New Music Releases: JK Group, Designers, JazzPhil, Ivan Grebenschikov

JK Group - Rising

Multi-dimensional future-jazz outfit JK GROUP to release a new EP, 'Rising' on La Sape Records. The brainchild of award-winning saxophonist, Joshua Kelly (30/70 collective, PBS Young Elder of Jazz 2019), the band returns to the label with a follow up EP to the mind-bending 2021 release, 'What’s Real?' Where 'What’s Real?' served as a platform for wild experimentation, 'Rising' returns to a more considered and familiar format for the band, offering up 4 cohesive tracks that are deep in conception and expression, at once original and fresh. Conceived after recording an as yet unreleased body of work written whilst undergoing chemotherapy, 'Rising' celebrates bandleader Josh’s survival and eventual recovery from the intense treatment he received for lymphoma in 2020. The band stays true to their honed format of jazz traditions melding with influences from electronica and beyond. Like the first release, 'The Young Ones', 'Rising' sits comfortably in the crossover of raw, live jazz and electronic dance music, whilst also throwing an unexpected curveball to the listener expanding the palate of the bands sound to a pigment never before heard in their music.

Designers - Designers

Designers are Joachim Florent on double bass, Will Guthrie on drums, Aki Rissanen on piano. This is their debut album together, released by We Jazz Records on 2 Dec. Their music, composed by Joachim Florent, is inspired by geometry and architecture. The music flows as minimalist, postmodern piano trio jazz of the highest calibre, as evidenced by the lead single ‘Moulindjek'. Florent (from Belgium) and Guthrie (from Australia) are based in Nantes, France, and Rissanen (from Finland) also has strong ties to the city. Joachim Florent says: "As a kid I started playing music with the piano and I keep playing it every day, even if pretty poorly, and use it to compose and discover new music. In 2019 I started to write some piano studies that appeared to be pretty geometrical in a way, so I had this idea I could bring some music for the trio that would be inspired by geometry and architecture. In the meantime, I knew that we would improvise as much as possible as Aki and Will are among the most brilliant improvisers I've ever met! So the challenge for me was to write as little as possible but to make the material strong enough to suggest a particular geometric feeling for each tune. I discovered Filip Dujardin's work some ten years ago and I was struck by the power of these impossible architectures looking so familiar and totally surrealist in the meantime. I guess that's how I would love Designers to sound: both familiar and surrealist."

JazzPhil – New Delights

This is a classic jazz quartet of instruments: saxophone, piano, double bass and percussion. My second album, in collaboration with saxophonist Dmitry Semenov, we recorded in the studio under the dome of St. Catherine’s Church on Vasilyevsky Island. The jazz quartet format implies a large space for soloists and opportunities for interaction, and here the musical finds of pianist Ilya Shcheklein and drummer Artyom Teklyuk were clearly manifested. The experience of joint concert playing on St. Petersburg jazz scenes is embodied in this album. Several of my compositions written for the quartet were complemented by interpretations of works by composers from the first half of the 20th century. One of the ideas is the embodiment of musical images by means of acoustic instruments. In search of colors, we followed the traditions of the modern mainstream, but not limited to the stylistics of, for example, hard bop or modal jazz.

Ivan Grebenschikov – Photo of A Changing World

“Photo of A Changing World” is a symbol of the fact that it is impossible to see the movement of time in a static image, unless you turns on the imagination. With the help of imagination, a person connects one old photograph with another and feels the dynamics of time. I tried to convey the feeling of this dynamics in music. This album is like recorded in the last century on an audio cassette, which was lost and found only many years later. The genre of the album cannot be described in one word – Latin American jazz and hard rock, free jazz and free improvisation are mixed here. Each genre is a rung on a spiral staircase that we move from the past to the present.

Pennsylvania-Based The Frost Duo Lead Us To Seduction with'70s/'80s-Influenced "To Be With You"

Sometimes you just want to be taken on an unhurried, mellow journey of seduction, and Scranton, PA-based The Frost Duo deliver with their ‘70s/’80s-influenced smooth-jazz ballad “To Be With You” off their new LP Play Nice – available now.

Singer LeahBeth Evans’ voice slinks and shimmies through the backdrop of warm analog keyboards and velvety jazz guitar as she boldly inquires, “Can you tell me what you’re doing tonight/ Can you tell me what you’re doing next year/ Cuz I need to be with you.” And it’s hard not to melt, and succumb completely to the song’s charms, when she starts to sing about fearlessly taking a leap of faith – “Well, you know I’m not afraid to pursue/ A love greater than imagined and true.”

“To Be With You” is included on the duo’s five-song EP Play Nice, a sonic rollercoaster of emotion. From a lyrical aspect, Play Nice takes the listener not only through the consciousness of the composers LeahBeth Evans and Christian Gratz themselves, but it also introduces us to the friends and acquaintances who have filled Evans’ and Gratz’s  ears with their own experiences of finding love and experiencing loss, anger, and even impending doom from the recent global crisis we’ve all experienced. From a sonic aspect, Play Nice is a celebration of the duo’s love of smooth jazz, traditional compositions, and even rock music. They will be embarking on a small tri-state tour in support of the EP, and dates are as follows:

• October 29, 2022             The Hotel Hershey                      Hershey, PA
• October 30, 2022             Ad Lib inside Hilton Harrisburg   Harrisburg, PA
• November 19, 2022         Crystal Springs Resort                 Hamburg, NJ
• December 3, 2022            Lackawanna Winterfest               Scranton, PA
• December 31, 2022          Skytop Lodge                              Skytop, PA

The Frost Duo consists of multi-instrumentalist and composer Christian Gratz and lead vocalist/songwriter LeahBeth Evans. In 2015, LeahBeth and Christian met through mutual Facebook friends and began corresponding about their love of music. Soon, they began casually dating, and after about a month, Christian invited LeahBeth to sing a few songs at a gig he booked in Dunmore, PA, at an Italian restaurant called Russell’s. After the night was finished, the owner requested that the two perform twice a week for the rest of the summer, and they agreed. After that regular gig, the two lovers decided that the sky was the limit, and that they would continue to make beautiful music together.

Throughout the years, the duo has performed at some prestigious and renowned American venues, including Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville, Club Macanudo in New York City, and the Crystal Springs Resort. After years of traveling, The Frost Duo decided that they wanted to dive deeper into their love for smooth jazz, and so they began writing and recording. Since then, they have had recordings land on the iTunes jazz charts and the BDS/Neilson Smooth Jazz “Most Added” listings.

Their new single “To Be With You” is available now.

New Music Releases: Bob Baldwin, Terry Wollman, Eliane Elias, Gyedu-Blay Ambolley

Bob Baldwin - B Positive

Bob Baldwin’s 34th studio offering is a continual stay-at-home event. The 33rd offering was a live record recorded in Elmsford, NY (The live ‘Stay-at-Home Series’). The latest offering, “B Positive” is a road map on how to keep your chin up high. “Having faced near-death family illness, I’m glad I can take away some things that I can share with my listener,” says the native New Yorker Pianist. “Chances are, if I’ve gone through it, so has a lot more people”, says Baldwin. “If you just look at the titles, you’ll clearly see what my intent is…simply don’t lose control of the ship, no matter what goes down”. Here’s Baldwin’s further takes on some of the project below: This record feels more like a rejuvenation of his old projects like “Cool Breeze”, hearkening back to fun and bouncy melodies, with just enough harmonic tension to make the hair on the back of your neck tingle and tickle. In closing, my influences of Herbie, Joe Sample, George Duke, as well as inspirations from the old schoolers of jazz make this a cool listen, in my opinion. The bass flows, drums are solid, Phil Hamilton’s funky stroke on guitar throughout the project push the syncopation to nice head-nodding spaces. Hopefully, another cd for your driving pleasure for sure! We once thank you for taking this musical journey with Bob Baldwin. We hope ‘B Positive’ delivers the healing, soothing and blessings you were hoping to expecting, without even listening, the titles themselves make one’s mood better already. Tell a friend!!”

