CD Review: Anson Wright, "Only Love"

Anson Wright has just released his new CD  "Only Love" and it's a perfect selection for the tough emotional times we are all going through.  Anson Wright has had an unusual life and educational  background that allows him to create music that projects the emotion of love with great understanding and sensibility.  Anson is a graduate of Princeton and did post-graduate studies at Columbia in New York City.   He lived in the East Village and was able to hear live performances at many New York City Jazz clubs.  These experiences moved him to compose and perform music for the finger-style Guitar in addition to immersing himself in the New York literary and alternative education scene.  This represented a 100 percent change of life from the more formal and structured educational environment where he spent much of his early life.  In addition, during this period in his life Anson worked and completed his first novel "Jericho", taught Guitar and creative writing, ran a trucking company and built cabinets.  How's that for a balanced life background!

I like Anson Wright's composing and Guitar playing because it's very sensitive music that is clear with strong melodies.  It's just beautiful music!  Anson wrote seven of the 9 songs on this CD and two were written by his piano partner,  Jasnam Daya Singh.

Playlist:
1. "Rahway Blues"
2. "Maddie In New York"
3. "Solstice"
4. "Chelsea"
5. "Inner Motion"
6. "Merci Mon Frère"
7. "Warrior"
8. "All Shall Rise To Thee"
9. "Only Love"

Players:   
Anson Wright-Guitar, Composer
Jasnam Daya Singh- Piano, Composer
Brian Casey- Bass
Todd Scott Bishop- Drums

I have attached two "YouTube" videos for your listening enjoyment.  The first one is a an Anson Wright original "Rahway Blues" and the second one is a Jasnam Daya Singh original "Merci Mon Free".

                                                                   Rahway Blues

                                                                 Merci Mon Frère

The Dave Lalama Big Band: CD Review

Dr. Dave Lalama is currently Professor of Music at Hofstra University and is a founding faculty member of the Manhattan School of Music Jazz Program. He received his doctorate in music composition from New York University and is an active clinician and performer throughout the US. He has performed and recorded with Woody Herman, Buddy Rich, Mel Lewis, amoung numerous other Jazz artists.

The Hofstra Project was developed by Dr. Lalama as a tribute to the hundreds of students, faculty colleagues and guest artists he has been associated over the years at Hofstra University.

According to Dr. Lalama, "The music present here has been chosen to embody the past 28 years of Jazz Art Music-making that attempts to strike a healthy balance between ensemble discipline and improvisational freedom". The result in my opinion is that Mr. Lalama has achieved his objective perfectly.  The charts are great, the arrangements are new and fresh and the musicians are precise and, yet, free to express themselves within this musical environment.

In my opinion, "The Hofstra Project" played by The Dave Lalama Big Band is the best big band CD I have heard in years!  This CD was released on February 26, 2013 and I know that my "Big Band" followers will flip when they hear this great band! If you only buy one big band CD this year, this CD should be the one you buy!

Sassy Sarah Vaughn,The Divine One:Remembering The Jazz Giants, Chapter 8

"The Divine One" Sarah Vaughn was born in the same town I was born, Newark, NJ on March 27, 1924.  She died much too young in LA on April 3, 1990.  She had a musical career that few will ever reach for over 50 years. It always seemed to me that Sarah Vaughn never got the public recognition she so deserved but was loved by every talented musician of her time. Her voice was powerful and silky and some say her voice range could cover  4 octaves.  Every great singer of her time acknowledged her greatness without exception. The great Ella Fitzgerald called Sarah "The world's greatest singing talent"! The first time I got to hear Sarah sing live was in the late 50's at the great New York jazz dinner club, "Basin Street East", and I have been a fan ever since. Sarah's voice was so versatile that at times it seemed more like a finely tuned instrument rather than a human voice.  

