Jazz News

Late Mali Guitarist Lobi Traoré on Live Recordings

Source: Chris M. Slawecki
May 17, 2011

We first met the legendary African singer/guitarist Lobi Traoré in one of the many dimly lit, grimy nightclubs of Bamako in Mali. Considered one of Mali's most exciting, original, and enigmatic guitarists, he immediately made an impact. His overdriven amp, ungrounded fuzzbox pedal and the occasional blast of feedback made for a raw electric blues soundscape distinctly African in its rhythm and phrasing. His soulful, hypnotic, improvisational style really hit us and we knew we had to capture the magic ...

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"Dave Digs Disney" Legacy Edition

Source: Chris M. Slawecki
May 17, 2011

Following jazz icon Dave Brubeck's 90th birthday on December 6, 2010, Columbia/Legacy continues the celebration with a greatly-expanded reissue of the 1957 classic Dave Digs Disney. Originally issued as a six-track album recorded in mono, Dave Digs Disney: Legacy Edition will now feature the album in both mono and stereo mixes, as well as an abundance of rare bonus tracks. The title is set for digital release on May 24, 2011. Dave Digs Disney is in many ways an important ...

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Pianist Kerem Gorsev reaches creative high with mix of classical music and jazz on new CD

Source: Lauren Rogers
May 17, 2011

Don't believe the myth: Thirteen is not an unlucky number. For pianist Kerem Görsev, his 13th album, Therapy, may be his best, the high point of a musical career that stretches back nearly 20 years. In 1995, Görsev released his debut, Hands & Lips. Since then, Görsev has sharpened his hybrid of classical music and jazz, not to mention expanding the sonic range of his compositions. For Therapy, Görsev has the powerhouse backup of the London Philharmonia Orchestra as well ...

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New CD From Marilyn McLeod, An Artist With A Motown Legacy and Coltrane Connection

Source: Donna Caldwell
May 17, 2011

I Believe In Me, is the brand new Twinn Records CD by hit songwriter, Marilyn McLeod, sister of the late jazz pianist, Alice Coltrane. McLeod comes from a musical family that reads like recording Royalty. The late jazz pianist, Alice Coltrane her sister, and the legendary saxman, John Coltrane, was her brother-in-law. Her older brother Ernie Farrow played with jazz greats Yusef Lateff and Stan Getz, her nephews Oran & Ravi Coltrane have followed in their famous parents' footsteps, her ...

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Ran Blake Releases First-Ever Live Album

Source: Tompkins Square
May 17, 2011

In a career spanning six decades, pianist/composer, writer and educator Ran Blake has released 36 albums for such labels as ESP, RCA, Arista and hatOLOGY. His 2006 album for Tompkins Square, All That Is Tied, earned 4 stars in Downbeat and top honors in the Penguin Jazz Guide 2007. Driftwoods, released in 2009, was Ran's salute to some of his favorite singers, including Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole, Mahalia Jackson and others. The album was featured on NPR's All Things ...

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Corky Hale to Make Kennedy Center Debut in 16th Annual Mary Lou Williams Women In Jazz Festival

Source: Chris M. Slawecki
May 16, 2011

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts 16th Annual Mary Lou Williams Women In Jazz Festival will present “Corky Hale And Friends," featuring Corky Hale, the critically acclaimed and renowned jazz harpist, pianist and vocalist on Saturday, May 21, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. in the Terrace Theater of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; 2700 F Street, N.W.; Washington, D.C. 20566.

Corky Hale will be accompanied by Boots Maleson on bass and Brian Brake on ...

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Guitarist Giovan Guido displays fingerpicking mastery on new album

Source: Lauren Rogers
May 16, 2011

Guitarist Giovan Guido can make you believe in the Land of Cargessol. The title of Guido's latest album, the Land of Cargessol is also a fairy-tale world created by singer Stephanie Petrequin, inspired by a tune they wrote together. In the Land of Cargessol, there lived a foolishly brave horseman named Elias, who confronted the unconquerable dragon Nesames and bragged that he could destroy him in battle. Nesames, finding the threat so imbecilic, let loose an uncontrollable fit of laughter. ...

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Frank Sinatra's Inaugural Reprise Album Reissued on Concord

Source: conqueroo
May 16, 2011

Ring-A-Ding Ding set for release on June 7, 2011 LOS ANGELES, Calif.—Concord Records marks the 50th anniversary of a pivotal transition in Frank Sinatra's career with a digitally remastered version of Ring-A-Ding Ding. Under license from Frank Sinatra Enterprises (FSE), the album is set for release on June 7, 2011. By the end of the 1950s, Sinatra had spent nearly ten years on Capitol, where he'd made some outstanding recordings. But at the dawn of a new decade, he was ...

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