The first article on TheMusic Man Blog was published in November 2009. It doesn't seem possible that I have been posting reviews and articles for 15 years. The purpose of my blog has always been to support musicians, shine a light on new artists and new CDs and to keep the "Great American Songbook" alive. We know that great progress has been made achieving these goals because of the feedback that we have received from hundreds of musicians who have been spotlighted on the blog. The majority of today's musicians are clearly both underappreciated and underpaid and yet the music they create provides us with hours of joy and satisfaction every day of our lives. In spite of being underappreciated and underpaid, they continue to perform and create new music for all of us to enjoy. They are true artists. We are the beneficiaries of their sacrifices and have an obligation to support them in any way we can. We all need to attend live performances wherever we can find them and not forget to leave a tip for the musicians after we enjoy their performances. They are paid so little for their live gigs that tips are very important to their well-being. We need to continue to buy their CDs even though the music industry has decided that CDs are no longer relevant. And lastly, we need to thank musicians whenever we get a chance.
I am delighted to report that last month the Music Man Blog celebrated more than one million page views on our site. For a narrowly focused blog, this is a massive amount of page views. And the number of people checking into the Music Man Blog continues to grow. In the most recent months, the average monthly page views have been over 30,000. Over the past 15 years we have published 626 blogs covering the efforts of thousands of musicians and their bands. The Music Man Blog has steadily grown its audience in over 20 countries. I have listed the top 10 highest page views from countries with Jazz lovers who are reading our postings:
1.United States
2. Germany
3. China
4. Singapore
5. Ukraine
6. Hong Kong
7. Iran
8. Russia
9. Sweden
10. Canada
My reward for the personal time and efforts I have expended on this blog is knowing that I am helping to support musicians, live performances and helping to keep the "Great American Songbook" relevant for younger people who may experience this wonderful music. I have also had the opportunity to meet and get to know hundreds of musicians. Honestly they are some of the finest people I have ever met.
Vocalist Melinda Rose and Pianist Frenchy Romero grew up within blocks of each other in Miami and while they never attended the same school together, both were attracted to straight-ahead Jazz. In 2022 Rose was invited to audition to be the first vocalist for a U.S. Army big band called, the Army Blues. She won the position and moved to Washington, D.C. to join the band About two months later Rose saw an announcement for a Pianist in another Army band at the same base. She shared the news with Romero, who won the job. These events allowed the talented duo to continue to collaborate as a Jazz duo. "I'm On My Way" is the first product of their musical efforts and it's a stunning new Jazz CD. There is something very special when these two musicians work together. First, Melinda Rose has a gorgeous, pure, velvet yet strong voice that is so refreshing to listen to especially compared to what seems to be popular today. Her voice evokes vocal images of Nancy Wilson, Ella Fitzgerald and Anita O'Day but with her own personal styling. Pianist Frenchy Romero delivers a master class on how to accompany a great vocalist. She is creative and supportive but never interrupts Melinda's vocals. What a pleasure to listen to these two young and talented musicians. There is great sensitivity between these friends that produces some of the best Jazz I have heard in a long time. The playlist this duo put together is diverse and magical.. The CD has 6 standards, some old and some new and 4 orginials composed by Melinda Rose. This CD is a dream album for any Jazz vocalist fan. Thank you Melinda and Frenchy and please get busy on your next CD!
I have attached two "YouTube" videos of songs from "I'm On My Way". It took me a lot of time to select 2 songs out of the 10 on this CD because I liked every song. The first selection is a beautiful rendition of Stevie Wonder's "If It's Magic" and this version is magic to me! The second song is the Nancy Wilson classic "You Can Have Him" written by Irvin Berlin that is simply a beautiful performance!
Brazilian born Sergio Pereira has just published his new CD, "Bossa+" that adds to his long list of outstanding Brazilian music he has shared with us. "Bossa+" is distinguished by its live studio recordings. This method captures the spontaneity, elegance, and vibrant energy inherent in Bossa Nova and Jazz. "Bossa+" contains 6 orginial Pereira compositions and one cover "There Will Never Be Another You". If you had just landed on planet Earth and this CD was your first experience with Bossa Nova music, I guarantee you would only have to hear the songs on this CD once to completely fall in love with this music. The album is more than a mere collection of songs. It is an immersive experience that showcases the fusion of Bossa Nova with other Brazilian rhythms, all while being infused with the improvisational spirit of Jazz.
