mayer, Keith Richards), was released on Verve in 2018 and received two GRAMMY nominations, which brings her total Grammy nominations to five.

Chris “Big Dog” Davis - Focus

Multi-Grammy Nominated Producer & Keyboardist Chris “Big Dog” Davis Releases Shanachie Debut As A Solo Artist;  Star-Studded Affair Features Guests Maysa, Dave Koz, Kim Waters, Gerald Albright, Rick Braun, Nick Colionne, Bluey & Others!

Click Link To Check Out Chris "Big Dog" Davis' New Single "It's All Love"Featuring Dave Koz         

         

 Few artists are equally captivating behind the scenes and on the stage. It requires a certain amount of vision, keen musicianship and discipline. On Focus, all of these skills coalesce to create a thrilling 11– track experience that demonstrates the type of magic that multi Grammy nominated keyboardist and producer Chris “Big Dog” Davis’ has brought to other artists as a producer. His Midas touch has added finesse to endeavors by Brian McKnight, George Clinton, Will Downing, Syleena Johnson, Chanté Moore, Maysa, and numerous others. As he takes center stage for the first time on recording, his wizardry blesses an entire album of inspirational and moving originals. 

“This experience has really been exciting and rewarding. My hope is that people will enjoy coming into my musical world and getting a deeper glimpse into who I am and all of the music that has influenced me from Jazz, Funk Gospel and Pop,” says Davis, who has produced 17 #1 hits on the Contemporary Jazz charts. Danny Weiss, VP of Jazz A&R states, “Chris has been our go-to producer for everyone from Kim Burrell to Maysa to Norman Brown, just to name a few. We're thrilled to be releasing his first solo album, so that the world can witness the full expression of his artistic talent.”

“The idea behind Focus was to create music with some of my favorite people. It also served as a reminder to keep your eyes on a prize and to let our dreams become our reality,” shares the handsome and amiable 6’3” bodybuilder who spent a stint in the Marine Corps. The Waterbury, CT native drew from diverse influences like Miles Davis, Chaka Khan and George Duke and even his own Zen  rooted philosophy to living life.  Focus joins Davis with a cadre of the best working artists in Contemporary Jazz including Kim Waters, Gerald Albright, Rick Braun, Dave Koz, Maysa, Bluey and Nick Colionne. “It is so humbling to have all of these artists join me on this project. Every single one of them came bearing gifts that make this album so special,” shares the keyboardist.

Focus opens paying homage to the ‘Queen of Funk’ with the Doheny/Stuart Chaka Khan hit "Whatcha Gonna Do For Me." “Big Dog's” sophisticated and in the pocket-groove on this favorite R&B jam unites him with saxophonist Gerald Albright. The duo scored a Grammy nomination in 2015 for their collaboration Slam Dunk. The title-track is a fitting motivational anthem, as we face the challenges of our current time. Powered by the dynamic duo of Maysa and Bluey, “Focus” is a potent reminder to focus on the things that truly matter.

The ethereal Zen ballad, “One Day At A Time” reminds us to be mindful as “Big Dog’s” cascading piano lines take flight with Rick Braun’s sailing trumpet to perfect effect. The song takes inspiration from conversations Davis has had with his limo driver Max.  The gospel-tinged “You Are Loved,” inspired by George Duke and featuring bassist Ace Livingston, brings another layer of beauty into focus, while the jubilant “Silver Street,” featuring saxophonist Marty Quadrato, transports us down a winding road of joy. The composition “It’s All Love” is named after one of the Davis’ favorite sayings. He unearths a mountain of emotion on this track that unites him with saxophonist Dave Koz as they create one of the most memorable moments on the album. Focus also showcases the sensual "You Just Smile," featuring guitarist Tony DePaolo. “We are all so stressed and rushing from one place to the next and this song is just a reminder that the world would truly be a better place if we would all just take a moment and smile,” shares Davis, devoted father to five daughters. A pleasant surprise on Focus is the composition “Natural High” which takes inspiration from Miles Davis and finds “Big Dog” taking us down a bluesy bend as he stretches out and gets loose for this soul drenched number. ‘Big Dog’ kicks it up a notch on the dance-inspired “Fall Back” while "Just When You Thought You Had Enough," featuring guitarist Nick Colionne, serves up a sweet groove with the perfect combination of funk and soul. The album ceremoniously closes with the show-stopping finisher "Blue Light Special" showcasing Kim Waters.   

          

A native of Waterbury, CT, Chris “Big Dog” Davis’ early beginnings were immersed in music. He began studying piano at age four. His mother was the choir director at Refuge Church of Christ where he played in the band seven days a week. He was later recruited for a gifted after school program at Yale University where he studied classical composition. By sixteen, Davis had recorded his first 45 Gospel records with his church youth choir entitled “Lord, Who Shall Abide” and “He’s The Only One.” Davis would go on to study with famed altoman Jackie McLean at the Hartt School of Music. It was a time when Gospel, R&B, Jazz, and Hip-Hop were cross-fertilizing and Davis was finding his own voice where his arpeggios came accented with back-beats and flat sevenths. In 1995, he landed the opportunity to work with Brian McKnight and appeared with him on The Arsenio Hall Show, The Tonight Show, and The Rosie O’Donnell Show. Throughout Chris ‘Big Dog’ Davis’ career he has always reveled in the opportunity as he put it to “hear the music and become the architect that helps the artist achieve their sound and vision.” His unique gift has afforded him the opportunity to remain busy the past two decades working with Will Downing, Kim Waters, Kim Burrell, Maysa, Phil Perry, Avant and countless other artists. This time around on Focus, “Big Dog’s” canvas has come into sharp focus and the details of his artistry leave no doubt that he is a force to reckon with.

