Jazz/Blues Adds: March 25, 2014
By Ann Porotti
Feature image photographed by Martin Phillips
Jazz
Mike Longo. Step on It. cap. Outstanding trio led by pianist Mike Longo includes Bob Cranshw on bass and lewis nash on drums. playlist covers the who’s who of jazz classics: weill’s my ship; Herbie’s cantaloupe island; a trio of Wayne Shorter famous titles; and a deep, throaty Poinciana.
Tom Tallitsch. Ride. posi-tone. This band, led by tenor Ted Tallitsch, throws a forceful harmonic net over each cue–whether covering led zeppelin’s ten years gone, or exploring Tallitsch’s original compositions. stellar partners are: Rudy Royston, drums; Michael Dease, trombone; Art Hirahara, piano; Peter Brendler, bass.
Eddie Allen. Push. edjalen music 505. New York trumpeter Eddie Allen leads a smooth septet with double keyboards, a trio of horns, bass & drums. nearly all originals setlist; Keith Loftis, Don Tucker, Misha Tsiganov, Kenny Davis, Ej Strickland.
Antonio Adolfo. Rio, choro, jazz. aam. Tribute to Brazilian composer, Ernesto Nazareth (1863-1934), inventor of the Choro, a musical style and dance form, unique to Rio is produced by pianist/musicologist Antonio Adolfo. other musicians are Claudio Spiewak, guitar; Jorge Helder, bass; Marcelo Martins, Rafael Barata, Marcos Suzano.
Yossi Tamim. One Movement. self. Jazz & string quartet merge for all originals playlist. Israeli guitarist/composer Yossi Tamim draws from Jewish songs, classical & traditional works for his meditative, crossover recording. Jim Ridl, Tim Horner, Tom Dicarlo + Wende Namkung, Hector Falcon, Liuh-Wen Ting, Rubin Kodheli.
Belle Plaine. Notes from a Waitress. 13th ave. A donation from Peter Jones /WTJU Folk department; Belle Plaine, aka Melanie Hankewich, uber- prairie girl from Canada has traveled widely burnishing her songwriting and vocal skills– Australia, Victoria, Alberta, etc. her originals (with pianist Jeremy Sauer) playlist nods to Tom Waits and Peggy Lee. all emotions seem happily available to her, with confidence.
Various. The Beatles Jazz Tribute. highnote. Beatles tributes from the highnote label roster: Sheila Jordan on little blackbird; Norman Simmons on Eleanor Rigby; Larry Coryell with something; and a trio of covers by guitarist Joel Harrison.
Jeremy Wilms. Diamond People. self. Very DTY production: music is sturdy, but no accurate musician or compostional credits. guitarist Wilms has been toiling in the jazz fields forever– played with many–most recently on tour with the Bill T. Jones broadway show of fela. playlist feels original.
Terrence Brewer. Mosaic: Setting the Standard, Volume Two. strong brew. San Fran, CA. guitarist Brewer is not shy about his love for the music of Wes Montgomery. Standards playlist interpretated by Jarrett Cherner–piano; Gabe Davis, bass; Lorca Hart, drums. FYI: this disc would not play for me, literally.
Native Jazz Quartet. Njq: Stories. cap. The hook here is native melodies representing musical communities far and wide: drummer Ed Littlefield comes from the Tlingit people of SE Alaska; vibist Jason Marsalis from the rich Creole tradition of New Orleans; pianist Reuel Lubag brings Filipino folk songs; bassist Christian Fabian, anthemic music from the Swedish-German axis.
Brian Charette. Square One. posi-tone. Grammy-nominated, and “one of the best of the new breed of B-3 players–downbeat“, organist Brian Charette works with Yotam Silberstein on guitar, Mark Ferber on drums in this high energy, mostly originals release.
Marc Seales. American Songs, Vol.2: Blues …and Jazz. Origin. Northwest pianist/educator/ composer Seales revisits the Elmo Hope bop tradition, though with more fret members: Fred Hamilton on guitar; Jeff Johnson & Dave Captein sharing the double & electric bass duties; and Gary Hobbs on drums. polished.
Rachel Eckroth. Let Go. virgo sun. Triple threat: Brooklyn-based pianist/composer with gorgeous vocal talent. originals, eclectic arrangements.
Leslie Pintchik. In the Nature of Things. pintch hard. Fourth release from former Columbia University literature professor, now jazz pianist/composer Pintchik working with regular bassist Scott Hardy + horn chorus– Steve Wilson on tenor, Ron Horton on trumpet, and double percussion from Michael Sarin and Satoshi Takeishi. originals, nearly all.
Blues
Arthur Migliazza. Laying it Down. hobemian. Blues and boogie woogie pianist Arthur Migliazza plays originals, Fats Domino, Louis Prima, A.Ammons + more. many co-stars on the band–harmonicats, fiddler, percussion and drums, deep & electric string. on the heels of his very successful tour in Russia where they love to boogie.
Johnny Cox. Thin Blue Line. self. Eleven original songs from blues vocalist/guitartist Johnny Cox who emigrated from Scotland in 1985 to Canada so as to get closer to the blues source. band features Ansgar Schroer on the lesser-known, but truly fine, chromatic harmonica.
Ray Fuller & Bluesrockers. Live @ Buddy’s Guy’s Legends. azuretone. ” an unstoppable force of rockin blues energy”, guitarist/vocalist/now-slide-guitar Ray Fuller has been around and learned from the masters. when he’s not touring, he’s playing with the boys at Buddy Guy’s esteemed Chicago club legends where this cd was recorded live.
The Holmes Brothers. Brotherhood. alligator. Juke Joint and the church are both praised in the dozen recordings Sherman and Wendall Holmes have made since beginning (1979) and leaving Christchurch, Va for blues venues of New York City. good stuff , some with Catherine Russell on vocals; Sherman on bass; Wendell on electric guitar, Popsy Dixon, drums, many guests.
Author: Ann Porotti, host of All That Jazz (Thursday, 10-noon) and co-host of Melodiya (Friday, 6-8pm), has fallen in love with all kinds of music as a result of writing the Jazz + Blues Adds blog.
