Yoko Miwa Trio - Songs Of Joy

2020 was a trying year for all of us, and pianist Yoko Miwa suffered more than her fair share of challenges. Like most musicians during this unprecedented pandemic, she suddenly found herself without the opportunity to perform. The recording of her new album was postponed and her trio’s longtime home base, Les Zygomates Wine Bar & Bistro in Boston, closed its doors for good. Worst of all, her father passed away after a battle with Alzheimer’s Disease.

So Miwa would certainly have been forgiven if her delayed return to the studio had resulted in an uncharacteristically somber set of music. Instead she emerged with Songs of Joy, a welcome dose of optimism and uplift that shines like a ray of hope through the dark clouds overhead. Due out February 12, 2021 via Ubuntu Music, Songs of Joy features Miwa’s longstanding trio with bassist Will Slater and drummer Scott Goulding, along with a guest appearance by bassist Brad Barrett, another regular collaborator. The album combines songs that have provided solace and inspiration to Miwa with five original pieces composed as a means of escape from the lockdown routine.

“Once the pandemic started, I decided to write something every day,” Miwa explains. “I just tried to sit down at the piano and play whatever I felt on that day. Of course I was frustrated, but I tried to stay positive.”

The songs that emerged from this less-than-ideal incubator reflect Miwa’s persevering spirit, her jazz-inspired spontaneity and her classically-trained virtuosity – all characteristics that have been recognized by no less an authority than legendary pianist Ahmad Jamal, one of Miwa’s idols. “At 90 years plus, I have known and heard most of the great pianists, [including] Art Tatum, Oscar Dennard, Phineas Newborn, Nat Cole, Dodo Marmarosa, Johnny Costa, Erroll Garner, and on and on,” Jamal says. “Not to mention the pianists performing the European Classical works that I have followed as well. In Pittsburgh where I was born, and where some of the aforementioned are also from, we had to study both American Classical Music as well as the European Classical forms. Yoko Miwa is the result of both worlds. She is amazing and will continue to grow.”

The Yoko Miwa Trio has been performing together regularly for a decade and a half, with a Saturday night residency at Les Zygomates for much of that tenure. For the past several years they’ve also spent Friday nights at the Cambridge sushi bar The Mad Monkfish. At least once a year they perform there with legendary singer Sheila Jordan, who introduced Miwa to Billy Preston’s “Song of Joy.” The tune, which also inspired the title of the album, is suffused with warmth and deep emotions in the trio’s intimate, reverent rendition. The idea expressed in Preston’s simple, heartfelt song – “With every note I play, I play with love… With all the happiness this melody brings” – provided the guiding spirit of the session.

The album opens with Richie Havens’ “Freedom,” which the singer-songwriter performed at Woodstock (as captured in the famed concert film). Miwa’s thunderous left hand reveals the inspiration of McCoy Tyner, and the tune’s mood channels the ecstatic spirituality of the classic John Coltrane Quartet.

Tyner is one of several formative influences to whom Miwa pays tribute through her original pieces on Songs of Joy. The boisterous swing of Bobby Timmons and Benny Green, two of the pianists whose brilliant sound was forged in the crucible of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, anchors the finger-snapping groove of “Small Talk.” The bright, dancing “The Rainbirds” was inspired by the compositional style of Kenny Barron. And the lush, elegant “Inside a Dream” bears the unmistakable imprint of perhaps Miwa’s most important idol, Bill Evans.

Naturally, Miwa’s compositions couldn’t help but be affected by the times in which they were written. The steely “Largo Desolato” feels haunted yet determined, evoking the unnaturally empty streets of New York City at the height of the pandemic. The gorgeous ballad “The Lonely Hours” is dedicated to Miwa’s father, who spent many of his final days alone due to quarantine conditions. “I couldn't go back to Japan to see him because of the pandemic,” she laments. “He was in the hospital alone; even my family couldn't be with him when he passed away. It was really sad.”

The rollicking “Tony’s Blues” was penned for Miwa by Tony Germain, former assistant chair of the piano department at Berklee College of Music, where Miwa is an associate professor. “Tony wrote this song for me right before the original recording date, and I really liked it,” Miwa says. “He just retired, so this is a great present for him.”

The work of Thelonious Monk is a constant in Miwa’s repertoire, and here she performs a muscular take on one of her favorites, “Think of One.” Sheila Jordan also provided an entrée to the blistering “No Problem,” a piece by the singer’s ex-husband, pianist Duke Jordan, that has become a staple of the trio’s sets. The album ends with a reflective take on the folk classic “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You,” by way of the famous Led Zeppelin version and graced by Brad Barrett’s entrancing arco playing.

Despite a few months of enforced time off, the Yoko Miwa Trio hasn’t lost a step on Songs of Joy, their exhilarating chemistry evident and lively throughout the album’s many moods. Circumstances may have been far from ideal (“This is definitely the first album I recorded with a mask on,” Miwa laughs), but it ends up offering a balm for beleaguered audiences. “When we went into the studio, it had been four months since I’d played with my trio,” Miwa recalls. “I was a little bit nervous, but once we got there I felt so excited and inspired by being together again. That joy and happiness came up from my music. Everything was joy, and I hope the listener can hear it too.”

Internationally acclaimed pianist/composer Yoko Miwa is one of the most powerful and compelling performers on the scene today. Her trio, with its remarkable telepathy and infectious energy, has brought audiences to their feet worldwide. Their latest CD, 2019’s Keep Talkin’, showcases Miwa’s fine playing and artful compositions and the trio’s uncanny musical camaraderie. DownBeat gave the recording four stars, calling it “a beautifully constructed album” and noting “the drive and lyricism of a pianist and composer at home in bebop, gospel, pop, and classical.” For more than a decade Miwa’s trio has played regularly at major jazz clubs in their home city of Boston, as well as venues around the world. A favorite of Jazz at Lincoln Center, Miwa was chosen to play on “Marian McPartland & Friends,” part of the Coca-Cola Generations in Jazz Festival. Miwa also appears regularly at New York’s famed Blue Note Jazz Club as well as Birdland and has performed and/or recorded with a wide range of jazz greats including Sheila Jordan, Slide Hampton, Arturo Sandoval, George Garzone, Jazzmeia Horn, Jon Faddis, Jerry Bergonzi, Esperanza Spalding, Terri Lyne Carrington, Kevin Mahogany, John Lockwood and Johnathan Blake, among others.

Benoît Delbecq - The Weight of Light

Internationally acclaimed pianist and composer Benoît Delbecq issues The Weight of Lighton Pyroclastic Records, his first solo release in more than a decade. Following intentional exploration and years of extended research, confronting the smooth and the striated within his playing, the Paris-based artist now offers open-eared listeners new, deeply personal connections to the music inspired by movement-centric perspectives on shadow and light.  

Within trancelike chambers and subtle interluding halls, Delbecq conjures the mysterious ecstasy of transitional imagery. Nine tracks of original music pivot across contemplative brightness and ethereal darkness. Serving spontaneity, each gesture reflects a translation of feeling and invites listeners to engage their own emotional responses to the music, as they listen in real time.  

Ever curious about visual representation of music, Delbecq has been enhancing versions of his own graphic notation for years. But as he composed music for The Weight of Light, he began recognizing how hanging mobiles wield influence over his relationship to music and, more broadly, artistic expression. “That was totally unconscious,” he says. As a child, he’d regard a mobile casting shadows in his parents’ bedroom for minutes at a time. “The idea likely came from way back, but who can say?”  

From that buried memory, Delbecq began drawing the image that would become his album cover for The Weight of Light. “I drew the record cover pretty fast, but the shadow took me days,” he says. “I wanted to render something mysterious about the shadow of this mobile.” That unnamed mystery rests at the consciousness of The Weight of Light and includes both physical and figurative interpretations.  

Some 35 years ago, Delbecq’s physicist brother centered his Ph.D. around proving that light has a mass. At the time, the idea fascinated Delbecq. “Hardly any people know that light has a mass,” he says. For the album, he took poetic license to change “mass” to “weight,” intent on exploring what that concept might sound like on a piano.  

