Barry White's 20th Century Records Albums Remastered For 9CD And 9LP Vinyl Box Sets, 'The 20th Century Records Albums (1973-1979)'

Marking 45 years since the release of his debut solo album, soul/R&B legend Barry White's nine 20th Century Records albums have been remastered from their analogue master tapes for new 9CD and 9LP 180-gram vinyl box sets, titled Barry White: The 20th Century Records Albums (1973-1979). To be released worldwide on October 26 by Mercury/UMe, the new CD and vinyl collections bring together all the albums White released with the 20th Century Records label. On the same date, the nine remastered albums -- all long out of print on vinyl -- will be released in individual 180-gram LP packages with faithfully replicated original sleeve and label artwork. 

Soul/R&B legend Barry White’s nine 20th Century Records albums have been remastered from their analogue master tapes for new 9CD and 9LP 180-gram vinyl box sets, titled 'Barry White: The 20th Century Records Albums (1973-1979).' To be released worldwide on October 26 by Mercury/UMe, the new CD and vinyl collections bring together all the albums White released with the 20th Century Records label.

In March 1973, Barry White released his first solo album, I've Got So Much To Give, with 20th Century Records. Fueled by two Billboard R&B Top 10 singles, including the No. One "I'm Gonna Love You Just a Little More Baby," the album topped Billboard's R&B chart and reached No. 16 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. White's second solo album, Stone Gon', soon followed in October 1973. Also boasting two Top 10 R&B singles, the album's success closely matched that of his recent debut, topping Billboard's R&B chart and reaching the Top 20 of the Billboard 200.

White's blockbuster Can't Get Enough album was released in August 1974. It hit No. One on Billboard's R&B chart and the Billboard 200, and it also reached No. 4 on the UK chart. The album features two of White's iconic signature songs, "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe" and "You're the First, the Last, My Everything," both of which topped Billboard's R&B chart and went to No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, on the Billboard Hot 100. In the UK, "Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe" reached No. 8, while "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" topped the singles chart at No. 1.

Released in March 1975, White's self-produced fourth album, Just Another Way To Say I Love You, also topped Billboard's R&B chart. The album reached No. 17 on the Billboard 200 and No. 12 on the UK chart. It features two Top 10 Billboard R&B singles, the No. 1 "What Am I Gonna Do with You" (also a Top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hit and a Top 5 UK single) and "I'll Do For You Anything You Want Me To."

Also self-produced, White's fifth album with 20th Century Records, Let The Music Play, was released in January 1976. It reached No. 8 on Billboard's R&B albums chart and peaked at No. 42 on the Billboard 200 and No. 22 on the UK chart. The album yielded three charting singles, including "Let the Music Play", which peaked at No. 4 on Billboard's R&B chart and No. 9 on the UK singles chart. "You See the Trouble with Me" reached No. 14 on Billboard's R&B chart and No. 2 on the UK singles chart, while "Baby, We Better Try to Get It Together" reached No. 29 on Billboard's R&B chart and No. 15 on the UK singles chart. 

Is This Whatcha Wont? is White's self-produced sixth album, released in November 1976. It reached No. 25 on Billboard's R&B chart, with its two singles, "Don't Make Me Wait Too Long" and "I'm Qualified to Satisfy You" respectively peaking at No. 20 and No. 25 on the Billboard R&B chart. Both singles also charted in the UK, at No. 17 and No. 37, respectively.

White's self-produced seventh album, Sings For Someone You Love, was released in August 1977. It was White's first album since 1975 to top Billboard's R&B chart, and it also reached No. 8 on the Billboard 200. The album features two Top 10 Billboard R&B singles: the No. 1 "It's Ecstasy When You Lay Down Next to Me" (also No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100) and "Playing Your Game, Baby." A third single, "Oh, What a Night for Dancing," reached No. 13 on Billboard's R&B chart.

The Man, White's self-produced eighth album, was released in October 1978 on the renamed 20th Century-Fox Records label. It was his sixth Billboard R&B No. 1 and it also reached No. 36 on the Billboard 200. The album's lead single, "Your Sweetness Is My Weakness" reached No. 2 on Billboard's R&B chart, while White's cover of Billy Joel's "Just the Way You Are" reached No. 45 on Billboard's R&B chart and No. 12 on the UK singles chart. A third single, "Sha La La Means I Love You," peaked at No. 55 on the UK singles chart. A cover of White's "It's Only Love Doing Its Thing" (with the shortened title "It's Only Love") was a hit for the British band Simply Red in 1989.

White's ninth self-produced album, I Love To Sing The Songs I Sing, was released in April 1979. Featuring the title song, the album peaked at No. 40 on Billboard's R&B chart. It was White's final LP for 20th Century-Fox Records, after which he released new recordings on his own Unlimited Gold imprint.

Across the nine albums he released with 20th Century Records between 1973 and 1979, Barry White established the new sound of orchestral soul that became an enduring R&B staple. Fifteen years after his untimely death in 2003 at the age of 58, The 20th Century Records Albums (1973-1979) honors and celebrates Barry White's legendary career by restoring these classic albums and presenting them together.

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Soul Togetherness 2018: 15 Modern Soul Room Gems (Various Artists)

Expansion’s most successful and longest running compilation series returns with a 2018 edition. The concept remains the same, fifteen must-have modern soul room gems taken from the year’s biggest dance floor spins on the soul scene. While tracks here have topped UK soul charts, many have not been available in all formats. Once again, attention is paid to the ‘flow’ of the 15 gems chosen here from shuffling beats to boogie to more soulful house as played at modern soul events. Participants this year include Cornell CC Carter with a track from one of the year’s biggest albums, huge tracks by UK soul artists Kenny Thomas, Jaki Graham (exclusive extended mix), John Reid (exclusive extended mix); a return to form for the massive Change; two artists Brian Courtney Wilson and Lexi from Motown’s new gospel label; superb dancers from new artists The APX, Imaa, with a vintage flavor from Ernest Ernie & The Sincerities. There’s excellence from German DJ Mousse T with Peven Everett; soulful garage anthems from DJ Spen and Prefix One, an 80s revival from The Richie Family, and fantastic to have Cheryl Pepsii Riley back with an James Day on an extended mix exclusive to this album.

Ashford & Simpson: Love Will Fix It – The Warner Bros. Records Anthology 1973-1981

Ashford & Simpson: Love Will Fix It – The Warner Bros. Records Anthology 1973-1981 is a comprehensive three-disc collection spanning the legendary song-writing duo’s classic recordings for the major label. The husband and wife team of Nickolas and Valerie, having established themselves as one of Motown’s many successful hit-making partnerships (“Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” “You’re All I Need To Get By”), added even more depth, emotion and rich musicality to their self-produced recordings. This Groove Line Records release features all of the duo’s Warner Bros. R&B hits including I’d Know You Anywhere, Send It, Don’t Cost You Nothing, Found A Cure, Is It Still Good To Ya, Tried Tested And Found True, and Nobody Knows, as well as an un-released version of The Debt Is Settled and club hits like Stay Free, Bourgie Bourgie and One More Try. A third disc features 12” Disco mixes from Jimmy Simpson, Tom Moulton, Joe Claussell and previously unreleased John Morales (M&M) and Mike Maurro mixes of Love Don’t Make It Right and Tried, Tested and Found True.