I have attached two "YouTube" videos playing two songs from the CD. The first is an orginial Pereira composition called "Desamor" that features a vocal from Sergio Pereira. It's a perfect sound that will make you warm and comfortable as soon as you listen to it. The second is the beautiful up-tempo verison of the Warren and Gordon standard "There Will Never Be Another You". The Trumpet and Flugelhorn parts showcase an outstanding performance by Chipi Chacon.
Nancy Wilson has always been on the top of my list of great Jazz singers. So when I picked up this new CD from Amber Weekes, my first reaction was wow, this singer is really brave to take on songs that have Nancy Wilson's personal vocal fingerprints. Singing songs that are closely linked to great singers is always a challenging task even for the most talented vocalists because as good as your verison is, you will always be compared to the original artist.
The first song I listened to on this CD was "Lady With A Song" and it convinced me that Amber Weekes is a remarkable Jazz singer. While this song will always be linked to Nancy Wilson, I love the way Amber presented the lyric in a believable story fashion. Her voice is strong and her phrasing just flows like syrup on hot pancakes. This CD is a fine tribute to the singing voice and style of Nancy Wilson but Amber Weekes does not just copy Nancy Wilson, she brings her own interpretations to the Nancy Wilson song book with great success!
Amber Weekes is a Jazz singer based in Southern California and is known as a storyteller who puts heart and honest feelings into her interpretations of superior standards. This same sentence could have been written to describe Nancy Wilson who performed for over 50 years on the Pop and Jazz stage. "A Lady With A Song, Amber Weekes Celebrates Nancy Wilson" is a sensational CD by an extremely talented vocalist!
I have attached two "YouTube" videos that will give you a taste of Amber Weekes' work. The first tune is a beautiful ballad "Lady With A Song" that features fine Trumpet work from Ray Monteiro and Mike Cordone. The second tune is the lovely but difficult to sing "Midnight Sun" which Amber sings perfectly.
Jazz Pianist Roger Tilton has just recently released his second album featuring his talented Trio consisting of Roger Tilton on Piano, Henry Franklin on Bass and Yayo Morales on Drums. When Tilton started to put some ideas together for this album, he did not start with Bossa Nova music as the overall theme. His first thoughts were to put together music that he loved and enjoyed playing. He has always loved the music of Brazil and especially the beautiful music of Antonio Carlos Jobim. So as he gathered songs for his new CD it turned out that 7 out of the 9 tunes that made the final cut were Bossa Nova songs. That explains the title of this CD, "Mostly Bossa".
Roger Tilton is a classically trained pianist studied at the University of Redlands and took personal lessons with concert Pianist Johanna Harris, wife of American composer Roy Harris. He first became interested in Jazz listening to Stan Getz playing "Desafinado" and Ramsey Lewis playing "The In Crowd". While at the University of Redlands, Tilton met Bass Player Rob Fisher who introduced him to the music of Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans, and Denny Zeitlin. Joining The Roger Tilton Trio on this album is the legendary Bassist Henry Franklin. Franklin has a star-studded musical career including being a member of the Trumpeter Freddie Hubbert's group. He also was a part of Drummer Shelly Manne's group and Woody Shaw's band. In addition to performing regularly, Franklin also runs his own production company, recording studio and label. The third member of this talented trio, Drummer Yayo Morales was born in Bolivia and is an exceptional Jazz Drummer in the rhythms of South America and is a perfect addition to the Bossa songs on this CD. Morales also did the mastering of the songs for this CD.
The Music on "Mostly Bossa" is like most Bossa music, comfortable and enjoyable. It is so soothing and relaxing to listen to and the listener can move through the entire CD and still be looking for more.
The three members of this Trio are all so exceptional and they make the listener feel that playing Bossa Nova music is easy. This is what really professional Jazz talents do, they interpret complicated songs and rhythms and turn them into attractive and understandable music for their audiences.
I have attached two "YouTube" songs from this CD. The first tune is "Dindi" the Antonio Carlos Jobim gem. Tilton mentioned that he had not heard many instrumental versions of it but only vocal renditions. So glad he did because his instrumental captures the excitment of this wonderful Jobim tune and Brazilian music in general. The second tune is "Tokyo Blues" the Horace Silver Jazz classic that is titled as a Blues but it is actually based on Boss Nova Rhythms.