Eddie Henderson - Shuffle and Deal

Trumpet Great Eddie Henderson Turns up a Winning Hand with a Brilliant All-Star Quintet featuring Kenny Barron, Donald Harrison, Gerald Cannon and Mike Clark.

It’s never been wise to bet against Eddie Henderson. Not that the trumpet great is a gambling man, despite what the jackpot ride and shades-masked poker face on the cover of his invigorating new album, Shuffle and Deal, might imply. “I play War, but that’s about it,” Henderson jokes. “I’m not sophisticated enough for more than ‘high card wins.’”

Henderson’s storied biography suggests otherwise. The son of a vocalist father and a mother who danced at the Cotton Club, young Eddie received his first trumpet lesson from Louis Armstrong. His parents’ coterie of friends included Miles Davis, who provided the fledgling trumpeter with some typically sharp-toned mentorship. Henderson’s own remarkable career has included tenures with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and Herbie Hancock’s Mwandishi band along with his successful parallel life as a psychiatrist in the Bay Area.

Due out July 31 via Smoke Sessions Records, Shuffle and Deal finds Henderson turning over yet another winning hand. It doesn’t hurt that he arrived with four aces up his sleeve – namely, the members of his stellar quintet: pianist Kenny Barron, alto saxophonist Donald Harrison, bassist Gerald Cannon and drummer Mike Clark. Add the leader into the mix and you end up with an unbeatable royal flush.

The album features a mix of familiar standards and original compositions by both Henderson’s musical and actual families – in addition to pieces by Barron and Harrison, the repertoire also includes pieces by the trumpeter’s wife Natsuko Henderson and his daughter, musician and educator Cava Menzies. The collection adds up to a blend of identities and voices that Henderson likes to refer to as a “collective portrait.”

Released just in time for Henderson’s landmark 80th birthday, Shuffle and Deal reveals a master at the height of his powers, able to unleash blistering, agile runs on bop burners as well as explore ballads with an exquisite fragility (yet more evidence that a lack of sophistication isn’t what’s keeping him away from the card table). If anything about this date looks backwards through the trumpeter’s eight-decade history, it’s not the vitality of the playing but the structure of the program, which keeps an engaged audience firmly in mind throughout.

“I want the audience to really feel the music and start moving,” Henderson insists. “Jazz started as dance music in the first place, so I want to bring that element back into the music. The telltale common denominator when people are really enjoying themselves is when they feel like they want to get up and dance. Not the European concept of listening to music, just sitting still and static, shushing people and politely clapping at the end of the tune. No! I thought it was supposed to be fun. That’s the way I grew up.”

Photo Credit: Jimmy Katz

Henderson’s newly penned title track should do the trick from the outset, jolting listeners out of their chairs with its insinuating shuffle beat (the actual source of the album’s title). The feel of the tune was inspired by Henderson’s early mentor, in particular Miles’ shadowboxing rhythmic feel on Jack Johnson.

“Miles just had this aura when he played,” Henderson explains, citing the goal he envisioned when playing the tune. “In the liner notes to My Funny Valentine they used the word ‘duende,’ which refers to the presence that matadors have, like they could walk on eggshells without breaking them. It’s a master’s approach; it leaves an indelible imprint on your memory. I always have some ideal in my mind when I play. I close my eyes and there’s a blank screen, but I envision elegance and purity. So I know where I want to go, but I don’t know how I’m going to get there.”

Henderson described a similar approach to “Over the Rainbow,” which he was inspired to play after seeing Judy Garland perform the song in a documentary. The tragic life imbued the song with a very different meaning than it possessed in the more innocent and whimsical context of her original version in The Wizard of Oz. That emotional resonance makes it a perfect companion piece with “God Bless the Child,” which is impossible to imagine separate from Billie Holiday’s emotion-laden voice. Both are rendered with aching tenderness by Henderson and the quintet, held aloft by Clark’s delicate yet foundational brushwork.

Barron contributed two pieces to the album. The barbed “Flight Path” was the title track to the 1983 second album by his Monk-inspired quartet Sphere, while “Cook’s Bay” was originally recorded for 2000’s Spirit Song with Henderson on trumpet. The two men share a long history and a matchless chemistry, nowhere more gorgeously evident than on their intimate album-closing duet on Charlie Chaplin’s “Smile.”

“Kenny Barron is invaluable to me,” Henderson says. “He’s always right there, always supportive and knowing exactly what I need. It’s just like breathing in and breathing out with Kenny. It’s like he’s part of my thoughts.”

The album’s final standard is a lyrical evocation of the classic “It Might As Well Be Spring.” Menzies’ offering for the album is the smoldering, dark-hued “By Any Means,” which echoes the tone of “Nightride,” her contribution to Henderson’s previous album, Be Cool. “Both those tunes are mysterious,” her father laughs. “I guess she got the mysterious side of her character from me.”

A crisp call-and-response between Cannon and Clark ignites “Boom,” Natsuko Henderson’s soulful new piece. It’s as aptly named as “Burnin’,” reprised by Harrison from his own 2001 album Paradise Found (which introduced his young nephew Christian Scott on trumpet). Like much of the album, the tune was nailed in a single take – in this case, an off-the-cuff rendition captured when Harrison was unaware that tape was even rolling. “I thought we were just rehearsing,” he says, shrugging off the effortless brilliance of his sharp solo. “I thought we were just jiving around but everybody else thought it was killing.”