Groove Line Records cut no corners when making sure that each and every one of our releases has the highest quality performance possible. This anthology is newly remastered from the original tapes and housed in a deluxe digipack containing a 28 page booklet featuring rare photos and artwork. With liner notes penned by Christian John Wikane, which include many glowing quotes from the artist’s peers and personal tributes from musical director Ray Chew and vocalist Fonzi Thornton (CHIC), Ashford & Simpson: Love Will Fix It – The Warner Bros. Records Anthology 1973-1981 three CD set is an essential addition to any serious R&B, Soul, Funk and Disco collector.

Composer and arranger Mark Masters paints compelling jazz landscapes for eight original works on new release Our Métíer

With his Capri release Our Métíer (September 21, 2018), Mark Masters applies his prodigious talent for painting brilliant, complex, and satisfying jazz landscapes.  The eight Masters compositions featured on the album showcase some of the most adventurous creative improvising musicians in jazz today: Andrew Cyrille, Mark Turner, Oliver Lake, Tim Hagans, Gary Foster, Dave Woodley and Putter Smith. In addition, Masters incorporates the unique voice of Anna Mjoll as an orchestral color, mixing with the instrumental waves in wordless swirls of sound.

The ensemble that supports these improvisers includes Scott Englebright and Les Lovitt (trumpet), Stephanie O'Keefe (French horn), Les Benedict and Ryan Dragon (trombone), Jerry Pinter, Kirsten Edkins and Bob Carr (woodwinds), Ed Czach (piano), and Craig Fundyga (vibes). The group's big band sound is augmented by bass clarinet and vibes giving the project, at times, an ethereal personality.

In his ten previous projects for Capri Records, Masters has reimagined the music of Lee Konitz, Gary McFarland, Dewey Redman, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker (Steely Dan), Grachan Moncur III and Clifford Brown.

With Our Métíer, Masters has produced a classic "free-bop" large ensemble statement.  One key to the success of the recording is the combination of improvisers completely simpatico with the compositions. In fact, the music was conceived and written specifically for these soloists. The music itself is an artist's canvas filled with all the hues and textures that flow from Masters' creative core.

The opening track "Borne Towards the Stars," inspired by the conclusion of Malcolm Lowry's novel "Under the Volcano," shimmers with atmospheric gravity and features explosive solos by Lake and Hagans.  In "51 West 51st Street," drummer Cyrille establishes the groove after an opening steeped in funk featuring Mjoll and Carr's bass clarinet.  When Hagans and Foster boogaloo into the musical space you can close your eyes and imagine being in Toots Shor's legendary New York City bar.  "Lift" is an understated blues featuring Mjoll's exquisite voice and solid solo work from Mjoll, Lake, Smith and Fundyga.  The harmonically engaging "Ingvild's Dance" with Foster and Turner brings to mind the classic pairing of Lee Konitz and Warne Marsh. "A Précis of Dialogue" is the first of two collective improvisations demonstrating clear textures and sparkling musical interplay with Turner, Foster, Cyrille and Smith.  Foster, Smith, Woodley, and Turner deliver emotionally charged solo statements on the heartbreakingly gorgeous ballad "Dispositions of the Heart."  "Obituary" is Masters' tribute to friends and teachers no longer living.  Far from a dirge, the composition is an up- tempo, celebratory romp that shows off the ensemble in top form.  From the haunting opening and trombone clusters aided by Mjoll to the sophisticated tenor sax and trumpet solos that follow, "Luminescence" brings you the blues in an entirely different way. "In Our Time," the second of two collective improvisations is wildly exploratory, conversational and always compelling.  The title track closes the recording with a powerful, quintessential "free-bop" statement.

Mark Masters (b. 1957) has earned wide acclaim as an inventive and prolific composer and arranger. All About Jazz calls him "one of the great jazz arrangers of the late 20th and 21st centuries."  Born in 1957 in Gary, Indiana, Masters studied jazz at California State in LA. He organized his first ensemble in 1982 and has never looked back.

"A strikingly creative spirit," (Jim Santella, All About Jazz), Masters has led numerous recording sessions, almost all for Capri Records. Among them are Priestess (Capri, 1990) that Masters wrote to feature Billy Harper and Jimmy Knepper.  A subsequent recording with Knepper, The Jimmy Knepper Songbook (Focus, 1993), featured arrangements by Masters of Knepper's compositions.

Masters' most recent recording Blue Skylight (Capri, 2017), features his innovative ensemble writing and unique approach to the music of Gerry Mulligan and Charles Mingus.  Farewell Walter Dewey Redman (Capri, 2008) features Masters' "in and out" approach and re-casts Dewey Redman's music while retaining its substance.  The project features Oliver Lake, Tim Hagans, Dave Carpenter, and Peter Erskine. Other recordings include Wish Me Well (Capri, 2005) with Steve Kuhn, Gary Smulyan, Gary Foster, and Tim Hagans, Exploration (Capri, 2004) with Grachan Moncur III's octet arranged by Masters, One Day With Lee (Capri, 2004) featuring alto saxophonist Lee Konitz, and The Clifford Brown Project (Capri, 2003) featuring Jack Montrose, Gary Smulyan, Tim Hagans, Cecilia Coleman, and Joe La Barbera. In addition, in 2013 Capri released two recordings, Ellington Saxophone Encounters and Everything You Did: The Music of Walter Becker & Donald Fagen.

Masters' 2005 recording Porgy and BessŠRedefined! (Capri) is a more harmonically adventurous approach to Gershwin's classic folk opera than what has come before.  John Kelman, writing for All About Jazz said "ŠMasters' score is the real star here.  From the opening fanfare he introduces two contrasting elements that, to a large part, define the approach to the whole suite-vibrant swing and some surprisingly free passages.  He clearly proves that it's possible to take a piece that has been approached from a variety of angles and still find a new way in."

Since 1998, Masters has been president of The American Jazz Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated to the enrichment and enhancement of the appreciation of jazz. Under Masters' direction, the AJI supports activities that educate and expose the public to jazz through live performance and an oral history project, as well as by supporting charitable endeavors that advance jazz music. One such endeavor is the AJI's Find Your Own Voice mentoring program that takes professional musicians to middle and upper school campuses to present clinics and master classes to student musicians.

Masters served as a guest lecturer at Claremont McKenna College (1999 - 2006) where he was involved with the History of Jazz class, overseeing an oral history project, and writing for and producing a series of concerts that brought such notable artists to the college as Billy Harper, Billy Hart, Bennie Maupin, Rufus Reid, Sam Rivers, Andrew Cyrille, Mark Turner, Gary Foster, Lee Konitz, Jack Montrose, John La Porta, Tim Hagans, Gary Smulyan, Ray Drummond, Steve Kuhn, Peter Erskine, Joe La Barbera, Ted Brown, Grachan Moncur III, Henry Grimes, and Dewey Redman.

Masters has been named a Rising Star Arranger in DownBeat Magazine's Annual Critics Poll multiple times.