Inspired by what he calls “real presences” within his artistry, Delbecq considers features of architecture when composing new music, including how different structures interact with light. One partly sunny morning, he found himself inside the Notre-Dame de Ronchamp chapel by Le Corbusier, observing the light coming through the stained glass windows. “A cloud passing by, revealing the sun inside the chapel, of course will change your relationship with the space you’re in,” he says. His Poe-like appraisal of light influencing emotional response to physical surroundings persists across The Weight of Light. “In that sense, that’s also weight of the light,” he says.  

Delbecq regards piano as a vessel for expansion. His expert manipulation of the instrument presents patterns, pauses and un-patterns as on “Pair et Impair,” as well as sonic illusions such as left-hand “loops” on “Anamorphoses” and “The Loop of Chicago” that take shape and reshape throughout the compositions. Providing plenty of opportunity for listeners to experience starkness of time and space, Delbecq engages openness on “Au Fil de la Parole” and “Dripping Stones” the latter beginning as a cluster of tightly packed colors, primed for expansion. And he concludes in notes of dark and doleful lushness tinged with inquiry on “Broken World.”  

For these renderings, Delbecq turns to perhaps the most prominent textural characteristic of his sound: prepared piano. And his love for those sounds emerged from his fascination for drummers he heard live, namely Kenny Clarke, Paul Motian, and Ed Blackwell. Textural possibilities serve his unique compositional development, particularly for The Weight of Light. “When I’m composing, it’s exactly like I’m looking at inventing the future shape of an object,” he says, “so I look at it from different places. It’s like a 3-D way of conceiving things that has to do with optical phenomena. If I move around it, it will reveal shapes that are hidden at other angles.”  

Benoît Delbecq is a multi-awarded Parisian pianist and composer, engaging new textures and pulses on prepared piano. His musical force weaves compelling works inspired by varied sources including mathematics, poetry and architecture. Delbecq's works have received acclaim from legendary musicians such as Mal Waldron, Steve Lacy and György Ligeti, as well as from a long list of critics, peers and festival curators. He studied improvised music with Alan Silva, founder of the Institute for Artistic and Cultural Perception in Paris, later receiving mentorship from Waldron. At the Banff Centre, Delbecq studied with Steve Coleman, Dave Holland and Muhal Richard Abrams, among other masters. He also studied composition and music analysis with Solange Ancona. Besides being a performer, composer and producer, Delbecq served as founder of the Hask Collective Paris (1992-2004) and is presently a founding member of Bureau de Son Paris (2008) and the dStream label.

Pianist-composer Kris Davis founded Pyroclastic Records in 2016 to serve the release of her acclaimed recordings Duopoly and Octopus with the goal of growing the label into a thriving platform that would serve like-minded, cutting-edge artists. In 2019, Davis launched a nonprofit to support those artists whose expression flourishes beyond the commercial sphere. By supporting their creative efforts and ensuring distribution of their work, Pyroclastic empowers emerging and established artists — including those on its 2021 roster: Benoit Delbecq, The Weight of Light (Feb 12th); Ches Smith, We All Break (Spring 2021); Mary Halvorson/Sylvie Courvoisier Duo (Spring 2021); and Sara Schoenbeck Duos (Fall 2021) — to continue challenging conventional genre-labeling within their fields. Pyroclastic also seeks to galvanize and grow a creative community, offering young artists new opportunities, supporting diversity and expanding the audience for noncommercial art.

Cowboys & Frenchmen - Our Highway

On their forthcoming release, Our Highway (due out on February 26, 2021 on Outside In Music), the inventive quintet Cowboys & Frenchmen reflect on the nomadic life of touring musicians while widening their gazes to take in the landscapes and byways that connect America’s towns and cities.

Recorded live at SubCulture in New York City, the “video album” juxtaposes high-definition footage of the band — saxophonist/co-founders Ethan Helm and Owen Broder, pianist Addison Frei, bassist Ethan O’Reilly and drummer Matt Honor — onstage in one of the Big Apple’s most renowned venues with beautifully shot footage taken during a cross-country tour. The video captures the hectic pace of big cities, the majestic tranquility of nature and the unexpected surprises and tiresome aggravations that arise while hustling from nightclub to nightclub. Conceived long before the COVID pandemic, these images assume added resonance in light of a lockdown that’s kept most of these venues dark for the better part of the past year.

“Watching this video come together, I got emotional remembering how happy I was when I was the most stressed out,” laughs Helm. “It really comes across that those times when we could get out there and struggle were actually the good times. That made a huge change in the way I think about Our Highway.”

An audio-only edition of Our Highway will be released digitally on February 26, 2021. The band will also partner with venues across the country to present the full video album as live-streaming events, allowing each space to offer the experience to their audiences for a 24-hour period. While far from a typical album release tour, the partnerships offer an innovative new virtual highway for Cowboys & Frenchmen to traverse.

While Helm and Broder typically split compositional duties on the band’s projects, Helm took the lead for Our Highway, writing all of the music and envisioning the theme. Broder contributed to the concepts in the video, and the whole band took turns filming over the course of their travels. Significantly, the majority of the footage comes from one of three locations: Broder’s hometown of Jacksonville, Florida; Helm’s native Yorba Linda, California; and the band’s birthplace and home, New York City. “When you’re always in motion, sometimes you have to invent your own sense of home,” Helm points out.

Broder connects that notion with the struggles of making a life in music. “A lot of what we do has to do with finding a balance in our lives – dealing with all that comes with living in New York while piecing together the disparate elements of a freelance career, and also balancing the different paces of life. I really like removing myself from the concrete jungle and being out in nature for a little while, but I don't think that I would like either one to the exclusion of the other.”

Though it arrives during the aftermath of a divisive presidential election, Our Highway looks past politics and offers a more united, holistic perspective of America. “ “It’s a view of the country through our eyes and through the windows of our band’s minivan,” Broder says. “It’s closer to a memoir than a political position.”

“Our Highway was inspired in part by something I’ve noticed when we’ve been on tour,” Helm explains. “It’s amazing to me just how much music connects with people. We see it at every single performance; we have no idea who voted for whom when we’re on the road, but people everywhere come together and enjoy the music. I can’t help but think that’s meaningful.”

A suite collectively entitled “American Whispers” weaves through the album, representing the tension between humanity and the natural world — towering “Pines,” fast-rushing “Streams,” daunting “Mountains,” their imposing stature shaping the frenetic tempos and angular melodies of the pieces. Inspired by Alice Coltrane, “Alice in Promisedland” takes the opposite viewpoint. The piece channels the great harpist/pianist/composer’s spiritual philosophy to locate the harmony between natural splendor and encroaching civilization, illustrated here by relocating the band members to a bustling public park.

The title of “An Old Church” offers a synecdoche for those idyllic scenes of American life that a band on the move rarely has time to stop and appreciate. The somber interlude “Where Is Your Wealth?” can be heard as an accusatory demand or a spiritual challenge, in either case raising questions about what we truly value in life. “Gig Life” celebrates the funky, offbeat experiences that forge the bonds of a band, while “The Farmer’s Reason” ends the album with a gorgeously reflective slice of Americana, as mythic as it is profoundly meaningful.

“For us, the traveling is not separate from the art,” Helm concludes. “It’s all part of one lifestyle. Jazz musicians are really lucky because our art form allows us to place a frame around a snapshot in time. The music is always in motion, which is a special quality that we want to highlight with Our Highway.”

New York City-based Cowboys & Frenchmen offers a new take on instrumentation, composition and orchestration for the jazz quintet. Founded by saxophonists Owen Broder and Ethan Helm, the band garnered stellar reviews with its 2015 debut, Rodeo. Their 2017 follow-up, Bluer Than You Think, received a four-star review from DownBeat Magazine, and was celebrated with an eight-market tour visiting historic stages including Blues Alley (Washington D.C.) and Cliff Bell’s (Detroit). The inspiration for the band’s name comes from a short film by David Lynch, The Cowboy and The Frenchmen — a Western with a unique, left-field interpretation of that classic genre echoed in Cowboys & Frenchmen’s inventive approach to jazz: one foot firmly planted in a genre, the other busy trying to kick down the genre’s door.