That modesty, belied by the compelling beauty of his playing on Shuffle and Deal, is typical of Henderson, who has always preferred to keep his cards close to his chest. That doesn’t seem likely to change as the trumpet maestro turns 80. “That just happens to be another inch along the way,” he says. “I’m not close to finished. I feel like I’m just beginning.”

"Shuffle and Deal" was produced by Paul Stache and Damon Smith and

recorded live in New York at Sear Sound's Studio C on a Sear-Avalon custom console

at 96KHz/24bit and mixed to ½" analog tape using a Studer mastering deck.

Available in audiophile HD format.

MICHAEL SARIAN’S NEW AURORA

Trumpeter and composer Michael Sarian is an artist who paints images of humanity through sound. One who possesses a sound that is at once powerful and fragile, beckoning you, the listener, to take a glimpse, or often a full-on view, of Sarian’s truths as a human being, his worry, pain and lamentation, and his joys, hopes and exaltations. On Michael Sarian’s New Aurora, his fourth album as a leader, we find him on trumpet and flugelhorn as the sole melodic voice in this acoustic quartet, a clear departure from his previous releases which feature extensive four-horn arrangements, electronics and hard-hitting grooves (Sarian has released three albums as a bandleader with his septet, Michael Sarian & The Chabones, and also leads Michael Sarian & The Big Chabones, a 16-piece big band). Litening closely through flesh, metal, breath and spit we can hear his family’s heritage, his musical heroes and his declaration as a jazz artist who has something compelling and beautiful to add to the conversation.

Born in Toronto and raised in Buenos Aires from the age of one, Sarian has been calling New York City home for the past eight years. New Aurora has been in gestation since Sarian’s first release in 2014, and the album comes to us as a result of engineer/producer Luis Bacque’s downright insistence that the trumpeter venture into a freer, more acoustic setting that would feature his own playing, particularly on the flugelhorn, at the forefront of the ensemble’s sound (Sarian plays flugelhorn on all tracks save the first).

Inspired by the music of trumpet greats Kenny Wheeler, Tomasz Stańko, Enrico Rava, and legendary Armenian/American drummer Paul Motian, Sarian ventured into Bacque’s studio to test the waters of this new musical direction. After an afternoon spent at the New Jersey recording studio with Santiago Leibson (piano), Matt Pavolka (bass) and Dayeon Seok (drums), the session yielded the first two tracks of what would become Michael Sarian’s New Aurora.

Sarian began writing the first of the compositions, This Is Only The Beginning, in a hotel room in Florida during the first days of 2019, while reading Japanese writer Haruki Murakami’s “Killing Commendatore.” The novel tells the story of a thirty-something artist facing an early onset mid-life crisis, who, after a devastating separation, decides to quit his lucrative career as a portrait painter, retreat into the mountains and pursue a more fulfilling path of abstract self-expression, proclaiming ‘this is only the beginning’. Scottie(33), in honor of the great 1990s Chicago Bulls player Scottie Pippen, followed soon after. The opening theme is in 9 (the result of multiplying both 3s of his jersey number) and presents a subdued atmosphere. Originally meant to be a more up-beat composition, Sarian discovered that the only nickname Pippen had during his playing days was No tippin’ Pippen, because he was a notoriously poor tipper, probably as a result of the terrible contracts Pippen had with the Bulls organization and having to support his family, so Sarian decided to convey that sense of sorrow and disappointment in the music. The choppy, hip-hop groove in 7, then 15, gives the track a big finish because, after all, Scottie did win six championships.

The album derives its name from the track Aurora, which Sarian began writing on February 15, 2019. Although the word literally means dawn, which is the meaning Sarian hopes to convey behind the project, the composition came after hearing of a mass shooting that day in Aurora, Illinois. The composition bears a somber mood, a hopelessness which Sarian felt assuming #Aurora was trending because of the 2012 mass shooting there, only to find out that yet another senseless act of violence had taken place.

Dedicated to his cousin Nick, Primo (cousin in Spanish), is arguably the most ‘straight-ahead’ track of the album. The idea for the composition came after getting a copy of Nicolas Slonimsky’s book Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns. Sarian based the composition on a scale found on the second page. The marking at the top of the chart is “fast + gritty swing”, with no chords to be found, just the scale the tune is based on.

Paying homage to his Armenian heritage, Sarian arranged two pieces by Komitas, the celebrated Armenian monk, composer, musicologist, and founder of the Armenian national school of music (who last year celebrated his 150th birthday). Originally a love song, Dle Yaman became a song of loss and longing after the Armenian genocide, and is considered to be one of the folk songs that best represents the soul of Armenia. The theme is first presented on its own by Sarian’s trumpet, and then restated with the rhythm section playing roots and fifths. The piece is used as an introduction for Sarian’s original piece Portrait of a Postman, inspired by the music of the Paul Motian Trio, and named after the Vincent Van Gogh painting.

The second piece by Komitas on the album, Chinar Es, translates quite literally to “You Are A Tree”. Sarian says “The title refers to the poplar tree, and back in the day this was apparently something men told women when trying to flirt, as in ‘You’re as tall and slender as a tree’.” He says that much to his dismay, this pick-up line does not hold water any longer in Yerevan. Sarian arranged this piece using the traditional Armenian rhythm curcuna in 10/8, with the melody played loosely over pedal tones.

