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Thursday, April 28, 2022

The nouveau swing of Donald Harrison Jr., Big Chief and NEA Jazz Master #jazz

"This music that we call jazz is one of the greatest achievements in the history of mankind," declares Donald Harrison, Jr., with the air of someone who knows. To be sure, Harrison is hardly an objective source on the matter, as an alto saxophonist and bandleader with a lifelong connection to the culture of New Orleans, where he's also known as Big Chief of the Congo Square tribe. His commitment to cultural preservation recently earned him the 2022 A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship for Jazz Advocacy — a prestigious title for the work he does every day as a matter of course.


Read or listen to the entire post at NPR Jazz Night In America


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Tuesday, April 26, 2022

Jazz Guitarist Chris Standring Releasing New Album “Simple Things” on May 20th #jazz


Sometimes it takes a potentially life altering event to make you stop and re-evaluate what is truly important to you. In March 2021, guitarist, composer, and arranger CHRIS STANDRING found himself in the emergency room after experiencing chest pains. Although there was some history of heart disease in his immediate family, he never dreamed that he was himself a candidate for a heart attack. He was just 60 years old, kept trim, ate well, exercised, and never smoked. But he was lucky. He come through it with flying colors and a new appreciation for the simple things that make life worth living.

On his newest release, SIMPLE THINGS, Standring reflects on his recent experience and his new and intimate awareness of the fragility of life. Standring relates, “We have all heard cliches like ‘who knows what tomorrow may bring’ and ‘don't forget to stop and smell the roses,’ but we usually don’t take those old aphorisms to heart. To suddenly come face to face with my own mortality made me think about what is really important to me and how I want to live out my third act. Ultimately the answer came down to a just few basic things - spending time with loved ones, being present in the moment, and doing things with joy. Indeed, the theme of this album is joy, positivity, hope, and, because I'm a sucker for a beautiful melody, a little sadness as well.”

Standring is no stranger to funk, and several compositions on the album were heavily influenced by Prince and Bootsy Collins. Standring explains, “I’m a big fan of Prince, who learned about funk studying the music of people like Bootsy Collins. I wrote the opening track, “Shadow of Doubt,” after hearing a particular bass line by Prince that I really liked and wondered what I could do with something similar. I also saw a YouTube video of Bootsy explaining his basic funk formula. The bass line he demonstrated is so funky that it inspired me to write something of my own. Of course, I had to thank him, which I did on “Thank You Bootsy.” “Face to Face” is another song that was influenced by Prince and Bootsy.”

Standring originally wrote “Change the World” for another artist, but he decided to keep the song for himself because it fit his style so well. He released this tune as a single, which reached number 1 on Billboard, (March 2022). “A Thousand Words” is a darker tune that Standring wrote for an old friend who suffered from mental illness and recently ended her own life. Standring composed “Ain't Nothin' But A Thing” specifically to play in live shows. It features Rodney Lee on organ.

“The Gist of You” has a romantic yet funky, half-time feel. Standring built “No Two Ways About It” on a two-chord groove that he imbues with an infectious, toe-tapping feel. “Too Close for Comfort” refers to his health scare last year. Standring often uses the phrase “Don't Get Me Started,” so he wrote a song with that title. The track features Gary Meek on tenor sax. Standring closes the album with “And the Show Goes On,” a mellow track with a lovely melody. As Standring says, “With all the world has been through the last couple of years – me included - the title says it all.”

VIDEO


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Monday, April 25, 2022

Smooth Jazz Chart - Weekly Top 100 - April 25, 2022 #jazz

Smooth Jazz Chart 
This chart from smoothjazz.com generally updates every Monday. 
When it updates, this post will be repeated with the most recent chart. 






Thursday, April 21, 2022

How the late jazz great Charles Mingus is being remembered 100 years later #jazz

Charles Mingus is one of the greatest jazz artists of the 20th century. He would have celebrated his 100th birthday on April 22.

"Charles Mingus is one of our most important thinkers and composers," says Wynton Marsalis, who will lead two concerts in honor of the composer at Lincoln Center. "He touched on many of the foundations of jazz and American music, from the roots to the most sophisticated forms."


Read the entire article by Tom Vitale/NPR by clicking here.




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Monday, April 18, 2022

Smooth Jazz Chart - Weekly Top 100 - April 18, 2022 #jazz

Smooth Jazz Chart 
This chart from smoothjazz.com generally updates every Monday. 
When it updates, this post will be repeated with the most recent chart. 