Terry Wollman - Silver Collection

Extraordinary musician Terry Wollman offers up a 25 year musical retrospective with his album “Silver Collection” which includes this artist’s very best songs since 1988. The album is a blend of smooth jazz, latin-salsa, world beat, and adult contemporary pop… all served up in a single consistent sonic landscape. This spectacular recording features Wollman’s friends Dave Koz, Joe Sample, Mindi Abair, Gerald Albright, Michael McDonald, Keb’ Mo’ and a world-class band. Track Listing: 1. Welcome To Paradise 2. Buddha's Ear 3. Our Love 4. Bimini 5. Dear Dad 6. Buckwheat Sample 7. A Little More Music 8. Survive 9. Brother Q 10. Scorchin' 11. Obrigado 12. Reflections 13. This Day 14. Mandela.

Eliane Elias - Quietude

Hot off her 2022 GRAMMY win for Best Latin Jazz Album, Mirror Mirrorwith Chick Corea and Chucho Valdés, superstar pianist, singer, composer and arranger Eliane Elias returns to her Brazilian bossa nova roots with her forthcoming album Quietude.   A luscious collection showcasing her alluring vocals with her virtuosic instrumental jazz and piano mastery, the recording features songs by such legendary composers as Antonio Carlos Jobim, and Dorival Caymmi along with Dori Caymmi who joins her on vocals for the closing track of the recording. Includes: Você E Eu (You and I); Marina; Bahia Com H (Bahia with H) SÓ Tinha Que Ser Com Você (This Love That I've Found); Olha (Look); Bahia Medley: Saudade Da Bahia/Você JÁ Foi Á; Eu Sambo Mesmo (I Really Samba); Bolinha de Papel (Little Paper Ball); Tim-Tim Por Tim-Tim; and Brigas Nunca Mais (No More Fighting).

Gyedu-Blay Ambolley - Gyedu-Blay Ambolley & High Life Jazz

A really great record from West African 70s legend Gyedu-Blay Ambolley – and a record that definitely offers up plenty of the jazz promised in the title! Back in the day, Ambolley had a style that was much more steeped in funk and soul – but here, the tracks are longer and more spiritual – with really wonderful instrumentation that includes plenty of solos on the tenor pictured on the cover, mixed with plenty of percussion, keyboards, and other great horn work too! There's a richness to the record that maybe makes it the greatest one that Gyedu-Blay has given us in recent years – and titles include great remakes of "Love Supreme", "Footprints", "Round Midnight", and "All Blues" – plus "Yekor Ye A Yeaba", "Enyidado", "Asamansudo Groove", and "Sankumagye Love Life". ~ Dusty Groove

Merlon Devine | "Stirred"

Gifts. Talents. Blessings. All to serve a specific purpose that serves others. And they are to be utilized fully to fulfill that function. That’s how soul-jazz saxophonist Merlon Devine sees it, using his to write and record contemporary jazz that is church derived. His new upbeat instrumental R&B single “Stirred” goes for playlist adds on October 24.

“I believe everyone has a gift. Every person on earth has something they were given - from God - to help them fulfill their purpose while on earth. There’s a scripture in the Bible that talks about each person ‘stirring’ their gift. In other words, your gift should not collect dust, but each person should make sure they keep their gift sharp and in use. I feel we are most effective and happy when we use the gift we’ve been given,” said Devine about the feel-good song he wrote with producer Matt Godina (Darren Rahn, Julian Vaughn, Nicholas Cole, Lin Rountree).

“Stirred” is the third single from Devine’s eighth album, “Soul Jazz,” which dropped last year. Emoting passion, inspiration and grace, Devine plays saxes and flute on the track. Godina adds keyboards, guitar and programming to the ebullient harmonies. The midtempo groove is anchored by bassist Kevin “Mr. Kevin Jerome” Stancil and drummer Lester Estelle, Jr.

It’s natural for Devine to turn to his faith when it comes to composing music. Born in Little Rock, Arkansas to parents who pastored a church, the household was always filled with music, primarily gospel. While Devine’s nine siblings could all sing, he found his voice via saxophone. Church informed his spirituality, but discovering contemporary jazz informed his music. From Jesus and the Apostles to Groover Washington, Jr., Najee, George Howard, Kirk Whalum and other saxophone greats, Devine found a creative path for his artistic expression to incorporate both pillars in his life.  

“My love for contemporary jazz grew as I grew as a player. Listening to these saxophonists, mixed with the soulful and heartfelt riffs I was hearing at church, shaped me into what I am today. When I started writing songs, it was contemporary jazz. It evolved into a wonderful opportunity for me to provide churches with instrumental music in the style of contemporary jazz during sacred worship gatherings. I consider myself a contemporary jazz ambassador to the church,” said Devine who lives with his family just outside of Washington, DC.

As “Stirred” arrives, hopefully motivating listeners to put their gift to work, Devine continues his musical ministry this month at the following concert dates:

• October 22 / Grand Opening Event /  Waldorf, MD
• October 23 / Crossover Church /  Hyattsville, MD
• October 30 / First Baptist Church / N. Brentwood, MD

Joe Louis Walker | "Weight Of The World"

On February 17th, Forty Below Records will release Weight of the World, the new album by award-winning Blues and Roots musician Joe Louis Walker. The first single and title track will be premiered by American Blues Scene on Wednesday, October 19th, and released to all digital streaming platforms on Friday, October 21st.

A Blues Hall of Fame inductee and six-time Blues Music Award winner, NPR described Walker as "a legendary boundary-pushing icon of modern blues." His 2015 release, Everyone Wants a Piece, was nominated for the Contemporary Blues Grammy. In addition, Walker dueted with B.B. King on his Grammy Award-winning Blues Summit album and played guitar on James Cotton's Grammy-winning album Deep in the Blues. 

Recorded with Producer Eric Corne (John Mayall, Walter Trout, Sugaray Rayford), Weight of the World showcases the depth of Walker's influences and the prowess with which he commands different genres; be it Soul, "The Weight of the World," "Is it a Matter of Time," "Don't Walk Out That Door," Gospel, "Hello, it's the Blues," Funk, "Count Your Chickens," New Orleans 2nd line, "Waking Up the Dead," Indie Blues "Root Down," Rock N Roll, "Blue Mirror," Contemporary Blues, "Bed of Roses," or Jazz, "You Got Me Whipped." 

It's a compelling album that displays a master at the height of his game. They say Roots musicians age like fine wine, which certainly rings true with Walker. Weight of the World is a resounding statement and quite possibly the beginning of the most remarkable chapter of a storied career.  

Recorded just outside of Woodstock, NY, with musicians Scott Milici (Keys), John Medeiros Jr.(Drums), Geoff Murfitt (Bass), Eddie Jackson (Bongos), Marc Pender (Trumpet), David Ralicke (Saxophone), Eric Gorfain (Violins), Gia Ciambotti (Background Vocals) and Producer Eric Corne (Background Vocals, Guitar), who also engineered and mixed the album. Walker and Corne split writing duties on the album. 

The title track is a metaphor for the times we live in. "Out here at the edge of the world / It's starting to curl / We've upset the big shareholder." As the pandemic lingers on, the cost of doing business rises, and global temperatures soar, musicians like Walker have felt the impact as much as anyone.  

Another standout track, "Hello, it's the Blues," portrays a virtual conversation between the Blues in the form of a guardian angel and the listener, "I've been here all the time, in your heart and in your mind." The track features a breathtaking string arrangement by Eric Gorfain (Neil Diamond, Roseanne Cash, Dionne Warwick,) a riveting nylon string guitar solo, and moving Gospel-influenced vocals with Gia Ciambotti (Joe Walsh, Bruce Springsteen.)

Walker's "Is it a Matter of Time" and "Don't Walk Out That Door" are classic Stax/Hi Records style songs with beautiful harmonies and punchy horns over Walker's brilliant harmonic changes and deft guitar playing. Corne counters with two sharp-tongued numbers, "Waking Up the Dead" and "Count Your Chickens." The former is driven by a propulsive 2nd Line meets Bo Diddley groove with a snaking slide guitar seemingly representing the song's main character."  It's masterfully written," says Walker. The latter is a fox in the henhouse tale of warning with a smoking funk arrangement by Walker and his sneaky great band. 

Walker's output spans the gamut of American Roots music, and he is regarded as one of his generation's greatest bluesmen. Billboard found that his playing "blows all over the map…gutbucket blues, joyous gospel, Rolling Stones-style rock crunch, and aching R&B. Walker's guitar playing is fine and fierce."  