Drawing on his own family’s heritage in Armenia and Eastern Europe, Mountains deals with the landscapes his ancestors had to navigate, from historical Armenia in Eastern Turkey, to Istanbul, to Romania during and after the genocide, all the way to Argentina, Canada, and back to Argentina, for him to finally find his current home in New York City. A nod to his family name (sar means mountain in Armenian, and sarian translates to son of the mountain), the track has three layers working together: a drum groove in 5 based loosely on Armenian rhythms, the bass and piano playing a static two beat back and forth, and a floating melody on the flugelhorn. 

Sarian introduced a new piece the evening before the first December session, titled The Morning After. It starts out with a Beatles-esque piano motif, and conveys the frantic despair one might have after a big night out, which as fun as it might be, many times comes with self-doubt the next morning, giving in to the briefest of existential crisis. The shortest track in the album, the tune breaks down into a completely free improvisation between the four musicians, only to be brought back into the melody before an abrupt finish.

Colorado Yeta is the only ‘recycled’ tune of the album, which Sarian recorded with his septet and released on his previous recording. Literally translated into Spanish (or Argentine slang), it means ‘Bad Luck Ginger’, and expresses the sorrows of growing up as a redhead in Argentina.

The last track on the album is, Monk’s Ask Me Now, presented here as a lovely duet with Sarian and pianist Leibson, serving as a sort of palate cleanser after almost an hour of original compositions and arrangements. 

Michael Sarian is a trumpeter and composer whose work has been described as "a steady study in dichotomy. With a wordless elegance, the New York City based musician is flexibly firm, loosely tight, and brightly dark. The innovations within his compositions are deceptively dramatic with varying degrees of a melodic sensibility." – Frank De Blasé, The rochester City Newspaper.

Michael relocated to New York City in 2012 to pursue a master’s degree in Jazz Studies at New York University, where he studied with great musicians such as Laurie Frink, Alan Ferber, Brad Shepik, Ralph Alessi and Mike Rodriguez. He has since performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival, BRIC JazzFest, Getxo Blues Festival, Canary Island International Jazz Festival, Blue Note Jazz Club, Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Beacon Theater, Central Park SummerStage, Teatro Colón, Thelonious Club, has appeared on WNYC's Soundcheck with John Schaefer, NPR's World Cafe, and many more.

Michael has released three albums as a bandleader with his septet, Michael Sarian & The Chabones, most recently LEÓN in 2018 with Zoho Music, and has appeared on countless more as a sideman. He also leads Michael Sarian & The Big Chabones, a 16-piece big band alternative, in addition to his most recent quartet New Aurora, with a debut album set for September 4, 2020. Since the fall of 2015, Michael has been making yearly pilgrimages back home to Buenos Aires to perform his music with local musicians, including some of his old mentors. Sarian is a faculty member at TrumpetLand.com and a Remic Microphones endorser.

Besides performing regularly with his own projects and as a sideman throughout New York City, Sarian teaches trumpet, theory & composition, works at a non-profit, cooks noodles, enjoys bourbon & wine, goes to the gym, and tries to make the most of his fifteen minute walk to the nearest subway station.

John Scofield: Swallow Tales

Guitarist John Scofield celebrates the music of his friend and mentor Steve Swallow in an outgoing and spirited recording, made in an afternoon in New York City in March 2019 - "old school" style as Scofield says, acknowledging that more than forty years of preparation led up to it. John was a 20-year-old student at Berklee when he first met and played with bassist Swallow, and they have continued ever since, in many different contexts.

"I love these songs", says Scofield of the selection of Swallow compositions explored here – a broad range including tunes that have become standards, as well as some lesser-known works. The rapport between Scofield and Swallow is evident in every moment. John: "Sometimes when we play it's like one big guitar, the bass part and my part together."

Behind the drum kit, Bill Stewart is alert to all the implications of the interaction. "What Bill does is more than ‘playing the drums,'" Scofield says. "He's a melodic voice in the music, playing counterpoint, and comping, while also swinging really hard." The guitarist himself plays with fire and invention throughout: "These two giants bring out the best in me."

Swallow's compositions, John notes, "make perfect vehicles for improvisation. The changes are always interesting – but not too interesting! They're grounded in reality with cadences that make sense. They're never just intellectual exercises, and they're so melodic. They're all songs, rather than ‘pieces'. They could all be sung."

Swallow Tales opens with "She Was Young", a tune introduced on Steve Swallow's ECM album Home, in 1979, where it was indeed sung, by Sheila Jordan. A number of the tunes addressed here – including "Falling Grace", "Portsmouth Figurations", and "Eiderdown" – belonged to the 1960s repertoire of Gary Burton's groups. Scofield, who had admired them from the outset, studied them with Burton and the composer in the early 1970s, by which point Swallow had made the transition from double bass to bass guitar, creating a new voice for himself on the electric instrument. When Scofield launched his own recording career, Swallow was in his trio (with Adam Nussbaum on drums). Touring widely the guitarist and the bassist fine-tuned their musical understanding, a process continued in many other configurations over the years. Scofield appeared on Steve's XtraWatt album Swallow in 1991, for instance, and Swallow is on numerous Scofield recordings - including the recent Country For Old Men, which also featured Bill Stewart. A close associate since the early 1990s, drummer Stewart had played in John's quartet with Joe Lovano, and gone on to join the guitarist in many journeys over varied musical terrain.