 

Tenor saxophonist Keith Oxman partners with legendary sax man David Liebman for new release Glimpses

When acclaimed Denver saxophonist Keith Oxman joined forces with the legendary David Liebman, magic happened. Glimpses, out September 21, 2018 on Capri Records, offers listeners more than just a few quick looks at the musical partnership between the two saxophonists. On eight meaty tracks the pair demonstrates virtuosic technique, remarkable musicality, and an astonishing camaraderie.

For more than four decades Oxman listened to and transcribed solos from many jazz greats like Charlie Parker and John Coltrane. Among his first transcriptions was one of Liebman's recordings. Through a former student he was able to connect with Liebman's daughter, then the man himself. The two developed a mutual respect, rapport, and friendship that shines brightly on Glimpses. With Oxman on tenor sax and Liebman on soprano and tenor, the artists approach the music with intelligence, sensitivity, and joy. They are ably backed throughout by Oxman's working band with pianist Jeff Jenkins, bassist Ken Walker, and drummer Todd Reid.

Both Oxman and Liebman are devotees of the late, great John Coltrane, a connection which cements their combined sound. "I really enjoyed Keith's compositions that have challenging and interesting harmonic twists and turns, always framed with lyrical, melodic content." says Liebman.

The conversational, musically sensitive relationship between Oxman and Liebman is established on the record's opening track, Oxman's "Shai," in which the horns interact with solo licks and unison statements before breaking off in hard swinging solos. The exquisite ballad "Lenny," another Oxman original, follows with Liebman's smoky soprano saxophone joined by Oxman's sweet tenor. Oxman's "Trane's Pal" pays homage to the inspirational John Coltrane with a punchy head followed by wailing, bop-inspired solos.

Liebman takes the reins on the Ellington classic "In a Sentimental Mood," showing off his masterful musicianship and sense of fun in a duet with pianist Jenkins, whose wistful, extended piano solo leads into Liebman's expressive, searching rendition of the time-honored melody. "Afreaka" by Cedar Walton has Oxman and Liebman trading eights and grooving to a world beat. On Oxman's upbeat "Louminus," the pair exploit the range of their instruments with guttural low notes and wailing altissimo. Oxman alone is featured on the deep catalogue standard "I Sold My Heart to the Junkman" by Leon Rene, and his expressive horn sings on the gorgeous melody. The album closes with the title track "Glimpses," a Liebman original that delivers a powerful double-barreled saxophone tour de force.

Glimpses is a remarkable achievement, bringing together one saxophonist and his trio with a horn legend who remains as receptive to and excited about the music as ever. "I love this process and the ensuing bond that develops so quickly when jazz musicians interact," says Liebman. That bond is evident all over Glimpses, which brims with lyrical melodies, surprising harmonics, fantastic solos, and masterful horn playing.

From the tender age of 12 when he first picked up a tenor sax given to him by a cousin, Denver native Keith Oxman spent his musical career studying jazz greats like Sonny Stitt, Mel Torme, Louis Bellson, Phil Woods, Buddy Rich, Tom Harrell, Jack McDuff, Joe Bonner, and many others. This is Keith's 10th album on the Capri over the last 24 years.

NEA Jazz Master David Liebman is considered a renaissance man in contemporary music with a career stretching nearly fifty years. He has played with masters including Miles Davis, Elvin Jones, Chick Corea, John McLaughlin, McCoy Tyner, and others, authored books and instructional DVDs which are acknowledged as classics in the jazz field, and recorded as a leader in styles ranging from classical to rock and free jazz.  He has performed on over 500 recordings with over 200 as a leader/co-leader featuring several hundred original compositions.

Boston's creatively charged Ayn Inserto Jazz Orchestra rematerializes with its first new album in a decade Down a Rabbit Hole

The trick about falling down rabbit holes is knowing how to get back out. The insistently inventive composer, arranger, bandleader and educator Ayn Inserto has built a brilliant career around her gift for designing fantastical but slyly logical musical landscapes and crafting sonic adventures marked by sinuously surprising melodies, Technicolor harmonies, and arrestingly vivid voicings. Due for release on Summit Records on September 21, 2018, the Ayn Inserto Jazz Orchestra's first new album in a decade, Down a Rabbit Hole, reintroduces her sly and imaginative musical world, a realm populated by some of jazz's most expressive improvisers.

In many ways Inserto conceived Rabbit Hole to showcase her three special guests - trumpet star Sean Jones, tenor sax great George Garzone, and trombonist John Fedchock - along with her exceptional cast of players many of whom have been with her since she launched the group in 2001. "I saw the album as an opportunity to feature these three amazing musicians, people I consider good friends and musical influences," says Inserto. "They're three artists who don't necessarily play together so it was really fun to bring them together."

A protégé of legendary trombonist/arranger/composer Bob Brookmeyer, Inserto has ascended to jazz's top ranks over the past two decades, earning numerous awards and commissions. Her last release, 2015's Home Away From Home (Neuklang Records), documented her collaboration with Italy's acclaimed Colours Jazz Orchestra. With Rabbit Hole, she's landed back on home turf. From the first track "Three and Me," her bespoke sensibility provides her guest triumvirate with passages tailored to their musical personalities. 

She arranged "BJ's Tune" as a vehicle for Jones' gorgeous trumpet, a sound as rich and glorious as any on the scene. His poised solo is a case study in melodic development as the band gently churns underneath his ascending lines. Inserto doesn't really write programmatic music, but the briskly swinging "Mister and Dudley" does capture the frisky energy and quotidian pleasures of spending time with the tune's sources of inspiration. Inspired by Fedchock and bass trombonist Jennifer Wharton's two namesake dogs, the piece evokes the pooches with affable affection.

Inserto recorded the title track, which was commissioned by the Amherst Jazz Ensemble, on her last album with Colours Jazz Orchestra, but that sojourn underground was a relatively calm excursion. Unleashing Garzone on the tempestuous chart results in a whirlwind adventure with his Mad Hatter saxophone inciting the band's tea party rumpus. The album's centerpiece is Inserto's two-part suite pairing of "Ze Teach" with "And Me," a commission by Madison Technical College. The first piece is inspired by Brookmeyer (who signed off on notes to Inserto as "Ze Teach") while the second movement is a powerhouse statement driven by her sensational rhythm section with guitarist Eric Hofbauer, pianist Jason Yeager, bassist Sean Farias, and drummer Austin McMahon (whose supple touch and architectural sense of form always elevates her music).

There are any number of ways to run and maintain a jazz orchestra. Duke Ellington's ornery crew was famous for its long-running feuds and disputations, a bumptious environment that clearly didn't impede his unprecedented creative output. Inserto has taken the opposite tack, fostering a familial vibe that encompasses her special guests. She met Jones during his tenure as chair of the Berklee College of Music's brass department. "We started collaborating early on," she says. "I've gotten to know him really well and was so excited he was into recording."

Garzone, who has mentored several generations of improvisers and is the subject of a new documentary Let Be What Is, has appeared on every album by Inserto's orchestra. Though not an official member, he has played an essential role in shaping the group's sound. Fedchock has intersected with Inserto in various ways over the years, from hiring her as a copyist way back when to marrying her longtime friend, the orchestra's able bass trombonist Jennifer Wharton.

