About to begin his 28 city tour promoting his hot trio album with Dennis Chambers and Bob Franceschini, Grammy-winning bassist Victor Wooten went solo this evening at the cozy Grammy Museum, giving the audience an evening of inspiring conversation and…
Month: September 2017
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****Alex Hahn: Emerging
Judging by this incredible album, it’s easy to see why alto saxist, composer and arranger Alex Hahn has won a bunch of Downbeat awards as well as getting press at the Next Generation Monterey Jazz Festival. He’s got a great…
Dee Dee Bridgewater: Memphis…Yes, I’m Ready
Dee Dee Bridgewater delivers arguably her most heart-felt album here, a tribute to the earthy sounds and grooves of her hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. She does right by bringing together locals like Kirk Whalum/ts-bs along with John Stoddart/key, Lawrence Mitchell/perc,…
LET IT GO! Kenji Bunch: The Snow Queen
This two disc collection is a clever ballet adaptation of the story made famous by Disney’s Frozen, but with a reversal of sex roles (which isn’t noticed here, as there is no dialogue). Kenji Bunch teams with OrchestraNEXT directed by…
Sweet As Broken Dates: Lost Somali Tapes from the Horn of Africa
Just before the disastrous 20 year civil war in Somalia, various radio operators and music fans collected cassette tape recordings of popular artists and hid them in order to preserve their pop culture once the dust literally settled. Thanks to…
George Colligan: More Powerful
Post modern pianist George Colligan teams up with Linda May Han Oh/b, Rudy Royston and Nicole Glover/ts-ss for an impressive display of prowess and creativity. Colligan’s writing skills make for a great setting of his chops and melodicism, as Glover’s…
Jovino Santos Neto & Andre’ Mehmari: Guris
Celebrating the music of famed composer Hermeto Pascoal, Jovino Santos Neto plays piano, melodica and flute along with Andre’ Mehmari’s piano, keyboards and bandolim for a collection of suave and sensuous sounds. Guest Hermeto Pascoal actually joins in on teakettle…
Tracey Engleman & Lara Bolton: Lift Me Into Heaven Slowly-The Songs of Libby Larsen
Soprano vocalist Tracey Engleman joins with pianist Lara Bolton for a collection of duets to perform the compositions of Libby Larsen. The operatic voice and stately piano sounds like high parlor on the trio of “Cowboy Songs” while Bolton’s dashes…
Nathan Brown Trio: This is the Moment
Bassist Nathan Brown leads a suavely swinging trio with Felix Lemerle/g and Peter Traunmueller/dr through a collection dominated by originals with a few dashes of covers. The team is sublime, with Flemerle showing an allegiance to Kenny Burrell on the…
Sergio Pamies: What Brought You Here?
Pianist and keyboardist Sergio Pamies mixes and matches with a core team of Young Heo/b, Lupe Barrera/dr and a collection of guests on rich and flowing collection of mostly originals. His touch on the ivories flow with delight on the…