John Scofield has recorded for jazz labels including Impulse, Blue Note, Verve, Emarcy and Gramavision. ECM appearances to date have been infrequent but distinguished; they include two albums with Marc Johnson's Bass Desires group – Bass Desires (recorded 1985) and Second Sight (1987) - in which the guitarist shared frontline duties with Bill Frisell. On Shades of Jade (2004), a third Marc Johnson album, Scofield is heard alongside frequent colleague Joe Lovano. The live double album Saudades (recorded in 2004), meanwhile, features Scofield as a member of Trio Beyond, alongside Jack DeJohnette and Larry Goldings, reassessing the songbook of Tony Williams' Lifetime. Swallow Tales is the first of his ECM recordings to feature the guitarist as bandleader.

Christian McBride Big Band: For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver

In September 1966, organist Jimmy Smith and guitarist Wes Montgomery got together at Rudy Van Gelder’s famed studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. Over the course of three days, the two jazz icons recorded the material for two now-classic albums: The Dynamic Duo (1966) and Further Adventures of Jimmy and Wes (1968), backed by a big band featuring arrangements by the great Oliver Nelson.

That pair of electrifying outings would prove seminal for another dynamic duo over the ensuing decades: bass great Christian McBride and master organist Joey DeFrancesco would wear out the grooves on their copies of the Smith/Montgomery summit meetings during their high school days, and both would remain touchstones throughout a friendship and collaboration that has lasted nearly 40 years. Now, the pair pay tribute with For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver, the third release by the GRAMMY® Award-winning Christian McBride Big Band.

Due for release on September 25 via Mack Avenue Records, For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver echoes the format of the original Smith/Montgomery summit meetings, with a balance of big band and quartet tracks. To complete the core band, McBride called on another longtime friend and collaborator, Mark Whitfield, to play the Montgomery role, while regular CMBB drummer Quincy Phillips anchors the ensemble.

“Joey is, without question, my oldest friend in music,” McBride says. “We met in middle school playing in the Settlement Music School Jazz Ensemble in Philadelphia. We’ve recorded a few things here and there over the years, but we’ve never recorded an entire album together until now. It seemed logical to salute the two albums that we listened to quite a bit as kids.”

The repertoire on For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver also follows from the Smith/Montgomery recordings, with four tracks reprised for the originals along with a mix of originals and standards that capture the same ebullient spirit. The celebratory tone is set with the rollicking classic “Night Train.” The familiar, window-rattling tune was part of The Dynamic Duo, but it’s been a constant in the books of many a bandleader who’s been influential to McBride and DeFrancesco, including Duke Ellington and James Brown.

Montgomery’s “Road Song” originally appeared on Further Adventures, and here allows both Whitfield and DeFrancesco to show off on captivating, exploratory solos, each brilliantly comping for the other and showing off their dynamic chemistry. “Milestones” is taken from the same album, and again allows the band to tip its collective hat not only to the album’s titular sources but to another giant who has played a key role in their musical lives: Miles Davis, who famously recruited DeFrancesco straight out of high school.

The classic spiritual “Down By the Riverside,” which opened The Dynamic Duo, is taken at a breakneck pace by the skilled band, lending the tune an even more raucous spirit than the Smith/Montgomery rendition. The last two pieces are originals: Whitfield contributed “Medgar Evers’ Blues,” a salute to the slain civil rights activist originally recorded on his 1990 debut, The Marksman. And “Pie Blues,” which closes the album on a soulful, down and dirty note, is built on a groove that McBride and DeFrancesco devised while still in high school together at Philadelphia’s High School for Creative And Performing Arts (CAPA), alongside classmates like Kurt Rosenwinkel and members of Boyz II Men and The Roots.

“There’s not really a melody, just a groove,” McBride explains. “As for the word ‘Pie,’ we’re not sure where that came from. We were just being silly. I know we sure ate a lot of pie back then!”

The band pares down to the quartet of McBride, DeFrancesco, Whitfield and Phillips for four tracks. The first is a lilting take on Freddie Hubbard favorite “Up Jumped Spring” highlighted by a nimble, singing turn by the bassist. Whitfield is at his most heartfelt on “The Very Thought of You,” with DeFrancesco’s cloud-like chords conjuring an airy atmosphere. All four rise to the sophisticated elegance of Billy Eckstine on their version of “I Want To Talk About You,” while DeFrancesco’s “Don Is,” a winking homage to bassist and Blue Note honcho Don Was, is buoyed by Phillips’ light-footed swing.

The 17-piece Christian McBride Big Band has become one of the most scintillating large ensembles on the modern jazz scene since its 2011 Mack Avenue debut, The Good Feeling. Both that album and its successor, 2017’s Bringin’ It, garnered GRAMMY® Awards in the Best Large Jazz Ensemble category. The stellar band has remained remarkably consistent throughout that history, a testament to the camaraderie and joyous vibe of McBride’s intensely swinging ensemble.

The CMBB features a host of elite musicians mixing renowned veterans with rising stars, most of them bandleaders in their own right: trumpeters Frank Greene, Freddie Hendrix, Brandon Lee, Nabate Isles, and Anthony Hervey; trombonists Michael Dease, Steve Davis, James Burton and Douglas Purviance; and saxophonists Steve Wilson, Todd Bashore, Ron Blake, Dan Pratt and Carl Maraghi.

 

Verve Label Group/UMe Announces Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series Acoustic Sounds to Offer Definitive Audiophile Grade Versions of Classic Jazz Records

Seeking to offer definitive audiophile grade versions of some of the most historic and best jazz records ever recorded, Verve Label Group and UMe’s new audiophile vinyl reissue series Acoustic Sounds will launch July 31 with its inaugural releases – the sensational collaborations, Stan Getz and João Gilberto’s landmark Getz/Gilberto (1964) and the remarkable Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson (1959). Utilizing the skills of the top mastering engineers and the unsurpassed production craft of Quality Record Pressings, all titles will be mastered from the original analog tapes, pressed on 180-gram vinyl and packaged by Stoughton Printing Co. in high-quality tip-on gatefold jackets. The releases will be supervised by Chad Kassem, CEO of Acoustic Sounds, the world’s largest source for audiophile recordings.