Saturday, April 16, 2022

Yesterday and Today - The Wailing sounds of Ricky Ford: Paul's Scene #jazz

Yesterday and Today

Ricky Ford brings a lifetime of experience to his newest recording


It is with tremendous pride that Whaling City Sound announces the new Ricky Ford recording, The Wailing Sounds of Ricky Ford. Not only does Ford bring impeccable credentials with him wherever he goes, he also happens to have deep ties to New England, which is why the recording title is something of a play on words, with reference to his connection to Southeastern Massachusetts, and the city of New Bedford, also known as “The Whaling City.” 


Unsung compared to many of today’s tenor legends, but not unappreciated by those who know him and certainly not by those who’ve played with him, Ford is an undeniable national treasure. And it doesn’t take long to explain why that is. After getting his start with the Duke Ellington Orchestra (under Mercer Ellington’s leadership), Ford’s gone on to play with Charles Mingus, Lionel Hampton, and Abdullah Ibrahim, to name but a few of his more illustrious stints. Ford’s local connection goes way back to the Ellington phase of his career, when he was brought on to take veteran Paul Gonsalves’ place in Ellington’s orchestra. With deep roots in New Bedford, Gonsalves is one of the city’s legendary sons. And so the musical circle is complete. 


But beyond the obvious laurels, the lineage, and the resume, Ford stands tall on his own. On the new album his tenor shines, as expected. But what’s surprising is that the tunes—all 12 of them—clock in around five minutes. They’re concise. They’re punchy. They hit the target. The spotlight is focused on Fords taste and virtuosity, and his epic rhythm section, which features pianist Mark Soskin, bassist Jerome Harris, and drummer Barry Altschul, do an impressive job emphasizing Ford’s work without kicking too far back. The piano and drums keep pace as accompanists, maintaining balance amid the brevity.


The recording was produced by Ford, recorded last summer at the Samurai Hotel in Astoria, NY, and mixed and mastered by John Mailloux. The fidelity is beautiful, soft, but it doesn’t lose sight of Ford’s bristling edginess. “Paul’s Scene,” a tribute to Gonsalves, is a full-on tour de force, a classic bop romp characterized by some quick changes interrupted by an Altschul drumming pause just long enough for Ford to catch his breath. “The Essence of You,” written by Coleman Hawkins, gets a lovely treatment, as does Hawkins’ “Angel Face,” a tune written with Hank Jones. And speaking of Hawkins, Ford also includes “Stockholm Stomp,” a Fletcher Henderson chestnut made famous when Hawkins was with Henderson’s band back in the day. There are detours here too, like the Turkish-inspiration of “Fer,” and the sublime ballad “The Wonder.”


We could go on and on with “The Wonder” of this and the wonder of that, and the deep respect Ford has for the great bop he’s plucked along the way from his musical family trees. But it’s the sound of this record today, the relevance that this great material has on people who love today’s jazz, and above all the amazing sound of Ricky Ford’s tenor, today, that makes this recording so worthwhile





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Friday, April 15, 2022

40th Anniversary Album: Special EFX – Twenty Twenty 2 featuring Chieli Minucci #jazz

Celebrating a fortieth anniversary is a big deal, especially when it comes to the longevity of a band so, when the novel coronavirus forced contemporary jazz group Special EFX featuring Chieli Minucci to abandon their concert tour midflight in March 2020, Minucci retreated to his New York City home studio and began work writing, producing and recording an album to commemorate the outfit’s milestone occasion. “Twenty Twenty 2” arrives on April 22.

Minucci, a three-time Emmy-winning and Grammy nominated guitarist-composer-producer-arranger, teamed with Hungarian percussionist George Jinda to form Special EFX in 1982, a bountiful partnership that ushered the band to the top of the charts, saw them embark on extensive concert tours with stops at some of the most prestigious jazz festivals in the world, and crafted a distinctive brand of music that incorporates jazz, rock, fusion, blues, pop and world music. Although Jinda died in 2001, the release of “Twenty Twenty 2” celebrates the enduring legacy of what he and Minucci built together that continues to thrive today via the guitarist’s fervent vision and creative force.

