 |
|||||||
|
|
|||||||
 |
|||||||
       |
|||||||
 |
|||||||
|
Search our site:           |
|
 by Jeff Charney NEW (AND FEW) RELEASES FOR EARLY Y2K With January and February releases on the light side, here's a look at a few I think will be worth your money. Chris Standring -- Hip Sway (Instinct) An excellent sophomore effort by guitarist Standring that kicks off with a title track clearly inspired by the songwriting of trumpeter Rick Braun. (Standring was once a member of Braun's band.) "Glamour Girls" cooks with a '60s organ groove, "Big Feet, Big Shoes" riffs a la Steely Dan, and "What It Is" features Standring in a Wes Montgomery mode. "Pins & Needles" brings an Acid Jazz mood to the disk as well as some nice hip hop hooks. Other tracks include "Good Medicine," "I'm Not In Love" (a cover of the 10cc hit) and "Big Plant People." Trumpeter Tony Guererro guests as does saxophonist Richard Elliot. Roberto Perera -- In The Mood (Heads Up) What a pleasant surprise. The harp isn't used that much in jazz (Deborah Henson-Conant had some minor success in the late '80s and early '90s; Andreas Vollenweider has a CD due out in March), but Perera has aligned himself here with a host of established Contemporary Jazz musicians (Peter White, Marc Antoine, Richard Smith, Tim Redfield, Greg Vail, Tony Guererro, Dave Hooper) for this breath of fresh air. "A La Mode" is a hip, well played head bopper that lets the band shine as Perera adds tasty fills. "Seven Bridges" grooves in a dark kind of way, and "Joia" moves along with a bounce and nice background vocals. "Six A.M." -- with just the right amount of Spanish seasoning -- conjures up images of flamenco dancers, and "Take Your Time," Love The Way," "Coming Soon," and "Free Fall" are each memorable. Tom Saviano -- Crossings (Miramar) Another sophomore solo effort, this time from one of L.A.'s top studio saxophonists. (Saviano has worked and/or recorded with Chicago, Barbra Streisand, Randy Brecker, Kiss, Mac Davis, the Four Tops and Ringo Starr.) With the company he keeps, you would expect Saviano to feature a strong lineup on this album. He doesn't disappoint. Onboard are such stellar sidemen as Brian Bromberg, Lenny Castro, Vinnie Colaiuta, Jeff Golub and Thom Rotella. Crossings is loaded with listenable tunes. Favorites include "You Love Me," "A Leap Of Faith," "Twist Of Fate," "That Was Then, This Is Now," and the album highlight, "Night Moves," a track you can listen to over and over and still enjoy. Al Jarreau -- Tomorrow Today (GRP) Five-time Grammy winner Al Jarreau holds the distinction of being the only singer to win "Best Vocalist" Grammys in three different categories: jazz, pop and R&B. This is not only his first studio album in six years, but it is being released on Jarreau's new label, GRP. With Paul Brown producing, the CD begins in typical Jarreau style with "Just To Be Loved." The gorgeous love song "Let Me Love You" benefits from the support of saxophonist Boney James and guitarist Paul Jackson, Jr., and the title track is an uptempo romp that features classic Jarreau scatting and an assist from the pen of Freddie Ravel. Steve Gadd, Luis Conte and Ravel back Jarreau on this cut. "Puddit (Put It Where You Want It)" is a Bobby McFerrin-style a cappella version of the old Joe Sample song. And other worthy tracks include "Flame," "Last Night," and "It's How You Say It." Steely Dan -- Two Against Nature (Giant) Although this isn't a jazz CD per se, like much of SD's body of work, it has a jazz influence. Two... is the duo's first album of all new material since 1979. And most of it doesn't appear to be breaking any new ground. ("What a Shame About Me" could have fit in well on Aja.) But, so what?! If you are a Steely Dan fan, you are going to love this CD. The title track rocks with solid guitar, hand claps and jazzy horns. "Janie Runaway" is classic SD with a well-placed sax solo midway through by Chris Potter. And "Jack of Speed" has the typical SD intro with familiar vocal harmonies. The most airplay/pop-friendly cut, however, is "Cousin Dupree," although you may have trouble with a song about someone making moves on his cousin. On the C-Jazz Beat Eye Contact, Jay Beckenstein's first solo project ever (no, the saxophonist is not leaving his 20-plus year post as leader of Spyro Gyra) hits the stores on April 18. Featured are Chieli Minucci, Jason Miles, Jeff Beal, Mark Egan, Marcus Miller, Will Lee, John Patitucci and Chuck Loeb. Beckenstein will be my guest on the Sunday Jazz Brunch at 11:00 a.m., Sunday, April 16. Be sure to listen; you will have a chance to win an advanced copy of the CD.