A brilliantly lyrical guitarist, soulful singer, and prolific songwriter, Walker has toured extensively throughout his career, performing at some of the world's most renowned music festivals, such as Glastonbury and Montreux, as well as on national television, with appearances on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Don Imus Show and Later With Jools Holland in the UK, earning him a legion of dedicated fans along the way.  

Walker has recorded with Ike Turner, Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal, and Steve Cropper, opened for Muddy Waters and Thelonious Monk, hung out with Jimi Hendrix, Freddie King, Mississippi Fred McDowell, and was a close friend and roommate of Mike Bloomfield. 

Walker's 1986 debut album Cold Is the Night on HighTone announced his arrival in stunning fashion, and his subsequent output for Verve, Alligator, HighTone, and others only served to further establish Walker as one of today's leading bluesmen. The New York Times raved, "Walker is a singer with a Cadillac of a voice. His guitar solos are fast, wiry, and incisive, moaning with bluesy despair." Rolling Stone called him "ferocious."  

A myriad of organizations have recognized Joe for his achievements. He's a member of the Blues Hall of Fame, was named a USA Fellow by United States Artists, won multiple W.C. Handy Awards and Blues Music Awards, has been a recipient of San Francisco's prestigious Bammy Awards, and was also awarded a lifetime achievement award from the Mississippi Valley Blues Society. 

Referred to as "A musician's musician," Walker has earned his rightful place among the pantheon of legendary electric blues singer/guitarist/songwriters like B.B. King, Buddy Guy, and Robert Cray. Herbie Hancock called Walker "a national treasure." Chick Corea glibly referred to him as "The Chick Corea of Blues," and Aretha Franklin called him "The Bluesman." 

There is no shortage of praise; Blues Revue calls Walker "one of contemporary blues' most dynamic and innovative. musicians release consistently exciting, soulful, heartfelt, and spellbinding music." Living Blues stated, "His fretwork is indelibly stamped with his trademark blend of emotional heat and impeccable precision. Even at his most flamboyant, Walker sounds like he's playing ideas, not just notes." 

Walker plans to tour extensively to support the new record, effusing, "The band and I are chomping at the bit to play these songs live!"

Samantha Fierke | "Mirage"

So much of jazz singer-songwriter Samantha Fierke’s world was not as it appeared as they worked on their debut album in the midst of the pandemic. Still a teenager at the time, Fierke had not yet been diagnosed as autistic and was “finding their place in the world through their queer identity,” all while fear, economic uncertainty and civil unrest gripped the US. Writing poignantly about the contrasting feelings of hope and despair amidst chaos and turmoil, Fierke composed the resonant lyrics to the arresting “Mirage,” the title track to the acoustic jazz vocal album produced by Loyd Warden receiving its national release on November 18.  

When they began crafting “Mirage” in 2020, Fierke had deferred their first year at Berklee College of Music and also had to push back recording the album due to pandemic restrictions. The delay afforded Fierke’s music time to mature, songs that explore the pain they endured while masking their autism in an abusive relationship; fantasizing romantically about a woman; express the rage and power of their generation in response to the politics of our times; the pain and anger of betrayal; and emerging from darkness with hopeful anticipation.

As restrictions eased last year, Fierke entered bassist Mickey Jamieson’s home studio in Columbia, Missouri where they recorded live accompanied by a trio comprised of Jamieson, keyboardist Samuel Luetkemeyer, and Warden on drums and percussion.

Taking stunning command of the mic to sing and scat like a seasoned and skilled veteran, the eight songs on “Mirage” pour from the twenty-year-old singer’s being rife with raw emotion, intimacy, intensity and brazen authenticity. Despite difficult and deeply personal subject matters, Fierke shares their poetic narratives while peeling back the protective layers. Their voice never waivers, exhibiting astonishing beauty, poise, strength and grace amidst the embers of heartache and glimmering rays of optimism. Working with melodies and rhythms constructed from jazz, fusion, global folk, funk and sophisticated pop, sonically the tracks on “Mirage” are artfully assembled, sparsely rendered tapestries that provide dramatic shading, sensual grooves and moody melodic enhancements illuminating Fierke’s tales.

“Mirage” opens with a tribute to Chick Corea on the astutely rhythmic “Kick It Loose.”

“Chick died as I was still writing it and immediately, I knew it was for him.  It is a song for the musician’s soul, to remind us that we are not simply a commodity to be bought and sold. Music is not between audience and performer, but among a communal group,” said Fierke who released a five-song EP of standards in 2018 titled “Sam.”

While there’s a touch of whimsy on the swinging “I Remember Butterflies,” the lyric reveals lost innocence.     

“My childhood was outdoorsy and playful, thanks to my mom and her garden. I recently noticed that the swarms of butterflies that used to greet me every summer are now down to one or two pairs of wings at a time. It is a mourning.”

Jamieson literally got down on his hands and knees to record the sound of water droplets to provide interesting percussive texturization on “Shower Song.”

Fierke explains, “Sometimes life - or some sour soul - hits you like a brick with so much force that all you can do is let the water wash it away until you are well again. I wrote this to process the pain and anger handed to me by someone I called a friend.”

The journey of self-discovery became very real for Fierke a little over a year ago when they finally received their autism diagnosis. Five years earlier, they began writing the lyrics to “Color Me,” even without knowing what they were fully about.

“They were the heartbroken words from a young me drowning to change myself, mask myself, in desperation that the abuse I was receiving in a relationship would stop. The song is not as cheery as it seems and that is precisely the point,” Fierke said about the track that was issued last spring as a “teaser single.”

“My autism was harder to identify at first due to my ADHD, which can sometimes make the behaviors look different via opposite extremes competing for exposure. When I received my diagnosis, all the sudden my life and all my experiences made sense. Putting the pieces together was extremely liberating in some ways, but it also revealed a lot of deep pain and heartache that I’ve experienced due to being autistic. And it hurt to realize that if I had supports in place all along, I may have lived a very different life and avoided a lot of trauma.”

The haunting and unsettling “Mirage” is the session’s centerpiece. The track varies in tone and tempo, propelling the experience along.

“When I began writing ‘Mirage,’ it became clear how heavy it was. This song wrote itself and I simply uncovered it. I cannot explain it properly other than to describe it as desperation and perseverance. In the process, I saw my songwriting solidify into something that felt more authentic and sacred to me than anything I had ever written. Though the words were simply revealing themselves to me without much literal understanding on my part, I knew what it was about. I knew the feeling of the mirage. It is a reflection on the desperation to hold onto hope. It is a timeless feeling but writing it during this momentary ‘falling apart of our world’ felt so heavy. The song speaks of a journey through a desert that seems to never end even as the lyrics beg to keep going. It is simultaneous hope and despair. Once I felt how this song lingered in my stomach, I began to build an album around it — some old and some new tunes, but all my own songs. Even still, I’m connecting the dots that my intuition already put together, linking all the songs together back to the center of ‘Mirage.’”  

The amorous “Sweet Girl” finds Fierke daydreaming about a queer romance.

“It was a peaceful image in my mind come to life through song written with a heart full of love by a young queer soul. It is a fantasy of peaceful feminine domesticity. Nothing close to what I was told of domesticity. It is a painting of queer love with no distinct names or faces,” said Fierke who identifies as bisexual and gender queer.

“When People Speak” has roots dating back to 2016, which Fierke wrote in response to the emerging political climate of the time that continues to this day. 

“This song grew and festered in me, built out of rage and power with hope for what could be. It is the overwhelm our generation is far too used to. It wasn’t intrinsically political, but it was definitely a reflection on what it felt like in the world at the time. Still feels similar. It’s just four chords, but it’s an immensely complex and intimate song. It takes so much trust to play it the way it’s meant to be,” said Fierke.

The set closes with “Smile Again,” a lilting groove anchored by Luetkemeyer’s nimble keys. Conceived while vacationing on a goat farm with her lover, Fierke wrote as he slept.

“My partner deals with a lot of really intense mental health issues and sometimes my role is to see the hope that he’s struggling to find. The song is more about celebrating the inevitability of happiness. It’s not explicitly for or about him, but he’s the biggest influence, especially in the later verses,” Fierke shared.