 

Dan Blake - Da Fé

Pondering the existential crises that face humanity today – global climate catastrophe, poverty, hunger – can be overwhelming, especially when compounded with the more mundane trials we face every day. Social activism, despite its daunting challenges, is fundamentally an act of faith: faith in a better future and in our species’ capacity for positive change. On his inspiring new album, Da Fé, saxophonist and composer Dan Blake pays tribute to the spiritual leaders and political activists who’ve offered him hope while adding his own singular voice to the optimistic chorus of those crying out for solutions.

 

Due out March 12, 2021 via Sunnyside Records, Da Fé is an outgrowth of Blake’s own activism. A practicing Buddhist since his college years, Blake has served since 2015 on the board of Buddhist Global Relief, an organization dedicated to combatting chronic hunger and malnutrition around the world. He has also organized concerts to benefit other charitable organizations, including Extinction Rebellion, the Poor People’s Campaign and Show Up for Racial Justice. While he’s quick to downplay his own role in favor of those who dedicate their lives to activism, his music follows a socially conscious path blazed by the likes of Max Roach and Alice Coltrane before him.

“Climate catastrophe is an issue that I've been concerned about for a while,” says Blake, who credits moving to Mount Kisco, New York and raising his two young daughters as inspiration. “Moving away from the city provided some perspective and made me much more aware of nature in my day to day life. Becoming a parent was another causal factor in bringing more urgency to my own personal awareness of this issue. As humans, our relationship to nature can be so sympathetic, but then something like the California wildfires reminds us how our collective abuse of the natural world has become incredibly dangerous to our survival as a species.”

Da Fé translates to “of faith,” and stems from the phrase “auto da fé,” which refers to the burning of heretics during the Spanish Inquisition. While Blake changed the term to avoid direct reference to that historical context, he does see a connection in the fires blazing across millions of acres in California. “There's a certain violence to this time that we're in, as we seem to be sacrificing ourselves at the altar of commodities. But there's still a possibility of realizing a better future that we can put our faith in. That's where these activist organizations come in.”

To provide his music with the tension and urgency it required, Blake enlisted a remarkable cross-generational band. He initially recorded with a quartet featuring pianist/keyboardist Carmen Staaf, bassist Dmitry Ishenko, and veteran drummer Jeff Williams. The latter was a member of the pioneering world-jazz fusion band Lookout Farm led by DaveLiebman, one of Blake’s mentors in both music and activism. He then teamed with longtime collaborator Leo Genovese, with whom he worked in Esperanza Spalding’s band, to reimagine the music in post-production via additional piano, synths and multiple saxophone lines.

“I wanted to take full advantage of the studio on this album,” Blake explains. “My model for that is Wayne Shorter's work from the 1980s – his mid-period albums like Atlantis, Phantom Navigator or Joy Ryder, where he interacts with himself playing multiple parts to realize a bigger sonic landscape from the horn. I was envisioning a sax chorus through a reflective, hall of mirrors idea.”

Staaf opens the album solo with the prayer-like, through-composed “Prologue – A New Normal.” Unsettling, static-like electronics ultimately consume the meditative piece, suggesting the threats that lie ahead, especially if we continue to accept increasingly dangerous new normals. The modal “Cry of the East” evokes John Coltrane’s yearning work on soprano sax on a dedication to the plight of the Palestinian people and, as Blake says, “all the unseen, unheard souls whose suffering has been caused by the actions of Western powers and policies.”

The turbulent “Like Fish in Puddles” takes its title from a piece in the Atthakavagga, a collection of Buddhist poems. The piece’s desperation cries out for a shift in perspective; many of us, it suggests, believe we’re swimming in the ocean while we’re simply flapping around in our limited puddles, with limited time and resources to draw upon. Opening with a strident solo by the composer, “Pain” draws on both universal and personal strife, inspired by the recent loss of Blake’s father and grandmother. The dark-hued “The Grifter” hardly needs much explanation, given the looming con-man presence who’s preoccupied our thoughts in recent years.

Blake particularly enjoys exploring vamps with Williams, as they do on “The Cliff,” whose rhythmic complexities feel like striding uncertainly along the edge of a jagged precipice. “Doctor Armchair” is a satirical look at the tendency towards offering unearned “expertise” as a solution to every issue – not strictly medical, though the notion has taken on additional weight in the midst of a contentious pandemic. Genovese’s cosmic synths layer on the hypnotic atmospherics for the title track, before the album ends with the meditative coda “Epilogue: It Heals Itself” – a suggestion not to ignore problems, but to pause a moment in our frantic activities to allow healing to begin.

“I’m very inspired by the ideal of compassionate action,” Blake says. “Activism is very important to my musical creativity, and is the impetus for this album. I believe musicians and artists can play a powerful role in these dangerous and urgent times by awakening a compassionate vibration in others, one that can spur action. I also believe artists like myself have a lot to learn from the dedicated activism and leadership of others who sacrifice so much to do the good work that must be done to wrest power from corrupt politicians and place it into the gentle and loving hands of the people.”

Multi-instrumentalist and composer Dan Blake has developed a wide-ranging career as a contemporary composer, performer and educator that “regards tradition as a welcoming playground best approached with a sense of wonder and adventure” (The Boston Globe). Blake’s music has been called “stunning” (All About Jazz), and his most recent release, The Digging, was described as “a creative essay on what can be done in the trio format” (Ottawa Citizen). In addition to his work as a leader, he has toured and recorded with three-time Grammy winner Esperanza Spalding, NEA Jazz Master Anthony Braxton, and Velvet Underground founding member John Cale, among many others. In his extended multi-disciplinary compositions, Blake weaves together his interests in world music, contemporary improvisation, animation, and performance art. This genre-bending catalog of works has earned him support from the Jerome Fund for New Music, ASCAP, and New Music USA. A musician keenly interested in bringing music together with social justice causes, Dan Blake produces the annual Concert To Feed The Hungry, a fundraising event celebrating the struggle to end hunger and malnutrition in poor communities around the world. He holds a Ph.D. in composition from the City University of New York and is currently on faculty at the New School for Social Research, and at the Conservatory at Brooklyn College.

 

The JCA Orchestra Live at the BPC

The JCA Orchestra Live at the BPC is a dazzling and diverse album showcasing four master jazz composers working at the top of their game. Since 1985, the Boston-based Jazz Composers Alliance has presented creative, cutting-edge work by member composers both in concert and on recordings. The group’s eleventh album, recorded live at the Berklee Performance Center, presents an eclectic mix of six works by David Harris, Darrell Katz, Bob Pilkington and Mimi Rabson. The rich and varied program draws on a wide range of sources and inspirations from poetry to Thai folk music to James Bond movie theme music. “That balance of pieces is just how it naturally comes out,” says JCA cofounder Katz, “Everyone comes from such different places musically that there’s always a good mix.”   

Composer-violinist Mimi Rabson’s “Romanople” unfolds against a sprawling historical backdrop, but it’s a disciplined, tightly constructed and emotionally rich work. The piece alludes to a time when the Roman Empire had two capitals—Rome and Constantinople—that had little in common culturally. A modest but tuneful, odd-metered folk song from the Turkish metropolis makes its initial appearance then travels to Rome where it’s transformed by a brass band and then subjected to the horrors of war. But the melody endures and dances off, a sign of hope for the future. Helen Sherrah-Davies’ folk-tinged violin, a celebratory Phil Scarff on clarinet, and Junko Fujiwara’s mournful cello solo highlight a composition in which a melody, set off and transformed by the orchestration, provides strong continuity in the midst of change. 

