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Judy Bady: Blackbird
by Craig W. Hurst
Judy Bady’s first CD as a leader, Blackbird, is an eleven song collection that expresses a range of emotion from plaintive and serious, spiritual and soulful, to teasing and joyful. Bady, whose voice brings to mind the wonderfully rich tones of Carmen McRae, Betty Carter, Shirley Horn and Abbey Lincoln, adds playful touches to tunes by ...
Les McCann: Pump It Up
by Craig W. Hurst
The venerable jazz pianist and vocalist Les McCann finds himself a master of funk on Pump It Up. With a “tight as a fist” rhythm section of bass, drums, guitar and Hammond B-3 organ, McCann’s band has a groove funkier than the law allows. Crisp drumming with hammering backbeats, plus chunky bass and organ figures underscore ...
Nika Rejto: Midnite Kiss
by Craig W. Hurst
On her newest release, Midnite Kiss, flautist Nika Rejto “burns” on an instrument that is often thought of as a delicate option in the woodwind family. In contrast to the breathy aggressiveness of the sound of Herbie Mann or the vibrato-laden shimmer of Lou Tabackin, Rejto’s tone is more classical in nature. While her tone may ...
Sue Hart: Private Book
by Craig W. Hurst
The newest release Private Book by vocalist Sue Hart is a forty-one minute, ten-song presentation of smooth, well crafted jazz inflected music. Hart’s recording is very nice, straightforward and, in an unobtrusive way, quite pleasant to listen to. Those accustomed to a more “soulful” straight-ahead brand of jazz and captivated by the improvisatory art may feel ...
Jen Chapin/Stephan Crump: Open Wide
by Craig W. Hurst
Like the popular “jazz” singer Nora Jones and some of the work of Cassandra Wilson, the music on Jen Chapin’s newest release on the Purple Chair Music label, Open Wide provides another example of the wide range of influences today’s musicians are confronted and how the boundaries of what constitutes jazz perhaps have been expanded. The ...
Jeff Hedberg and Sketches in Blue: Come and Meet Me in a Dream
by Craig W. Hurst
The spirit of Chet Baker is alive and well in the performance of Chicagoland trumpeter and vocalist Jeff Hedberg. On his CD, Come And Meet Me In A Dream, Hedberg demonstrates a similar essence in his light tenor voice and rather spare approach in trumpet improvisation that are very reminiscent of the almost fragile effluence of ...
Jessica Molaskey: Pentimento
by Craig W. Hurst
With the seemingly steady rise of interest in traditional American popular song, the result has been a treasure trove of CD reissues, a Renaissance of careers of more seasoned veteran performers, and the appearance of many new singers who draw upon the repertoire and inspiration of the Great American Songbook. Along with the work of veterans ...
Mark Elf: Dream Steppin'
by Craig W. Hurst
Evidence of Mark Elf's high level of musical craftsmanship is encapsulated in his latest offering Dream Steppin'. In a pared down, clean, uncluttered upbeat-sounding trio setting, Elf combines his compositional talents along with his interpretations of standards by Johnny Mercer, Irving Berlin, and Richard Rogers to produce 12 individual musical selections. One segment of ...
Mingus Big Band: Tonight At Noon. . .Three or Four Shades of Love
by Craig W. Hurst
The legacy of the artistic genius of bassist/composer/bandleader Charles Mingus continues its viability nearly a quarter century after his untimely death. Through the creative vision of his widow Sue Mingus, conductor/arranger Gunther Schuller, arrangers Robbie Cuber, Jack Walrath, Sydney Johnson, and the cadre of New York jazz musicians associated with the Mingus Big Band ...
Michael Bluestein: Wild World
by Craig W. Hurst
Since the earliest days of jazz, musicians have utilized material drawn from the repertoire of popular music. Many of the “standards” that jazz musicians have used as a framework or springboard for further musical exploration form the backbone of the modern jazz performance tradition. While jazz musicians continue to create new music inspired by the Great ...
