CD Review: Planet D Nonet, "Echoes Of Harlem, A Salute To Duke Ellington, Vol 2"

 

Big band Planet D Nonet has released their new CD, "Echoes Of Harlem: A Salute to Duke Ellington Vol 2" which is a tribute to Duke Ellington and a follow-up to highly successful 2023 CD "Blues To Be There: A Salute to Duke Ellington".  While touring and performing songs from their 2023 CD,  the group received very positive responses from their audiences and continued to add new charts to their repertoire.  These new charts became the playlist for their Vol 2 CD.  The players in Planet D Nonet are skilled musicians who are dedicated to performing a musical review of the Ellington genius while allowing some contemporary interpretations .  Listening to this CD gives even young Jazz fans the exact Ellington sound and arrangements experience.  A lot of the songs on this CD were unfamiliar to me but welcome additions to my Ellington education.  If you are an Ellington fan or new to the Ellington musical world "Echoes Of Harlem" will be a musical present for you!

I have attached two "YouTube" videos so you can sample some of the great sounds on this CD.  The first cut is a sensational arrangement of Ellington's classic Jazz composition, "Caravan".  The second cut is a less known Billy Strayhorn song, "Blood Count" with a terrific arrangement by Jeff Cury.

PLAYLIST:

1. Happy Anatomy

2. Flirtbird

3. Rocks in My Bed

4. Echoes of Harlem

5. Addi

6. Blood Count

7. Juniflip

8. Azalea

9. La Belle

10. Caravan

11. Frustration

12. I'm Gonna Go Fishin'

13. Happy Reunion

14.. The Shepherd

15. Sophisticated Lady

PLAYERS:

James O'Donnell- Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Vocals & Maracas, Co-leader

Charlie Miller- Trumpet, Flugelhorn

John "Tbone" Paxton- Trombone, Vocals

Alex Colista- Alto Sax, Clarinet

Christopher Tabaczynski- Tenor Sax & Clarinet

Goode Wyche III- Bari Sax, Alto Sax

Michael Zaporski- Piano

Trevor Lamb- String Bass

Sean Perlimutter- Drums, Cowbell

RJ Spangler- Congas, Small Percussion Instruments, Bandleader

SPECIAL GUESTS:

Camile Price- Vocal

Kurt Krahnke- String Bass Tracks

                                                                    "Caravan"

                                                                    "Blood Count"
  

 

CD Review: Dave Stryker, "Stryker WIth Strings Goes To The Movies"

Master Guitarist Dave Stryker and Arranger and Composer Brent Wallarab joined forces to create a beautiful new CD, "Stryker With Strings Goes to the Movies".   In addition to the outstanding playlist of songs, Wallarab and Stryker decided to employ an unusual instrumental configuration of a 30 piece studio orchestra featuring a Jazz Quartet, Strings, and Trombones, punctuated by solo work from Violinist Sara Caswell, Saxophonist Greg Ward, Flugelhornist Mark Buselli, and Trombonist Jim Pugh.  The Arrangements and musical sounds on this CD are perfect for all Jazz lovers who like to listen to Jazz that respects melody while at the same allows musicians room to show their musical skills.

Stryker picked some outstanding movie songs for his CD; some you will know well but there is a good chance you missed a couple along the way.  One example would be "Flirtibird" from the movie "Anatomy Of A Murder".  This song was composed by Ellington and Strayhorn and the sensational Wallarab arrangement features Dave Stryker on Guitar, Mark Buselli Plays a great Flugelhorn solo, Greg Ward adding some wonderful Sax work and master Trombone player Jim Pugh.  This cut alone is worth the cost of the Album in my opinion.  I have attached a YouTube video of this cut below.

                                                                    "Flirtibird"

PLAYERS:

Dave Stryker- Guitar

Brent Wallarab- Arrangements and Conducting

Xavier Davis- Piano & Fender Rhodes

Jeremy Allen- Bass

McClenty Hunter- Drums

Featured Soloists:

Sara Caswell- Violin

Greg Ward- Alto Ssxophone

Jim Pugh- Trombone

Mark Buselli- Flugehorn

PLAYLIST:

1. In Your Eyes

2. Cinema Paradiso

3. You Only Live Twice

4. Taxi Driver

5. Theme From Shaft

6. Cavatina

7. Flirtibird

8. Low Key Lightly

9. Moonglow

10. Dreamsville

11. Edelweiss 

I have attached another song from the CD from composers Mancini annd Livingston that fits it's title perfectly; "Dreamsville".

                                                                        "Dreamsville"

CD Review: Gino Amato, :Latin Crossroads"

 

Pianist, Arranger and Vocalist Gino Amato has assembled a remarkable cast of Jazz greats for his new CD, "Latin Crossroads".   Amato has picked a wonderful mix of songs from Broadway, The Great American Songbook, Jazz and Pop music and transformed them into beautiful Afro-Cuban Jazz.  Amato's objective  for "Latin Crossroads" was to present Latin music in an accessible format that would spotlight Latin rhythms.  Amato has more than accomplished this objective.  His arrangements of these classic songs and his ability to fuse them with Latin rhythms is brilliant and fresh.  Looking over the playlist of songs,  one certainly wonders how he could accomplish this.  Injecting a Latin rhythum into Michel Legrand's "The Summer Knows" and Monk's "Round Midnight " is not an easy task.  But Gino Amato accomplished this challenge brilliantly.  Think about the difficulty of recording this CD using 46 different musicians.  That in itself is a remarkable achievement.  I can't image how long it took to finish this CD and the cost must have been considerable.  I am delighted to say that the results of Gino Amato's efforts have produced a sensational amount of Latin Inspired music.  I am already longing for a "Latin Crossroads II".

I have attached two "YouTube" videos so you can experience the Gino Amato experience for yourself.  The first song I choose was Paul McCartney's "Blackbird" that features vocalist Arnold McCuller, Pianist and co-producer Oscar Hernandez, Flutist Andrea Brachfeld and Trombonist Louis Bonilla.  The second song is Joaquin Rodrigo's "Concerto For Aranjuez".  This classic song was immortalized by Miles Davis and Gil Evans on their "Sketches Of Spain" album.

PLAYLIST:

1. Blackbird

2. The Summer Knows

3. On The Street Where You Live

4. Bewitched, Bothered & Bewilldered

5. Shower The People

6. Concerto For Aranjuez

7. Bad Things

8. 'Round Midnight

9. Tonight

10. Romeo and Jullet

11. Green Flower Street

  

                                                                        "Black Bird"                    

                                                                                    

                                                                   "Concerto for Aranjuez"