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"

CD Review: Kim Nazarian "Some Morning"

As a music reviewer I have the privilege of being introduced to many great new singers.  Kim Nazarian is not a great singer.  She is a brilliantly talented singer with vocal chops and exceptional timing that every singer yearns for!  Some singers can do ballads, some singers can scat along with up tempo tunes but Kim can do it all.  Her voice is golden and her approach to lyrics is spot on perfect.  Kim has the ability to enhance lyrics without getting in the way.  The result captures the essence of emotion that the composer had in mind, together with fitting her own personality into each song making them her own.  Grammy Award-nominee Kim Nazarian gained fame as a founding member of the internationally acclaimed Jazz vocal group, "New York Voices".

Kim is joined on this CD by the five time Grammy Award-winning producer and Trombonist Jay Ashby.  All the tunes on this CD are arranged in whole or in part by Ashby with help from Kim on several.  The arrangements are Sinatra-perfect and fit both Kim and the talented musicians on this CD perfectly!   Jay Ashby's Trombone performances are pure magic on this CD. The list of contributing musicians is wonderful including special guests: Gary Burton, Paquito D'Rivera, Sean Jones, and John Pizzarelli.  

Kim Nazarian's "Some Morning" is a sensationally good CD.  And how do I know that?  I tried to select a cut from this CD that would give you a feel of Kim's great singing and the fine talents of the musicians with her.  It took me an hour to select the two cuts below that I found on "YouTube" because I couldn't decide which ones were the best.  I loved every cut on the CD!

The First cut below is called "Robbin's Nest Boneology"  and it's a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald and Trombonist JJ Johnson. It will show the extent of Kim's vocal skills and Ashby's mellow Trombone sounds that blend perfectly together.

The Second "YouTube"  presents the song "Tell Him I Said Hello" that is a tribute to Better Carter from her big band vocalist, taking on a Bossa Nova spin.  This cut also contains a terrific Clarinet Solo from the brilliant Paquito D'Rivera.