During the “Mirage” recording and arranging process, Fierke received guidance from Grammy nominated jazz vocalists Gretchen Parlato, Jane Monheit and Oleta Adams as well as Grammy winner Taylor Eigsti, mentors and role models who have taken an interest in the promising singer-songwriter. Last June, Fierke finally shared the album in two cities: their hometown (Columbia, MO) and Boston where they’re now a college sophomore. Another Grammy winner, Brother Paul Brown (The Waterboys), got hold of the collection and submitted the album for Grammy consideration in five categories (Jazz Vocal Album, Producer of the Year, Non-Classical, Album of the Year; Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals; and Best New Artist). Encouraged by the buzz and critical acclaim in Fierke’s two homebases that was growing organically, a plan came together to take “Mirage” national.

Two days after “Mirage” drops, Fierke will perform at The Jungle near Boston on November 20.

Urban-jazz harpist Mariea Antoinette is “So Amazing”

It was a million-dollar wedding and the bride-to-be commissioned urban-jazz harpist Mariea Antoinette to play her down the aisle. As she pondered what to perform, Antoinette came upon the Luther Vandross classic “So Amazing” and the bride loved it. Antoinette teamed with longtime producer Allan Phillips to craft a beautiful and soulful arrangement for the occasion. When the bride arrived at the altar, spontaneous applause broke out. Encouraged by the reaction, Antoinette decided to record the rendition as a single. Her sublime “So Amazing” just dropped and is presently receiving more than one hundred spins per week from dozens of radio outlets, including SiriusXM’s Watercolors.

“So Amazing” continues Antoinette’s mission of placing the harp in unexpected settings, proving that the ancient stringed instrument has soul and can groove. With Antoinette dexterously playing delicate notes and strumming mellifluous harmonies, the single is illumined by lush orchestration provided by string and horn sections, including violins, violas, cello, trumpet, saxophone, flute, trombone and celestial background vocals. Phillips’s keyboards and percussion anchors the track flanked by guitarist Evan Marks, bassist Nathan Brown and drummer Tiki Pasillas.

“This wedding was for a bride who has everything. In speaking with her about song selection for the ceremony, she wanted an R&B song that was powerful. She indicated that she loved Luther Vandross, Kem and a host of other R&B singers so I started looking through their catalogs. When I heard Luther's ‘So Amazing,’ I knew that was the one. The song lends itself to the harp,” said Antoinette who remains a fan of Vandross and was inspired after seeing him perform.

“I've been to three of Luther’s concerts. He was/is ‘so amazing.’ I loved his style, professionalism and stage presence. Seeing Luther’s shows was a master class in performance.”

“So Amazing” will serve as the title track of Antoinette’s fourth album, which she anticipates releasing next spring, perfectly timed for wedding season. In December, she’ll shoot her first PBS special with her band and a string section at The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills, which will be titled “An Intimate Evening with Mariea Antoinette.”

Antoinette is an award-winning artist who performed for President Barack and Michelle Obama, shared the stage with Ne-Yo at the BET Awards, toured extensively with Jazz in Pink, and has served as principal harpist for the Los Angeles Southeast Symphony Orchestra. She’s had records that hit Billboard’s top five, paving the way to performances at major jazz festivals and events, including Catalina Island JazzTrax Festival, Capital Jazz Fest and the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame Awards. Antoinette has won honors from the Black Women in Jazz and the Arts, a Black Music Award, and a San Diego Prestige Award for best instrumentalist. Her activism includes partnering with Daughters Lives Matter, a nonprofit organization stressing the importance of healthy father-daughter relationships and positive imagery.        

New Music Releases: Heather Ferguson, Lauren Falls, Avi Granite’s In Good Hands, Dan McCarthy’s Songs of the Doomed: Some Jaded Atavistic Freakout

Heather Ferguson – Lush Life

Called a “jazz sensation” by Monday Magazine, Heather Ferguson’s journey to music has been long and winding. The sultry-voiced singer, now based in Victoria, Canada after many years in Toronto, is fast becoming known for her interpretations of the great songs of the 20th century. Her debut album, Lush Life – to be released in November 2022 – is a showcase for her beautiful phrasing and remarkable gift for storytelling. With the help of many of Vancouver Island’s finest musicians, Ferguson pays homage to some of history’s finest songwriters, interpreting classic songs that still resonate with audiences decades after they hit the charts. A dynamic and consummate performer with a smouldering sound, Heather Ferguson is a wonderful addition to the vocal jazz scene.

Lauren Falls – A Little Louder Now

A Little Louder Now is the phenomenal new album from Toronto bassist and composer Lauren Falls. This album takes the listener on a musical journey through a beautifully curated collection of seven original compositions, plus a classic standard from Victor Youmans. Falls’ second album as a bandleader, A Little Louder Now demonstrates her growth as a musician and composer since the release of her  2013 debut album, The Quiet Fight. A Little Louder Now features several of Canada’s most sought-after musicians, including saxophonist David French, guitarist Trevor Giancola, pianist Todd Pentney, and Falls’ brother Trevor on the drums. Each musician brings something unique and enticing to the record’s sound. Falls had each musician’s specific musical voice in mind while writing the material for this album. The title A Little Louder Now speaks to Falls’ personal evolution, and her journey becoming more confident and courageous as both a musician and a person. These compositions are reflections of her life experiences, both good and bad, and the artistic growth that has accompanied them. The sonic textures created for the listener inspires feelings of hope and inspiration, bringing comfort to those who are also in the midst of their own personal journeys.

Avi Granite’s In Good Hands

Canadian composer and guitarist Avi Granite celebrates his musical roots by spotlighting some of Canada’s finest musicians in solo performance. Based in New York City, Granite returned to his native Toronto in the fall of 2021 to record Avi Granite’s In Good Hands. Granite is a seasoned improviser, but in this context we focus on his work as a composer. With the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, Granite recruited the talents of several of his musical mentors and friends. A cross section of Juno Award winners and Toronto music scene mainstays, In Good Hands offers an intimate glimpse into the work of 11 incredible instrumentalists as they interpret and reimagine Granite’s distinctive compositions. The opening piece Like A Magazine features a gorgeous performance by jazz legend Pat LaBarbera in his only known solo recording. Each track offers a unique listening experience as a different instrumentalist takes the stage. Avi Granite’s In Good Hands is perhaps the most texturally dynamic recording you’ll hear this year. It’s an invitation into a musical space like no other, and an intimate portrait of a composer painted by some of the artists that shaped his work.

Dan McCarthy’s Songs of the Doomed: Some Jaded Atavistic Freakout

Dan McCarthy’s Songs of the Doomed: Some Jaded, Atavistic Freakout is an album of music inspired by the writing of political journalist and general dingbat Hunter S. Thompson. A lot of the jangled madness that makes up this band’s repertoire comes from a new compositional style created specifically for this band called the ‘Gonzo Cypher’. The cypher allows you to take a word, phrase, or even paragraph of Hunter’s writing, submit it to the cypher, and what you are left with is a weird and likely obnoxious ‘tone row’, which is then used to compose the music – serial music rules apply. The sound of the band is inspired by the Gary Burton Quintet from the 1970s on ECM Records, which was weird in its own right. It featured Burton on vibes, along with two guitarists (Metheny and Goodrick), bass (Steve Swallow), and drums (Bob Moses). This mess of chordal instruments allows for the creation of thick tapestries of sound, and also allows the band to get weird and intense, not unlike The Grateful Dead or Jimi Hendrix. Perhaps Songs of the Doomed will achieve fame equal to those artists… Or maybe not. But, the uniqueness of this project leads me to believe that audiences everywhere will clammer for more. T

Verve Records/UMe and Third Man Records have partnered to resurrect the popular reissue series, Verve By Request

Verve Records/UMe and Third Man Records have partnered to resurrect the popular reissue series, Verve By Request, with a vinyl twist. Focusing on rare gems and fan-requested jazz albums from the Verve Label Group's stable of iconic labels, the series will offer two titles per month – each hand-picked by Verve and Third Man Records. The records will include both long-out-of-print titles from the vault as well as the first-ever vinyl pressings for albums released in the '90s and aughts that were only originally released on CD.  

Verve Records/UMe and Third Man Records have partnered to resurrect the popular reissue series, Verve By Request, with a vinyl twist. The series launches on November 11 with a nod to Third Man’s birthplace with two of Detroit’s finest: Alice Coltrane’s "Ptah, the El Daoud" (1970) and Roy Brooks’ long out-of-print "Beat" (1964).

