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Dizzy Gillespie: Odyssey 1945-1952
by Jim Santella
Savoy’s 3-CD collection covers a lot of territory. The personnel listing is a who’s who of bebop pioneers. Dizzy Gillespie would play it fierce and brazen one moment, then muted and sweet the next. What you got was the real deal. Trading phrases with Slam Stewart, Charlie Parker, Dexter Gordon, James Moody or Slim Gaillard, the ...
Eden Atwood: Waves: The Bossa Nova Session
by Jim Santella
Her smoky alto voice, perfectly suited for the bossa nova, gives Eden Atwood a natural edge. While she’s been thoroughly trained in the vocal arts, piano and the dramatic arts, Atwood requires no props to deliver her performance. It’s quite natural. Singing of life’s pleasures, she’s at home interpreting the works of Jobim and other sterling ...
Charlie Christian: The Genius Of The Electric Guitar
by Jim Santella
The Benny Goodman Sextet opened doors. When guitarist Charlie Christian would take a solo, he’d express the ideas that made jazz what it is. He and vibraphonist Lionel Hampton had a lot of solo space in those sessions. Their improvisation set standards. Take “Boy Meets Goy (Grand Slam),” for example. It’s a boogie-woogie in the swing ...
Joey DeFrancesco: Ballads And Blues
by Jim Santella
Joey DeFrancesco’s organ trio has been together for twelve years already. And what a solid unit they’ve become. Byron Landham and Paul Bollenback make soulful music when they’re working alongside DeFrancesco and his timeless repertoire. This time out, he’s included several familiar classics, a few originals, and some in-betweens. Guests Pat Martino, Gary Bartz, Papa John ...
Nnenna Freelon: Tales Of Wonder: Celebrating Stevie Wonder
by Jim Santella
By interpreting these songs in her own jazz style, Nnenna Freelon has given them new life. Sure, there’s a drummer’s backbeat and lots of surround-sound harmony floating around her. But each piece takes on a slower appearance in Freelon’s hands. She soothes each one into a lush ballad that writhes and circles its path over a ...
Jeremy Pelt: Profile
by Jim Santella
His original compositions flow from jazz's straight-ahead tradition. His sextet is keeping the flame alive through solid teamwork and gentle exploration. Their blend treats each instrumental voice equally, but highlights the drummer just a little more than the others. And why not? Ralph Peterson does a superb job of knitting them into one well-composed unit.
Julie London: About The Blues
by Jim Santella
All sixteen tracks on this album have been issued previously on the Liberty label; however, the first twelve appeared on one album, while the others appeared on other vinyl releases. Julie London interpreted the blues in her own sweet way, and this collection brings them together. What makes About The Blues so special, however, is the ...
Nat King Cole: Nat King Cole At The Sands
by Jim Santella
Debonair Nat King Cole sat at the piano and sang for a large Las Vegas audience from 2:30 until 5:00 in the wee hours of the morning on January 14, 1960. This wasn't the usual casino audience: this dedicated throng flocked to see Cole with the knowledge that the performance would be recorded. They sensed something ...
Miles Davis: The Last Word - The Warner Bros. Years
by Jim Santella
Change isn't always welcome. As long as things are going okay, folks would just as soon leave things the way they are. But what's okay for one person or group may not be the same for others. So, when Miles Davis hit the 1970s and 1980s with a fusion of hip, electronic, synthesized and mainstream sounds ...
Chucho Vald: Fant
by Jim Santella
A solo piano album can work wonders for your soul. The music drives deeply with personal reflections that we’ve been learning, little by little, since childhood. Thanks to composers such as Chopin, Debussy, Ravel and Ernesto Lécuona, we’ve shared much over the years. Chucho Valdés pays homage to each of them and adds his originals. Sparkling ...