Composer-trombonist Bob Pilkington’s “The Sixth Snake” began life in a dramatically different form as an assignment from one of his teachers, composer-trombonist Bob Brookmeyer. It was a rather dissonant piece based on a number sequence. Several years later Pilkington wondered if he could take the number sequence in the opposite direction and come up with a completely new, consonant piece. “I like to play around with ideas and build a piece,” Pilkington says. “I’m a noodler by nature.” Of course, he takes his “noodled” ideas and shapes them into a compelling, finished composition. This piece, commemorating his 60th birthday, is shot through with changing tone colors and textures, moody melodies, and highlighted by a celebratory trombone solo from the composer. It’s varied and complex, but each new development sounds logical and organic. 

David Harris’ infectiously grooving cultural mash up, “The Latest,” proposes a melding of the McCoy Tyner big band that recorded Fly with the Wind with traditional Thai music. “There’s no traditional melody in the composition, which is built using a pentatonic scale,” Harris explains. “But I liked the way Thai music develops by taking a repeated melody and adding new phrases and textures to it. That’s how I developed my piece.” Baritone saxophonist Melanie Howell Brooks and guitarist Norm Zocher keep the excitement and momentum going in their solos. 

Harris’ other contribution to the album, “Yellow, Orange, Blue,” is quite different. Using a combination of notation and unwritten gestures and cues, Harris and the orchestra shape a performance of the three-part composition that’s unique to the moment. There are multiple textures, dissonance and consonance, groove, and directed group improvisations, much of it organized and created spontaneously by Harris and the band. “It’s real improvisation on a group scale,” Harris says, “and I just think it’s thrilling, even better than taking a solo as an individual.” 

Katz reworks his setting of poet Paula Tatarunis’ “A Wallflower in the Amazon,” the title track of his 2010 JCAO album, to accommodate additional strings in the concert orchestra. The poem, evoking a bookish, but intrepid, narrator’s trip to a rainforest, is wry, modest, and full of wonder, and Katz’s prowess at composing for voice brings out all the nuances of the language. “I am always trying to make the melody and words be unified,” Katz says. “I am very much trying to put the poetry across, always looking for what seems like a good fit. I really want the listener to pay attention to the words, and I want the music to help them.” The composition also opens up to provide a setting for several of the band’s stellar soloists, including Jerry Sabatini’s sparkling trumpet and strong statements from saxophonists Lihi Haruvi, Phil Scarff and Rick Stone. Singer Rebecca Shrimpton not only interprets Katz’s score and Tatarunis’ words vividly, but also improvises her own melody to the words in a free improvisation section near the end of the piece.  

The album concludes on an up note with “Super Eyes-Private Heroes,” Rabson’s tribute to the sound tracks of espionage and super-hero movies. Think James Bond films or The Incredibles, she says, singling out a couple of her genre favorites. Soloists Melanie Howell Brooks, Helen Sherrah-Davies, and David Harris are the heroes who swoop in to save the day. It’s a fun, bright composition in keeping with its pop culture inspirations, but Rabson’s use of contrast, texture, and a unifying melodic thread indicate her artistic control of the material.  

“Recording live is really different than recording in the studio,” Katz says. “There’s a more focused energy and a sense of urgency, and a real feeling of a community working together, and on that night, from the audience. There’s no chance to go back and correct mistakes, everything is in the moment, but it’s really about the excitement of being on stage.”

www.jazzcomposersalliance.org 

Impulse! Records Celebrates 60 Years with Year-Long Campaign

For 60 years, the legendary Impulse! Records has been home to the greatest jazz artists of all time, including John Coltrane, Charles Mingus, Archie Shepp, Alice Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, Quincy Jones, and more. The orange-and-black imprint known as the House That Trane Built was a cultural beacon of progressivism, spiritualism, and activism throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Today, the label thrives with a new vanguard of jazz artists including Shabaka Hutchings, Sons of Kemet, The Comet Is Coming, Brandee Younger, Ted Poor and more.

To celebrate its 60th anniversary, Impulse! Records and UMe, the global catalog company of Universal Music Group, announce today a year-long campaign that includes a gorgeous, curated box set, a reimagined Alice Coltrane rarity, Turiya Sings, high-fidelity vinyl reissues, curated playlists, brand partnerships, new deep-dive video content and more to be announced throughout 2021. 

Jamie Krents, EVP of Verve and Impulse! says, "Impulse! Records has an important and enduring legacy that we are proud to celebrate during this anniversary year. We are thrilled to unveil new music, visual content, merchandise, partnerships and more. The famous orange label has been the musical home to progressive artists that pushed the boundaries of music, thought, and culture. Impulse! continues this legacy with a commitment to our history, and our future with artists like Shabaka and Brandee, who both carry the torch and blaze new trails. We are proud to share the story of this remarkable label with the world in this, its 60th year."

"Over the last 60 years, Impulse! Records has released some of the most important and influential jazz albums of all time and UMe remains honored to continue to help expand the legacy of this exceptional catalog," said Bruce Resnikoff, President & CEO of UMe. "We're thrilled to celebrate six decades of this iconic and truly American label by shining a light all year long on the profound way that Impulse! and its many incredible artists have forever impacted music and culture."

Today marks the pre-order for Impulse Records: Music, Message & The Moment, a 4-LP museum drop-front box set that tells the story of the political, social and spiritual facets of the artists and music of Impulse! Records. Impulse! was at its prolific height throughout the 1960s, a decade marked by political protest, racial unrest, social revolution, dismantling institutions – not unlike our current times. Jazz was an integral part of exploring Black identity and pushing cultural and political boundaries and conversations, as outlined in the box set essays by poet and critic A.B. Spellman and critic Greg Tate, both of whom offer vital perspective on the importance of this label, the artists and music that flowed through it, and the cultural backdrop. Watch an unboxing video of the set here.

The set features a curation of music that speaks to the political, social and spiritual elements that were swirling in the music during this time. Conversations about civil rights were echoed in records such as John Coltrane's Alabama, Archie Shepp's Attica Blues, John and Alice Coltrane's Reverend King, Charlie Haden and the Liberation Orchestra's We Shall Overcome, and Oliver Nelson's The Rights Of All. Spirituality, transcendentalism, and Afrofuturism offered a higher plane of existence and identity through the music of Albert Ayler, Pharoah Sanders, John Coltrane and Alice Coltrane. The historical importance of social music too is reflected in the works of Quincy Jones, John Handy and more.   

This summer, Impulse! Records will release a true rarity, Turiya Sings, by Alice Coltrane. Turiya Sings is a record of devotional chants recorded in the early 1980s at her ashram – the only place it was ever available. It is Alice Coltrane at peak spirituality and features her playing organ and chanting.

A version of this music was released on cassette in 1982, with synth and strings added, but never released after. For the first time ever, Turiya Sings will be released in its purest form – just organ and voice –as Alice's son and reissue producer Ravi Coltrane has long wanted to do. Turiya Sings (Deluxe Edition) will feature both versions of this spiritual recording – both remixed, remastered and released for the first time digitally and physically on CD and LP. 

The acclaimed audiophile vinyl reissues series, Acoustic Sounds, (Verve/UMe) will celebrate Impulse! all year long with high-end, audiophile grade pressings of integral records from the label's vaunted catalog, starting with Ray Charles' Genius + Soul = Jazz, which was one of the orange label's first four commercial releases in 1961. Pre-order Genius + Soul = Jazz here. Gil Evans' Out of the Cool (pre-order here), Oliver Nelson's The Blues And The Abstract Truth, Sonny Rollins' On Impulse! and many more are set for release throughout the year. 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 master tapes, pressed on 180-gram vinyl and packaged by Stoughton Printing Co.in high-quality tip-on gatefold jackets. Like all Acoustic Sounds LPs, the releases will be supervised by Chad Kassem, CEO of Acoustic Sounds, the world's largest source for audiophile recordings.

Additionally, keep an eye out for frontline releases from Sons of Kemet (Spring 2021), Brandee Younger (Summer 2021), and Pino Palladino and Blake Mills (March 2021).

Visit impulserecords.com for more information on Impulse! 60 and to keep up to date with new releases, curated playlists, videos, clothing/branded merchandise and more.

