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Jazz Articles about Nate Najar
About Nate Najar
Instrument: Guitar, acoustic
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by Edward Blanco
Brazilian singer and composer Daniela Soledade presents her sophomore release Pretty World continuing a family tradition of exploration into light bossa nova music. Recognized as a proponent for a new bossa nova sound, her unique hushed-styled vocals distinguish this singer from the other vocalists of the genre. Born in Rio de Janeiro where the album was recorded, Soledade co-wrote two originals ("Beijo No Arpoador" and Nothing Compares") with guitarist and producer Nate Najar and sings lyrics in English and Portuguese. ...
read moreNate Najar: Jazz Samba Pra Sempre
by Edward Blanco
Pioneered by Brazilian guitarist Joao Gilberto and popularized by Baden Powell, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Roberto Menescal and others in the early '60s, the bossa nova sound resonated strongly with the American jazz audience, and the Stan Getz / Charlie Byrd album Jazz Samba (Verve Records, 1962) became one of the driving forces behind this genre. Guitarist Nate Najar, who was heavily influenced by the music of Byrd, unveils his fourteenth album as leader with Jazz Samba Pra Sempre (Jazz Samba ...
read moreNate Najar with the John Toomey Trio at Attucks Theatre
by Mark Robbins
In 1961, under the sponsorship of the U.S. State Department, jazz/classical guitarist Charlie Byrd toured South America. This trip proved to be fortuitous for both Byrd and North America for it introduced Byrd to the Brazilian Bossa Nova. Back in the states Byrd played Bossa Nova tapes for Stan Getz who then convinced producer Creed Taylor to record an album of himself and Byrd playing this new musical stlye. That album, Jazz Samba was released in 1962 and introduced North ...
read moreNate Najar: Under Paris Skies
by Edward Blanco
Jazz guitarist Nate Najar follows up the critically-acclaimed 2016 release of This is Nate Najar (Woodward Avenue Records) with a heart-warming tribute to the city of Paris with Under Paris Skies, conveying his love of the city of lights with a charming and elegant set of love songs and ballads, all designed to set the mood and pull on your heart strings. Providing new treatments to a select number of pop, jazz and classical-styled songs, Najar delivers a different message ...
read moreNate Najar: This Is Nate Najar
by Edward Blanco
Hailing from St. Petersburg, FL, guitarist Nate Najar unveils his third full length recording for the Candid Records label on the simply-titled This Is Nate Najar where he touches on the music of Chick Corea and Antonio Carlos Jobim as well as delivering a straight jazz sound with several cover tunes and a couple of originals. A fingerstyle guitarist on the acoustic classical guitar, Najar is one of the few in the modern jazz genre utilizing the nylon-string guitar employing ...
read moreThe Nate Najar Trio: I'm All Smiles
by Matthew Warnock
Nylon-string guitarist Nate Najar channels the creative and energetic spirit of the late, great guitarist Charlie Byrd on I'm All Smiles. The album features Najar alongside Steve Boisen on bass, Chuck Redd on drums and Duduka Da Fonseca on percussion. While Najar gives ample evidence of his advanced solo guitar ability, those moments are always carefully inserted to provide contrast to the highly interactive ensemble sections. The result is an album full of tonal and improvisational twists and turns, creating ...
read moreNate Najar: The Cool Sounds of Nate Najar
by Matt Merewitz
Despite a chic album cover reminiscent of 1950s west coast jazz, and a well groomed young guitarist to boot, there is less substance on the Floridian’s latest effort than there could be. Cool is definitely the word to describe Nate Najar’s second album as a leader on his own independent Blue Line jazz label. “Cool” can get old quickly, however. Saturated with this coolness, Najar’s band, despite great talent, lacks originality.
The guitarist is clearly influenced by masters ...
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