Inserto worked assiduously to foster an environment in which exceptional musicians like trumpeter Dan Rosenthal, saxophonist Allan Chase, and reed expert/flutist Rick Stone can thrive. "I always cook for my band," she says. "Any time we have a gig I make sure they have food. I consider lot of the players close friends. My husband Jeff Claassen plays lead trumpet. There's a trombone and bass trombone duet in 'Mr. and Dudley,' featuring Jen and John. Randy Pingrey (trombone) and Kathy Olson (bari sax) are another married couple. There's not a single person in the band who I couldn't call on or hang out with."

Born in Singapore, Inserto was 14 when her family relocated to California. Within a year had settled in the San Francisco Bay Area's East Bay, where Inserto was well prepared to take advantage of the region's extensive jazz educational resources. She had started taking piano lessons as a child and jumped into music at her Catholic church where she became "very active in the church choir. They had this one band that had a little more modern sound," Inserto recalls. "I was playing the organ, and there was lot of improvising that would go on before the service started. A lot of our music only had lead sheets, and I'd make up stuff to go with them."

Introduced to jazz via the Manhattan Transfer, she learned to read chords from a book of Disney tunes and soon started substituting her own chord choices to make the songs sound more interesting. By the time she entered Clayton Valley High School in the East Bay city of Concord, Inserto was obsessed with music, playing piano in various school ensembles including the jazz band. She discovered Bill Evans, McCoy Tyner and other piano giants while continuing to study classical piano. She was also an avid member of the award-winning Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps, playing mallet percussion. A weeklong Berklee camp in Los Angeles expanded her jazz vocabulary exponentially, she says. "Around that time," she says,  "I also got hired to write for the Blue Devils corps, writing all these mallet percussion ensemble pieces."

She attended Los Medanos College's respected jazz program for several years and then transferred to Cal State Hayward (now Cal State East Bay), where she thrived under the tutelage of trombonist/arranger Dave Eshelman, a revered educator and bandleader who has mentored several generations of exceptional Bay Area jazz musicians (he provides Rabbit Hole's spot-on liner notes in verse). Encouraged to apply to New England Conservatory by saxophonist and NEC professor Allan Chase, Inserto was drawn to the school by Brookmeyer. "I studied two full years with him," says Inserto, now a long-time associate professor of jazz composition at Berklee College of Music. "I was writing from a piano player's point of view, and he got me into more melodic writing, developing these long lines. After NEC he really took me on as a mentor."

While Brookmeyer's influence is laced throughout Inserto's music she has honed an independent musical identity writing and arranging for her orchestra as well numerous other ensembles that come calling with commissions. Her orchestra's 2006 debut album Clairvoyance earned rave reviews hailing her vivid writing and seemingly boundless well of ideas. The project featured Brookmeyer, Garzone, and many of the key players who are still part of the 17-piece ensemble. Her second album, 2009's Muse, cemented her reputation as a composer and arranger of exceptional acuity.  

The various connections manifesting in Down a Rabbit Hole are captured in the album's cover art by Kendall Eddy (a former bassist for the band). Inserto commissioned him to create the artwork, which features various layers of symbolism - like Boston's skyline in the background - readily discernible to a sharp-eyed observer. "There's the brook running through the field, which stands for Brookmeyer," Inserto says. "There are the three giants who drank the potion, like Alice, and became the big artists. I'm running around amidst all the madness."

Crazy like a fox, Inserto has created her own musical Wonderland with her orchestra, a sensational aural universe easily accessible with a little step down a rabbit hole.

www.ayninserto.com

AlternaJazz To Release New Album By Recording Artist Raya Yarbrough

AlternaJazz (Sparks & Shadows) have announced the upcoming release of a new album from singer-songwriter and multi-faceted artist Raya Yarbrough, "North of Sunset, West of Vine." The twelve song record will be available on CD through Amazon, and from all major digital retailers Friday, Oct. 5, 2018.

Two years in the making, "North of Sunset, West of Vine" features ten new songs written and performed by Yarbrough, as well as her arrangements of two beloved cover songs. The songs on the album are inspired by the singer's memories of performing in jazz clubs throughout Hollywood, initially with her father, beginning at the age of seven. With soulful and layered vocals, strings, and multi-textural soundscapes, this album is her stories brought to life.

"I didn't go back to Hollywood for a decade," said Yarbrough, "but when I finally found myself at a party on a rooftop across from the El Capitan, memories came back like raw diamonds. Ugly and precious. Old pain flipped into devotion, and the chords came with the words. It's exciting to have these stories collected now, to live them from the other side."

Yarbrough made her international debut on Telarc (Concord) in 2008 with her self-titled album, "Raya Yarbrough", produced by Oingo Boingo alum Steve Bartek. She released a total of three previous independent albums, and band members have included members of Kneebody, Zappa Plays Zappa, and Kamasi Washington's band. Yarbrough has performed and collaborated with pianist Billy Childs and continues to work on multiple projects with composer and songwriter Van Dyke Parks. She also frequently sings with Grammy-winning rock band, Portugal. The Man.

Some of Yarbrough's notable live performances include opening for Terence Blanchard at The Jazz Standard in New York City as well as a special performance at the Hollywood Bowl as part of the Playboy Jazz Festival. She is also known globally as the singer in the opening credits of the television series "Outlander," and as the female singing voice on the sci-fi hit 'Battlestar Galactica.'

Yarbrough's "North of Sunset, West of Vine" features drummer Tony Austin, from Kamasi Washington's groundbreaking album "The Epic", jazz pianist John Beasley, and Steve Bartek of Oingo Boingo, on guitar.

RayaYarbrough.com

Multi-Platinum Global Jazz, Pop Chanteuse Basia Returns After Nine Year Hiatus with Extensive U.S. Tour In Support of Recent Release Butterflies 

Multi-platinum world jazz pop vocalist Basia has reappeared on the scene with her first studio record Butterflies (May 18 via Shanachie Entertainment) after a nine-year hiatus. The vocalist is set to embark on an extensive U.S. tour, returning to the states for the first time since 2010. Having much experience touring the world, the singer shares positive memories of her time in the states reflecting, “Touring the U.S. is very special to me. I’m always touched by the fans’ loyalty, especially after such long breaks. I love the emotional side to our American fans, very different to other places.”

Being compared to the unique genre-blending artists such as Sade and Michael Franks, Basia has cultivated a devoted following over the years due to her inviting persona and distinctive style. The singer often lets several years go by between each album release, explaining “everything I do has to be honest, true to life and has to come from real feelings, which I cannot fake when writing a song. Creating each song takes time – lyrically and musically; getting the right emotion across is very important to me.” Now, nine years in the making, Butterflies is only the fifth solo album released in Basia’s 34-year solo career and truly marks a major event for her passionate and dedicated fan base.

Butterflies spans the spectrum of breezy Brazilian excursions to passionate pop balladry to up-tempo jazz and in some ways, is Basia’s most jazz-oriented record to date. The album was co-produced and co-written by the singer and her long-time musical partner Danny White (brother of jazz guitarist Peter White). The duo first met back in 1981, eventually joining together to form jazz-pop group Matt Bianco with White’s then collaborator Mark Reilly. White is showcased on piano throughout the album, while Reilly makes an appearance reuniting with his fellow Matt Bianco members providing vocals on a single track. Butterflies also includes a seasoned ensemble featuring guitarist Peter White and Giorgio Serci, drummer Marc Parnell, bassist Andres Lafone, saxophonist Paul Booth and trumpeter Kevin Robinson.