Jerusalem/NYC contemporary jazz band, FRIENDY, release their debut album, FRIENDY FIRE

Friendy Fire is an explosive collection of original compositions, fusing supercharged rock with contemporary jazz, while also drawing inspiration from animated Japanese TV shows and films. Friendy’s vision is to create a powerful musical experience that mixes a strong rhythmic feel with an abstract atmosphere. 

The album will be released through GSI Records (Eric Harland) and is a culmination of over a decade of friendship, hard work, and a common view of life. The band’s quirky social media activity uses humor and creative videos to create buzz and hype through their original music. 

Friendy’s members have been living in NYC and Boston for the past 3 years and have performed regularly on the scene. They have played or recorded with the likes of Kenny Garrett, Mark Turner, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Dave Douglas, Alex Sipiagin, Andy Mckee (bass), Jonathan Finlayson, and more.

The album was mixed by Brett Bullion, who mixed albums by Dave King and Reid Anderson, members of the Bad Plus. It was then mastered by Nate Wood, drummer for Tigran Hamasyan and Kneebody, who also mastered albums by Ben Wendel, Aaron Parks, Donny Mccaslin, Shai Maestro, and Tigran Hamasyan among others.

Each song in the album has its own narrative and imagery- "Glass Box" conveys the feeling of finally breaking out of a shell, "h" tries to give the feeling of sitting alone in a dark room lit only by your computer screen and "My Ninja Way", named after a quote from the Japanese anime “Naruto”, is all about staying true to your inner self and values. 

Each member’s unique style and approach adds a different dimension to Friendy’s musical universe. Zohar Amar has a passionate and rhythmic approach to the horn, very much influenced by African rhythms such as Gnawa. His harmonic language blends very well with Noam Borns’ into a style which they cultivated together since their high school days, based around concepts by Allan Holdsworth and Shostakovich among others. Borns has a charismatic and defined style, blending emotional melodicism with detailed and complex lines and textures coming out of Paul Bley, Aaron Parks, and Lennie Tristano. Daniel Ashkenazy’s playing is very imaginative, has story-like qualities, and manages to push boundaries and conventions of how to approach harmony, rhythm and form on the bass. As a unit, Ashkenazy and drummer Shai Yuval are cohesive and dynamic and are able to make both a swing tune and a heavy rock groove sound just right. Yuval is a very dynamic and wholesome musician, bringing a compositional approach to the drums that compliments the music and helps guide it where it needs to go. As a composer, drummer, and a person, he is the voice of reason that ties the music together.

Friendy’s members have been playing together for over 13 years, and share a unique musical language and view of the world- both of which are portrayed and demonstrated in the album Friendy Fire.

New Music Releases: Spontaneous Groovin' Combustion, Marshall Charloff, TuneTown

Spontaneous Groovin' Combustion - Spontaneous Groovin' Combustion 

Rarely has the name of an ensemble so perfectly reflected its dynamic, stylistically eclectic vibe as does Spontaneous Groovin’ Combustion, which – under the visionary guidance of composer, producer, saxophonist and flutist Warren A. Keller - kicks up the fast and tight, then slow and steady simmering melodic funk, right from the get-go, on their long-awaited self-titled debut album. Fans of the group’s four previously released singles (also included on this collection) will dig every harmonically colorful, thematically whimsical second as Keller and company build on these infectious foundations to create an urban jazz fusion masterwork. ~ smoothjazz.com

Marshall Charloff - Unperfect

Those who listen intently to the sensual yet funky, soulfully provocative, and spiritually-uplifting journey Marshall Charloff leads us through on his new album "Unperfect" may find his humble title ironic – since, vocally and instrumentally, it’s truly Smooth Jazz perfection in every way.  Drawing on a fascinating background that includes fronting symphony orchestras and touring globally paying tribute to Prince, and work with Atlanta Rhythm Section and The Commodores, the singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist seamlessly showcases many of the elements that have defined his multifaceted career.  Balancing the romantic acoustic dreaminess and sweet, easy flowing neo-soul, he grooves deeply with affirmative emotional/spiritual messages and two versions of a jam that pays homage to Prince and the sound of Minneapolis that Charloff has been sharing for years. ~ smoothjazz.com

TuneTown - Entering Utopia

TuneTown  pools the creativity of three of Canada’s top jazz improvisers; Kelly Jefferson (Saxophones), Artie Roth (Bass) and Ernesto Cervini (Drums, Percussion and Bass Clarinet).Entering Utopia expands on the creative journey and energy from the collective’s debut album and finds TuneTown again putting their unique stamp on both standards and original compositions. This engaging and fiercely melodic album combines three distinct musical voices on material that runs the gamut, from intense to sublime. Seamlessly assimilating elements from the avant garde, funk, and jazz worlds, Entering Utopia is a welcome addition to the saxophone trio tradition.The classic saxophone, bass and drums trio has a distinguished history in jazz, going back to Sonny Rollins and Lee Konitz in the late 1950s and early 60s. The Canadian collective TuneTown, formed in 2015, extends and honours the venerable tradition and releases its swingin’ and adventurous sophomore album in March.

New Music Releases: Kenney Polson, Lowell Hopper, Ron King

Kenney Polson - Colors Of Brazil

Veteran jazz saxophonist Kenney Polson was born in Kansas City and lives in the Pacific Northwest, but the wild, bustling Carnival joy emanating from his horn and a sizzling array  of exotic grooves and international instruments on "Colors Of Brazil" pay homage to the five formative years he spent living and performing in the Ipanema neighborhood of Rio. Alternating between the rhythms of excitement and romantic, balmy bossa nova, Polson’s deeper global vision as a well-traveled musical citizen of the world includes stellar guest performances by guitarist Leni Stern, harpist Mariea Antoinette and koto greats Osamu Kitajima and Mitsuki Dazai. ~ smoothjazz.com

Lowell Hopper - No Turning Back

One of Smooth Jazz’s most prolific artists and consistent chart-topping hitmakers, 20-year Air Force veteran Lowell Hopper has released an incredible 19 albums over the past quarter century. With a forward-leaning title that blissfully promises many more, his latest collection "No Turning Back" is much more than feel good, deeply-grooving and joyfully melodic jazz. Offering some of his deepest, most compelling expressions ever, this is also a master class in fluid and intricate electric guitar lines with an ambient and atmospheric musical mood setting that runs the emotional gamut between late night vibes and dance floor jams. ~ smoothjazz.com

Ron King - Downtown Mama

If you dig Rick Braun, you’ll welcome veteran trumpeter Ron King’s picture-perfect Smooth Jazz debut album "Downtown Mama" with open arms ready to sway and groove. Drawing on a decades-long resume filled with everyone from Frank Sinatra and Marvin Gaye to David Benoit and Jeff Lorber, King and producer Paul Brown fire up the old school, soul-jazz cool and the stylish horn textures while keeping the silk and funk (and a touch of fiery big band energy) flowing. King complements his bright infectious originals with colorful twists on classics by David Sanborn and The Rolling Stones! ~ smoothjazz.com

Lunar Octet Re-Emerges with First Album in 26 Years

A decades-long institution in Ann Arbor, home of the University of Michigan, and also the nearby Metro Detroit area, the Lunar Octet is back with a potent collection of originals inspired by such wide-ranging influences as mambo, samba, funk, Afrobeat and jazz on Convergence. The title itself suggests a confluence of rhythms and styles, and that is precisely what this band of multi-directional musicians has been doing since meeting 36 years ago in Ann Arbor and subsequently recording their 1994 debut, Highway Fun for Schoolkids Records. Reuniting in the studio 25 years later, the members of the Lunar Octet documented their collective growth while remaining committed to their original mission on Convergence, scheduled for a May 7th release on Summit Records.

