CD Review: "The Music of Gary Lindsay: Are We Still Dreaming" Featuring the South Florida Jazz Orchestra"

Grammy-nominated Arranger Gary Lindsay has released a new CD,  "The Music of Gary Lindsay: Are We Still Dreaming"  featuring The South Florida Jazz Orchestra.   Gary Lindsay has written big band charts that have been performed by everyone from Maynard Ferguson and the Atlantean Driftwood Band to the Airmen of Note and the Florida Philharmonic.  This is Gary's first CD that is devoted entirely to his big band arrangements.  Gary Lindsay is also an Alto Sax player and performs, records and arranges for the Miami Saxophone Quartet.  To say he is a gifted Arranger would be a serious understatement.  He arranges in the tradition of Stan Kenton, Maynard Ferguson and all the other great big band arrangers of the 50's and 60's.  His arranging is thoughtful,  spirited, traditional and, yet, new and inspiring.

 I have to hear a new CD several times in order to really get a clear feel as to its message.  Not so with this CD.  The South Florida Orchestra is so talented and performs seamlessly on every song with wonderful arrangement.  Anyone who likes the big band Jazz sound will flip over this CD.  The orchestra was directed perfectly by Chuck Bergeron who let the players and singers have their way without any loss of control of the ultimate sound.  The musicians who performed on this CD are all sensational, and I thank them for their world class contributions to this project.

Gary Lindsay has received multiple well-deserved awards and I am sure his Grammy nomination for Jazz arranging for Arturo Sandoval's album "I Remember Clifford" is at the top of his list of accomplishments!

Doing reviews is not always fun for me , however,  getting to listen to this great big band CD one that I probably would have missed if not reviewing, make it all worthwhile!

Playlist:
1. "Moment In Time"
2. "Spring Is Here/Up Jumped Spring
3. "Toward Hope"
4. "Easy Living"
5. "Better Days Ahead"
6. "Are We Still Dreaming"
7. "Round Midnight"
8. "Ummg"

Players:
Gary Keller- Alto, Soprano and Flute
Gary Lindsay- Alto, Clarinet
Ed Calle- Tenor, Flute
Phil Doyle- Tenor, Flute
Jason Kush- Tenor, Flute
Mike Brignola- Bari Sax, Bass Clarinet
Rick Margitza- Guest Soloist on "Toward Hope"
Augie Haas- Trumpet 
Jeff Kievit- Trumpet
Greg Gisbert- Trumpet
Jason Carder- Trumpet
Alex Norris- Trumpet
Peter Francis-Trumpet
Richard Todd- French Horn
Martin Bejerano- Electric & Acoustic Piano
John Hart- Guitar
Chuck Bergeron- Acoustic & Electric Bass
John Yarling- Drums
Brian Potts- Shaker, Pandeiro
Ksenija Komljenovi- Vibes & Xylophone
Dana Teboe- Trombone
Dante Luciani- Trombone
John Kricker- Trombone
Major Bailey- Trombone
Derek Pyle- Trombone
Andrew Peal-Trombone
 
I found two "YouTube" videos of two songs from this new CD.  Both are just outstanding examples of master Jazz arranging and some of the best Jazz singing and playing you can find anywhere!  The first is a medley of "Spring is Here" by Richard Rogers and "Up Jumped Spring" by Freddie Hubbard.  There is no way to top this creative combination.  The recording features some great singing by Julia Dollison and outstanding solos by Dante Luciani on Trombone and Phil Doyle on Tenor.  

The second "YouTube" video is a cover on the Thelonious Monk classic "Round Midnight".  According to Gary Lindsay, this arrangement was inspired by the Stan Kenton sound.  It's a  magnificent arrangement that features a soulful sound from Ed Calle on Tenor.

                                       

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.

Wynton Marsalis And The Jazz At Lincoln Center Orchestra: Jazzmen Exceptional

Take one part Billy Strayhorn, add one part Duke Ellington, one part Stan Kenton, one part Maynard Ferguson, and one part Arturo Sandoval and what do you get?  "The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra", that's what!  Friday night November 12,  I had the listening pleasure of hearing and seeing Wynton Marsalis and the "Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra" at NJPAC.  This group is comprised
of 15 of the best soloists I have ever heard in one place at any time in my musical life.  With most jazz orchestras of this size, maybe you get to see four or five of the members playing a solo, but not in this orchestra.  Every one of the 15 had their shot at a solo before the one hour and forty-five minute show was over.  The orchestra consisted of five saxes, four trumpets, three Trombones, one bass, drummer and piano player.  The highlight of the evening for me was when the orchestra played the Duke Ellington's arrangement of "The Peanut Vendor".  This song brought me back to the late 50's, a time when I listened to this song over and over again played by the great Stan Kenton band with Maynard Ferguson on trumpet.  Here it is 50 years later and the song, the arrangement and the orchestra never sounded better.  Wynton Marsalis is clearly a musical genius by any measure and one of the good guys of jazz.  His resume is just unbelievable. He began his classical training at the age of 12 and attended the Julliard School at age 17. He made his recording debut in 1982 and has since recorded more than 70 Jazz and Classical albums.  He has won nine Grammy Awards and in 1983 became the first artist to win both a Classical and Jazz Grammy in the same year and he repeated this feat in 1984.  It's clear he is a classic jazz gentleman. He still loves to play and play he did,  preferring to sit with the trumpet section and be one with the band. All and all, a totally enjoyable evening!