Albums will be newly remastered from original analog sources, when available, and pressed on audiophile-quality, 180-gram vinyl at Third Man Pressing in Detroit. Each month, a limited Third Man Edition yellow color variant of each LP will also be available exclusively via Third Man Records and uDiscoverMusic. Each of the Third Man Editions will come in a limited edition, two-color, screen-printed jacket on archival French cover stock, custom printed and assembled in Detroit. The series launches on November 11 with a nod to Third Man's birthplace with two of Detroit's finest: Alice Coltrane's Ptah, the El Daoud (1970) and Roy Brooks' long out-of-print Beat (1964).

Recorded at Motown's legendary Hitsville USA studio for Workshop Jazz – Berry Gordy's short-lived jazz imprint – Beat marks Roy Brooks' debut as a leader and finds the innovative drummer fusing his hard bop roots with a Motor City soul-jazz groove. Brooks, who served as a sideman for Horace Silver, Yusef Lateef, and Chet Baker, among others, is joined by fellow Detroit natives George Bohannon (trombone) and Hugh Lawson (piano), along with his Horace Silver Quintet bandmates: Blue Mitchell (trumpet), Junior Cook (tenor saxophone), and Eugene Taylor (bass). Together, they deliver a high-energy set that features tracks written by Brooks, Joe Henderson, and Duke Pearson. Notably, the track  "Soulsphere" was composed by Alice McLeod (erroneously credited as "McCloud" on the sleeve), who would blaze a new musical path a few years later as the incomparable Alice Coltrane. Hailed by All Music as "a record of uncommon scope and reach," Beat is the first official reissue of any Workshop Jazz album.

Following the death of her husband John Coltrane in 1967, Alice Coltrane continued to forward the musical and spiritual version they set out on together and started to release records on her own as  composer and bandleader. The hypnotic Ptah, the El Daoud, was the fourth album to bear the pianist and harpist's name released between 1968-70, which also included her joint album, Cosmic Music, partially recorded with John a year before his death. The transcendent Ptah, the El Daoud, recorded in the Coltrane home studio in 1970 and released later that year on Impulse! Records, features an all-star line-up on the four compositions, including Pharoah Sanders and Joe Henderson (both on tenor sax and alto flute). A masterpiece of spiritual jazz, the album's title track is an ode to the Egyptian God, Ptah (the El Daoud meaning "the beloved"), while many moments on the record can best be described by the Hindu word "Turiya," which Coltrane defines in the liner notes as "a state of consciousness – the high state of Nirvana, the goal of human life." 

The releases continue on December 9 with Chicken Fat, the 1967 Impulse! debut by blues guitarist Mel Brown. Brown's clean picking style – honed while playing alongside John Lee Hooker, Bobby Bland, and T-Bone Walker – marinates deliciously with the swinging soul-jazz organ of Gerald Wiggins. Featuring the simmering lament "I'm Goin' to Jackson," the electrifying "Greasy Spoon," and the standout title track, Chicken Fat is quite possibly the funkiest and most unique album ever released on the label. 

Also available in December is James Brown's Soul on Top. Originally released in 1970 via King Records,  the album was a dream project for the Godfather of Soul, a fan of big-band jazz who is provided the full treatment with an 18-piece band, led by drummer Louis Bellson and arranged by Impulse! star Oliver Nelson. Joined by his soul consigliere, saxophonist Maceo Parker, Brown offers up a swinging set of jazz and pop standards, while revisiting several of his classic hits, including "It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World" and "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag." This reissue features a new mix of the original album by legendary bassist and James Brown superfan Christian McBride and UMe A&R Vice President Harry Weinger.

Future Verve By Request titles, which are listed below through June 2023, will include vinyl debuts of Wayne Shorter's Footprints Live! (2002) and Herbie Hancock's The New Standard (1996), plus reissues from Pharoah Sanders, Ahmad Jamal, Archie Shepp, Sun Ra, and many more.

Verve By Request Releases (November 2022 – June 2023):

• November 11, 2022: Roy Brooks – Beat
• November 11, 2022: Alice Coltrane – Ptah, The El Daoud
• December 9, 2022: James Brown - Soul On Top
• December 9, 2022: Mel Brown – Chicken Fat
• January 13, 2023: Ahmad Jamal – The Awakening
• January 13, 2023: Archie Shepp – Kwanza
• February 10, 2023: Dorothy Ashby - The Rubáiyát Of Dorothy Ashby
• February 10, 2023: Gábor Szabó - The Sorcerer
• March 10, 2023: Blossom Dearie - Blossom Dearie
• March 10, 2023: Eartha Kitt - Bad But Beautiful
• April 28, 2023: Yusef Lateef – Psychicemotus
• April 28, 2023: Pharoah Sanders - Black Unity
• May 26, 2023: Wayne Shorter - Footprints Live!
• May 26, 2023: Herbie Hancock - The New Standard
• June 30, 2023: Albert Ayler - Love Cry
• June 30, 2023: Sun Ra - Space Is The Place

Benny Bock | "Vanishing Act"

Music flows through Benny Bock like the crisscrossing freeways of Los Angeles. On his debut album, Vanishing Act, the keyboardist conjures the contrasts of living in big city and small town environments, infusing ambient jazz and folkloric arrangements with bristling electronic urgency. During improvised recording sessions with producer/engineer Pete Min (The Strokes, Orvile Peck) at his studio, Lucy’s Meat Market, Bock and a group of acclaimed musicians created a spellbinding instrumental cycle, channeling the feelings of existing in spaces of chaos or calm.

“As a whole, the album speaks to the interaction of rural and urban landscapes,” Bock explains. “I was just coming back to LA from my studies at Oberlin Conservatory in the Midwest when I started making the record, so that transition was a big thing on my mind. I incorporated a lot of open, pastoral motifs that bump up against jagged, fast-paced sounds.”

This tension is apparent in the contrast between the album’s two opening songs. “Erwin’s Garden” – named for one of Bock’s first teachers, the jazz musician Erwin Helfer – is a sparse piano piece draped in sighing string arrangements by Daphne Chen. “Dynamo” adds the frenetic pulse of a drum machine, before integrating prepared piano, plucked pizzicato, and warm synth squelch. “I’m trying to join the synthetic and organic worlds as much as possible,” says Bock.

“Eight Below Zero” continues his electroacoustic juxtapositions. On this song, Bock’s melancholy synths are accompanied by Rich Hinman on pedal steel, Abe Rounds on drums, CJ Camerieri on trumpet and flugelhorn, and Logan Kane on upright bass. “That song was written about a certain day where I had to say goodbye to a friend when it was literally eight degrees below zero in Ohio,” Bock says. “It was freezing. The title is also a nod to the Sonny Boy Williamson song ‘Nine Below Zero.’ There are some blues themes in there.”

Vanishing Act is the young artist’s debut album, yet he has already worn many hats: jazz pianist, session musician, sound designer, producer, and composer for film and television. Shortly after graduating high school, Bock began working with Tom Oberheim, the synth innovator whose last name should be uttered alongside Moog and Buchla. More recently, Bock’s collaborations have included Blake Mills, The Beach Boys’ Bruce Johnston, and The Weeknd, for whom he co-wrote the Dawn FM song “Here We Go…Again” (featuring Tyler, The Creator). 

These experiences set the stage for his improvised recording sessions with producer Pete Min, which found Bock playing a laundry list of keyboard instruments such as Steinway grand piano, Oberheim Four Voice synthesizer, pump organ, and celeste. He cites influences including the orchestral studio albums of David Axelrod and Brazil’s Arthur Verocai, the bedroom productions of Juana Molina, and the playful jazz experiments of his LA contemporary Sam Gendel. The album will be released by Min’s new label, Colorfield Records, in which spontaneity and reaction are integral to the process of creation. Like the freeways of LA, Vanishing Act’s instrumental songs introduce a vast range of possibilities, where the destination is only part of the journey. ~ Jesse Locke 

35th-Anniversary Expanded Edition of Sting's stunning second solo album ...Nothing Like The Sun

A&M/UMe releases a digital-only 35th-Anniversary Expanded Edition of Sting's stunning second solo album, ...Nothing Like the Sun. The album title was lovingly adopted from Shakespeare's Sonnet No. 130 ("My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun").