From the percolating salsa groove of the infectious opener, “Norm’s Nambo,” to the swinging big band flavored chart, “Toote Suite,” the Brazilian music influenced “Mambossa,” the rhythmically charged “Subway Tension”, and the entrancing Afrobeat numbers “Dancin’ in the Doghouse” and “Heart of Congatar,” the Lunar Octet presents a compelling world view of sound. Add the churning “Samba Diabolico,” the buoyantly swinging “Crusin’” (think Neal Hefti arrangements for the mid ‘50s Count Basie band), the alluring tango “Until I Find Words” (an clarinet feature) and the rollicking, Brazilian flavored batucada “Samba Over Easy” (reminiscent of Airto Moreira’s “Tombo in 7/4”), and you’ve got a veritable United Nations of sound that you can also dance to. 

“The Lunar Octet is like a diamond,” said percussionist and co-founding member Aron Kaufman, called “the soul of the band” by his colleagues. “We’re all different facets of the diamond expressing the singularity of our musical mission. And it’s not about our technique, in terms of us being monster chops players who want to show off how amazing we are. Really, it’s the sum of the parts that brings hope and joy and love to people who come to see us. I believe with all my heart and soul that as artists, if we can lift people’s spirits by showing a love and celebration of the different world musical cultures that we bring to life in our particular special way, we’re bringing some light to the darkness.”

Originally formed in 1984 as the Afrobeat flavored Lunar Glee Club, the group morphed into the Lunar Octet in the ‘90s and began taking on the influences of samba and jazz through the compositions and arranging of alto saxophonist and principal composer Steve Hiltner. The New York City-born Kaufman absorbed music in the Big Apple (represented by his tune “Subway Tension”) before his family moved to Puerto Rico. Through his mentor Norman Shobey (Aron’s tune “Norm’s Nambo” is dedicated to Norm), Kaufman began studying conga and later widened his repertoire with a year abroad in Israel, where he soaked up Middle Eastern music and began playing the darbuka drum. Other founding members of the band include drummer Jon Krosnick (who also anchors the West Coast-based fusion band Charged Particles), tenor saxophonist Paul VornHagen (who also leads the Cuban jazz combo Tumbao Bravo), trumpeter Brandon Cooper (an in-demand freelancer in the Metro Detroit area) and guitarist Sam Clark. Rounding out the Lunar Octet are young piano sensation Keaton Royer, bassist Jeff Dalton, and percussionist Olman Piedra.

Regarding the group’s long hiatus and recent return with Convergence, Krosnick said, “The early ‘90s was the peak time for the band, when we were on national radio broadcasts and playing at major festivals. But then band members moved away. I took a job teaching at Ohio State, Steve Hiltner moved to North Carolina, others moved elsewhere. So we lost momentum. But we rediscovered ourselves five years ago and said, “Hey, this music’s cool, let’s keep doing this.” That reunion came in 2014 with a performance at the Kerrytown Concert House in Ann Arbor. And regular performances have followed ever since. “It's been fun to come back with live shows,” said Krosnick. “And now with the release of Convergence, we're feeling like we can create some buzz about the band and do some touring.”

Krosnick explained that the band’s initial Afrobeat influence came in large part from original bassist Dan Ladizinsky, who names King Sunny Ade as a primary influence. As Jon recalls, “It was literally a garage band in the beginning. Guys were getting together and just trying to groove. The more intricate compositions only kicked in years later when Steve Hiltner joined the band. He brought in some of the more highly orchestrated stuff that’s full of complexities and twists and surprises and unexpected bridges. But it was quite the opposite in the beginning. The original version of the band had no piano player and two bass players and a guitar player, so there was a deep African groove thing happening, like a jam band.” 

“I sort of ruined it for the faction of the group that really loved straight-ahead grooves and simple melodic stuff,” said Hiltner. “I started bringing in pieces that were more than just stock 32 bar tunes that could be in the Real Book. I bring a classical element to the band in the motivic development in my compositions, which you can hear on ‘Samba Diabolico,’ for instance.” Of the seemingly disparate musical elements coming together on Convergence, Hiltner, a trained botanist added: “Nature is just miraculous in the way it breaks everything down into constituent parts and then builds something new. I think of the creative process like that. It’s like composting: bringing lots of different elements together so something new comes out of the blend.” 

After such a long hiatus from recording, Kaufman is thrilled about the release of the Lunar Octet’s Convergence. “It shows the longevity of our friendships and music all intertwined,” he said. “And music really is an expression of our connections to each other. What we’re doing reflects years and years of building trust and relationships.” He added, “I’m always open to new possibilities. That’s what’s great about the Lunar Octet. Over and over again, one of us has come up with an idea that has musical integrity and a quality that is inspiring and that we are excited about. That’s what makes our music so interesting and varied. And we always support each other to bring those kinds of tunes out. Openness of sharing is an important part of the band. All of the many different musical qualities that we all bring to the table help form a nice balance.”

New Music Releases: The Freedom Affair, Giuliano Sorgini & Others, Emmavie

The Freedom Affair - Freedom Is Love

For Fans Of… Sly & The Family Stone, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Durand Jones & The Indications, Black Pumas. Debut album from The Freedom Affair. “Rise Up” was featured on Netflix’s “Self Made” and Apple Watch commercial. Final track features an appearance by the late Dr. Maya Angelou. Released by Sunflower Soul Records in partnership with Colemine Records. ‘Freedom Is Love’ is the debut album from Kansas City’s newest soul juggernaut, The Freedom Affair. The album explores themes of love, heartache, empowerment, and togetherness through a varying landscape of hard-hitting funk, luscious soul, and everything in between. The Freedom Affair is a unique collective featuring 3 powerhouse female vocalists in front of a dynamic 6-piece band. On ‘Freedom Is Love’, each of the ladies get their time to shine individually, but the magic is on full display when all 3 come together in unison and harmony, symbolically embodying the messages that they sing about. The album was recorded and produced by Chris Hazelton, utilizing the best of vintage and new recording technologies to create an authentic experience, befitting of a soul record that would have been relevant 50 years ago as much as it will be 50 years from now. ~ wwwfirstexperiencerecords

Giuliano Sorgini & Others - Africa Oscura Reloved Vol 1

A special set of tracks that pays tribute to the original Africa Oscura record from Italian sound library composer Giuliano Sorgini – a fantastic blend of percussion and electronics that was almost a 70s update on older exotica modes, but with a much darker vibe overall! Here, contemporary talents take the original music and mix things up a bit – often with a rhythmic vibe, but never in a mode that gets in the way of Sorgini's original genius! Vol 1 features three tracks in all – "Oasi Nella Giungla (afro temple mix)" by Pad, "Africa Oscura (drums of passion mix)" by Paine, and "Iniziazione (ritual quirky mix)" by LUCA. ~ Dusty Groove

Emmavie - Honeymoon

A really great set from Emmavie – one of the freshest soul singers we've heard in awhile, and a talent from the London scene we expect to be hearing a lot more from in years to come! Emmavie's got an ear for sound that often has her vocals folded right down into the music – clearly loving digital expression as much as her own organic style of singing – served up here with an approach that's crackling and bristling with energy throughout – enough depth to have ties to the old school, but a beautiful quality that definitely makes you feel that you're getting into something new. Titles include "Stop The Tape", "Distraction", "Let You Down", "High Off This", "I Hope We Never Break Up", and "Burn This House". ~ Dusty Groove

Mop Mop – Ritual Of The Savage

To celebrate 10 years of this great album INFRACom! is delighted to announce a limited pressing (ltd. editon 500 copies) of Mop Mop ́s third long player. For the first time on vinyl ! Back in 2010 INFRACom! could only release a CD version. For this vinyl release the original studio masters have been transferred to “reel tape” and received a special vinyl mastering for a great analog sound. The original artwork has been transferred to the vinyl version that comes in a gatefold sleeve.

After the highly acclaimed “Kiss Of Kali” Mop Mop are back with Ritual Of The Savage, the third studio album, written, arranged and produced by Andrea Benini. Ritual Of The Savage contains twelve tracks of pure hypnotic Jazz, spiritual flavours, exotic Funk and Soul music influenced by Latin and African beats.

