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Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra: Shout Me Out!
by Jim Santella
There’s a kind of instrumental music that is so loud and annoying that it will bring out the earplugs and go right through your chest. And then, there’s another kind of instrumental music that sways like semi-liquid through the room in a never-ending stream of lightweight embellishment. Although these forms of entertainment appeal to a wide ...
Poncho Sanchez: Soul Of The Conga
by Jim Santella
Viva La Familia! Poncho Sanchez’ Latin jazz band is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. And what a way to celebrate. With organist Joey DeFrancesco adding soulful sounds to the band’s vibrant program, this session smokes with deeply rooted traditions. There are the Hammond B-3 organ grooves with powerful horn solos alongside. Then, there’s the lovely ...
Supergenerous: Supergenerous
by Jim Santella
Guitarist Kevin Breit and percussionist Cyro Baptista form an expressive duo that finds room in their performance for country & western, funk, folk music, and a lot more. Parts of the album are New Age, and all of it is forward-looking contemporary. A few quick looks at Duke Ellington fold in the familiar, but most of ...
Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington: The Great Summit/Complete Sessions
by Jim Santella
A collector’s item, The Great Summit places two fathers of jazz together in the studio with a small ensemble. It was Louis Armstrong’s all-star band with guest pianist Duke Ellington, and 1961 marked a gradual turning in both artists’ careers. In time, both would use their instruments less often, as matters turned toward other paths. Armstrong’s ...
Bob Dorough & Dave Frishberg: Who's On First
by Jim Santella
They co-composed “I'm Hip" 35 years ago and their paths have crossed many times since then. They worked together on Schoolhouse Rock. And yet, Bob Dorough and Dave Frishberg had not yet recorded an album together. This one, created last year in performance at The Jazz Bakery in Los Angeles, is due to be released October ...
Bluiett: With Eyes Wide Open
by Jim Santella
The baritone saxophone has sure made a significant impact on jazz through the years. The instrument’s voice resonates on such an open wavelength that we consider it friendly in any situation. And Hamiet Bluiett has experience with just about every jazz situation imaginable. From college to the Navy and beyond, Bluiett has encountered swing, bebop, free ...
Latin X-posure:
by Jim Santella
The first release for J Curve Sabroso features a tight big band patterned after that of Tito Puente. The lyrics are all in Spanish, but the informative liner notes explain which are boleros, which are merengue, which are salsa and which are Latin jazz. With an effective percussion section that plays crisp and light, role players ...
John Bruschini: As You Were
by Jim Santella
The interfusion of jazz and rock music has long been regarded simply as fusion. The format remains the same as with mainstream jazz: unadorned melodies are followed by improvised variations or creative soloing. The melody is usually repeated at the end. Guitarist John Bruschini’s compositions follow those characteristic guidelines. MP3 sound bites for the title track ...
Ana Gazzola & Sonia Santos: Brasil Brazil 2
by Jim Santella
Amid the driving back beats and Carnaval percussion, two singers combine jazz with Brazilian popular music for a good time and for authenticity. Although each has recorded separately, this is their second album together. Both sing in the alto range with compassion. Ana Gazzola sings with a smooth-toned, laid-back approach, while Sonia Santos performs in a ...
Satoko Fujii Orchestra: Double Take
by Jim Santella
Improvised music. And if it swings, then it’s jazz. Satoko Fujii, one of the world’s most interesting big band leaders since Don Ellis, compares the East and the West on this 2-CD set. One disc features her Japanese ensemble, while the other features New York improvisers. Soulful baritone saxophone and electric bass, raging trumpets, wailing trombones, ...