On May 30 the Rippingtons featuring Russ Freeman will be releasing their second live CD titled Live Across America. Other artists set to release CDs in April-May include Chieli Minucci, Ken Navarro, Keiko Matsui, George Benson, David Benoit, Acoustic Alchemy and Scott Wilkie. And on June 9 Billboard magazine and BET On Jazz will present their first joint awards program. The ceremony will be televised on both BET and BET On Jazz and cybercast on JazzE.com. It will honor current jazz hit-makers and legendary jazz artists. R.I.P. Ross Russell, known, among many things, as Charlie Parker's manager in the 1940s, died on January 31. Russell founded Dial Records, the label that captured some of Parker's most significant work. He also wrote two important books: 1971's Jazz Style in Kansas City and the Southwest, and 1973's Bird Lives: The High Life and Hard Times of Charlie 'Yardbird' Parker. Ross Russell was 90. Bandleader/trombonist Si Zentner also died on January 31. He was 82. Zentner worked with such bandleaders as Harry James, Les Brown and Jimmy Dorsey and spent most of the 1950s on staff at MGM. However, he was probably best known for his 1961 recording of "Up The Lazy River," which would become his theme song. Zentner settled in Las Vegas in the mid '60s and remained active until six months before his death. Pianist Don Abney died on February 3 in Los Angeles at the age of 76. Abney enjoyed a lengthy dual career as a jazz pianist and busy studio musician while performing with a number of leading figures in jazz, including Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Benny Carter, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan, Eartha Kitt and Dinah Washington. Author/producer Joachim-Ernst Berendt, known for his role in promoting jazz in Germany, died in Hamburg on February 4 after being hit by a car. He was 77. Berendt was the author of numerous books, including The Jazz Book, Variations of Jazz, and I Hear, Therefore I Exist. He also produced more than 250 recordings for labels such as MPS, Atlantic and Electrola. Drummer Gus Johnson died of Alzheimer's disease on February 6. He was 86. Johnson, who had Kansas City roots in the 1930s, worked with many of the greats including Jay McShann, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horn, Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson and Stan Getz. For the last 25 years he had lived in Colorado. Donald "Tee" Carson, best known as the man who took over the piano chair from Count Basie when the pianist/bandleader's health began to fail in the late 1970s, died February 13. Carson lead the band after Basie's death in 1984, a position he held until 1987. And, as we go to press, we are learning of the death of trombonist Al Grey. Grey, whose use of the plunger mute made his style unique, played with a who's who of jazz legends, including Benny Carter, Jimmie Lunceford, Dizzy Gillespie and Count Basie. Grey last appeared in Kansas City at the 1999 Charlie Parker Symposium. He was 74. Email Jeff Charney at jeffrey@tfs.net, and check out his web site at: www.kprs.com "The Sunday Jazz Brunch" can be heard every Sunday on KPRS (103.3 FM) from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. RETURN TO APRIL 2000 MAIN INDEX ------------------------------------------------------------------------ © Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors 1996-2001. All rights reserved. |
|
           |
|
|
 |
|||||||