The Acoustic Sounds series will feature two releases a month highlighting a different storied label spanning Verve/UMe’s extraordinarily rich archive. To begin with, the series will largely focus on some of the most popular albums from the ‘50s and ‘60s in their unmatched catalog. The July releases will celebrate two of Verve’s most beloved albums, the aforementioned Getz/Gilberto and Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson, and will be followed in August by John Coltrane’s immortal Impulse! records, A Love Supreme (1964) and Ballads (1963). Two of Nina Simone’s legendary Philips albums I Put A Spell On You (1965) and Pastel Blues (1965) will come in September which will be succeeded in October by two from the EmArcy Records vault: Sarah Vaughan’s self-titled 1954 album, the vocal great’s sole collaboration with influential trumpeter Clifford Brown, who is also represented alongside pioneering drummer Max Roach on the hard bop classic, Study In Brown (1955). November will spotlight Decca Records with the iconic Peggy Lee’s first album, Black Coffee (1956), and composer George Russell’s important New York, N.Y. (1959) performed by an all-star orchestra that includes Bill Evans, John Coltrane, Art Farmer and Milt Hinton, among others. All titles and exact release dates are listed below. Additional titles will be announced as the series progresses.

“We are excited to launch our Acoustic Sounds series,” said Bruce Resnikoff, President & CEO of UMe. “Verve and UMe have one of the richest jazz catalogs ever recorded and our goal is to give vinyl and jazz lovers the best possible versions of classic albums. The Acoustic Sounds series is designed to appeal to today's most discriminating fans, looking for the very finest in both artistic content and audio quality.”

"We're very honored to have Verve and UMe partnering with us to create what we believe will be the highest quality reissues of some of the world's greatest jazz albums,” said Chad Kassem, CEO of Acoustic Sounds. “Each step in our production process – from title selection to mastering, pressing and packaging – is designed to meet the highest standards, and we want everyone who hears these albums to feel the love and hard work we put into everything we do. We've long had a great relationship with UMe, pressing classic titles at our Quality Record Pressings from many of their highest-profile artists. We look forward to strengthening that partnership even further with these reissues from Verve, home of the world's largest jazz catalog."

Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson is a brilliant undertaking in which Verve’s legendary “house pianist” encountered one of jazz’s most revered giants. A significant part of Peterson’s genius was his ability to be an exceptional pianist and leader, while also being a perfect accompanist when the circumstance demands… and in a situation like this, to be both. Armstrong is not only recognized as one of the most innovative, singular, fascinating and beloved artists of the 20th century, but also one of the most generous in the way he embraced and stimulated his collaborators. Backed by the Oscar Peterson Trio – bassist Ray Brown and guitarist Herb Ellis, and augmented by frequent fourth member Louis Bellson on drums – these peerless heavyweights created an album that is utterly compelling, radiantly jubilant and consummate in artistry. The musicians provided the setting for the jewel that is Pops, with Peterson perfectly embellishing every phrase Armstrong sings or plays. The focus here is primarily upon his totally personal and thoroughly captivating vocal style, with his occasional trumpet solos limited in all but one case to a single chorus. Essentially culled from the Great American Song Book – Cole Porter, the Gershwins and Harold Arlen among the songwriters – the pieces range from poignant ballads and blues to effusive easy-grooved swing. Each song is an exquisitely crafted gem that will warm the heart and enrich the soul.

Getz/Gilberto is not only a marvelous album, but one which had a profound influence upon the face of jazz and American popular music. This stunning 1964 collaboration between Stan Getz, one of the most popular and respected tenor saxophonists of the era, and the remarkable Brazilian guitarist João Gilberto, launched the bossa nova craze and the career of João’s wife Astrud Gilberto with the hugely popular and iconic hit song, “The Girl from Ipanema (Garota de Ipanema).” Even more impactful, it introduced the famed Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim to the English-speaking musical world. In addition to playing piano on the album, Jobim also composed six of the eight compositions, including two of his most popular masterpieces, “Desafinado” and “Corcovado,” along with the aforementioned “Garota de Ipanema.”

While Getz had embraced the music of Brazil prior to this with two outstanding Verve albums – Jazz Samba and Big Band Bossa Nova – Getz/Gilberto, with multiple Grammy Awards and a permanent place on various Best Albums of All-time lists is the album that launched a revolution. Regardless of that, the collaborative blending of Getz’s fluid, muscular virtuosity and João’s impeccable acoustic guitar stylings and captivating vocals, Astrud’s enchanting almost-whispered singing on two tracks, all backed by Jobim’s minimalist subtlety on piano and the flawless support of Sebãstio Neto and Milton Banana on bass and drums, make this an utterly momentous musical experience regardless of its lofty place in musical history.

Now these albums and many more will be heard better than ever in the exciting new audiophile Acoustic Sounds series.