Collaborations in the album include the amazing UK vocalist Miss Baby Sol (backing vocaling for the likes of Amy Winehouse, Joss Stone, Paloma Faith, Nate James), veteran Jazz crooner Alan Farrington, Down Beat critics poll winner Gianluca Petrella on trombone, the Italian vibraphone Star Pasquale Mirra, the Voodoo sound of Guglielmo Pagnozzi on clarinette and alto sax, percussionist Danilo Mineo and Andrea Benini’s co-writer and arranger Alex Trebo on piano and keyboards.

Ritual Of The Savage is an album with the philosophy of a soundtrack where the main character is a modern Savage who is searching for a perfect land where music is the only law. He starts his journey after “The Return Of The King”, the album’s opening track, going to an unknown “Destination” where Jazz meets Funk.

Will the Savage be able to reach his goal? Nobody knows. But as the last album’s track “Aria” suggests he will land in a space where everything is harmonious.

The result is surely mindblowing with a flowing tracklist which sequels as if to tell a story. This album is made for the selective and open mainded music heads and dj’s; vintage elements are mixed through a modern way of production and beats are generated by acoustic drums and analog drum machines. As Andrea Benini suggests on “Ritual Of The Savage”‘s lyrics : “…Step back, burn all your money, give up to your power silks and chase real pleasure”. ~ www.firstexperiencerecords.com

New Music Releases: Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio, Matthew Halsall, Out To Dinner

Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio - I Told You So

Deeply funky work from one of the hippest Hammond organ combos around – just a trio, but one that's able to pack the punch of so many much larger groups! Delvon Lamarr took all the right lessons from Hammond heroes of the past – not that he's copying anyone's style, because he isn't – but he really knows the right way to make the instrument move between rhythm and melody, solo and groove – as he works here in ultra-tight formation with funky drummer Grant Schroff and guitarist Jimmy James! James gets in a few great licks of his own – and like Delvon, really knows how to move between staying on the rhythm, and getting loose – which makes for a wonderful album, through, filled with stone cold originals that include "Hole In One", "Call Your Mom", "Girly Face", "From The Streets", "I Don't Know", "Fo Sho", and "Aces". ~ Dusty Groove

Matthew Halsall - Salute To The Sun

A gem of a record from trumpeter Matthew Halsall – one of our favorite jazz musicians of the past 20 years, and an artist who just seems to be growing and growing with each new release! This set picks up on the organic, meditative quality of some of Halsall's recent records – but it also has a bit more bite, and is maybe almost a return to the roots of his earliest records on the Gondwana label – those classics that first made us fall in love with his music over a decade ago, and which made Matthew a real front-runner of the current global spiritual jazz underground! The set's got this very rich presentation – as the leader's work on trumpet is mixed with harp from Maddie Herbert, flute and tenor from Matt Cliffe, piano and kalimba from Livin Gheorghe, and great use of percussion, bass, and drums – all on long tracks that build with the best sort of post-Coltrane energy – titles that include "Joyful Spirits Of The Universe", "Mindfulness Meditations", "Tropical Landscapes", "Harmony With Nature", and "The Energy Of Life".  ~ Dusty Groove

Out To Dinner (Michael Dease, Behn Gillece, & Others) - Play On

Great work from Out To Dinner – an all-star group who certainly weren't out to lunch when this set was recorded – as it's got all the sharp crackle of some of the members' other work on the Posi-Tone label! The lineup is a bit different than the previous record, but every bit as wonderful – theses bold colors from the vibes of Behn Gillece, soulful flow from the tenor of Nicole Glover, well-punctuated trumpet from Giveton Gelin, round bass from Boris Kozlov, and sharply snapping drums from Donald Edwards – joined by the alto sax of Patrick Cornelius on three of the album's thirteen tracks. Tunes are all relatively short – between four and six minutes – but are mostly originals from group members, and really pack a lot of imagination into a short space. Titles include "Asami's Playland", "Random", "The Essential Passion", "Abe Duct", "Something From Nothing", "Rebecca's Dance", and "Into The Shadows". ~ Dusty Groove

Pianist ALAN PASQUA's Solo Album, "DAY DREAM"

Alan Pasqua is a piano legend. He’s performed and recorded with many of the top names in both jazz and pop. He was a member of The New Tony Williams Lifetime and appeared on the albums Believe It and Million Dollar Legs. He also performed with Jack DeJohnette, Paul Motian, Dave Holland, Michael Brecker, Randy Becker, Joe Henderson, Stanley Clarke, Gary Burton, James Moody, Gary Peacock, Gary Bartz, Reggie Workman, The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, Sheila Jordan, and Joe Williams, to name just a few.

In the pop world, Pasqua recorded two albums with Dylan (Bob Dylan at Budokan and Street-Legal), performed with John Fogerty on the album Eye of the Zombie, with Starship on the album No Protection, and with Allan Holdsworth on the album Sand. He was also the keyboardist for Carlos Santana on his albums Marathon, Zebop! and Havana Moon.

Pasqua has also been the leader or co-leader on many critically acclaimed jazz recordings. In 2008, Pasqua joined forces with Peter Erskine and Dave Carpenter, arranging, co-producing and playing on the Grammy-nominated trio album Standards. His recent releases are Twin Bill, which features Pasqua playing the music of Bill Evans on two pianos, and Northern Lights, which features Pasqua’s original compositions, exploring his roots in the classical, pop and jazz idioms. 

Soliloquy, his newest project, was recorded in Pasqua’s Santa Monica studio on his Hamburg Steinway concert grand piano. The sound is exquisite and the performance invites the listener to an intimate personal journey. Included are nine of his favorite standards and one cover of a Bob Dylan song.

Message from Alan Pasqua:

Day Dream is my latest solo piano recording. It is a mix of some of my favorite standard songs as well as a few hidden gems. All of the songs that I have chosen have incredible melodies as well as harmonic depth. The performances are really a snapshot in time of my interpretation of the song. The recording is very intimate in sound, recorded on my Hamburg Steinway concert grand piano in my Los Angeles studio. I try and be as transparent as possible when realizing these songs. My sole mission is to honor the composer and work.  I hope that you enjoy Day Dream.

Bill Kwan | "No Ordinary Love: The Music of Sade"

This is no ordinary jazz album. It’s not just that San Francisco vocalist Bill Kwan delves deeply into the songbook of one of the 20th century’s most popular female singers. Slated for release on April 16, 2021 No Ordinary Love: The Music of Sade captures an artist boldly redefining himself. Collaborating closely with a brilliant cast of New York players, he brings a confidently sensuous male sensibility to material defined by the Nigerian-born superstar, whose cool, understated style and regal persona has largely kept other artists from interpreting her songs. 

Working again with veteran producer Matt Pierson, whose credits range from Brad Mehldau, Joshua Redman and Kirk Whalum to k.d. lang, Laura Benanti and Jane Monheit, Kwan is both reverent and resolutely unprecious in reimagining Sade’s music. In many ways No Ordinary Love builds on his previous project with Pierson, 2015’s Poison & Wine, a pensive and often riveting collection of contemporary indie rock songs by the likes of Beck, Björk, Bon Iver, Gillian Welch, and The Civil Wars. 

With Noam Wiesenberg’s bespoke arrangements tailored to the sleek contours of his voice, Kwan finds a way to get inside Sade’s music, navigating treacherous emotional terrain while flipping the gender dynamic in familiar narratives. “It’s very different tackling these songs from a male perspective and I could only sing pieces where I could identify with the lyrics,” Kwan says. “The key was maintaining the intimacy and not over singing. We maintained the fragile quality of Sade’s music even though the feel is very different.”

Kwan is joined by a New York dream team distinguished by deep connections to both the city’s jazz scene and innovative singer/songwriters, starting with pianist/keyboardist Kevin Hays, a veteran improviser who also composes his own songs. Sex Mob and Bill Frisell bassist Tony Scherr and the brilliant Japanese-born drummer/percussionist Keita Ogawa round out the ace rhythm section. Paris-raised Django Festival All-Stars accordion master Ludovic Beier and Russia-reared trumpeter Alex Sipiagin contribute memorable solos. 