“Butterflies is about love – for life, for music and for people. This album is full of passion and courage but also pure fun; purists will struggle to categorize it because we happily mix jazz, Latin, soul and pop,” shares Basia. “Our songs were created with a lot of freedom and for the simple pleasure of writing and recording them; Danny and I finally grew up and our experiences in music and in life make this album hopefully richer and more honest.”

Basia's North American Tour Dates:

September 27 | Capitol Theatre | Clearwater, FL

September 28 | King Center | Melbourne, FL

September 30 | The Birchmere | Alexandria, VA

October 2 | Rams Head | Annapolis, MD

October 4 | The Sellersville Theater | Sellersville, PA

October 6 & 7 | Highline Ballroom | New York, NY

October 9 | Midland Theatre | Newark, OH

October 10 | City Winery | Chicago, IL

October 12 | Rio Theatre | Santa Cruz, CA

October 15 | Crest Theater | Sacramento, CA

October 16 | Tower Theatre | Fresno, CA

October 18 | Yoshi's | Oakland, CA

October 19 | Coach House | San Juan Capistrano, CA

October 20 | Avalon Ballroom | Avalon, CA

October 23 | Humphrey's | San Diego, CA

October 24 | The Rose | Pasadena, CA

October 25 | Sit Rocke | Hermosa Beach, CA

October 28 | The Rouge Theater | Grants Pass, OR

October 29 | Jazz Alley | Seattle, WA

November 1 & 2 | Blue Note | Honolulu, HI

Christian McBride Launches Mack Avenue Music Group Imprint, Brother Mister Productions, with Eponymous Debut Release from New Quartet

Sure, Christian McBride could have called his new ensemble the Christian McBride Quartet or the Christian McBride Group, or any number of other, somewhat more straitlaced variations on that basic theme. But this new chordless quartet – with trumpeter Josh Evans, saxophonist Marcus Strickland, and drummer Nasheet Waits – arrives with a bit too much grit under its fingernails to warrant a name quite that buttoned up.

If there’s one thing the acclaimed bassist knows, it’s that when it comes to grit there’s no better resource to draw from than his own hometown, Philadelphia. So, McBride turned to one of the city’s most beloved colloquialisms to christen his latest project, Christian McBride’s New Jawn. On the band’s eponymous debut, these four stellar musicians ably walk the razor’s edge between thrilling virtuosity and gut-punch instinctiveness. The release will be available on October 26 via Brother Mister Productions, McBride’s own newly launched imprint of his longtime label, Mack Avenue Records.

“I was looking for a new challenge,” says McBride of the birth of the New Jawn. “I don’t get the chance too often to play in a chordless group. Every major group I’ve been a part of for the last ten years, whether it’s been with Pat Metheny or Chick Corea or my own projects, there’s been nothing but chords. So, I wanted to see what happens if I just pull the chords out altogether.”

The result is a surprisingly bracing and adventurous outing for McBride. A world-renowned bassist regularly lauded as a musician who can do anything, he proves it yet again by venturing into new territory. New Jawn runs the gamut of stylistic approaches, from deep-rooted swing to daring abstraction, singular blues to exquisite balladry. At the core of it all is McBride’s trademark sound, robust and embracing, agile and inventive.

The New Jawn came together during McBride’s annual two-week residency at NYC’s iconic Village Vanguard in December 2015. The regular gig allows him the luxury to experiment, and this quartet was an idea that clicked, continuing to surprise and provoke each other to new heights over the ensuing years on the road.

McBride had just brought his revered trio with pianist Christian Sands and drummer Ulysses Owens Jr. to a close, as Sands’ increasing reputation as a leader in his own right was making the band increasingly untenable. It’s a challenge McBride, with his impeccable ear for talent, has faced time and again – and which he fully expects to confront before long with his impressive new trumpet discovery.

“It was the same thing when I started my quintet Inside Straight and I hired this young dude named Warren Wolf to play vibes,” McBride says, “and when I started my trio and hired this young guy named Christian Sands to come play with me. You’re watching this young talent bloom right in front of your very eyes. I think what you hear is potential; you know there’s something there that’s not quite fully formed yet, but you know it’s without a doubt going to get there.”

A native of Hartford, CT, Evans was one of the final protégés of the legendary Jackie McLean. He’s gone on to play with such elders as Rashied Ali, Cedar Walton, Oliver Lake, Billy Harper and Benny Golson, and record with a wide range of artists from Orrin Evans to Kenny Barron to Mark Turner. His emotional range can be heard on his own “Ballad of Ernie Washington,” named for the pseudonym that Thelonious Monk used when his cabaret card was revoked in the mid-50s; and the keen-edged “Pier One Import.”

Strickland and McBride have crossed paths many times over the years, with the saxophonist occasionally stepping into the ranks of the Christian McBride Band during that ensemble’s waning days, and the two sharing the bandstand often with drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts. “I’ve always thought of Marcus as the heir apparent to Branford Marsalis,” McBride says, a lineage that comes through strongly on Strickland’s boisterous “The Middle Man.” The saxophonist also contributes “Seek the Source,” a simmering twist on the blues.

Surprisingly, Waits and McBride had only shared the stage a single time prior to getting together at the Vanguard that week, despite a friendship that stretches back more than 20 years. “Nasheet is a constant creative vortex,” McBride says. “Be it playing time, playing inside the time or outside the time or no time, it’s always creative. Having known him for a long time but not having played with him much, I was looking forward to the unknown.”

Despite that lack of experience, the pair’s strong hook-up can be heard out of the gate on McBride’s “Walkin’ Funny,” which starts the record off on a tongue-in-cheek note. The staggering rhythm implies a drunken, unsteady gait while maintaining a complex lock-step, humorously setting the pace for the album’s melding of the intricate and the spirited. The incredible freedom allowed by the chordless setting becomes audaciously evident on Waits’ “Ke-Kelli Sketch,” a portrait of the drummer’s wife that feels like an aural Picasso.

Waits’ hazy, elegant “Kush,” which he’s previously recorded with his own band Equality and with pianist Ethan Iverson, is taken at a languid tempo that lends the tune the feel of a stoned Strayhorn. The band luxuriates in the unhurried pace, playing with a beautiful grace and vulnerability. McBride’s “John Day” pays tribute to a childhood friend from West Philly who, he says, “would have definitely called this group a jawn.” The album closes with Wayne Shorter’s “Sightseeing,” a blistering sprint that has stayed in the band’s book since its formation.

Call something a “jawn” in Philly, and everyone will know that whatever you’re talking about has a certain hip cachet, a heavy dose of soul, and a generous helping of what in the City of Brotherly Love is known as “atty-tood.” Christian McBride’s New Jawn has all of that to spare.

Christian McBride · Christian McBride’s New Jawn

Brother Mister Productions · Release Date: October 26, 2018

Baritone & Tenor Saxophonist Jared Sims Tells His New York Story On New CD "The New York Sessions"

Jazz saxophonist and educator Jared Sims pays musical tribute to experiences that influenced his creative development on The New York Sessions, his fifth album as a leader. Set for release by Ropeadope Records on October 12, the disc is a post-bop quartet outing that comes 20 years after Sims was performing regularly at clubs like the Knitting Factory, Wetlands, and Brooklyn's Tea Lounge.