I have attached two YouTube videos that will define "Sassy" Sarah Vaughn certainly better than I could. The first is the great evergreen, "Stardust" and the second is everyone's favorite, "Over the Rainbow" Few singers back then or even today could even come close to her magnificent level of musical talent. She left us much too soon. Thankfully, we still have her music to remind us of how wonderfully she could sing.  

I would like to dedicate this Sarah Vaughn posting to my friend from the California Desert, Yve Evans. Listening to Yve singing and playing piano this past winter and feeling her love and respect for "Sassy" rekindled my fond memories of the "Incomparable" Sarah Vaughn.   

CD Pre-Release Review: Sophisticated Ladies, A True Story

I listened to a new CD last week "Sophisticated Ladies, A True Story" that is sure to please most of the readers of this blog.  The Group is made up of four talented women who sing and play their own new and refreshing takes to some great standards along with some new songs and rhythms starting with Swing and moving to Cuban Bolero and Indian Bansuri.

The CD starts with an uptempo version of the Rogers and Hart gem, "The Lady Is A Tramp" that highlights the voice of Rachael Magidson on vocal, Emilie Calme on flute, Nolwenn Leizour on Upright bass and Valerie Chane-Tef on piano.  I think this cut represents the group's talents which were used in the creation of this CD.  Rachael does most of the vocals and also contributes on Flugelhorn and Percussion and Emile, Nolwenn and Valerie also provide vocals on cut #8, "Dancez Sur Moi".

I loved cut# 4, "Autumn Leaves" which is sung in French by Rachael.  It starts slow and moves into a fine Latin rhythm. Cut# 5 is an instrumental that features outstanding jazz flute by Emilie and great Latin rhythm from the rest of the group.

These four women bring not only their musical talents to this CD project but also share a musical story that reflects their personality and life experiences. If you like great standards approached in new ways by talented Jazz musicians, this CD is for you.

This is the first CD from the Sophisticated Ladies and will be available on October 18, 2012.  I know it will be well received and hope we hear more from these talented ladies in the near future.

Stan Kenton:Remembering The Jazz Giants: Chapter 9

Stan Kenton and his Orchestra was one of the most controversial bands to come out of the 1940's.  The "Walls of brass" was the most famous characteristic that was used by many in describing the Kenton Orchestra.  Kenton's orchestrations used richly somber trombones, staccato saxophones and blazing-high trumpet notes. The Kenton arrangements were far ahead of their time but many mainline music critics considered his musical product as loud noise. But in time, Stan Kenton got to prove his critics wrong and continued to maintain a strong following long after the rest of the big bands of the 40's and 50's stopped performing.  Stan Kenton was a musical genius far ahead of his time.  Kenton provided a link with his unique sounds and arrangements between Jazz and Classical music. 

I have attached two YouTube videos that highlight the suburb musical arrangements and unique sounds of the Stan Kenton Orchestra.  The first is one of my all-time favorite Kenton arrangements, "The Peanut Vendor" recorded in London in 1972, six years before his death in 1979. The second video is a recording produced in 1951 featuring another of my all-time favorite trumpet players, Maynard Ferguson playing the classic evergreen, "What's New".  I think you will agree that both of these recordings, made more than 40 years ago, still sound new and fresh today.  This is a tribute to why Stan Kenton is considered by many as one of the founding fathers of modern Jazz. 

Important Note for all Stan Kenton Fans: Some of my readers might not be aware of the fact that there is a "Kenton Alumni Band" that is still touring the country.  I just received an email from them announcing that the band will be touring on the East Coast from April 8th to the 22nd next year.  They will be performing in Ohio, Pa, NY, Mass, New Hampshire, Conn, Rhode Island, NJ, Maryland, Washington DC and Virginia.  You can find additional information on their site: www.bigbandjazz.net which will be up very soon.  You can also contact the leader of the group Mike Vax at: vaxtrpts@aol.com.

