CD Review: Paul Marinaro, "Mood Ellington"

    Acclaimed vocalist Paul Marinaro has released his fifth album, Mood Ellington, and the results are nothing short of triumphant. This ambitious project, into which Marinaro has poured a massive amount of work and passion, proves that every ounce of effort was well worth it. Mood Ellington is a 25-track double-disc exploration of songs written by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, and it stands as both a tribute and a reinvention of two of jazz’s most towering composers.

For this project, Marinaro enlisted 13 accomplished arrangers, each bringing a unique voice to their charts and contributing to a narrative arc that flows beautifully across the set. The project is completed by Marinaro’s beautiful, deep baritone voice and his impeccable stylized phrasing, which feels both timeless and deeply personal.

Marinaro thoughtfully divides the album into three thematic sets:

• Set One celebrates love and beauty with the first nine songs.

• Set Two moves into more introspective and somber territory.

• Set Three — on Disc Two — offers eight songs that feel more realistic, sardonic, mature, and exotic, rounding out an emotional and musical journey.

The 13 world-class arrangers contributing to Mood Ellington include: John Kornegay, Alan Broadbent, John Clayton, Carey Deadman, Chuck Israels, Mike Downes, Ryan Cohan, Jim Gailloreto, Bill Cunliffe, Chuck Owen, Tom Garling, Tom Matta, and Mike Allemana — a veritable who’s who of contemporary jazz orchestrators.

Paul Marinaro’s vocal personality, style, and rich baritone are ideally suited to the material of   When you add the high-level musicians performing behind him and these marvelous arrangements, the result is easily one of the finest Ellington interpretations recorded in recent years. Mood Ellington captures the genius and spirit of Ellington and Strayhorn and puts new life into each of their compositions. My hat goes off to Paul Marinaro — for his beautiful vocals, his artistic vision, and for seeing this monumental project through to publication.

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PLAYLIST: — Mood Ellington

DISC ONE — Set One (Love & Beauty)

1. I’m Beginning to See the Light — 3:52

2. A Flower Is a Lovesome Thing — 5:34

3. I’m Just a Lucky So and So — 4:16

4. Love You Madly — 3:26

5. Sophisticated Lady — 4:58

6. I Like the Sunrise — 5:15

7. Just Squeeze Me — 4:53

8. It Shouldn’t Happen to a Dream — 4:11

9. In a Mellow Tone — 3:42

Set Two (Reflection & Mood)
10. Mood Indigo — 5:43
11. Azure — 3:54
12. Don’t You Know I Care (or Don’t You Care to Know) — 4:52
13. I Got It Bad (and That Ain’t Good) — 5:02
14. (In My) Solitude — 6:21
15. All Too Soon — 4:39
16. Lush Life — 3:52
17. (I Want) Something to Live For — 5:11

DISC TWO — Set Three (Realism & Exotic Tones)

1. Don’t Get Around Much Anymore — 5:05

2. Take Love Easy — 3:56

3. Day Dream — 5:05

4. I Ain’t Got Nothin’ but the Blues — 5:46

5. Caravan — 4:53

6. I Didn’t Know About You — 4:14

7. In a Sentimental Mood — 4:39

8. Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me — 5:42 

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PLAYERS;

Core Ensemble

• Paul Marinaro — vocals

• Tom Vaitsas — piano

• Mike Allemana — guitar

• John Tate — bass

• Neil Hemphill — drums

• Rich Moore — alto saxophone, clarinet, flute

• John Wojciechowski — tenor & soprano sax, flute

• Ted Hogarth — baritone sax, bass clarinet

• Eric Jacobson — trumpet, flugelhorn

• Raphael Crawford — trombone

String Section (Violin)

• Lisa Fako (Concert Master), Eleanor Bartsch, Stephen Boe, Chuck Bontrager, Christina Buciu, Kathleen Carter, Karl Davies, Wendy Evans, Elizabeth Huffman, Carmen Kassinger, Kathryn Siegel, Jeff Yang

Arrangers

• Mike Allemana

• Alan Broadbent

• John Clayton

• Ryan Cohan

• Bill Cunliffe

• Carey Deadman

• Mike Downes

• Jim Gailloreto

• Tom Garling

• Chuck Israels

• John Kornegay

• Tom Matta

• Chuck Owen

Production Credits

• Produced by Paul Marinaro & Jim Gailloreto

• Executive Producer: Lois Cory

• Recorded & Mixed by Mat Lejeune at Chicago Recording Company, Chicago, IL

• Mastered by Dave McNair 

   I have attached two tracks from "Mood Ellington" for your listening pleasure.  The first is an Ellington

tune I was not familiar with but liked a lot, "All To Soon" that was arranged by Trombonist Tom Garling. The second song is one we all know, "Just Squeeze Me" arranged by Pianist Ryan Cohan.

"All To Soon"

 

"Just Squeeze Me"