CD Review: Mark Winkler: "Rules Don't Apply"

 

If you don't know much about Mark Winkler and you love great Jazz singing, you really need to get to know him.  Mark has been performing in the Los Angeles Jazz scene for years and he has released over 20 albums.  "The Rules Don't Apply" is his 21st album and it will not disappoint you.  In addition to singing, Mark is an accomplished Lyricist whose songs have been recorded or performed by a "Who's Who" of well-known singers including Dianne Reeves, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Steve Tyrell, Claire Martin, Jackie Ryan, Randy Crawford, Cheryl Bentyne, Kenny Rankin, Jane Monheit, Ben Vereen and Liza Minnelli among others.  

For his newest CD, "The Rules Don't Apply",  Winkler wrote lyrics for eight of the original songs and then added five of his favorite tunes written by Paul Simon, Lennon and McCartney, Eddie Arkin, Randy Newman and Donald Fagen.  He also brought 16 top Musicians who play on his CD in various combinations.  Mark Winkler is a song stylist who loves to bring his own personal feelings to new and old songs that give lyrics a new life for his listeners.  It is so wonderful that a talented vocalist like Mark Winkler can still fill a room every time he has a live performance.  Winkler's appeal to live audiences is his authenticity.  He has stayed the course with his music and he has a strong fan base that proves that he has taken the right direction in his long career.  Mark feels that many older Jazz artists are not getting the attention they deserve and wanted to represent that on this album.  Mark offers "I'm a 74-year old Jewish gay man, and I really feel my creative powers have not diminished in the slightest.  When I listen to the radio or see Spotify playlists, the younger artists are rightly getting the attention they deserve, but I don't think that attention should be at the expense of older artists who are still doing great work".  Wise words indeed Mark Winkler and I agree totally with them.  It's one of the main reasons I started publishing this blog 12 years ago.  I wanted to create a balanced spotlight on brilliant musicians both young and old.  There should always be room for both in the current music environment. 

Mark Winkler is one of only a few "Hip" musicians currently writing and performing today.  Yes, he could fit very comfortably into a picture of a smoky Jazz club in the 1950s, and yet, he still fits perfectly into today's contemporary Jazz scene.

I have attached two "YouTube" videos of two songs on this new CD.  The first is the Lennon and McCartney gem "Got To Get You Into My Life" , one of Mark's favorite tunes.  The second is a New Orleans-inspired song by Randy Newman.  As a fellow singer/songwriter, Winker feels a connection to Randy Newman and this arrangement features Errol Thoden on Tuba.

 

                                                        "Got To Get You Into My Life"

                                                                "Mama Told Me Not To Come"

PLAYERS:

Mark Winkler- Vocals, Arranging, lyrics

Piano: John Beasley, Rich Eames, Greg Gordon Smith, Jamieson Trotter

Bass: Gabe Davis, Dan Lutz

Drums/Percussion: Clayton Cameron, Dan Schnelle, Kevin Winrad

Guitar: George Doering, Grant Geissman

Reeds: Katisse Buckingham, Danny Janklow, Bob Sheppard, Scott Mayo

Brass: Errol Rhoden, Brian Swartz, Scott Whitfield

PLAYLIST:

1. Sunday In LA

2. I.G.Y. (What A Beautiful World)

3. The Joy Of Singing

4. In Love In New York

5. Got To Get You Into My Life

6. The Rules Don't Apply

7. Something So Right

8. Just Around The Corner

9. If These Walls Could Talk

10. Jazz Swings

11. Mama Told Me Not To Come

12. Lessons I've Learned

13. Here's To Jazz

     

CD Review: David Finck, "BASSically JAZZ"

I know that a lot of followers of the "Musician Blog" are excellent, professional Bass players who probably know all about David Finck, but he was new to me.  I have to confess that the Bass is one of my favorite instruments.  Although the Bass is an integral part of the rhythm section, it can add much more than rhythm to music.  When in the hands of an expertly trained professional, it has its own unique voice.  I have observed while listening to hundreds of Bass players over the years that there is one characteristic that all great Bass players have that might surprise you. . . the passion for melody.  This passion includes an understanding and interpretation of the emotion of the melody. David Finck in his new CD, "BASSically JAZZ" gives us an opportunity to experience the unique voice a Bass which can produce sounds, textures and pictures it can paint without uttering one spoken word.   But most of all, David Finck shows his audience that he understands and loves great melodies.  "These days melody has become a rare commodity in popular music. I miss the richness of real songwriting" says David.  I could not agree with him more.  So much so, that when I listen and evaluate a new Bass player,  my first wish is for the player to perform a classic standard.

David Finck is one of the most versatile Bassists in or out of Jazz.  He has performed with major stars from all genres of music including Dizzy Gillespie, Andre Previn, Rosemary Clooney, George Michael, Phil Woods, Kenny Rankin, Hank Jones, Paquito D'Rivera just to name a few on his rich resume.  David can play all genres of music, he says, " at the end of the day, I still want to play melodically.  Like all my albums, this one is about music the way I want to hear it.  It's not all Jazz but it's basically a Jazz record.  That's why we call it BASSically JAZZ".

Playlist:

Players:
David Finck- Bass
Joe Locke- Vibes
Jim Rudl- Piano
Cliff Almond- Drums
Ali Ryerson- Flute
Bob Mann- Guitar
Kevin Windard- Percussion
Mike Davis- Trombone

It was very hard to pick just two songs to attach to this blog because all 12 cuts on this wonderful CD are so musically pleasing so I picked 3 great standards.  The first YouTube features the entire group with David Finck providing a beautiful, exciting and creative solo on the popular Jazz standard "Old Devil Moon" written by E.Y. "Yip" Harburg and Burton Lane .   It features Joe Locke playing Vibes that bring to mind the George Shearing Quintet. The Second YouTube presents the band playing "Alfie" which David says "is one of the most unusual pop songs of all time-very beautiful and melodic and complicated" as are most of the beautiful songs composed by Burt Bacharach and Hal David.  The last song "The Summer Knows" written by Michel Legrand and Alan and Marilyn Bergman features the beautiful strong and crystal-clear voice of Linda Eder plus outstanding bow work from David Finck.

                                                                 "Old Devil Moon"

                                                                          "Alfie"

 "The Summer Knows"