Chicago And The Doobie Brothers Rock The House In New Jersey

Fans of Chicago and The Doobie Brothers enjoyed a real treat on Sunday August 19 when both groups performed together at the PNC Bank Arts Center. This performance was part of a national tour, and I thought you might enjoy some live shots from the show. Even though these bands have been performing for more than 40 years, they are still musically right on their game. The Doobie Brothers performed first, and I thought they were just outstanding. They performed many of their classics and also covered some newer songs.  Their vocal harmony was simply great, and they received a friendly and loud response from an audience made up of people in their 50s, 60s and 70s. It's clear that these age groups still like to rock!

Chicago performed many of their classics which included their unique arrangements. Chicago is considered a popular rock band by many but their roots have always been and still are in jazz. Chicago still has a few of the original players in the band as you can see from the pictures above. If you are a Chicago fan you don't want to miss this concert tour when it gets to your area. I have to say that I did miss the voice of Peter Cetera in some of the older songs.

The level of musical talent from the musicians in both Chicago and The Doobie Brothers is outstanding; well worth the effort and cost of the ticket.

The Top 10 CD's That Need To Be On Every Jazz Lovers' Bucket List

If you were limited to listening to only 10 CDs in the next 10 years, have you ever given any thought to what CDs you would put on the list?  I have, and I would like to share my picks with you.  I have listed below in no particular order the top 10 picks that would be on my bucket list.

1.  Dave Brubeck: "Time Out"1959. This CD is intriguing in that it introduces us to complex rhythms that never get old. This was the first instrumental Jazz album to sell over a million copies and was personally responsible for taking me over the bridge from popular music to real jazz. This album also introduced the world to the soft sax tones and phrasing of Paul Desmond.  Listening to this album today, 50 years after it was recorded, it still sound new, fresh and musically unique.

2.  Carol King: "Tapestry" 1971. How can anyone not like this CD with Carol singing all her great songs.   This CD while especially important to the women's movement in the 1970's also had a big impact on a lot of men. The test of time confirms that this CD belongs on this list. You still hear songs from this album being played on radio stations everyday.

3.  Diana Krall: "Live In Paris" 2002. Personally I think that this CD is sensational.  Diana plays jazz piano and sings as good as anyone I have ever heard.  This CD was recorded live in Paris, and you can feel the high emotions from the audience responding to the great singing and playing. I don't think I have ever heard a better CD. What more can I say?

4. Ella Fitzgerald, "Live In Berlin". If there is only one album from Ella you could have, this is the one you need to get.  This recording was released again on 01/05/2011 so you can find it on iTunes, and I believe it sells for $9.00.  Ella kills on this album with classic Ella recordings of "Mack The Knife", How High The Moon", Too Darn Hot and "Gone With The Wind". She also covers "Misty", "The Man I Love", "The Lady Is A Tramp", "Summertime" and "Lorelei".  Simply great singing from Ella at her best!

 5. Andre Previn With Joe Pass & Ray Brown: "After Hours" 1989.  The story of this CD is very interesting.  Andre Previn was asked if he wanted to do a CD with Joe Pass & Ray Brown, and he jumped at the chance. The only date that they are all in the same place is on a day when Previn is conducting a major orchestra so he arranges to meet Joe Pass and Ray Brown at a recording studio after his classical concert.  They all met around 11:00 pm at the studio with no music, no agenda, no charts, just ideas of certain songs that would work for the three of them. Previn picked a song and a key and off they go cutting all 11 tracks that first night finishing about 4:00 am that morning.  The result is the "After Hours" CD and it's a beauty! My favorites on this CD are "There Will Never Be Another You", "All The Things You Are", "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" and "Laura".

6. Paul Desmond & Gerry Mulligan: "Two Of A Mind"1962. This album was released in 1962 but is still as fresh today as it was back then.  The sound of Desmond's Alto Sax playing with Mulligan's Baritone sax is still fresh and alive to this day.  My favorites on this CD are "All The Things You Are", "Stardust" and "The Way You Look Tonight". 

