Recording News

Dexter Gordon: Complete Columbia

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 15, 2011

When tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon left the U.S. in August 1962 for an extended stay in Europe, he wasn't fed up with the New York scene or the shift in popular music tastes. “Dexter left for Europe because Ronnie Scott had invited him to perform at his club in London," Maxine Gordon said yesterday. “When he got there, he was invited to Copenhagen and to Paris, and when he looked up, it was 14 years later. He was not the type ...

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Acclaimed Vocalist Gregory Porter Offers Up Another Round of Soulful Jazz on Be Good

Source: GoMedia PR
December 15, 2011

Sophomore Release from Grammy® Nominee Will Be Released on Motéma Music on February 14, 2012 In the short fifteen months since Gregory Porter exploded onto the international music scene with his debut CD, Water, he has racked up a continuing stream of accolades and awards. Porter's Water garnered a 'Best Jazz Vocal ' Grammy® nomination (a rare feat for a debut recording), rocketed to #1 on both iTunes and Amazon in the UK, made significant sales inroads and has soared ...

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Jack DeJohnette - :rarum Xii: Selected Recordings (2004)

Source: Something Else!
December 15, 2011

There are many possible 'correct' answers to the question “What makes a jazz drummer interesting?" Groove? Yes. Chops? Maybe. For me, it all boils down to musicality. Some drummers are able to move their instrument beyond the timekeeping role to take on a more primary responsibility in the music-making process. They don't just help to support and propel the music: they are the music. Spend a little time with Black Codes From The Underground-era Jeff “Tain" Watts or any of ...

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Raoul Bjorkenheim, Bill Laswell and Morgan Agren - Blixt (2011)

Source: Something Else!
December 15, 2011

Sounding something like neo-prog meets outjazz, the music of Raoul Bjorkenheim, Bill Laswell and Morgan Agren is just as interesting for what it does as what it doesn't do. For all of the joys of their ear-melting inferno “Black Whole," the opening cut on Blixt, this power trio is also more than capable of downshifting into brilliantly coiled moments like “Shifting Sands Closing Hour," with its mysterious far-east feel. They dash through the rumbling angular mysteries of “Moon Tune," but ...

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Vancouver, B.C. jazz vocalist Colleen Savage returns with stellar new album recorded in New Orleans

Source: Lauren Rogers
December 15, 2011

The finest jazz vocalists are never one-dimensional; they are able to bend their style, convey a number of different emotions, and roll with the shifting grooves of their band. Vancouver, B.C.-based singer Colleen Savage strikes all of those notes with knife-sharp precision, making her latest album Algiers not only a keeper but a serious candidate for the annual Top-10 lists.

The year is nearly over, and surely Algiers would have placed on a handful of yearly critical polls if Savage ...

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The Wee Trio Announces The Release of: Ashes To Ashes - A David Bowie INTRAspective

Source: Jason Byrne - Red Cat Publicity
December 14, 2011

National tour in support of the new recording (New Year's Day, 2012, on Bionic Records) The Ashes to Ashes Tour: Denton, TX, January 19th: University of North Texas Austin, TX, January 20th: The Elephant Room Houston, TX, January 21st: Cezanne's New Orleans, LA, January 22nd: Snug Harbor New Orleans, LA, January 24th: University of New Orleans St. Louis, MO, January 27th: Southern Illinois University St. Louis, ...

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Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero - Rodrigo Y Gabriela (2007)

Source: Something Else!
December 14, 2011

There was a time when I was pretty consumed with, and you could make an argument that it could be considered “obsessed with," Robert Fripp's Guitar Craft legion—the California Guitar Trio, the League of Crafty Guitarists, and various smaller splinter groups. There was something about the shared skills of the many guitarists balancing complex pieces of intricate music, much of it approaching classical in style at times: It grabbed my imagination, filling my head with thoughts of notes dancing between ...

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Bobby Troup and Bob Enevoldsen

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 14, 2011

As the recording industry shifted its focus from the jukebox to the home market starting in 1949, a new generation of singers emerged to win over the slippers and sofa set. Rather than croon standards passionately like Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby, these new singers were more likely to record material by new songwriters and deliver them with a relaxed, lounge-like intimacy. Among this group was singer-songwriter-pianist Bobby Troup, whose first leadership date in 1953 for Capitol is remarkable for ...

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