Ulas Hazar uses his acoustic guitar to paint flamenco sketches in a mix and match setting ranging form solo to intimate small groups rotating guests like bass clarinetist Piotr Torunski, percussionist Mehmet Akatay, pianist Mike Roelofs and hall of fame…
Month: December 2020
STAX GETS RELIGION! The Gospel Truth: The Complete Singles
Back in the early 1970s, the legendary soul label STAX created an offshoot for pure gospel sounds, called The Gospel Truth Records. This essential two disc collection puts together all of the 17 singles, A and B sides in a…
TRUMPET TONES…Cyrus Nabipoor: Live At The Marigny Opera House, Walter White: BBXL
Modern brass in various stages of polish… Trumpeter Cyrus Nabipoor veers between macho Freddie Hubbard and elliptical Ted Curson on this post bop collection of originals with Brad Walker/ts, George Wilde/g, James Singleton/b and Brad Webb/dr. Some clever harmonies float…
Dustin Arbuckle and the Damnations: My Getaway
Rootsy rock is brought forth by Dustin Arbuckle on the harmonica and vocals, backed by guitarist Brandon Hudspeth/ bassists Dr. Mark Foley-Caleb Drummond and drummer Kendall Newby. Arbuckle’s voice at times gives hint of Jim Morrison as on “say My…
Champian Fulton: Birdsong
Champian Fulton comes off as a kind of Diana Krall here, displaying great chops on the piano, but also impressive as a swinging vocalist on this collection of standards with a trio of bassist Hide Tanaka, drummer Fukushi Tainaka as…
Jim Waller Big Band: Bucket List
Big band leader Jim Waller plays tenor sax, soprano sax and Hammond organ, along with composing a few tracks here mixed in with standards for a bold and beautiful 20+ member team. There’s even a string section brought in for…
Chris Rottmayer: Sunday at Pilars
Dividing his time between education and performing after playing the piano for Walt Disney World for almost 20 years, Chris Rottmayer gives a studio rendition of his concert vibe with his working team of Walt Hubbard/dr, Charlie Silva/b and Jack…
System 6: Bernie’s Lament
Benn Clatworthy’s team of Joey Sellers/tb, Ron Stout/tp, Bryan Velasco/p, Bruce Lett/b and Yayo Morales/dr-perc has the leader in a wide range of woodwinds on this modal album of originals. His tenor sax is still in the late-period Coltrane mold…
Charles Colizza Group: Hug The Devil
Having honed his skills with the likes of Alan Broadbent and Peter Bernstein, French-Canadian guitarist Charles Colizza fronts his own team of Billy Drewes/ss, Jake D’Ambra/ts, Nick Panoutsos/b and Lukas Akintaya/dr for a collection of mostly originals and a standard.…
KOPPELING A FEEL…Benjamin Koppel-Kenny Werner-Scott Colley-Jack DeJohnette: The Art of the Quartet, Benjamin Koppel: The Ultimate Soul & Jazz Review
Alto saxist Benjamin Koppel releases a pair of albums to show two different feels and environments for his rich reed. The first two disc set has post bop all stars Benjamin Koppel/as, Kenny Werner/p, Scott Colley/b and Jack DeJohnette/dr delivering…