“Twenty Twenty 2” consists of eleven new Minucci compositions, most of which were written during the first year of the pandemic. The album includes two reimagined songs from Minucci’s catalogue that were expanded and given new twists. “Everything & Anything,” a refresh of “Anything & Everything” penned thirty years ago, now features a sweet and soulful saxophone solo by Grammy winner Eric Marienthal. Over seven minutes long and recorded live at the SiriusXM studio prior to the lockdown, “Ballerina Dreams” is a sprawling 1989 piece that frees Minucci’s guitar to plier and pirouette with passion and grace. A nearly nine-minute remake of The Allman Brothers Band’s “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed,” is given the Special EFX gloss and serves as the album’s surprise opener.

Minucci and his extended band – seventeen musicians perform on “Twenty Twenty 2” in addition to the guitarist – broke from standard Special EFX recording practices.

“Special EFX has traditionally been a live-in-the-studio band for most of its years. But because of the world health crisis, that option wasn’t available. So, as many artists also experienced recently, the music was sometimes recorded one part, one musician at a time. This was a new experience for me,” said Minucci who acknowledged that “Ballerina Dreams” and the playful, handclapping Irish romp “Ceili Music” are exceptions that were recorded live.

“Twenty Twenty 2” showcases Minucci on acoustic and electric guitars, keyboards, synths, beats, shaker and vocals. Making appearances on the album are keyboardists Lao Tizer, Jay Rowe and Oli Silk; saxophonists Marienthal, Nelson Rangell and Richie Cannata; violinist Antoine Silverman; trumpeter Lin Rountree; bassists Jerry Brooks, Ric Fierabracci, Dave Anderson and Gianluca Minucci; drummers Joel Rosenblatt, Lionel Cordew and John Favicchia; and percussionist Mino Cinélu.

In writing music for the album, Minucci found inspiration everywhere: on meditative beach walks (“Words Left Unsaid”); in mellow moments of reflection (“Slow Hands”); sifting through his record collection to listen to some of his favorite big-band sounding fusion groups (“Showboat”); solitude and seclusion (“Folks Like Us”); admiring the productions and arrangements of global pop artists like Zedd and Max Martin (“Novembers Child”); and from watching espionage and terrorism playout on a television series (“Homeland”).

“I once read that composing is like an energy wave passing through one’s body: first from above, through the mind, then through the body, and finally out the hand, off into the world for all to share. I still feel that same excitement about music that I experienced as a child, more than ever perhaps,” said Minucci who has written music for television (“The Guiding Light,” “Dancing With The Stars,” “American Idol” and the “Good Morning America” theme), movies (“Bowfinger,” “Legally Blonde,” “Snake Eyes” and “Panic”), radio (Bloomberg Radio theme), and theater (live productions of “Peter Pan,” “Dora the Explorer” and “Thomas the Tank Engine”).

Special EFX featuring Minucci recently launched their 2022 concert itinerary with shows in Minneapolis and Denver to set the stage for “Twenty Twenty 2.” The band has dates booked through October and includes Boscov’s Berks Jazz Festival (April 2, 3 and 10), Winter Park Jazz Festival (July 16) and the Vail Jazz Festival (July 17). Special EFX will be in Houston, TX (Sugar’s Cajun Cuisine) the day “Twenty Twenty 2” streets and at Southern California hotspot Spaghettini the following night.

“My hope is that music lovers will listen to ‘Twenty Twenty 2’ from top to bottom, as is, in the order I chose to sequence it in – kind of like how we all did back in the day, before streaming and websites,” said Minucci who earlier this year released the solo acoustic guitar album, “Someone’s Singing.”

“Twenty Twenty 2” contains the following songs:

“In Memory of Elizabeth Reed”

“Gonna Be Alright”

“Slow Hands”

“Showboat”

“Folks Like Us”

“Ceili Music”

“Everything & Anything”

“Novembers Child”

“December”

“Ballerina Dreams”

“I’m Leaving You”

“Kampalino”

“Homeland”

“Words Left Unsaid”

Catch Special EFX featuring Chieli Minucci on tour in 2022.