Acoustic Sounds Audiophile Vinyl Reissue Series:

July 31 / Verve Records

Stan Getz and João Gilberto – Getz/Gilberto (1964)

Louis Armstrong and Oscar Peterson – Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson (1959)

August 28 / Impulse! Records

John Coltrane – Ballads (1963)

John Coltrane – A Love Supreme (1964)

September 25 / Philips Records

Nina Simone – I Put A Spell On You (1965)

Nina Simone – Pastel Blues (1965)

October 30 / EmArcy Records

Sarah Vaughan – Sarah Vaughan (with Clifford Brown) (1954)

Clifford Brown and Max Roach – Study In Brown (1955)

November 27 / Decca Records

Peggy Lee – Black Coffee (1956)

George Russell – New York, N.Y. (1959)

Thelonious Monk: Palo Alto

In the fall of 1968, a sixteen-year old high school student named Danny Scher had a dream to invite legendary jazz pianist and composer Thelonious Monk and his all-star quartet to perform a concert at his local high school in Palo Alto, CA. In a series of twists and turns, against a backdrop of racial tension and political volatility, that concert happened and was recorded by the school's janitor. Palo Alto is set for release on July 31, 2020 on legendary jazz label Impulse! Records – marking Thelonious Monk's posthumous debut on John Coltrane's label home.

"That performance is the one of the best live recordings I've ever heard by Thelonious," says T.S. Monk, son of the pianist/composer maestro, drummer and founder of the Thelonious Monk Institute. "I wasn't even aware of my dad playing a high school gig, but he and the band were on it. When I first heard the tape, from the first measure, I knew my father was feeling really good."

The vibrant 47-minute album spotlights Monk's steady touring band (tenor saxophonist Charlie Rouse, bassist Larry Gales, drummer Ben Riley) and features his touring repertoire, which were his finest compositions. 

1968 was a tumultuous year in America, marked by the shocking  shocking assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, unsettling revelations about the Vietnam War, and protests and unrest throughout the country. Palo Alto and the primarily African-American neighboring neighboring town of East Palo Alto were no different. This was the stage for young high school student Danny Scher, a jazzhead with an idealistic bent and knack for concert promotion (who later on became a well-known promoter who worked with legendary San Francisco rock promoter Bill Graham.) 

Scher says, "I always looked at music as a way to put issues on hold or up to a mirror, whether they be political or social. On October 27, 1968, there was a truce between Palo Alto and East Palo Alto. And that is what music does."

In 1968, Thelonious Monk was in many ways at the pinnacle of his career – his quartet was at its best musically, and he was still riding high in the public eye after he appeared on the cover of TIME Magazine a couple years prior.  However, behind the scenes finances were rough and his health was in bad shape. When he got a call in the middle of his threethree-week run at the Jazz Workshop in San Francisco, he listened to the teen on the other end of the receiver. Perhaps he was moved by the young promoter's gumption.  

On October 27, 1968, Thelonious Monk and his quartet – Charlie Rouse (tenor sax), Larry Gales (bass), and Ben Riley (drums) – climbed out of the Scher  family van, walking past a rainy parking lot full of surprised Palo Alto and East Palo Alto residents, into Palo Alto High School's auditorium and delivered a stellar, energetic and historic 47-minute set.

Included in the mix is Monk's lyrical love song "Ruby, My Dear" (Rouse boldly blowing the melody with Monk comping in his unique oblique way then taking the lead with a dazzling solo);  the dynamic and spirited "Well, You Needn't" taken for a 13-minute ride with solos by all members; the pianist's captivating solo reading of "Don't Blame Me" by Jimmy McHugh; an epic dance through "Blue Monk"; and a playful charge through "Epistrophy." The show ends with a truncated encore of Monk slowly striding through the 1925 Tin Pan Alley hit tune by Rudy Vallee, "I Love You Sweetheart of All My Dreams" and after a standing ovation saying his goodbye because they had to leave to make their San Francisco date that evening.

The concert was quite impressively recorded by Palo Alto High School's janitor, and the tape sat in the attic of Scher's family home for years. When he contacted T.S. Monk to release it, they chose legendary label Impulse! Records, the label home of John Coltrane, known as "the house that Trane built." The relationship between Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane is well documented and historic, so it is particularly appropriate that almost forty years after his death, Monk finally makes his Impulse! debut with Palo Alto.

Palo Alto is the first of multiple planned joint releases over the next five years from Impulse! Records in conjunction with the Monk estate's Rhythm-A-Ning Entertainment led by T.S. Monk.

The Legendary Jimmy Heath - Love Letter

Verve Records announces the release of Love Letter, a parting masterpiece and the first all-ballads album from magisterial tenor saxophonist-composer Jimmy Heath. The first single from the collection "Con Alma" is out now. Love Letter will be available worldwide on July 17 and is available by pre-order now. 

In addition to original material, Love Letter is the jazz ambassador's beautiful take on seminal ballads, including songs written by Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, and Kenny Dorham.  Recorded in New York during the 48 hours preceding Jimmy's 93rd birthday, and two more a month later in Atlanta, Jimmy presided over a brilliant cast of colleagues and friends.  Propelling the album forward is a multi-generational all-star unit, including NEA Jazz Master pianist Kenny Barron, poll-winning guitarist Russell Malone, soulful vibraphone veteran Monte Croft, New York first-call bassist David Wong, and all-world drummer Lewis Nash. Augmenting the group on separate tracks are 21st century vocal superstars Gregory Porter and Cécile McLorin Salvant, and trumpet icon Wynton Marsalis.

The collection includes Heath's elegant arrangements of three less traveled originals culled from his vast body of work. He distinctively interprets "Con Alma," an essential jazz standard by Dizzy Gillespie, his lodestar from the moment they met in 1946. Joining him and Kenny Barron in erudite, tender dialogue on trumpeter Dorham's "La Mesha" is Marsalis. On "Don't Explain," the Dorham gem and Arthur Herzog-Billie Holiday collaboration, Heath's soulful, trenchant, urbane solo flights evoke his poetic spirit with old master concision and the authoritative chops of a musician half his age.

