Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Nick Cuda: Mattina D

159

Nick Cuda: Mattina D

By

View read count
Nick Cuda: Mattina D
On his third independently produced recording, Nick Cuda extends the parameters of his music. On his first album, A Beautiful Woman, he took in vintage pop songs with a quartet; on his second, Guitar in the Window, he ventured into Latin jazz with a sextet. This time around, he brings a couple of rap singers along. He is adventurous, if nothing else.

Cuda has an ear for sprightly tunes and melodies that grab the ear. This comes off best on the title tune, the melody hooking in on the repeated opening riff and then going on to cast a spell as the percussion sashays in and Cuda cuts a sprightly path on the guitar. If the Spanish air on that tune tingled, his lissome playing on "Latin Ways" adds more lure as he mines the deep colours of the rhythm, which are given an added adjunct by Dick Smith's percussion.

"Riding On" is a strong ballad with some heartfelt singing from Adrian Breda. Its impressive pop sensibility is made all the better by the intertwining of the lead voice with Manuela's backup vocal. However, "A Beautiful Woman," the title track of Cuda's first album, to which he added words for this release, fails to ignite any sparks with its flit-by pop singing and uninspiring lyrics. At the end of it all, though, this album creates its own little nook of charm.

Visit Nick Cuda on the web.

Track Listing

The Guitar Homie'; If We Were To; Mattina D

Personnel

Nick Cuda: nylon string guitar; Andrew Downing: bass; Ben Riley: drums; Dick Smith of Syncona: percussion; Danny Sustar: accordion; Adrian Breda: piano and vocals; Wyze Wonder and Sham Star: lead rap vocals; Manuela: background vocals.

Album information

Title: Mattina D | Year Released: 2005 | Record Label: Self Produced

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter 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.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.