7. Arturo Sandoval: "Americana"1999.  A classic CD containing wonderful trumpet playing and two of my all-time favorite songs, "Isn't She Lovely" the Stevie Wonder great song and "She's Out of My Life" the fabulous Michael Jackson gem. 

8. "Cannonball Adderley And Strings, Jump For Joy" 1995. While known mostly for terrific Be-Bop jazz classics, Adderley exhibits his deep understanding of ballads on this CD backed by a full string orchestra. It's just great, and my personal favorites are "I Cover The Waterfront", Polka Dots and Moonbeams", "A Foggy Day" and "Two Sleepy People". 

9. "Oscar Peterson Plays The Cole Porter Songbook" Re-released 2011. It's nearly impossible to pick just one Oscar Peterson album out of the hundreds he recorded but Oscar playing the great songs of Cole Porter is hard to beat.  This album spotlights Oscar Peterson at his very best playing "Night and Day",  It's All Right With Me", "Love For Sale"  and 9 other Cole Porter gems.  

10. Dave Koz: "At The Movies" 2007.  This is a lush and elegant CD where Dave Koz gets to express his feelings for some of the greatest movie themes ever written.  Every song on this CD is outstanding.  Dave also brings along some high-power guests for support including trumpeter Chris Botti, vocalists Johnny Mathis, Barry Manilow and Donna Summers.  My favorite cuts are "Over The Rainbow",  "As Time Goes By" and The Shadow Of Your Smile".

This is my personal top 10 list and I would love to hear from you about your personal list or maybe a CD or two that can't live without. 

Miles Davis, Simply The Best!

There are a lot of talented trumpet players we know and love but there is only one Miles Davis.
His projection of a song's emotions is raised to a point where the listener can almost touch, as well as, hear the lyrics coming from his trumpet. Miles Davis has always been an exceptional instrumentalist who had the musical sense to bring some of the best players in the US to his recording sessions. The results of these sessions produced some of the best sounds ever recorded. Picking just one favorite from the vast list of superb songs is almost impossible. What makes this effort a little easier for me is that I have always been drawn to the great love songs Miles Davis recorded. These songs reach their top emotional level when listened to with someone you love. The best CD I found that demonstrates this is "Miles Davis Plays For Lovers". Released in 1966 and remastered in 2003. This CD is the best of the best. My favorite song that no instrumentalist has ever done better, even to this day, is the Rodgers & Hart classic,"It Never Entered My Mind". The great piano playing on this song and many of the songs on this CD is done by Red Garland with Philly Joe Jones on drums and Paul Chambers on Bass. I would like to add that Chris Botti has done an excellent job in covering several of the Miles Davis love song classics. I recently heard Chris say that Miles Davis was one of his first musical heroes and the Miles Davis influence can clearly be felt in Chris Botti's recent work. I love the sound of Chris Botti's trumpet but, for me, Miles Davis still remains in a class of his own. One last footnote, there is a trumpet player in the California desert, Rancho Mirage to be exact that has this wonderful ability when playing his trumpet to transfer all the emotion of the music and lyric directly to the listener. I am talking about my friend, Steve Madaio. Steve has the same ability that Miles Davis has when it comes to playing a great love song. I really love two songs Steve does that our from the "20 Greatest Songs Ever Written" list, "Here's That Rainy Day" and "What's New". I have never heard any instrumentalist perform these two great songs with more skill and emotion than Steve Madaio. If you are ever in the Rancho Mirage area, you can find Steve playing at "The Rancho Las Palmas Resort & Spa" in the Blue Ember Restaurant. If you can get there, it will be well worth the trip. Mention either of these two songs to Steve and there is a good chance he will play them for you.

I would love some feedback about your favorite Miles Davis recordings. Also, tell me about any other trumpet players you think have reached a similar level as Miles Davis, Chris Botti and Steve Madaio.