The 26-track Expanded Edition features the original 12 songs on the album plus 14 bonus tracks that consist of B-sides, remixes, alternate versions, and instrumentals.

Building on the momentum of his 3x platinum debut solo album, The Dream of the Blue Turtles, ...Nothing Like the Sun tackled a litany of deeply rooted and profoundly personal subjects. As Sting reflected in the liner notes, "I look back on this album, and I realize that the record is about my mother, although I didn't see it at the time. It's about mothers and daughters, mistresses and wives, sisters... Every song has one of these themes. It surprised me." Sting's mother sadly passed away in late 1986, not long before four months' worth of intensive recording sessions for the next album got underway in earnest at AIR Studios in Montserrat in early 1987.

As a result, ...Nothing Like the Sun, which was Sting's first digital recording, is, for the most part, a subdued and reflective album with the exception being the up-tempo lead single, "We'll Be Together," an instant chart hit featuring Annie Lennox among its stellar background vocalists. Other key songs on the album showcased Sting's development as an acclaimed solo artist. The quirky, jazz-inflected "Englishman in New York" tipped its bowler to English ex-pat and expert storyteller Quentin Crisp, while "Fragile" paid homage to an American civil engineer killed in Nicaragua by the Contras. Some of the album's subject matter was born out of what Sting became aware of while participating in Amnesty International's Conspiracy of Hope Tour in 1986. Narrated in stirringly vivid detail, "They Dance Alone" recounts the actions Sting observed of wives and daughters of certain men in Chile who were tortured and murdered by the then-military dictatorship. These wives and daughters would dance the country's traditional dance known as the Cueca by themselves, with only photos of their missing loved ones pinned to their clothing.

Produced by Sting, Hugh Padgham, Bryan Loren, and Neil Dorfsman, ...Nothing Like the Sun featured a variety of A-list guitarists, including former Police-mate Andy Summers on the album's moving opening track "The Lazarus Heart," Hiram Bullock on the heartfelt cover of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing," and the triple threat of Mark Knopfler, Eric Clapton, and Fareed Haque on "They Dance Alone." Another notable topline ...Nothing Like the Sun collaborators include keyboardists Gil Evans and Kenny Kirkland, saxophonist Branford Marsalis, and drummer Manu Katché. In addition to handling arrangement duties and singing all of the album's lead vocals, Sting played bass and double bass, as well as Spanish guitar on "History Will Teach Us Nothing" and acoustic guitar on "Fragile."

...Nothing Like the Sun has been certified 2x platinum by the RIAA, topped the album charts in two countries, the UK and Japan, and also peaked at No. 9 on the US Billboard 200. The album's aforementioned lead single, "We'll Be Together," had a strong chart impact upon its release, ultimately reaching No. 7 on the US Hot 100. The album's second single, "Be Still My Beating Heart," was nominated for two Grammy Awards, including  Song of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance in 1989, and climbed to No. 2 on Album Rock Tracks, No. 15 on the Hot 100, and No. 37 on Adult Contemporary. The album's other three singles were "Englishman in New York," "Fragile," and "They Dance Alone." In the US, ...Nothing Like the Sun garnered three Grammy nominations in 1989, including Album of the Year. In the UK, ...Nothing Like the Sun received the BPI's Brit Award for Best British Album of the Year in 1988.

Brûlez les meubles | "Tardif" and "L'appel du vide"

Here are two incredibly creative new albums from Quebec-based due Brûlez les meubles entitled Tardif and L'appel du vide.

Brûlez les meubles is a two-headed musical project conjured up by Louis Beaudoin-de la Sablonnière and Éric Normand - two of Quebec’s leading improvisers. Éric and Louis have known each other for many years, and have long shared a mutual interest in each other's music despite their different artistic backgrounds (and the fact that they live more than 500 km apart.) In addition to their musical kinship, the two composers are both record aficionados with a shared passion for contemporary jazz. Every time they gather, they invite a different group of musicians to explore their musical universe with them, giving life to new batches of compositions prepared during the months in between meetings.

Brûlez les meubles has seen the likes of Jean Derome, Alexandre Robichaud and Félix Hamel pass through its ranks, in addition to drummers Tom Jacques, Louis-Vincent Hamel and John Hollenbeck.  This music is abstract, meditative, and both modern and simple, nourished by a shared passion for the legends of jazz guitar, from Jim Hall to Bill Frisell, and from Rene Thomas to Brandon Ross.

In the fall of 2022, the group will release 2 albums: Tardif, a quartet with Jean Derome (alto saxophone and flute) and John Hollenbeck (drums); and L’appel du vide, a trio with Tom Jacques (drums)

John Hollenbeck focuses extensively on composing for and leading the critically acclaimed Claudia Quintet and his three-time GRAMMY-Nominated Large Ensemble. Hollenbeck has received numerous awards and commissions, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, the ASCAP Jazz Vanguard Award and the Doris Duke Performing Artist Award. He is well known in new-music circles for his longtime collaboration with Meredith Monk and has worked with many of the world's leading musicians in jazz including Bob Brookmeyer, Fred Hersch, Kenny Wheeler  and Tony Malaby

One of the most active and eclectic musicians on the Canadian creative music scene, Jean Derome has earned the recognition of a larger public, a rare feat in the world of new music. Thanks to his large-scale musique actuelle projects, his compositions, his work as an improviser, his jazz groups and his music for the screen and the stage, Derome ranks as a major creative force, in Quebec and abroad. Ever since his work with Nébu (one of Quebec’s first avant-garde jazz groups) in the early ‘70s, Derome has been consistently renewing and diversifying his approach of composition. In the early ‘80s, he co-founded Ambiances Magnétiques, an artists’ collective and record label that both raised his profile at home and introduced his name to the outside world. Derome has also shared the stage with several musicians of international stature, among others Fred Frith, Lars Hollmer, Louis Sclavis and Han Bennink.

Tom Jacques is a multi-instrumentalist and sound artist. His work evolves between composition, improvisation, performance and sound device design, mainly in musique actuelle, contemporary music and jazz. For the last 8 years, he has been working with various artists and technicians in order to make his own musical instruments and sound installations. This approach allows him to explore unique musical universes that are unattainable with conventional instruments. Tom Jacques stands out among Quebec’s new breed of creative artists. Many of his personal projects and musical ensembles have been acknowledged and supported by the Conseil des Arts et Lettres du Québec through its Bas-Saint-Laurent arts and literature program and its Bas-Saint-Laurent territorial partnership program.

Tardif and L'appel du vide will be released on Friday, October 7th 2022. It is a joint release by Tour de Bras, Circum-Disc, and Ramble Records.

Bobby Watson | "Back Home in Kansas City"

Saxophonist Bobby Watson Draws Inspiration from the Rich Jazz Heritage of His Kansas City Hometown on Spirited New Album

“The alto is a singing horn,” says Bobby Watson, and the great saxophonist is in fine voice on his latest album, Back Home in Kansas City. Due out October 7 on Smoke Sessions Records, the album features an all-star quintet with Watson’s longtime rhythm section of bassist Curtis Lundy and drummer Victor Jones along with pianist Cyrus Chestnut and trumpeter Jeremy Pelt. 

“Great melodies are immortal, like a sculpture or a painting,” Watson insists. “This album is more about the singing quality of my instrument.” 

As the title suggests, Back Home in Kansas City also pays homage to Watson’s hometown and its own rich musical heritage. The saxophonist grew up in KC, leaving to study at the University of Miami and then spending a quarter century making his name in New York City. He returned home in 2000 to serve as Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Missouri-Kansas City's Conservatory of Music & Dance, retiring 20 years later. 

His retirement coinciding with the pandemic, Watson found himself with plenty of time to reflect on Kansas City’s importance to his distinctive sound and, gradually, to play for local audiences who helped attune his approach to the blend of soul and balladry that makes up the new album. 

“Being out here in Kansas City has given me a chance to slow down and go deeper into what I want to play,” he explains. “The Kansas City audience is a sophisticated audience because of the history of this town. We've got people out here who have heard a lot of music. So I'm not playing down to the audience, and I'm not trying to simplify anything. I'm simply coming out of what I feel in my heart and my soul.” 

