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Ronny Johansson: Japanese Blue
by Jack Bowers
Abandoning for the moment his usual piano-bass-drums format, Swedish pianist Ronny Johansson has the stage to himself on Japanese Blue, an album whose name and spirit epitomize a country in which Johansson has spent many pleasurable moments. Aside from pointing out the obvious --that Johansson's harmonic figures are engaging and his technique flawless ...
UNT One O'Clock Lab Band: Lab 2014
by Jack Bowers
Another year, another anthology of stellar big-band jazz from the University of North Texas' flagship ensemble, the One O'Clock Lab Band, which carries on a tradition of annual recordings that was begun more than four decades ago. It's a custom that has not only served the university well but has produced a long and unbroken series ...
Tim Langedijk Trio: Acenja
by Jack Bowers
One appraisal that can be rendered without a moment's pause is that guitarist Tim Langedijk, bassist Udo Pannekeet and drummer Hans van Oosterhout from The Netherlands are splendid musicians. When the trio decide to adopt a harmonious and plain-spoken groove, as is most often the case on Acenja, the album is delightful to hear and appreciate. ...
Randy Brecker with the DePaul University Jazz Ensemble: Dearborn Station
by Jack Bowers
Dearborn Station, the tenth album recorded by the superb DePaul University Jazz Ensemble at Joe Segal's legendary Jazz Showcase (in Chicago's historic Dearborn Station, hence the title), is another bright and rhythmic tour de force for director / trumpeter Bob Lark's intrepid undergrads and their special guest, trumpeter Randy Brecker, whose perceptive solos enhance the first ...
Yuma Jazz Company: Intuition
by Jack Bowers
Intuition is the fourth album by the Yuma Jazz Company, a well-groomed post-bop quintet that has been gigging in southwestern Arizona since it was formed around a dozen years ago. As one would expect from a group whose home base lies a few miles from the Mexican border, the Latin influence is strong, especially on “Late ...
BvR Flamenco Big Band: Jaleo Holandes
by Jack Bowers
How did a jazz musician based in The Netherlands become so immersed in flamenco, a form of folk music and dance from Spain's Andalusia region? The answer becomes self-evident when one reads in Bernard van Rossum's bio that he was born and raised in Spain by an English mother and Dutch father. Flamenco has thus been ...
Vance Thompson's Five Plus Six: Such Sweet Thunder
by Jack Bowers
For the mathematically challenged, Vance Thompson's Five Plus Six equals eleven. In other words, it's Thompson's working quintet, the Marble City Five, amplified by half a dozen horns. On its debut recording, the Knoxville, TN-based ensemble performs music by Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Thelonious Monk and--brace yourself--country singer Dolly Parton. In fact, Parton's “Little Sparrow," the ...
George Gee: Swing Makes You Happy!
by Jack Bowers
The George Gee Swing Orchestra swings in the manner of Gee's friend and mentor, Count Basie, albeit on a somewhat smaller scale (Gee's group numbers only eleven, and that includes vocalists Hilary Gardner and John Dokes). Even so, the Basie spirit is ever-present, and if Swing Makes You Happy, Gee's eighth album as leader (and first ...
Jazz Composer-Arranger, Trombonist, and Vocalist Pete McGuinness Earns Two Grammy Nominations for "Strength In Numbers"
Pete McGuinness: Strength In Numbers (Summit Records) Grammy Nominated for “Best Arrangement Instrumental or A Cappella" and “Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals" Acclaimed jazz composer/arranger, trombonist and vocalist Pete McGuinness has earned two 2015 Grammy nominations for arrangements on his Summit Records CD Strength In Numbers. The nominations are for “Best Arrangement Instrumental or A Cappella” ...
Joe Sample & the NDR Big Band Orchestra: Children of the Sun
by Jack Bowers
Toward the end of his remarkable career, the late pianist Joe Sample (he died on September 12, 2014) traveled to Hamburg, Germany, to record Children of the Sun, a suite of his own music, with the splendid NDR Big Band. The eleven compositions were inspired by Sample's appearance at the 1995 St. Croix Jazz Festival, where ...
