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Marcello Carelli: First Impressions
by Jack Bowers
There is no sophomore slump on First Impressions, which is the second recording by the splendid young drummer Marcello Carelli's quartet/trio. It is one on which he not only anchors the rhythm section but also wrote nine of the studio date's ten bright and engaging tunes. If a musician can be appraised by the company he keeps, Carelli's status there is sky-high, as the quartet consists of award-winning tenor saxophonist Bob Mintzer and pianist Russell Ferrante (who ...
Continue ReadingVeronica Thomas: Veronica Thomas They Say It's Wonderful
by Nicholas F. Mondello
Broadway musicals and cinema soundtrack songs have been full-bloom gardens for material harvested by singers and instrumentalists. From the romantic to the dramatic to the humorous and novelty, artists have had the buona fortuna of such a vast treasury. Partnering with the insight of producer John Proulx, (himself a marvelous singer/pianist/composer) and a cadre of LA greats, highly entertaining vocalist Veronica Thomas superbly delivers a dozen Broadway and film standards--and a standout Proulx original--with They Say It's Wonderful.
Continue ReadingChampian Fulton: Flying High - Big Band Canaries Who Soared
by Richard J Salvucci
If memory serves, Woody Herman was once quoted as saying “it's tough to be a canary," or words to that effect. “Canary" of course, was just one of the many euphemisms used for female big band singers in the 1930s and 1940s. Herman's pointed observation was spot on. He thought, correctly, that most female singers were being evaluated--by male critics, of course--on their physical attributes primarily, not on their vocal prowess. This is no place to go into detail, but ...
Continue ReadingDoug MacDonald: Sextet Session
by Jack Bowers
Guitarist Doug MacDonald records albums like someone who is either making up for lost time or does not have much time to spare. According to his discography, Sextet Session is at least the thirty-second album MacDonald has led or co-led, almost half of which have been released in the past couple of years or so. To keep things fresh, MacDonald has performed with almost every size group from big band to duo, but not often with as sharp and experienced ...
Continue ReadingTerry Gibbs Legacy Band: The Terry Gibbs Songbook
by Jack Bowers
Legacy Band? At age ninety-eight, vibraphonist Terry Gibbs--the last remaining member of a legendary group of jazz musicians who defined the big-band era in America and helped expand and sharpen the music's vocabulary--hasn't finished writing his own legacy, which is why this album is subtitled “The Terry Gibbs Songbook." Although best known as a player, Gibbs, as it turns out, is a splendid composer as well, and wrote every one of the album's fifteen songs, adding lyrics ...
Continue ReadingTerry Gibbs Legacy Band: The Terry Gibbs Songbook
by Edward Blanco
At age 92 years old, vibraphonist Terry Gibbs was still a musical force when he recorded 92 Years Young Jammin' at the Gibbs House (Whaling City Sound, 2017). His son, drummer Gerry Gibbs, paid homage to him with Songs from My Father (Whaling City Sound, 2021) with the Thrasher Dream Trio band. As for this recording for his father, Gerry Gibbs says, “Recording this record with my Pops will always be so memorable because it will be his last work." ...
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