Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Chris Cortez: Hold It Right There

Chris Cortez: Hold It Right There

By C. Michael Bailey
October 6, 2003
View read count

If Wes Montgomery incompletely morphed into John Pizzarelli, then the resulting sound would approximate Chris Cortez’s guitar style. If Louis Jordan incompletely morphed with the same John Pizzarelli, that result would approximate Mr. Cortez’s vocal style. Mr. Cortez plays octaves all over a set of swing standards on his new release, Hold it Right There. He does this best on the swinging instrumental "Ain’t Misbehavin’" and jazzy James Taylor "Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight."

Mr. Cortez’s band perfectly supports him, preparing the smoky momentum of the rhythm section best supporting Cortez’s swing repertoire and slightly feral voice . Hold It Right There is a perfect foil to John Pizzarelli, not replacing him, but offering an engaging alternative without as scrubbed an image...and that is a good thing. Perfect after-hours music. Recommended.

For more information, see Blue Bamboo Music .

Track Listing

Hold It Right There; Lullaby Of Birdland; Ain

Personnel

Chris Cortez

guitar, acoustic

Chris Cortez

Album information

Title: Hold It Right There | Year Released: 2003 | Record Label: Blue Bamboo Music

PREVIOUS / NEXT

In 3's
< Previous

Dannie Richmond: 'In' Jazz For the C...
Next >

Chris Cortez Concerts

Oct 2 Thu

Thursday Night Hang With Cortez And Friends

Blue Bamboo Center For The Arts
Winter Park, FL

Oct 5 Sun

Chris Cortez & Steve Luciano

Blue Bamboo Center For The Arts
Winter Park, FL

Oct 9 Thu

Thursday Night Hang With Cortez And Friends

Blue Bamboo Center For The Arts
Winter Park, FL

Oct 16 Thu

Thursday Night Hang With Cortez And Friends

Blue Bamboo Center For The Arts
Winter Park, FL

Oct 23 Thu

Thursday Night Hang With Cortez And Friends

Blue Bamboo Center For The Arts
Winter Park, FL

Oct 26 Sun

Easy Living: The Music Of Paul Desmond And Jim Hall

Blue Bamboo Center For The Arts
Winter Park, FL

Oct 30 Thu

Thursday Night Hang With Cortez And Friends

Blue Bamboo Center For The Arts
Winter Park, FL

Nov 6 Thu

Thursday Night Hang With Cortez And Friends

Blue Bamboo Center For The Arts
Winter Park, FL

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.