Joined on The New York Sessions by pianist Chris McCarthy, bassist Alex Tremblay, and drummer Evan Hyde, Sims plays his main axe, baritone saxophone, on only one of the album's five tracks, the jaunty-mid-tempo ballad "Brooklyn Tea," named for the defunct Tea Lounge venue. Becoming a kind of outsider to himself, he plays tenor on all the other songs: "Tribeca Tap Bar" (which shows off his Getzian influence), "Wetlands Preserved" (named for the famed Tribeca club), "The Bodega," and "Pelham."

"The theme of this record is not just what New York means to me, but what New York meant to me before it just became all Starbucks and strip malls," Sims told CD annotator Michael J. West. "Not so much looking backward, but telling my New York story."

Jared Sims, who turns 44 today, started playing the baritone in the fifth grade in his hometown of Staunton, VA, and attended his first jazz concert, by Michael Brecker, in tenth grade. He saw the World Saxophone Quartet perform the following year, and his fascination with the saxophone went "over the top" after speaking with members of the WSQ after the show. He dedicated himself to the baritone after bringing a tenor to a class at the New England Conservatory (NEC) and having his instructor warn him he'd never be great on it because he'd be following in the footsteps of too many legends. Far from taking offense, Sims took his teacher's words to heart. "There are a lot of gold standards on tenor," he says. "I was trying to find a way to move past those influences. Playing the baritone felt really natural to me. I felt like I could do something personal and interesting with it."

Jared Sims 

While an undergraduate at West Virginia University, from which he graduated in 1996 and where he's now in his third year as director of jazz studies, Sims studied traditional styles with David Hastings. At NEC, where he played clarinet in addition to baritone, alto, and tenor, he was exposed to non-traditional genres including Third Stream, under the tutelage of distinguished faculty members Gunther Schuller, George Russell, and Ran Blake. Another of his NEC mentors was Allan Chase, with whom he collaborated for various projects.

Sims went on to earn a doctorate in classical music performance at Boston University, where his lecture recital was on the modern Italian composer Luciano Berio and his solo Sequenza pieces. He also did research on Igor Stravinsky, Charles Ives, and American popular music.

Jared Sims While in Boston, where he earned a reputation as a "saxophone colossus," Sims roomed for four years with virtuoso baritone saxophonist Charlie Kohlhase, a cog in Either/Orchestra, who turned him onto Sahib Shihab. He played in numerous Boston-based bands including the Afro-Latin group Mango Blue; the organ funk outfit Akashic Record; Blueprint Project with guitarist Eric Hofbauer; and the jazz-rock quartet Miracle Orchestra. He has collaborated with an eclectic list of artists including the late Bob Brookmeyer, Han Bennink, Matt Wilson, Dave Liebman, Anat Cohen, the Temptations, 10,000 Maniacs, and Oasis's Noel Gallagher.

Sims made his recording debut as a leader with the trio effort Acoustic Shadows (2009) and followed it with another trio session, Convergence (2011), and the collective quartet album The New Stablemates (2012). On Layers (2016), he overdubs himself playing saxophones, clarinets, and flute on tunes by Ellington, Monk, and Mingus, while on Change of Address (2017), a soul-jazz quintet date featuring the Hammond B-3 organ, he plays only baritone.

Jared Sims will be touring in support of The New York Sessions at the following venues:

Sat 10/6 Ashland (VA) Coffee and Tea (8pm)

w/ Ayinde Williams, p; Mike Hawkins, b; Emre Kartari, d.

Fri 10/12 Wallace's Whiskey Room, Pittsburgh (7pm)

w/ Cliff Barnes, p; Paul Thompson, b; Tom Wendt, d.

Mon 10/22 Marvin, Washington, DC (7pm)

w/ Collin Chambers, p; James King, b; Nasar Abadey, d.

Thu 10/25 Button Factory Stage, Portsmouth, NH (8pm)

w/ Mike Effinberger, p; Rob Gerry, b; Mike Walsh, d.

Fri 10/26 Lilypad, Boston (7:30)

w/ Mark Shilansky, p; Keala Kaumeheiwa, b; Steve Lagone, d.

Sat 10/27 Silvana, NYC (9pm)

w/ Frank Straub, g; John Feliciano, b; Alex MacKinnon, d.

 

JONATHAN BUTLER plays Burt Bacharach on CLOSE TO YOU

“This record was inspired by my fiancé Nadira Kimberly. At home one night, we played and sang together as we listened to ‘Close To You’ by the amazing Burt Bacharach. This really opened the door for me to do this amazing man’s music. In 1975, I was 13 years old when my first single was released, “Please Stay,” by none other than Burt Bacharach. It's like I've come full circle.” Tracklisting includes: Do You Know The Way To San Jose; I’ll Never Fall In Love Again; This Guy’s In Love With You; Alfie; I Say A Little Prayer; Walk On By; (They Long To Be) Close To You; The Look Of Love; Cape Town; What The World Needs Now Is Love; and A House Is Not A Home.

Jonathan Butler is a native of Cape Town, South Africa and the youngest in a family of 12 children, Butler began singing and playing guitar at age seven. Well respected in the jazz and R&B fields, as well as the gospel arena with his iconic Grammy®-nominated hit “Falling In Love With Jesus,” Butler is one of the few artists who successfully and seamlessly blends the genres into his career and live shows. Butler signed his first record deal as a teen and became the first black artist played on white South African radio stations, winning a Sarie Award, the South African equivalent of a Grammy, for the hit single, “Please Stay.” Butler lived in England for 17 years, and today makes his home in California, yet his artistry continues to pay homage to his African roots.

Trumpeter Marquis Hill Set to Release Follow Up to Critically Acclaimed EP with Modern Flows Vol. II

On Modern Flows Vol. II, trumpeter Marquis Hill’s mission is clear: “I want to continue to blur the genre line between quote-unquote ‘jazz’ and hip-hop, because I’m a true believer that it is the same music,” he says. “their roots come from the same tree; they just blossomed on different branches.”

Hill—“a smart post-bop player who circumvents genre clichés by incorporating elements of hip-hop and contemporary R&B,” says the New Yorker—is uniquely and extraordinarily qualified for the job. He’s one of the most gifted trumpeters on the scene and arguably the finest of his generation—the victor of the 2014 Thelonious Monk competition, and the recipient of the Rising Star title for trumpet in the 2016 DownBeat Critics Poll. A Chicagoan now based in New York and barely into his 30s, Hill learned the jazz language during a thrilling period in hip-hop history and the golden age of neo-soul. In recent years, he’s developed a global reputation as a determined and tastefully innovative bandleader.

