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Aimee Allen: Winters & Mays
by C. Michael Bailey
Vocalist/composer/arranger Aimée Allen exists as a whole, self-sustaining entity. Her round, sensuous alto has only smooth edges with a caress of warm linen. Her songwriting (and that which she does with brother David Allen) is top-notch, fully formed and in abundance on Winters & Mays. But it is her singing that is exceptional, particularly on the ...
Mark Winkler: Sweet Spot
by C. Michael Bailey
For all of his musical bona fides, Mark Winkler is no more a jazz singer than Jim Caruso or Michael Bublé. In spite of the fact that he attracted the best of the best in his sidemen--bassist Robert Hurst, pianist Billy Childs and drummer Greg Hutchinson--for Sweet Spot, he remains something else. The point being, that ...
Robert Hurst: Unrehurst Volumes 1 and 2
by C. Michael Bailey
The jazz piano trio--piano, bass, and drums, also known as the “rhythm section"--is a fundamental unit in jazz ensembles. It is the motor that drives all combos greater than itself. Which instrument a trio “leader" plays often has a profound effect on the personality and temperament of the music produced. Bass-led trios often bring the bass ...
Chuck Deardorf: Transparence
by C. Michael Bailey
Bassist Chuck Deardorf follows up his pairing with Dave Peterson on Portal (Origin Records, 2004), with his multidimensional Transparence. Deardorf raises his bass presence to that of the guitar and keyboards on the board, allowing for a turbulent sound mix that resolves itself with time, like incorporating color in paint. This sonic phenomenon is well illustrated ...
Michael Benedict & Bopitude: Michael Benedict & Bopitude
by C. Michael Bailey
Drummer Michael Benedict's Bopitude is of a very special variety...Hard Bopitude. Michael Benedict & Bopitude is chockfull of hard bop from the likes of Clifford Brown ("Joy Spring"), Grachan Moncur III ("Frankenstein") and Bobby Timmons ("Moanin'"). Pianist Bruce Barth brings his bop togs to the festivities and the classic Jazz Messenger lineup (trumpet and tenor saxophone ...
Duane Padilla: Sentimental Swing
by C. Michael Bailey
Hot Club of Hulaville violinist Duane Padilla echos the golden age of Stéphane Grappelli, by way of Joe Venuti. Sentimental Swing presents nothing new and breaks no revolutionary jazz ground, being made up of ten well-worn jazz standards, presented in a violin-piano-bass trio format. Was all this necessary? Perhaps not, but Padilla does put a pleasant ...
Peter Zak: Down East
by C. Michael Bailey
Block chords, swinging touch, trio setting, full-throated playing: this must be Red Garland. No, its New York City pianist and composer Peter Zak and his loquacious piano style, tasteful and full-bodied. Down East is Zak's sixth release for the Danish Steeplechase label. Zak's piano approach is easily stated, even and uniformly dense. His Ornette Coleman ("Invisible") ...
Erin Dickins: Nice Girls
by C. Michael Bailey
Erin Dickins is notable for being one of the founders of jazz vocal group The Manhattan Transfer. Since that time, the singer has been quite the journey- woman performer, occasionally taking time off from the music industry. She concludes one such sabbatical (10 years) with the release of Nice Girls, a patiently assembled collection of show ...
Maria Jameau and Blue Brazil: Gema
by C. Michael Bailey
Gema is Maria Jameau's collection of Brazilian, Spanish, and African tunes, with the ostensible intention of showing how big the folk musical tent is. Jameau and her band, Blue Brazil, are centered in the culturally-rich Sonoma County, where the muse is strong for an organic mix of musical influences, all thickened with the roux of Mother ...
Amikaeyla & Trelawny Rose: To Eva, With Love: A Celebration of Eva Cassidy Live
by C. Michael Bailey
Singer Eva Cassidy was a force of nature, an incandescent slice of lightening that flashed and was no more. Best described as a song stylist, Cassidy was an excellent guitarist capable of interpreting standards from any genre in an almost violently refreshing and personal manner. Cassidy's career lasted barely 10 years and never garnered the attention ...