“Obviously casting is extremely important,” says Pierson, a producer with a deep catalog of career-defining albums by some of jazz and contemporary music’s most influential artists. “Kevin was involved with Bill in the past so he was a natural, but Tony Scherr and Keita Ogawa were also key. The versatility that Tony brings as a singer/songwriter himself is exceptional, and Keita is singular, a drummer with a whole lot of percussion integrated into his set. They’ve got a deep understanding about how to support a vocalist, understanding what not to play. Finally, I’d gotten to know Noam Wiesenberg when we worked together on Camila Meza’s Ámbar project, and felt he would create perfect treatments for many of these songs.”

From the opening track, a gorgeous string-laced arrangement of “The Sweetest Taboo” set to a slinky, predatory groove, Kwan embraces a less-is-more aesthetic. His restraint paradoxically amplifies a song’s emotional wavelength. He’s in the midst of the fierce tango maelstrom of “King of Sorrow,” a lacerating arrangement underscored by Ludovic Beier’s slippery bandoneon and Antoine Silverman’s violin accents. Beier’s harmonica-like accordina brings out the loneliness at the heart of “Jezebel,” a portrait that Kwan renders with gentle precision. 

The title track is also the album’s centerpiece, a startlingly effective version of “No Ordinary Love” that captures both Sade’s underappreciated skill as a songwriter and Kwan’s ability to make an iconic tune his own. Propelled by Hays’ funky Fender Rhodes and Scherr’s chunky electric guitar chords, the track pulls off the near impossible feat of standing brilliantly on its own while enhancing the original. With songs drawn from just about every Sade album (and lesser-known pieces she’s contributed to soundtracks), Kwan covers a lot of musical territory, striking pay dirt again and again. From his soothing croon on “Love Is Stronger Than Pride” to the anguished but triumphant “The Big Unknown.”

“The challenge is that her music is so identifiable,” Kwan said. “Even if some of the original productions, like ‘The Sweetest Taboo,’ may not have aged well, her phrasing and approach is so hip. I adopted a very specific rule, singing like you’re not singing, while trying to make sure there’s enough emotion. What makes her music interesting is the repetition. The magic is that hook or melody. Often times Matt would dial me down. He really did guide me with the dynamics of each song.” 

Kwan’s mid-life emergence as a jazz-informed vocalist is mostly due to the fact that music is his second calling. A dermatologist with a solo practice in San Francisco, he’s honed his craft at many of the Bay Area’s leading jazz venues. Born and raised in Southern California, Kwan wasn’t particularly drawn to music as a youth. By his early 20s he started getting seriously interested in jazz, finding particular inspiration from the master vocalists he saw performing at the Hollywood Bowl, such as Mel Tormé, Dame Cleo Laine, Nancy Wilson, and Ella Fitzgerald. 

Studying medicine at the University of Southern California didn’t leave him much time to pursue his growing love of music, but once he settled in San Francisco he started to seek out opportunities. He spent several years studying with Kitty Margolis, a master teacher and top-shelf jazz vocalist, and took classes at the Jazzschool in Berkeley with vocalist Laurie Antonioli and trombonist Wayne Wallace. Working with bassist Seward McCain and drummer Jim Zimmerman, who both spent many years in the popular trio of pianist Vince Guaraldi, he recorded his 2010 debut album Pentimento, a well-curated program of standards. 

Kwan followed up with 2013’s More Than This, a transitional album that ranged from American Songbook fare to Bryan Ferry and Radiohead. It was his first project produced by Pierson, a creative partnership that blossomed with 2015’s Poison & Wine. Undaunted by Sade’s indelible musical imprint, Kwan reveals himself as an artist with a cool and intoxicating sound himself on No Ordinary Love: The Music of Sade, an album that announces the arrival of a potent pop-jazz interpreter. 

California Roots Music and Arts Festival Announces May 2022 date with Line Up Including: Damian Marley, Sean Paul, Ice Cube and Sublime With Rome

The California Roots Music & Arts Festival announced today that they are moving their 2021 event to May 2022, due to the ongoing public health and safety concerns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. The premier reggae, roots, and hip hop festival is also expanding to four days, officially kicking off on Thursday, May 26, 2022. The additional day features Dirty Heads headlining alongside Fortunate Youth, Alborosie, and more. The stellar four day lineup includes Cali Roots favorites Rebelution, Atmosphere, Chronixx, and Damian Marley returning with debut performances from Sean Paul, Ice Cube and Sublime With Rome. Artist lineup and day by day breakdown is listed below with more artists to be announced. 

Dan Sheehan, Co-Producer states, “The past year has been very challenging, giving many of us more time to reflect on what’s important. The Cali Roots community is amazing, supportive, and made clear on how much this festival means to them. That is why we are committed to returning in 2022 for the strongest Cali Roots to date, including an additional day of music.” He adds, “To everyone that has stuck by us, bought our merch, or sent positive messages our way, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We are dedicated to producing another unforgettable event and are counting the days until we are together again.”

 All 2021 tickets will be honored for Cali Roots 2022. Ticket holders that have questions or concerns can contact solutions@californiarootspresents.com for more details.

New Music Releases: Zoe Scott, Angela Predhomme, Kim Scott

Zoe Scott - Shades Of Love

It’s telling that singer Zoe Scott includes a sensual version of a Chrissie Hynde / Pretenders hit among other pop and Brazilian classics on Shades Of Love, her exquisite, breezy and lushly produced album of bossa nova. The London-born recording artist found great success as an edgy rock n’ roller for years before the Brazilian jazz bug bit her and challenged her to be more emotionally vulnerable and in tune with what she calls “life in the quiet spaces.” Adding to the magic and charm of Scott’s soul-stirring transformation into an interpreter of subtlety and seduction, are Brazilian-born multi-Grammy and Latin Grammy winning producer Moogie Canazio and bossa legends, including guitarist and arranger Torcuato Mariano and pianist/singer Daniel Jobim, grandson of Antonio Carlos Jobim. Brava! ~ smoothjazz.com

Angela Predhomme -Stay with Me

With a laid back, soulful style, singer-songwriter Angela Predhomme expresses emotion with honesty and passion. Predhomme’s unique brand of simple, elegant artistry shines on her cover of Sam Smith’s “Stay with Me.” The song seems like a natural for her intimate, longing vocal delivery that soars up to gently float on sweet harmonies. The stripped down piano-vocal production on “Stay with Me” lays out bare emotion, compelling in its uncluttered authenticity. Asked why she chose this song to cover, Predhomme says, “How can I not be a fan of Sam Smith? I think he’s one of the best new artists of the last decade. Sam is a singer’s singer, and a true artist. About my choice of ‘Stay with Me,’ I always felt a connection to the intuitive, memorable melody and the raw, intense plea to save someone from abandonment. I think we’ve all been there at some point.” Predhomme’s commitment to writing and producing her own music has continued, buoyed by Symphonic Distribution, with whom she signed recently. Her infectiously catchy summer release, “So Good to Be Free” continues to draw in new listeners, as well as its follow up, her soulful love song, “Changeless Sky.” Gaining momentum, too, is Predhomme’s low-key fall release, “Graced with You,” a tender piano-based waltz with strings that highlights her classical influences.

Kim Scott - Shine!

With great hope in her heart and whimsical groove in her spirit, flutist Kim Scott launches her second decade as a Smooth Jazz recording artist with “Back Together Again,” from her forthcoming album Shine! A playful and infectious romp with simmering energy and soaring melody, makes the song the perfect soundtrack for a post-Covid world of rekindled friendships and family relationships that have been sidelined during the pandemic. Ms. Scott, also a nationally syndicated radio host, dynamically collaborates with the song’s co-writer, keyboardist Greg Manning, who keeps the rhythms tight, with graceful harmonies and lush atmospheres flowing beautifully with the trademark flute vibe. From start to finish, “Back Together Again” works the deeper magic of making us feel optimistic again. ~ smoothjazz.com