In shaping the 15 original pieces that comprise Modern Flows Vol. II, Hill assembled a group featuring other young masters—most of them raised in or near Chicago as well—who share his ability to blend virtuosity with a certain sonic rawness. The trumpeter tapped in alto saxophonist Josh Johnson for his highly personal sound and the positive challenges he presents as a frontline partner. “With a lot of players, you can tell they’ve checked out this person or transcribed that musician. When I hear Josh, I hear Josh,” Hill says. “I’m a firm believer that you should have people in your band who push you, and playing with Josh pushes the hell out of me.” In Joel Ross, Hill recruited the most buzzed-about and in-demand vibraphonist/marimbist currently in jazz. For “the young genius,” as Hill calls Ross, the gig marks the achievement of a long-held goal. “I remember Joel coming to shows in Chicago and saying, ‘I wanna be in your band one day,’” Hill recalls. “And his time is now.” Junius Paul, a deft acoustic and electric bassist who focuses on the latter throughout Vol. II, is “like a walking library of music, and when he plays it just all comes out,” Hill says. He has also informed the trumpeter’s composing, in profound ways. “The type of basslines he naturally improvises, I try to mimic those and write the music around them,” he explains. On drums is L.A.’s Jonathan Pinson, whose versatility and willingness to invent seem tailor-made for Hill’s genre-bending music. “He swings hard, and the music comes from that,” Hill says. “But he’s from the hip-hop generation, so he has a limitless number of grooves and beats.”

Of course, a fiercely talented and deeply interactive jazz band is only about half the story on Modern Flows Vol. II. Among the simmering intensity of instrumentals like “The Watcher” and “As I Am,” Hill and company provide elastic, organic backing for some of today’s most incisive spoken-word artists—poets who embody the hip-hop tenets that first attracted Hill to the art form. “I value the truth aspect of hip-hop,” he explains. “I’m a fan of music with a message.” On “Modern Flows II Intro,” emcee Brandon Alexander Williams lays down the project’s mission statement, flowing a through line that connects various corners of black musical culture; on “It Takes a Village,” he meditates on issues of black identity and family.

Chicago’s M’Reld Green does impassioned work on “Prayer for the People,” probing such social problems as gentrification, substance abuse and racial disparities in policing; on “Herstory,” she illuminates the plight of minority mothers, because the media won’t. Another brilliant Chicago wordsmith, King Legend, closes the album with a message of self-empowerment on “Legends Outro III.” Along the way, Vol. II takes additional inspired detours. “Kiss and Tell,” featuring singers Braxton Cook and Rachel Robinson, is a soulful dip into old-school R&B romance. Using a strategy he picked up by studying Count Basie, Hill forgoes any improvised solos on “Stellar,” and instead encourages his band to savor the beautiful melody. A brief but potent exercise in Dilla-esque beatmaking, “Smoke Break” pays tribute to a controversial healing herb—one that can be “necessary to the creative process,” especially for musicians working a 12-hour day in the studio, Hill says, chuckling.

For as long as Hill has been interested in the music of his community, he’s refused to entertain the notion of stylistic barriers. “It comes naturally; that’s the way I hear the music,” he says. “I was raised in a household where my mom played Motown, R&B, Isley Brothers, Barry White, Marvin Gaye… Then I received my first jazz record, by Lee Morgan, and that was added to the collection… I truly believe that the music is all the same.”

Hill grew up on Chicago’s South Side, where he began playing drums in the 4th grade before switching to trumpet in the 5th grade. He attended high school at Kenwood Academy, with its renowned jazz-performance program, and was mentored by Bobby Broom, Willie Pickens, Tito Carrillo and other Chicago greats through the Ravinia Jazz Scholars program. Hill earned his bachelor’s in music education from Northern Illinois University, and did his graduate work at DePaul University. Throughout college he made gigs and sessions around Chicago, jamming with and learning from the likes of Fred Anderson, Ernest Dawkins and Von Freeman, and making a name for himself as a stunningly skilled trumpeter.

By the time he won the Monk competition (and its Concord recording contract) in the fall of 2014, Hill was a known commodity in Midwestern jazz, having played in the Chicago Jazz Orchestra and self-released several projects—including, just weeks prior, Modern Flows EP Vol. I. A move to New York that same year helped him elevate his national profile, as did his Concord Jazz debut of 2016, The Way We Play, a fantastic postmodern standards record. “The groove-laden arrangements provide the perfect soundscape for Hill’s fluid improvisational style, which, with its glass-like lucidity, recalls the crisp elegance of hard-bop stalwart Donald Byrd,” DownBeat commented. Hill has also been a powerhouse sideman for Marcus Miller, Joe Lovano, his trailblazing Chicago peer Makaya McCraven, and other heavyweights.

Modern Flows Vol. II, which Hill is releasing on his Black Unlimited Music Group imprint, is in many ways the definitive statement of his musical life up to this present moment—as a player, composer, bandleader, collaborator and, perhaps most important, as an artist with something to say. “If you look at my past projects, there’s always been some kind of message,” Hill explains. “Because the greatest music, the music that lasts, has some kind of message. That’s what I try to aim for.”

Marquis Hill North American Performances:

September 11 - 12 | Jazz Standard | New York NY

September 14 - 15 | SOUTH | Philadelphia, PA

September 16 | White Plains Jazz Festival | White Plains, NY

October 6 | Yard Bird Suite | Edmonton, AB, Canada

October 7 - 8 | Earshot Jazz Festival | Seattle, WA

October 10 - 13 | Mondavi Center | Davis, CA

October 14 | SFJAZZ, Joe Henderson Lab | San Francisco, CA

Marquis Hill · Modern Flows Vol. II
Black Unlimited Music Group · Release Date: October 19, 2018

Trumpeter Cuong Vu Rekindles Chemistry With Bill Frisell on 'Change in the Air'

As a follow-up to 2017's acclaimed Ballet: The Music of Michael Gibbs, Seattle-based trumpeter Cuong Vu joins forces once again with guitar great Bill Frisell, bassist Luke Bergman and drummer Ted Poor on the boundary-pushing quartet outing for RareNoiseRecords, Change in the Air. With all the members of the quartet contributing compositions, this one finds the four participants on equal footing on ten adventurous originals. From Poor's dreamy, noirish opener "All That's Left of Me Is You" and his lonesome echo-laden waltz "Alive" to Bergman's dynamic "Must Concentrate," Frisell's delicate "Look, Listen" and his beguiling heartland melody "Long Ago" and Vu's angular "Round and Round" and his edgy and electrified "March of the Owl and the Bat," these four stellar musicians are truly on one accord and dealing with a rare level of nuance and depth of communication on Change in the Air.

"It was a team effort," said Vu. "The only real leader thing that I did was make sure everyone had the studio dates in their calendars, set up rehearsals, made sure they knew where the studio was; more like secretarial work, is what I did. My only intention was that we should all bring in tunes to make it as collective as we could. This collection of people allowed me to let go and trust, and I knew that we all just wanted to make the best music that we could together." Poor added that the team effort developed quite naturally. "Cuong invited us all to contribute and I'm very pleased with how the band was able to sincerely welcome such a broad range of compositions into the fold. We needed repertoire and I think everyone felt comfortable and confident bringing in their own music. At that point we had played a lot of music together and I for one felt as though we were well on our way to developing a clear band sound and identity." 