A highlight in a program of highlights is Cécile McLorin Salvant's poignant tour de force portrayal of unrequited love that is at the core of Billie Holiday's lyric on the blue ballad "Left Alone," composed by Mal Waldron. Another is Gregory Porter's compelling, gentle reading of Gordon Parks' underground classic "Don't Misunderstand."

"Jimmy always wanted to know the lyrics of a song before playing it," says Carol Friedman, who co-produced Love Letter with Grammy-winning producer Brian Bacchus. "That particular sensitivity no doubt contributes to the intimacy of his sound and is the reason he loved playing ballads - whether a tune had lyrics or not, he was singing with that horn. This is the record Jimmy never got to make. Asking him if he wanted to do an all-ballads album was preceded by decades of us talking about singers and love songs."

Two of Heath's three originals on Love Letter gestate in orchestral charts - "Fashion or Passion" comes from a 2004 Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra commission, while "Inside Your Heart" - Heath's only soprano saxophone vehicle on the date -  is the second movement of The Endless Search, a suite Heath recorded in 2010 with the Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra.  On the third original, it sounds as though Billy Strayhorn was on Heath's mind when he wrote "Ballad from Upper Neighbors Suite," which he'd previously addressed on a 1995 recording.

A listener unfamiliar with the back story of Love Letter would not imagine that the main instrumental voice throughout the proceedings is a jockey-framed 93-year-old man surely aware of his impending mortality and facing it with pluck and equanimity. He brings the full breadth of his intellectual powers to this final salvo. As Gary Giddins notes: "The result is pure, primo Heath: polished, inventive, surprising, candid, beautiful."

Singer-songwriter Cat Levan finally indulges her “Double Life”

One could easily make the case that singer-songwriter Cat Levan has much more than just a double life. The former professional fighter, restaurant owner, clothing designer, marketing director, illustrator and mother will finally realize her long-held musical dream with her debut album, “Double Life” on the Wide Sky Records label. The Vancouver-based artist teamed with Billboard Top 10 hitmaker Steve Oliver to write seven original songs for the 11-song set produced by Oliver in the guitarist’s Southern California studio. Her Canadian countryman and brother-in-law, contemporary jazz saxophonist Walle Larsson, guests throughout the collection that finished tracking just prior to the closure of the border due to the coronavirus pandemic.    

“I’ve done a lot of different things throughout my life and experienced success in a variety of areas, but music has been a constant presence dating back to my family household while growing up. ‘Double Life’ speaks to the dreams we hold tight to our chest and never let anyone know about. The artist who has a rich inner musical world but lives a life of logic and order that never reveals the depth of her inner world. It's a double life, but in a good way,” said Levan whose sister is Juno Awards-nominated singer-songwriter Melanie Chartrand. 

As a lyricist, Levan is a storyteller who writes about love, loneliness, connection and uncertainty, which suits the inherently vulnerable qualities of her ethereal voice. After opening the disc with the upbeat dance-pop title track that is bolstered by tribal percussion beats, “What’s Been Going Down” pours a smooth cosmopolitan cocktail of jazz and pop. The downtempo “Keep Moving” was the first song penned for the album.

“It's about a time in my life when I was stuck in an awful place. My mother had died, and I had just left a relationship and moved back to Vancouver. I was really down, feeling very alone, not seeing a future that I liked. Every day, I would get up and try to push myself to do something that would move me forward. I was sleepwalking through life with a constant ache in my chest,” admitted Levan who plans to film a couple of videos to accompany the album release.    

Levan found singing “December Road” helped her let go of the heartache. It is a stark and poignant piano ballad about accepting love and loss. She loves how the soulful and sensual “Something’s Gotta Give” exposes the seedy side of life.

“It makes me feel like I'm walking down the street late at night, peeking into steamy bars and witnessing shady deals. It’s fascinating seeing the colorful underside of the streets.”  

The haunting “The Way I Feel” was written and recorded by Gordon Lightfoot and Levan’s version exquisitely captures the pain and reality of love. A joyous slice of sunshine, “Baba Doo” is a wordless contemporary jazz dance set to the rhythm of life.  

“Waiting for the Right Time” moves at the deliberate, tension-filled pace of a prowl. “This is a song with two stories. One is a story of an assassin stalking her prey, waiting for the moment to strike. The other story talks about how we hide our darker side in a relationship. We’re always looking to see if it’s safe to reveal our weaknesses. If we show who we are, will it push them away? It’s all a test to see how much we are accepted exactly as we are.”

Layers of percussion drive the snappy groove of “Diving Deep,” Levan’s first track ever sung in vocalese, one of Oliver’s hallmarks. “When we wrote this song, I had no idea what vocalese was. Steve introduced me to it and asked me to be open to this new style of singing. We wrote and recorded the song the same day, so I was trying to adjust, but my voice was tired and a little unhappy with me. There were a few notes that I was struggling with and Steve recorded me grumbling about them. When we were playing back the rough track, he left my comments in and it made me laugh so we kept them as an inside joke.”

Levan calls “Coming Home” a companion piece to “Double Life.” It is about the achingly deep connection between romantic soulmates. The album closes with a bonus track, the jazz standard “Autumn Leaves,” that leaves lovelorn listeners remembering the sweet and seductive memories of summer love.