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Jazz Articles about Dave Samuels
Gallery: Gallery
by John Kelman
GalleyGalleryECM Records1982 Today's discovery is in my top 10 list of albums screaming for first-time issue on CD by Munich's venerable ECM Records. Gallery was a one-off, teaming vibraphonist Dave Samuels and Oregon's Paul McCandless with cellist David Darling, bassist Ratzo Harris and Michael Di Pasqua--a drummer who, with a resume on the label that included Ralph Towner, Jan Garbarek, Double Image and Eberhard Weber, was well on his way to becoming a label staple ...
read moreCaribbean Jazz Project: Afro Bop Alliance
by AAJ Italy Staff
Fra i più interessanti vibrafonisti contemporanei c'è di sicuro Dave Samuels. Ha cominciato ad incidere con Gerry Mulligan finendo alla ECM con il progetto Double Image e con un'incisione, ristampata su CD, insieme ad Art Lande e Paul McCandless. Successivamente ha trovato una sua strada in contesti di fusion come gli Spyro Gyra e con la banda di genere latino Caribbean Jazz Project, fondata insieme al sassofonista contralto Paquito De Rivera ed il percussionista Andy Narell, progetto che poi ha ...
read moreCaribbean Jazz Project: Afro Bop Alliance
by Woodrow Wilkins
Lionel Hampton was one of the first real" jazz vibraphonists. In more recent years, Gary Burton has been among those who have kept the instrument an integral part of the jazz scene. However, another name is also synonymous with the instrument. That is Dave Samuels.A longtime member of Spyro Gyra who occasionally reunites with the group, performing on a few songs here and there for recordings, Samuels is a master of both the vibraphone and the marimba. He ...
read moreCaribbean Jazz Project featuring Dave Samuels: Mosaic
by Victor Verney
Mosaic is the first studio album since 2003 by the Carribean Jazz Project, led by vibes/marimba specialist Dave Samuels. Drawing on a variety of Afro-Cuban, Venezuelan, Peruvian, Jamaican and other North American rhythms, this release features three different bands. On four tracks, Samuels leads a quintet with keyboardist Alain Mallet, bassist Boris Kozlov, drummer Dafnis Prieto and percussionist Roberto Quintero. Two other tracks feature violinist Christian Howes, and the remaining three selections find Samuels reunited with former CJP co-founders reedman ...
read moreCaribbean Jazz Project: Here and Now - Live in Concert
by John Kelman
Mallet man Dave Samuels' career has ranged from the experimental, ECM-ish vibe of his '70s Double Image group to an artistically questionable association with the commercially viable smooth jazz group Spyro Gyra. And while those who knew just how much Samuels was capable of were more than a little surprised to see him maintain a long-term relationship with such a lightweight group, he managed to remain credible, always being critically singled out, even as Spyro Gyra itself was often dismissed. ...
read moreCaribbean Jazz Project: Here and Now - Live in Concert
by Woodrow Wilkins
It seems that every year I get an album that is so impressive, I claim it is the likely to be the best new jazz release of the year. Usually that doesn't happen until August or September. It's only February, and I've already heard two. They may not hold up over the next ten months, but they've set a high standard that will be tough to beat. The first of these is the Caribbean Jazz Project's Here and ...
read moreCaribbean Jazz Project: The Gathering
by Jim Santella
Dave Valentine and Dave Samuels provide a pleasant Caribbean mood. With flute and marimba out front, the band takes on a natural appearance. Their performance remains as informal as a jazz party on the beach. Samuels' Rendezvous" begins the session with a guest appearance by Paquito D'Rivera. Recall that the alto saxophonist helped found Caribbean Jazz Project in 1995, along with Samuels and percussionist Andy Narell. Today, the ensemble is as animated as ever, trading fours, quoting from the literature, ...
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