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Doug MacDonald: I'll See You in My Dreams
by Jack Bowers
There is at least one constant in guitarist Doug MacDonald's long and rewarding career: he likes to stay busy, whether hosting live gigs or inhabiting a recording studio. MacDonald's latest quartet session, I'll See You in My Dreams, is at least his twenty- ninth as leader of groups of various sizes and shapes. It is also ...
Nica Carrington: Times Like These
by Jack Bowers
Even though she had been singing, more or less, since she was a child, it was not until the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic that New Yorker Nica Carrington came to realize that tomorrows come with no guarantees, and that the time had come to buckle down and get serious about her craft. After moving from one voice ...
Albare & Co.: Freedom
by Jack Bowers
"Jazz is the voice of freedom," says Israeli-born guitarist & composer Albare, “and it will never be silenced." To that end, Albare has assembled a world-class sextet to perform seven of his sunny, swing-based compositions, two others co-written with pianist Phil Turcio and Turcio's graceful “Shimmozle." The session begins, appropriately enough, with Albare's ...
Doug MacDonald: Overtones
by Jack Bowers
The term “all-star" is not one to be used lightly. Be that as it may, the appellation fits guitarist Doug MacDonald's Los Angeles-based octet as snugly as a glove; he and his colleagues are among the finest, most experienced and in-demand musicians on the West Coast. On Overtones, recorded in September 2021, the ensemble shows its ...
Craig Davis: Tone Paintings
by Jack Bowers
The subtitle of pianist Craig Davis' second album, Tone Paintings, is “The Music of Dodo Marmarosa." For those who may be inclined to ask, “Dodo who?" the album offers a mini-biography of Pittsburgh-born Michael (Dodo) Marmarosa, an exceptionally talented pianist whose promising early career was cut short by the crushing weight of mental and emotional problems ...
Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra: The Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra
by Jack Bowers
The Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra, co-led by pianist/composer Steven Feifke and trumpeter par excellence Bijon Watson, is a seventeen-member ensemble comprising seasoned players paired with young lions who are poised to capture pride of place. Nowhere do the leaders say who is in which group, and it would be impolitic to name them here. Suffice to ...
Tracye Eileen: You Hit the Spot
by Jack Bowers
You Hit the Spot is either the third or fourth album by sultry-voiced, Chicago-based vocalist Tracye Eileen. It was recorded in two sessions: one with a trio (and audience), the other with a sextet. She gets a good head start thanks to a splendid choice of material— eight blue-chip tunes, all from the Great American Songbook. ...
Mike Clark, Leon Lee Dorsey: Blues on Top
by Jack Bowers
While drummer Mike Clark and bassist Leon Lee Dorsey are the nominal leaders on Blues on Top, the album's subtitle —"featuring Mike LeDonne"—speaks volumes about its import and rationale. Without LeDonne at the keyboard, Clark and Dorsey would have to amplify their rhythmic talents to compensate for the absence of a secure melodic presence. Luckily, they ...
Chris Walden: Missa Iubileum Aureum: Golden Jubilee Jazz Mass
by Jack Bowers
First things first: there is no doubt that Chris Walden's reverential Missa Iubileum Aureum ("Golden Jubilee Jazz Mass") is beautifully written and wonderfully performed by the LMR Jazz Orchestra, St. Dominick's Schola Cantorum and cantors Kurt Elling and Tierney Sutton. Is it jazz? That is another question, one not so easily answered. While there are elements ...
Jim Levendis: The Big Band Project
by Jack Bowers
Jim Levendis knew that time was running out. In his mid-seventies, the veteran Philadelphia-area trumpeter and educator had contracted ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), the effects of which were rapidly sapping his energy and ability to function. As the disease progressed, Levendis confided in Len Pierro, a band mate in the Ward Marston band, that there was ...