The title tune is a contrafact (a new melody written over existing chord changes) on “Back Home Again in Indiana,” also famously the basis for Charlie Parker’s “Donna Lee.” The spirited swinger opens the album on a high note, Jones’ crisp percussion nailing every sudden stop before propelling the band forward again. It’s one of three similar Watson tunes on the album; the yearning “Bon Voyage” is based on Herbie Hancock’s “Maiden Voyage,” while the brisk “Side Steps” is Watson’s reimagining of John Coltrane’s classic (and notoriously challenging) “Giant Steps.” 

Watson also drew the haunting ballad “Dear Lord” from the Coltrane songbook, one of several spotlights on the album for his burnished tone and silken melodicism. Chestnut’s achingly delicate touch sets the tone for a gorgeous version of the standard “I’m Glad There Is You,” featuring one of Watson’s most beautiful and moving solo turns. The album closes with the gritty, self-explanatory “Blues for Alto.” 

Watson encouraged his bandmates to bring their own material to the session as well. Jones contributes the stealthy “Red Bank Heist,” which feels like Henry Mancini by way of Art Blakey. Chestnut’s sparkling “A Star in the East” is an easygoing waltz that thrives on the rich melody shared by Watson and Pelt. The trumpeter’s offering is the tender “Celestial,” highlighted by his own muted eloquence. 

John Hicks’ “Mind Wine” pays tribute to the late pianist, with whom Watson Lundy and Jones all worked extensively. Hicks appears on Watson’s 1988 Blue Note debut, No Question About It, as well as Love Remains; while Watson and Lundy are part of the quartet for Hicks’ 1988 release Naima’s Love Song. “John Hicks was a mighty huge influence on me, Curtis and Victor,” Watson says. “When he passed away, that was one of the saddest moments in our lives. He was extremely near and dear to us.” 

The saxophonist has long garnered inspiration from vocalists as well as his sax-playing peers and idols. He invited the acclaimed singer Carmen Lundy to join the band for “Our Love Remains,” co-written by Watson and his wife Pamela. In instrumental form, the song was the title track for his 1986 album Love Remains and was recorded again for 1992’s Present Tense. The vocal version has previously been recorded by Kevin Mahogany and Melissa Walker, and Lou Rawls was planning his own rendition prior to his death. 

“I love hearing singers tell stories,” Watson says. “Joe Williams, Betty Carter, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae, Ella, Gregory Porter, Andy Bey – and Carmen does that. She's not just singing the melody, she's putting it out there as a story.” 

Throughout Back Home in Kansas City, Watson’s gift for telling stories with his saxophone is on vibrant display. “Johnny Griffin told me that when you solo you want to introduce yourself, talk about how your day went, tell how you feel right now and where you want to take the listener – all through music,” he details. “I know that I have enough technique to last me the rest of my life. But what do I want to say with it? We’re all trying to play one grand solo our whole life in different contexts.”

Dezron Douglas | "ATALAYA"

ATALAYA is new work by bassist Dezron Douglas, and it is alive. That is, ‘alive’ in all the ways that jazz is at its best – as a pure and personal expression of Black Music channeled through time-honored traditions by a group of musicians who practice sonic coherence through musical unity. As Dezron puts it in the opening statement of his liner notes for the album: “Mysticism, Magic, Faith, Love, Power, Discernment! These are words that embody the creative process of Music.”

Followers of contemporary jazz might recognize Dezron for his bass work behind Pharoah Sanders, Louis Hayes, or Ravi Coltrane. Steady International Anthem listeners might remember him from the New York side of Makaya McCraven's Universal Beings. More recently we presented Force Majeure, Dezron’s sublime duo record with harpist Brandee Younger, which compiled the best of livestream performances from their Harlem apartment during the original covid lockdown. That album, which came out in December of 2020, reflected the speed and feeling of the moment while somehow simultaneously distracting from the harsh reality of it. It also captured a very vulnerable, intimate, and real impression of Dezron on double bass, sharing his power and truth without abandon.

ATALAYA, similarly, wasn’t processed in the lab, but rather, captured in the room. The realness factor is once again forefront in the sound; but the difference is in the energy and ambition of the music, which reaches for the stratosphere. Again, let’s defer to Dezron here: “Welcome to the Black Lion rocket ship.”

With Emilio Modeste on saxes, George Burton on keys, and Joe Dyson Jr. on drums, Dezron’s crew summons the dynamism of Coltrane’s classic Quartet, or Dave Holland’s Quintet on Prime Directive, or Charles Mingus on Nostalgia In Times Square… swinging virtuosically and firing on all 4 cylinders. But there’s nothing remotely revisionist here – Dezron and his quartet embody poetry, presence, artistic and emotional clarity in every note they play. Free and dissonant, sweet and consonant, sweeping and pure… This is the band you hope is playing every time you walk into a club.

Hartford, Connecticut-born bassist, composer, bandleader, and educator Dezron Douglas has established himself as a major force in contemporary creative music. A protégé of the great Jackie McLean, the Downbeat Magazine 2019 Rising Star is known for his work with Pharoah Sanders, Ravi Coltrane, Cyrus Chestnut, David Murray, Louis Hayes, Enrico Rava and also with piano legends George Cables, Eric Reed, Mulgrew Miller and Benny Green. In 2018, he appeared on the New York Side of Makaya McCraven’s Universal Beings. During the original covid lockdown in 2020, he live-streamed a series of duo performances with his partner Brandee Younger from their Harlem apartment, which were collected and released by International Anthem as the critically-acclaimed album Force Majeure. In 2021, Douglas produced Younger’s Impulse Records debut Somewhere Different, which earned her a Grammy nomination. Also in 2021, Douglas joined the Trey Anastasio Band as a full-time member. He has recorded on more than 100 albums, contributing to the artistry of numerous band leaders and maintaining an integral presence in the sounds of his peers, including Keyon Harrold, Jonathan Blake, Melanie Charles, Makaya McCraven and Brandee Younger. Douglas is an active music educator, currently on the Jazz Studies faculty at NYU Steinhardt.

Maria Mendes | "Saudade, Colour of Love"

Hailing from Portugal and based for the last decade and a half in the Netherlands, Grammy and Latin Grammy Award-nominated vocalist and composer Maria Mendes is no stranger to living between two different worlds. With her critically acclaimed 2019 album Close To Me, Mendes, whose praises have been sung by such legendary composers as Quincy Jones and Hermeto Pascoal, spotlighted her ability to bring disparate influences together in stunning fashion with her vibrant fusion of symphonic jazz and Portuguese Fado, the folk music of her homeland. 

Far from having exhausted the possibilities of that project, Mendes brings her singular vision to the concert stage in collaboration with master keyboardist/arranger John Beasley and the revered Metropole Orkest on her breathtaking new live album, Saudade, Colour of Love. Due out October 7, 2022 via Challenge Records, the album further expands the emotional intensity of its predecessor’s thrilling hybrid sound with the backing of a full orchestra. The lush, velvety symphonic sound creates sparks when it meets the exhilarating interplay of Mendes’ brilliant quartet and the singer’s fervent vocals, resulting in an unforgettable evening of music. 

The Dutch Metropole Orkest, the world’s leading pop and jazz orchestra, appeared on four tracks on Close To Me, but that was enough to convince Mendes that the collaboration could bear even greater fruit. “Working with the Metropole Orkest was so precious that it nurtured a seed in me that needed a lot more water,” Mendes says. “Bringing together jazz and Fado has been the most important and artistically fulfilling work that I have done, really feeding my soul. It’s been a new awakening to connect with this beautiful legacy that came from my ancestors.” 

Not that her Portuguese roots made Mendes’ exploration of Fado inevitable. She had long resisted the music, its mournful, downbeat tone seemingly incompatible with her impassioned approach to song, forged in her operatic training, and in the spirited jazz improvisation that she learned from such formative influences as Carmen McRae, Betty Carter and Shirley Horn. It took leaving home and putting down new roots in as vastly different a locale as the Netherlands to grant Mendes the perspective to discover a wholly original approach to Fado. 

