jazz, lyn Stanley, making a Scene
Lyn Stanley Favorite Takes – London With a Twist- Live at Bernie’s ATM We introduced you to jazz vocalist Lyn Stanley back in December 2017 with her double CD-set of the Great American Songbook classics., Moonlight Sessions Vol. 1 and Vol 2. You may want to reference that for her amazing back story. In 2018 […]
blues, cd review, jazz, making a Scene, patrick barnitt, standards, vocalist
Patrick Barnitt Sway Self-released Vocalist and actor Patrick Barnitt is releasing his second album, Sway, backed by the 17-piece Paul McDonald Big Band and featuring a varied collection of swing, pop, and blues tunes. At times Barnitt, with his robust tenor voice, will remind you of those classic male singers of the Great American Songbook. […]
cd review, jazz, Lauren desberg, making a Scene, pop
Lauren Desberg Out for Delivery Self-released Out for Delivery is a different kind of jazz vocal album because songstress Lauren Desberg wants to be anything but predictable You may not even think it’s jazz as you know it. It’s an album that doesn’t rely on standards although there are two of them transformed into almost […]
blind lemon jazz, jazz, making a Scene
Blind Lemon Jazz After Hours OFEH Sometimes a format change can make a big difference. James Byfield aka Blind Lemon Pledge has made several straight-ahead blues albums that this writer deemed ordinary. After Hours, as the name implies, is a set of late night jazzy fare, with all tunes written by Byfield but mostly sung […]
jazz, making a Scene, mark morganelli
Mark Morganelli & The Jazz Forum All-Stars Brasil! Jazz Forum When we think of Brazilian music, we probably first envision guitars or maybe those iconic Stan Getz/ Gilberto collaborations. In fact, the music lends itself to all kinds of instrumentation and this 2CD offering from trumpeter and flugelhornist, bandleader Mark Morganelli, is as a good […]
hazel mitchell bell, jazz, making a Scene
Hazel Mitchell-Bell Stronger Than Ever Self-Released Based on several recent releases, the Washington D.C. jazz scene if full of talent and thriving. Just last week we reviewed saxophonist Jordon Dixon. Recently this writer also was moved by D.C.’s Coniece Washington’s tribute to her idol, Shirley Horn, on Shades of Shirley Horn. Key to that album […]
Dave Wilson Quartet, jazz, making a Scene
Dave Wilson Quartet One Night at Chris’ Self-Released This live album from saxophonist Dave Wilson and his quartet at Philly’s Chris’ Jazz Café is a different kind of jazz album due to the choice of rock cover songs, not often heard in a jazz format. They include the Grateful Dead’s “Friend of the Devil,” The […]
jazz, jazz standards, judy wexler, making a Scene
Judy Wexler Crowded Heart Jewel City Jazz L.A. vocalist Judy Wexler is releasing her fifth album, Crowded Heart, in which she presents a forward look at the Great American Songbook, jazz standards for the 21st Century. In some ways it’s comparable to Chris Stamey’s forthcoming project, due at the end of the month, New Songs […]
chanda Rule, jazz, making a Scene
Chanda Rule Sapphire Dreams PAO/Blujazz Amazing, multi-talented Chanda Rule is a singular talent that may escape the attention of many because the Chicago-born, New York-experienced artist is now living in Vienna where this jazz vocal album, Sapphire Dreams, was recorded about 20 months ago and originally released on a European label. Rule recorded with the […]
Dave miller, jazz, making a Scene, Rebecca Dumaine
Rebecca Dumaine and the Dave Miller Combo Chez Nous Summit Jazz vocalist Rebecca Dumaine is the daughter of pianist Dave Miller and they collaborate for a generous program of mostly standards, several done rather inventively. Joining are bassist Chuck Bennett, drummer Bill Belasco, and on eight of the 14, guitarist Brad Buethe. This is Bay […]
jazz, Jordon dixon, making a Scene, saxophone
Jordon Dixon ON! Self-released Jordon Dixon is a Washington-D.C. based emerging tenor saxophonist with a big fat sound that owes in part to Stanley Turrentine and Dexter Gordon. As a bandleader on this, his second album, he fronts a quartet/quintet that includes the brilliant Allyn Johnson on piano and the rhythm duo of bassist Herman […]
cd review, jazz, making a Scene, pablo Lanouguere Quintet
Pablo Lanouguere Quintet Eclectico Self-released Pablo Lanouguere is a native-born Argentinian bassist and composer and this is the recording debut of his quintet, Eclectico. These are a dozen originals, 11 by Lanouguere. Their music is unique, for lack of a better term, world fusion, combining modern jazz, tango, Argentinian, and classical music. Lanouguere has been […]
Elizabeth Tomboulian, jazz, making a Scene
Elizabeth Tomboulian Love’s In Need of Love Today Self-released It’s never too late. Elizabeth Tomboulian has been singing since the ‘70s but this is her debut CD, Love’s In Need of Love Today. In keeping with her career, it’s an eclectic mix of blues, bossa nova, and jazz – all styles that she has covered […]