Brian Wilson Does Gershwin

I just finished listening to the new Brian Wilson CD, "Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin".  Let me cut to the quick, if you like the Brian Wilson sound, you will like this CD.  If you like Gershwin you will like this CD. If you like the Brian Wilson sound and Gershwin songs, you will love this CD.  It turns out that the only Gershwin song that Brian knew before he made this CD was "Rhapsody in Blue" because he said his family played the record all the time at home and the melody really got into his head and has never left.  I find it hard to believe that in all the years Brian has been a major player in the music industry, he never got to know any other Gershwin songs. But that's exactly what he said when he was interviewed on XM radio's Nancy Sinatra show last week. This fact makes Brian's approach to many of these Gershwin gems very interesting.  He sang each song with an open mind and without any restraints caused by hearing the many classic recordings.  One other comment from Brian was that he was musically influenced at an early age by the music of the Four Freshmen. I had never heard this before and in thinking back about the "Beach Boys" sound, you can pick up some of the voice harmonies that the Four Freshman made famous.  Personally I really liked the CD.  I enjoyed the "Pop" approach to these "Super Star Songs" from the "Great American Songbook".   In particular, I really liked Brian's arrangement of the Gershwin song "The Like in I Love You".  I was not familiar with this Gershwin song but loved the melody and lyric. There are also four songs that sounded very much like the "Beach Boys": "They Can't Take That Away From Me", "I Got Rhythm", I've Got A Crush On You and "Nothing But Love". I loved them all.  And last but not least, there were five songs that Brian did as a solo that showed me a new side of his great talent.  His approach and sound was just great on: "I Loves you Porgy", "Love Is Here To Stay", "It Ain't Necessarily So", "S'Wonderful" and "Summertime".  At times Brian sounded the way I think "Sting" would sound singing these songs.  I hope this CD is very successful for Brian and encourages him to do another CD from songs listed on my "Top 20 Greatest Songs Ever Written in the Great American Songbook". I would be honored to work on the development of the playlist with Brian. Brian, have your people call my people!
Get the CD, you won't be disappointed!

Rdio VS iTunes, Will It Just Be No Contest?

I have never subscribed to a monthly online music service because I am a big fan of iTunes.  However I wanted to alert you that there is a new monthly online music service, Rdio, that wants you to pay a monthly fee of $9.99 to access their music catalogue.  I read about this new music service in an article that was written by Allen Hoffman in the business section of THE STAR LEDGER on August 13, 2010.  According to the article, Rdio believes that it can succeed because of the ease of using their catalogue that contains over 7 million songs from major labels. It appears that Rdio is a mix of a music site and a social site.  Rdio allows you to create your own playlists just like iTunes but also will encourage  interaction and sharing of playlists with other Rdio subscribers.  An interesting concept, but at this point I can't see this business taking off.   If the music public continues to turn away from stealing music from online sites, then this would help Rdio get subscribers.  The major problem I would have with Rdio is that they will be controlling all of your favorites and play lists that we have spend many hours collecting and developing.  If you had this subscription for a couple of years and then decided to drop it, you would lose access to all your musical creations. But this is just my feeling, the younger generation does not seem to put a value on owning their favorite songs as long as they have access to them.  I also have to admit that I never thought I would enjoy sharing comments about music on a public blog with unknown people, but here I am.  So I will watch the progress of Rdio with an open mind and wish them the best. If any readers have any comments about this topic, please share them with me.    