Radam Schwartz is a well-known Jazz organist in today's Jazz world. He has performed with many Jazz greats including Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Al Hibbler, David "Fathead" Newman, Russell Malone and Cecil Brooks III. In his lastest CD, "Saxophone Quartet Music", Schwartz puts his spotlight on his composing and arranging. Using a quartet of four saxophones, Schwartz has written and arranged nine original songs. The words that come to mind when listening to Schwartz's compositions are beautiful, lush tones, new, fresh and swinging. On his new CD, Schwartz utilizes three of his most skilled former students from the Jazz Institute of New Jersey, Marcus G. Miller on Soprano Sax, Irwin Hall on Alto Sax and Anthony Ware on Tenor Sax. The forth member of the quartet is Schwartz's long friend MaxSchweiger on Baritone Sax.
Radam Schwartz's was born and raised in New York City and played Saxophone and Keyboards in high school, and for a time settled on Piano. Early on he played with Altoist Charlie Mariano's fusion group, Tenor -Saxophonist Jimmy Ford,The New Jersey Contemporary Orchestra, and Al Hibbler. He has led ten albums of his own, appeared on over 40 as a sideman, and been very busy as an Organist, Educator and Arranger-Composer.
I have attached two "YouTube" videos of two of the songs from the CD. The first is "Many Seasons Wise One". The inspriation for this ballad tribute was to the unheralded giants of the Newark Jazz scene who early on inspired Schwartz. The second tune, "Validation" utilizes the chord changes of Charlie Parker's "Confirmation" and has a bebop feel to it.
I have followed the The Flying Horse Big Band and their super talented musical director Jeff Rupert for a long time and they never disappoint. They have just released their 8th CD, "A Message From The Flying Horse Big Band" and it's a four-star winning "straight ahead" Jazz album. The focus of this new CD is on the style of music performed by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messenger.` All the songs on this CD were composed by Jazz Messenger members. The Jazz Messengers group was formed in 1947 by Drummer Art Blakey and really shot into high public attention when Trumpeter Horace Silver joined the group in the mid-fifties. Blakey and Silver were at the forefront of developing Bebop music while incorporating elements of rhythm and blues and soul music. The Jazz Messenger members who composed songs on this CD reads like a list of Jazz giants out of a Jazz history book: Horace Silver, Benny Golson, Wayne Shorter, Cedar Walton and Hank Mobley.
Sadly, Jazz lovers don't get to hear this kind of big band music and arrangements much these days. However, even someone new to Jazz would quickly recognize that the sound of this music and arrangements are special. I want to thank Jeff Rupert and the "The Flying Horse Big Band" for producing this amazing new CD. You are helping the new generation to discover how good this kind of music is!
I also have to mention the high quality of professional players that perform this wonderful music on this CD. The full group is listed below and each one of the players are at the top of their musical game and contribute to the superb music on this CD.
PLAYLIST:
1. Free For All
2. Hipsippy Blues
3. Room 608
4. This Is For Albert
5. Mosaic
6. Peace
7. Gregory Is Here
8. Lester Left Town
9. Whisper Not
10. On the Ginza
PLAYERS:
Saxophones:
Paul Van Wormer- Lead Alto (Solo Tracks 4,7,10)
Micah Silverstein- 2nnd Alto (Solo Track 9)
Edmund "Quint"- Johnson Lead Tenor (Solo tracks 1,3,5,6,8,9)
Steven Grant- 2nd Tenor (Solo track 2)
Noan Mosca- Baritone
Rhythm Section:
Jack Hoag- Piano and Fender Rhodes
Noah Charles- Guitar (Solo tracks 3,7,8)
Michael Santos- Bass
James Fortune- Drum Set (tracks 1,2,5,8,9)
Jamesly Jean-Mary- Drum set ( tracks 3,4,6,7,10) and Congas (track 2)
Trumpets & Flugelhorns:
Josh Mercado- (Solo tracks 1,2,3,5,6,10)
Adam Zapf-
Robert Schmidt
Phebe Rich
Elijah Simmons
Trombones:
Dan Parish (Solo tracks 4,6,7)
Ralph Rodriguez
Gabe Funk
Ben Fuller- Bass Trombone
I have attached two "YouTube" videos from "A Message From The Flying Horse Big Band". The first song is a Wayne Shorter composition that was arranged by former Jazz Messenger, Michael Mossman. It's swinging and hot! The second song was composed by Hank Mobley with a great arrangement by Harry Allen. It doesn't matter if you are a Jazz Messenger fan or new to this kind of music, if you love Jazz you will love these songs and this CD!