birdsongs, jazz, making a Scene
Ellynne Rey The Birdsongs Project Self-produced Jazz vocalist Ellynne Rey delivers this interesting project of bird songs by a wide array of writers including Blossom Dearie, Joni Mitchell, Hoagy Carmichael, Abbey Lincoln, Franz Shubert, and the Beatles. Looking at that list, you could likely guess some of the songs, but you might be wrong on […]
cd review, Ernest turner, jazz, making a Scene
Ernest Turner My Americana Self-released Veteran pianist Ernest Turner hails from Durham, NC but has soaked up plenty of jazz through his university studies as well as playing in New Orleans before returning home and establishing himself as a mainstay in Durham’s burgeoning jazz scene. My Americana is his solo debut album after spending years […]
art turk burton, cd review, jazz, making a Scene
Art Turk Burton Ancestral Spirits T N’T Music Percussionist, band leader and author Art Turk Burton leads a powerful ensemble with several AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians) members, a six-piece rhythm section and singer Maggie Brown for another adventurous album as a leader. This is his follow-up to Spirits – Then & […]
Dave Stryker, jazz, jazz soul, making a Scene
Dave Stryker Eight Track III Strikezone We’ve not only covered composer/guitarist Dave Stryker on these pages before but also projects from his working trio of drummer McClenty Hunter and organist Jared Gold as leaders. That formidable trio is augmented here by stellar vibraphonist Stefon Harris and, on four of the nine selections, percussionist Mayra Casales. […]
Bennett Paster, jazz, making a Scene
Bennett Paster Indivisible Self-produced Bennett Paster is a keyboardist, producer and arranger-composer who loves being eclectic. You’ll hear echoes of Monk and Hancock to New Orleans pianists like James Booker and soul men like Ramsey Lewis on Indivisible, a wide ranging set of music performed by his core trio and some contributing guests on guitar, […]
cd review, jazz, making a Scene
Akira Tana & Otonowa Love’s Radiance (Ai San San) Vega Drum master Akira Tana is releasing the third album with his group Otonowa, which was founded in 2012 to tour and raise funds for the communities devastated by the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan in 2011. That earthquake registered a whopping 9.1, damaged the […]
cd review, jazz, making a Scene, phil madeira
Phil Madeira Crickets Mercyland Records Multi-Instrumentalist award-winning Americana singer-songwriter and producer Phil Madeira is releasing an instrumental jazz album Crickets on April 26th. The audible pin drop notwithstanding, noodling at jazz and blues is how Phil Madeira relaxes when he’s not in the spotlight. It’s an energy born of passion and content. The songs are […]
cd review, jazz, making a Scene
Sarah McKenzie Secrets of My Heart Normandy Music Australian pianist, singer, composer Sarah McKenzie became well established globally with her Impulse! 2017 Paris in the Rain and now returns on an independent label with the half originals/half covers Secrets of My Heart. She reunites with noted Australian composer, arranger, and events music director Chong Lim […]
cd review, jazz, making a Scene
Daniel Norgren Wooh Dang Superpuma Wooh Dang is the first worldwide release from Swedish musician Daniel Norgren and it’s a mix of jazz, new age, and contemporary folk. Said another way, it’s practically impossible to pigeonhole it as it moves from the ambient tones of electronica in the opening “Blue Sky Moon” to the spare, […]
Deepscape, Jay Anerson, jazz, making a Scene
Jay Anderson Deepscape Steeple Chase Bassist and composer Jay Anderson has appeared on over 400 recordings including nearly 100 for this Steeple Chase label. This, at long last, marks his return as a leader. His others as leader were from the early 90s.We don’t have nearly enough space to document all the artists that Anderson […]
jazz, Lauren White, making a Scene
Lauren White Life in the Modern World Café Pacific Los Angeles-based vocalist Lauren White teams with the superb vocalist and in-demand producer Mark Winkler for her third album, the eclectic storytelling Life in the Modern World, a collection of rarely covered standards from classic writers and interpretations of tunes from more contemporary ones. These tunes […]
duke ellington, jazz, making a Scene, tom culver
Tom Culver Duke’s Place Café Pacific Leveraging his acclaim from Tom Culver Sings Johnny Mercer, I Remember You, Culver now digs into the Duke Ellington’s songbook on Duke’s Place. These are songs that are certainly familiar, sung by an artist who clearly loves singing. Culver’s enthusiasm is comparable to that of Tony Bennett’s and while […]
.blues, cd review, Funk, indie Blues, jazz, karl denson's Tiny Universe, making a Scene, soul
Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe Gnomes and Badgers Seven Spheres Karl Denson’s star is rising. He will be replacing Bobby Keys on the upcoming Rolling Stones tour. He continues to back Lenny Kravitz and play with the Greyboy All-stars, but he’s long been a beacon in the jam scene with his Tiny Universe band, finding time […]
cd review, jazz, little havana, making a Scene, senor groove
Senor Groove Little Havana Zoho Senor Groove is a the latest band from the Smith brothers, bassist Tim and guitarist Roddy, who are flanked by Mercelo Perez (drums), Martin Bejerano (piano), and Murph Aucamp (percussion). For this session that focuses on the Cuban neighborhood in Miami named Little Havana, the quintet is augmented with a […]
AACM Great Black Ensemble, cd reviews, jazz, making a Scene
AACM Great Black Music Ensemble Live at The Currency Exchange Volume 1 AACM Productions Yes, they are still performing, 53 years on. The Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians based in Chicago has spawned the vanguard of avant-garde improvised music with such names as Muhal Richard Abrams, Anthony Braxton, Jack DeJohnette, George Lewis, Lester […]
cd review, doug Macdonald, jazz, making a Scene
Doug MacDonald Quartet Organisms Self-released Only last month we wrote about guitarist Doug MacDonald’s trio album View of the City but the prolific and rather restless MacDonald returns with a self-released quartet disc featuring some fine players. Like the title implies Organisms is an organ project, MacDonald’s third, as a leader, composer, and arranger. Interestingly, […]
carol sudhalter quartet, jazz, live jazz, making a Scene
Carol Sudhalter Quartet Live at Saint Peter’s Church Alfa Projects It’s not often that you find a baritone saxophonist/flutist as a band leader. Sure, Gerry Mulligan comes to mind but who else? Carol Sudhalter has proven herself to be one of jazz’s top baritone saxophonist, a fine flutist and originally a tenor soloist, having been […]
aaron lack, cd review, jazz, making a Scene
Aaron Lack’s Vibetet Lovely Night Millard Street Music Aaron Lack is an Adjunct Professor of Music at Concordia University in Austin, Texas. He currently teaches Drumset, Applied Music and the history of Jazz. Lack plays drums, classical percussion, Vibraphone and traditional steel pan music. He has shared the stage and performed with Benny Green, Roy […]
Blues and Hues, chifford Lamb, jazz, making a Scene
Clifford Lamb Blues and Hues Weber Works Clifford Lamb is a San Francisco-based pianist/composer who is releasing his fourth solo album as a leader and his third with renowned bassist Buster Williams and charismatic drummer Cindy Blackman Santana, among the cast of supporting musicians. The concept for Blues & Hues is a mashup of different […]
charlie dennard, jazz, making a Scene
Charlie Dennard Deep Blue Self-released Pianist/composer Charlie Dennard weaves together music from his native New Orleans with strains from the iconic jazz label ECM on Deep Blue, featuring seven original compositions. Dennard credits his subtle, relaxed style to his teacher, the legendary pianist Ellis Marsalis, with whom Dennard studied for a Master’s Degree in Music […]
freshly cut, indie Blues, jazz, making a Scene, pop, The Strands
Freshly Cut: jazz, blues and something extra in The Strands debut album. Patrick O’Heffernan Freshly Cut, the debut full length album by The Strands, will not only excite their local following, but introduce the wider world to Amanda Campbell’s languid pop/jazz and incisive love lyrics that manage to simultaneously chronicle ordinary life and higher principles. […]
cd review, ernie watts, jazz, making a Scene
Ernie Watts Home Light Flying Dolphin Ernie Watts is one of our greatest living saxophonists. Certainly two-time Grammy winner. Watts has a uniquely versatile resume, having played with artists ranging from Cannonball Adderley to Frank Zappa with the Buddy Rich’s Big Band, Charlie Haden’s Quartet West, Oliver Nelson’s Orchestra, Gerald Wilson’s Orchestra, Doc Severinsen’s Tonight […]
DBUK Songs Nine Through Sixteen SCACUNINC DBUK is more formally known as Denver Broncos UK and is based out of Denver, CO. They are an offshoot of the experimental rock band Slim Cessna’s Auto Club (SCAC) in a slightly different configuration and a sound that some have described as Gothic Americana- a dark blend of […]
cd review, Dave Rudolph, jazz, making a Scene
Dave Rudolph Quintet Resonance Self-released Resonance is the recording debut for Tampa-based drummer Dave Rudolph as a bandleader. Rudolph leads a group of locally based musicians: tenor saxophonist Zach Bornheimer, guitarist LaRue Nickelson, pianist Pablo Arencibia, and bassist Alejandro Arenes, most of whom met at The University of South Florida where Rudolph earned two degrees […]
beverley church hogan, cd review, jazz, making a Scene