Summertime and Live Music, Perfect Together

 

One of the many great pleasures of summer is  we all get to   hear great "live" music.  Most performers use the summer to do tours.   Resort areas like the Jersey Shore have local talent performing all week.  It makes for a wonderful time for those that can get away for a week or two.  But no matter where you get to spend some time this summer, I am sure that "live" music is pretty easy to locate.  Some of you might know that I am one of the owners of Epernay Restaurant in Montclair, NJ.  Epernay is a French Bistro that only plays the best music from the "Great American Songbook".  This summer Epernay has started a new Tuesday "Supper Club Series" to enable local young music students an opportunity to perform in a live and intimate public setting.  The series started on Tuesday August 3 spotlighting the singing of Joe Longthorne. Joe resides in Essex Fells and graduated from "Newark Academy" in Livingston.  Joe is currently a junior at "The Boston Conservatory of Music".  If you are in the area, come by for some wonderful French food from our new menu and   support Joe.  Epernay is a BYOB so take a bottle or two of your favorite wine to make your evening even more special.

ANN HAMPTON CALLAWAY DOES IT ALL

As I have mentioned before in these blogs, one of the cool things I like to do is listen to CDs that have been released in the past by artists that I have missed along the way.  One artist that only recently caught my interest is Ann Hampton Callaway.  I can't believe that I had not been exposed to such a creative genius until recently.  This again confirms for me that there is real value in looking back and searching for gems that have been missed.  I first came across a CD Ann released in 2002 entitled, "Signature".  This title was perfect because the tunes Ann recorded in it do represent her signature sound and approach to the lyrics of some great songs. I particularly loved "You Turned The Tables On Me", "Tenderly, "Good Morning Heartache" and "For All We Know" recorded with help from the wonderful voice of Freddy Cole.  The second CD I found, "Slow" was released in 2005 and it is also a winner.  The tracks I liked the most were "Slow", "Never Let Me Go" the Carole King chestnut, "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?"and "You Belong To Me".  Ann's latest release is "At Last" and it's on my "To Do" list to review. I can't end this posting about Ann without commenting about her voice.  Ann's voice is rich, dark, warm and comfortable and has so inspired me that I am going to dedicate my recent oil painting posted at the top of this article to Ann Hampton Callaway.  It will now be entitled my "Ann Hampton Callaway" Still Life.  I believe the painting reflects the richness and warmth of Ann's wonderful voice, looks and personality.  You can catch several of Ann's performances on "YouTube".

By the way, Ann's talented sister, Liz Callaway will be appearing in NJ at NJPAC on November 6, 2010 and it is worth making the effect to get to see her act. 

Smooth Jazz In New York

Hi again, sorry it's been so long since I posted a new blog.  My schedule has been over the top for the last couple of months, and I have been working on a few other projects.

I heard some great live music over the past few months and wanted to share with you my experience on the "Smooth Jazz Cruises 2010". This is a jazz cruise that leaves from Pier 61 at the Chelsea Piers every week.  They have a different artist playing each week, all with the smooth Jazz sound.  We saw Spyro Gyra and they are still playing great sounds.  These cruises are really cool! You can have dinner on board or you can just have a drink and listen to the sounds.  As you might know, our area no longer has a smooth jazz radio station, and I still don't understand why the New York area can't support a smooth jazz station because both the 6:30 and the 9:30 shows were sold out the night we attended.  Being an old sax guy, hearing the Spyro Gyra sounds was a real treat for me.  It was a perfect night to be sailing on the Hudson admiring the skyline of the "Big Apple", sailing really close to the Statue of Liberty and admiring the water views  to die for!  They have cruises scheduled every week through the summer.  My advice is to check it out.  You can google "Smooth Jazz Cruises 2010" to get all the info.

The "Other" Toni Curtis

 This Toni Curtis is not the movie star most of us remember.  This is the woman named Toni Curtis that shows up at the Desert Sage Restaurant many nights and sings a few songs with Johnny Meza.  Toni loves to sing and even though she has never had any professional instruction, she really does quite well. She sings because she has a love for good melodies and good lyrics and is a great supporter of the "Great American Song Book".   She has a great stage presence and infectious personality.  Keep singing, Toni, "The best is yet to come".
Try to catch her act, she sings whenever she wants to when Johnny Meza is at the keyboard at the Desert Sage Restaurant in LaQuinta.