While Mendes and Beasley’s arrangement of “Asas Fechadas” garnered nominations for both Grammy and Latin Grammy Awards, the pandemic inevitably halted the album’s momentum. At the same time, it allowed the luxury of time to plan a truly spectacular showcase for expanded orchestral renditions of these songs to be premiered at two May 2022 concerts at Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw aan’t IJ and at Parkstad Limburg Theaters in Heerlen. Mendes worked closely with John Beasley in arranging the music for the symphonic setting, while Beasley crafted majestic orchestrations for the Metropole Orkest. 

“I could not have done this without such a fantastic partner,” Mendes says. ““John is such an eclectic and eager musician.” 

One of the highlights on both albums is “Hermeto’s Fado for Maria,” a new piece written for Mendes by the iconic Brazilian composer Hermeto Pascoal. The song was gifted to her in the form of a handwritten score on the back of a hotel room emergency exit instruction card. Pascoal gave Mendes free rein to do what she wished with the song, the only demand being, “Don’t you dare to not record it!” 

Mendes and Beasley also prepared three new songs for the new album. Mendes describes “Com Que Voz” as “one of my ultimate Fados, I find it extraordinary. the poetry is divine and existentialist, and I’m really proud of what John and I did to make detours from the original melody and harmony.” The performance that opens Saudade, Colour Of Love lives up to that enthusiasm, opening with lush, elegiac strings behind Mendes’ heartrending vocal, then building to a soaring clarinet solo by the Metropole’s Christof May, spurred on by Cédric Hanriot’s muscular piano work. 

“Quando Eu Era Pequenina” is an ancient, popular folkloric song for dancing, typically accompanied by piercing laments by female singers. The dance is abstracted into Mário Costa’s opening drum solo, which establishes an unexpected 7/4 rhythm for the piece. “The song is very well known in Portugal, so I wanted to give it a very faraway twist,” Medes explains. The concert closes with “Meu Pobre Capitão,” a new composition by Mendes and Beasley penned in the spirit of the pair’s Fado reinterpretations and here featuring a buoyant audience singalong. 

Through these and the half dozen songs from Close To Me, Mendes gives a truly moving and heartfelt performance, fueled by not only the passionate arrangements but by the two years of silence that preceded it. “I definitely experienced some spiritual growth feeling all the love from the musicians and the audience,” she says. “I felt like a phoenix rising from the ashes.” 

From her native Portugal to her adopted home in the Netherlands, Grammy and Latin Grammy-nominated vocalist and composer Maria Mendes has traveled a world of musical expression. Hailed by DownBeat magazine as “a jazz singer of the highest order,” Mendes’ praises have been sung by such legends as Quincy Jones and Hermeto Pascoal. With Wayne Shorter’s blessings, Mendes premiered his contemporary jazz piece “Gaia” in June 2022 in Germany alongside the Bielefeld Philharmonieker, saxophonist Magnus Lindgren and pianist John Beasley. Mendes’ song “Inverso,” featuring Anat Cohen, was featured on the soundtrack of the International Emmy-winning Portuguese soap opera Ouro Verde in 2018. The vocalist has released four striking solo albums, most recently blending symphonic jazz and Portuguese Fado on the acclaimed Close To Me and the stunning live album Saudade, Colour of Love. Mendes’ wealth of influences and experiences help make up what Exclusive magazine called “one of the most engaging, enchanting vocal approaches… that exists today.” 

Johnny Hammond’s funk-jazz masterpiece ‘Gears’

Craft Recordings and Jazz Dispensary have announced Johnny Hammond’s 1975 funk-jazz masterpiece, Gears, as the latest release from Jazz Dispensary’s acclaimed Top Shelf series. Produced by Larry and Fonce Mizell, who were instrumental in the development of fusion, the keyboardist’s classic album offers a euphoric blend of jazz, soul, funk, and disco for a supremely groovy listen. As with all titles in the album-centric Top Self Series, which reissues the highest-quality, hand-picked rarities, Gears has been cut from the original analog tapes by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio and pressed on audiophile-quality 180-gram vinyl at RTI. The LP is housed in a tip-on jacket, featuring faithfully reproduced original designs. Long out-of-print in the U.S., Gears is due out November 4th.

Also available to pre-order now is Jazz Dispensary’s Fall ’22 merch collection, which includes a new logo T-shirt and crewneck, a zeotropic slipmat from record animator Drew Tetz, a corduroy logo hat, and a bumper sticker. Additionally, Jazz Dispensary is unveiling its new Impressionistees series, which enlists guest artists to create original T-shirt designs inspired by classic albums. The series launches with a t-shirt from graphic designer and self-declared music fan, Matt Durkin, who reimagines Gears as a vibrant urban jungle. Gears T-shirts are available here and limited to a one-time run of 300.

Johnny “Hammond” Smith, who gained his nickname for his masterful work on the Hammond B-3 organ, began his career in the late ‘50s, splitting his time between recording as a bandleader and accompanying others, including vocalists like Nancy Wilson and Byrdie Green and saxophonist Gene Ammons. By the end of the ‘60s, Hammond had become one of the preeminent soul-jazz keyboardists, thanks to albums like Gettin’ Up (1967), Nasty! (1968), and Soul Talk (1969). As the decade turned, the keyboardist continued to push the boundaries of his genre, moving further into funk-jazz. When he combined forces with the Mizell Brothers (first on 1974’s Gambler’s Life and then on Gears), the possibilities were limitless.

Ignoring the strict rules set by jazz purists, the Mizell’s arrived on the scene with fresh energy and innovative ideas about where the genre could go. Bringing a commercial sensibility to their projects, Larry and Alphonso “Fonce” Mizell shared a musically-diverse clientele – from saxophonist Donald Byrd to the Jackson 5. Together, they pioneered the sound of fusion, integrating many of the popular styles of the era, including R&B, funk, and even the emerging sounds of disco. Hammond, who was equally as excited to expand upon his work and look to the future, was a perfect match for the Mizell’s. After setting the stage with Gambler’s Life, the three men reconnected at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, CA (and later at Los Angeles’’s Sound Factory) to record Gears. Joining them was an all-star lineup of musicians, including drummer Harvey Mason, bassist Chuck Rainey, and keyboardist Jerry Peters. Together, they crafted lushly-arranged tracks – many of which were punctuated by soulful backing vocals – that felt equally fitting for a late-night jazz club, the radio, or the dance floor.

The centerpiece of Gears is the six-minute-long “Los Conquistadores Chocolatés,” which turns up the heat with high-energy beats, multi-layered tracks of electronic and analog instrumentation (including strings, vibraphone, and flute), plenty of wah-wah pedals, and a commanding spoken-word introduction in Spanish. Along with the joyful “Fantasy,” “Los Conquistadores Chocolatés” served as a precursor to the disco hits that would pervade the latter half of the decade, while both tracks were on regular rotation at DJ David Mancuso’s legendary New York City “Loft” parties.

On the other end of the spectrum is the blissed-out “Lost on 23rd Street,” which marks one of the few downtempo selections on the album. The languid track offers a perfect backdrop for wandering through the city, as a casual observer. Another highlight is album opener “Tell Me What To Do,” which begins – innocuously enough – with fairly straightforward chords. Moments later, however, the band kicks into a laid-back groove, jamming over a catchy, looped guitar riff (later sampled by the likes of Armand Van Helden and Mr. Scruff). Remarkably, nearly all of the tracks on Gears have had multiple lives through samples. The funk-forward “Shifting Gears,” for instance, has been used in more than two dozen recordings, including those by DMX and Stetsasonic. The soulful album closer, “Can’t We Smile?,” meanwhile, has been used in songs by Erykah Badu and Kendrick Lamar, among others.

Marking Hammond’s first album with Milestone Records, Gears garnered critical acclaim upon its release and was a Top 40 hit on Billboard’s Jazz chart. Single “Los Conquistadores Chocolatés” was a crossover success, landing in the Top 5 of Billboard’s Dance Club Songs and Disco Singles charts. In the decades since its release, however, Gears has only grown in its cult status. In a retrospective review, BBC Music writes , “At once sophisticated, joyous and accessible, Gears had a profound influence on UK funkateers, and still sounds as fresh today as it did in the mid-70s.” Similarly, AllMusic praised, “This is unquestionably another jewel in a treasure chest already filled with so many for the Mizell production team, and a great performance by Hammond to keep up with his contemporaries who refuse to be held back by conventional wisdom.”