Vu commented on the various compositional qualities that his three band mates brought to the table on Change in the Air. "Bill's writing, like his playing, at first glance is seemingly simplistic though always full of character. And when you patiently zoom in you find that it's filled with multi-layered info that is cohesively bonded. His pieces can be played on any collection of instruments and arranged in any way, and the truth of what he intended will come through as the listener will find it as deeply moving as it is beautiful. Luke's writing is smart, clever, ironic, funny and feels inevitable. He comes from having seriously investigated a wide and eclectic range of music but he's rooted in a rock band-based type of viewpoint. I think it all comes out in the music that he writes. And Ted is one of these guys who sounds like the source music for whatever genre he plays, and he sounds like a wise, experienced elder playing it. What I find impressive is in how he's able to get deep into whatever type of music and so quickly absorb it. He's like a jack-of-all-trades type of drummer because of that ability, along with the technical freedom to execute it all. I'm not surprised that his writing reflects all that. The three tunes that he brought to the table are so different from each other and they all feel extremely rooted and focused in the specific context that each inhabits." 

   

Regarding his three stylistically wide-ranging compositions on Change in the Air, Poor offered: "I liked the idea of trying to writing something that could pose as an old standard found in an archive somewhere, and that's how I came up with 'All That's Left of Me Is You.' The title is a potential lyric for the final melodic phrase of the song. While the song does not in fact have lyrics I wanted us to play it as if we were playing an instrumental version of a standard song like 'Embraceable You' or 'If You Could See Me Now.' For 'Lately' I just had the sound of Cuong and Bill playing the melody and chords vividly in my ears, and I wrote it in one sitting not long before our recording session. 'Alive' was written back in 2012 for a gig I had in New York with Mark Turner and Pete Rende. I have enjoyed playing that tune with a number of different bands but until now it hasn't been recorded. We needed a few tunes with intensity and tempo to balance the set and 'Alive' felt like an obvious choice."

Poor's sublime brushwork is beautifully showcased on "All That's Left of Me Is You," "Lately" and particularly on the rubato closer "Far From Here," which bears the stamp of the late drumming great and longtime Frisell collaborator Paul Motian. "Paul Motian is a hero of mine," said Poor. "Seeing him at the Village Vanguard with Frisell or with his own bands is something I'll never forget. His playing was riveting, provocative and pure music. Regarding brushwork, he's definitely one of my favorite drummers, along with Andrew Cyrille, Elvin Jones and Philly Joe Jones (his brush playing on 'Young and Foolish' from Everybody Digs Bill Evans comes to mind). All of those great players are able to extract infinitely nuanced sound and a powerful specificity of mood and feel. Brushes are exciting for me because they allow you to create sustain and offer such a wide range of attack, from staccato to a legato bloom of sound that has no attack at all."

Frisell, who moved from New York to Seattle in 1988 and remained there for 30 years before returning to the Big Apple, says the chemistry for this particular quartet began in the Emerald City. "I was lucky to have first met Luke Bergman and over the years we have been playing more and more in all kinds of different situations together. It's been awesome connecting with him. Then as soon as Ted moved to Seattle we started playing a lot together too, just getting together at his house and playing tunes. It was the same with Cuong. As soon as he came to Seattle we started playing together. So it was great to have someone to be able to get together with and practice together and just play music together. That happened with all those guys separately and then eventually the four of us got together as a quartet. Cuong has been such an incredible inspiration-energizer for music in Seattle. Luke and Ted too. They all make things happen."

While the quartet tackled the music of composer-arranger and Frisell's mentor Michael Gibbs on its first RareNoise record together, they decided to stick strictly with originals on Change in the Air. Vu's trumpet work is brilliant throughout. Whether its his extraordinary lyricism on Frisell's "Look, Listen" and Poor's dreamy jazz ballad "All That's Left of Me Is You," his plaintive call on Poor's melancholy "Lately" or his staccato bursts and skronking statements on his own "March of the Owl and the Bat," his playing is marked by bold instincts and nuanced expression. Poor cited one possible influence on Vu's "March of the Owl and the Bat": "Cuong has written a number of pieces over the years that are based on driving, angular syncopated rhythms. We are both huge fans of the Swedish heavy metal band Meshuggah and their rhythmic language informs our approach significantly. We worked off of a chart in the studio and the biggest challenge was to internalize the rhythms and meters and make them feel good. From there the embellishment and shaping of the tune flowed naturally."

Frisell offers authoritative solos and beautiful, pianistic accompaniment to the fabric of these ten tunes on Change in the Air. "I'm just trying to listen and do the right thing," he said. "I'm a huge fan of master accompanists like Hank Jones, John Lewis, Tommy Flanagan, Richie Powell, Horace Silver...all guys that are working from the inside out. I for sure love hearing someone play a great solo but much more than that what really gets me off is trying to figure out what's going on with the whole band and how all the pieces fit together. When I listen to Miles' band with Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Tony Williams and Wayne Shorter....man! Every note from all of them all the time is astounding and essential. The magic is in how they play together."

Vu also commented on his uncanny chemistry with Frisell, which is especially apparent in their intimate interactions on Frisell's chamber-like "Look, Listen" and the sparse closer, "Far From Here": "It's pretty much a necessity for me to be surrounded by deeply empathetic listeners whose main priority is to serve the music being created in each instance. And it takes a long time to find the right people who'll create the right mixture together. I really do think that all three of us (Luke, Ted, and I) have a natural strength in 'empathic listening' - making the others sound better while stating your own opinion with an openness to all possibilities in the immediate moments. And I do really think that we're pretty decent at that approach.  But add Bill to the mix...that's his genius! He makes everybody that he's ever played with sound better and always puts them in a different light. It helps that I'm in that same zone of thinking, but it's really about Bill making it happen."

Frisell also commented on the source of the quartet's remarkable chemistry: "You play with someone for the first time and you feel something that makes you want to come back for more. And I think the key to that is pretty simple. We listen. The best things happen when everyone's attention is focused on everyone else around them ...away from themselves."

Regarding the source of the album's title, Vu pointed to the state of world affairs today as a kind of dark undercurrent to Change in the Air. "I've never felt so much anxiety about the future on so many levels - environmentally, politically and especially with the 'leadership' in our country - than I do now," he said. "In terms of what's going on and how we've gotten to this place, it feels overwhelmingly ominous, dangerous and as if it's only the beginning of what will come. I'm scared but, hopefully, just paranoid."

Born on September 19, 1969 in Saigon, Vietnam's largest city, Vu moved with his family to Seattle when he was six years old. He picked up trumpet at age 11 and later received a scholarship to attend the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. After moving the New York City in 1994, he formed the group Ragged Jack with keyboardist Jamie Saft, saxophonist Andrew D'Angelo and drummer Jim Black in 1997. During his time in New York, Vu worked with Laurie Anderson, David Bowie, Gerry Hemingway, Myra Melford, Bobby Previte, Dave Douglas and more. He appeared on Pat Metheny's Grammy-winning albums Speaking of Now (2002) and The Way Up (2005). Vu returned to Seattle in 2007 to teach at the University of Washington, where he is currently a full professor.

TRACKS

1. All That's Left Of Me Is You 

2. Alive

3. Look, Listen

4. Must Concentrate

5. Lately

6. Round And Round

7. March Of The Owl And The Bat

8. Round And Round (Back Around)

9. Long Ago

10. Far From Here