Beverley Church Hogan Can’t Get Out of This Mood Café Pacific The time-worn cliché of age is just a number seems more applicable recently as several artists in the jazz and blues genres are finding their way to recording studios as octogenarians. For vocalist Beverley Church Hogan, it’s for the first time. A sixty year […]
jazz, live jazz, making a Scene, New York jazz, Peter Ponzol Quartet, The Copper Coin, Woodstock live music
Saturday night, we had the privilege of sitting with my husband’s sister Maho and her husband Volker and an assortment of their friends in a coffeehouse called The Copper Coin in Woodstock. We were there to hear The Peter Ponzol Quartet play jazz. The Copper Coin is a cool space just right for jazz, with an eclectic […]
jazz, magela herrera, making a Scene
Magela Herrera Explicaciones Brontosaurus Magela Herrera is a Cuban-born, Miami-based vocalist, composer and flute virtuoso making her debut as a bandleader with Explicaciones. Not since the days of those classic CTI Hubert Laws albums and those Atlantic LPs from Herbie Mann, has this writer heard such an expressive flutist. Yes, we could add Charles Lloyd’a […]
betty bryant, jazz, making a Scene, project 88
Betty Bryant Project 88 Bry-Mar Music Few listens are more enjoyable than hearing an 88-year old pianist play and sing the music she loves, the music she was raised on, and the music that invigorates her. This writer can hardly comprehend how someone can play piano at that age; typing is hard enough now. This […]
Doug Macdonald trio, jazz, making a Scene
Doug MacDonald Trio with Harvie S and Steve Williams View of the City BluJazz This is guitarist/composer Doug MacDonald’s 13th solo release and fifth on the label. As one might glean from the cover art and album title, the transplanted West coaster is back in New York City for this straight-ahead date. MacDonald is a […]
jazz, Judy Night, making a Scene, Sliding on Glass
Judy Night Quintet Sliding on Glass BluJazz/210 Live Sometimes second careers prove very rewarding and lead to some unexpected paths. Keyboardist and bandleader Judy Night spent most of her adult life as a practicing pediatrician but realized that she needed to fulfill her life-long passions for composition and playing, ultimately becoming a partner at and […]
jazz, Jorge Nila, making a Scene, Tenor sax, Tenor time
Jorge Nila Tenor Time (tribute to the Tenor Masters) NinJazz This is an excellent introduction to some of the great jazz tenor saxophonists. Omaha, Oklahoma-based Jorge Nila has recovered from some health issues that sidelined him for the past three years and is back to pay tribute to some of his favorite inspirers. As Nila […]
intimate adversary, jazz, making a Scene
Jack Mouse Group Intimate Adversary Tall Grass Drummer and composer Jack Mouse has returned to more classic jazz configuration and sound following his duo album Snakeheads and Ladybugs and the trio Three-Story Sandbox. Aboard are long-time cohorts Scott Robinson on tenor, Art Davis on trumpet and flugelhorn, along with John McLean on guitar and Bob […]
jazz, making a Scene, the 14 jazz orchestra
Dan Bonsanti & The 14 Jazz Orchestra The Future Ain’t What It Used to Be Dabon Music Arranger Dan Bonsanti is back with The 14 Jazz Orchestra following up the previously issued successful Nothing Hard Is Ever Easy. The big band is contemporary and creative with four reeds, three trumpets, two trombones, piano, guitar, bass, […]
jazz, making a Scene, Ted Piltzecker
Ted Piltzecker Brindica Zoho Former trumpeter, now vibraphonist and bandleader Ted PIltzecker is making his debut for the Zoho label and delivering his fifth album. While his previous output featured standards, tangos, and African- flavored tunes his eclecticism has gone even further here on Brindica. Some may quickly notice how that term is an acronym […]
jazz, making a Scene, Simone Kopmajer
Simone Kopmajer Spotlight on Jazz Lucky Mojo Records It’s convenient to call this a throwback album but somehow Simone Kopmajer would seem to be just fine with that description. It’s uncanny how her originals, five of them, fit seamlessly with swing standards from the ‘40s and ‘50s, such fare as Louis Armstrong’s “Struttin’ With Some […]
Gabriel Espinosa, jazz, making a Scene
Gabriel Espinosa Nostalgias De Mi Vida Zoho As you might guess from the title, even if Spanish isn’t your language, this is about nostalgia and happy personal associations with the past (memories of my life). At age 66, Mexican-born composer/singer/electric bassist is looking back fondly on his life in jazz, from his first days with […]
burning bridge, china, jason kao hwang, jazz, making a Scene
Jason Kao Hwang Burning Bridge Blood True Sound Recordings Forgive this start as Blood is an ultra-serious project but this writer cannot help but recall a night of listening to several forms of live jazz in Beijing, China a few years ago. After listening to a couple of straight-ahead bands and a Salsa combo, our […]