March 31 Annapolis, MD Ramshead Tavern

April 1 Richmond, VA The Tin Pan

April 2 Reading, PA Berks Jazz Festival Midnight Jam

April 3 Reading, PA Berks Jazz Festival

April 10 Reading, PA Berks Jazz Festival/Friends of Nick Colionne

April 22 Houston, TX Sugar’s Cajun Cuisine

April 23 Los Angeles, CA Spaghettini

April 29 & 30 Tarrytown, NY Jazz Forum Arts

May 6 Baltimore, MD Montpelier Arts Center

June 5 Saratoga Springs, NY Caffe Lena

June 12 San Diego, CA San Diego Smooth Jazz Festival

June 17 Birmingham, AL Steel City Jazz Festival

June 18 & 19 Atlanta, GA Velvet Note

July 16 Denver, CO Winter Park Jazz Festival

July 22 Pittsburgh, PA Allegheny County Sound Park Bandshell

July 23 Augusta, GA Capture the Rhythm Art and Jazz Series

August 6 Portland, OR Vanport Jazz Festival

August 25 Branford, CT Branford Town Green

October 28 Miami, FL Miami Smooth Jazz Festival

October 29 Charlotte, NC Middle C Jazz

For more information, please visit https://chielimusic.com.

Source: Great Scott Productions


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Monday, April 11, 2022

Smooth Jazz Chart - Weekly Top 100 - April 11, 2022 #jazz

Smooth Jazz Chart 
This chart from smoothjazz.com generally updates every Monday. 
When it updates, this post will be repeated with the most recent chart. 






Wednesday, April 06, 2022

Singer Tierney Sutton set to release new album, 'Paris Sessions 2,' on May 6 #jazz

SINGER TIERNEY SUTTON SET TO RELEASE PARIS SESSIONS 2 ON MAY 6

FEATURING GUITARIST SERGE MERLAUD
AND GUEST FLUTIST HUBERT LAWS


ANNOUNCES U.S. TOUR DATES


On 2014’s Grammy-nominated Paris Sessions, acclaimed singer Tierney Sutton forged an indelible chemistry with classically-trained guitarist-arranger Serge Merlaud. Now husband and wife, the two take their musical connection to even deeper levels on Paris Sessions 2, set for release on May 6, 2022. Sutton’s 15th album, which she has dedicated to the late songwriter Marilyn Bergman, represents yet another high-water mark in her esteemed career.

The nine-time Grammy nominee has been heralded for her abilities as both a jazz storyteller and her ability to use her voice as an instrument. Whether it was on her 2002 tribute to Bill Evans (Blue In Green), her 2004 Frank Sinatra tribute (Dancing in the Dark), her 2013 Joni Mitchell tribute (After Blue) or her 2016 salute to pop icon Sting (The Sting Variations), Sutton has continued to weave her spell with a combination of pure, pristine vocals, emotional honesty and striking reinventions of familiar tunes. That spell is very much intact on Paris Sessions 2.

Watch lyric video for new single "Triste" HERE.

Upcoming Tierney Sutton U.S. tour dates:
April 13 - Beverly Hills, CA, Vibrato, with Tamir Hendelman
Apr 22-24 - Washington, DC, Blue’s Alley, Tierney Sutton Band feat. Christian Jacob
Apr 29 - Tucson, AZ, Pastiche, with Tamir Hendelman
May 22 - Rockport, MA, Shalin Liu Performance Center, Paris Sessions Trio (with Serge Merlaud and Kevin Axt)
May 24-28 - New York, NY, Birdland, Tierney Sutton Band
May 29 - Portsmouth NH, Jimmy’s Jazz & Blued Club, Paris Sessions Trio
May 30 - Minneapolis, MN, The Dakota, Paris Sessions Trio
June 17-18 - Hollywood, CA, Catalina Jazz Club, Paris Sessions Trio
June 26 - Half Moon Bay, CA, Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society, Paris Sessions Trio
June 27 - Santa Cruz, CA, Kuumbwa Jazz, Paris Sessions Trio

Pre-order link for Paris Sessions 2https://orcd.co/4vvxb8r

Tierney Sutton on the web:
Official Site: http://tierneysutton.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TierneySuttonMusic/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tierney_sutton/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tierneysutton

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Tuesday, April 05, 2022

Chart Room Media clients score two Grammy Awards #jazz

CONGRATULATIONS TO CHART ROOM MEDIA CLIENTS FOR EARNING TWO GRAMMY AWARDS

Winners include pianists Chick Corea and Taylor Eigsti

For Immediate Release – The Recording Academy has announced winners for the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards, the preeminent honor for excellence in music and the only peer-selected music accolade. Chart Room Media clients won two awards: the late jazz legend Chick Corea’s Akoustic Band LIVE (Concord Jazz) earned a GRAMMY in the category of Best Improvised Jazz Solo for “Humpty Dumpty (Set 2)” and pianist Taylor Eigsti’s Tree Falls (GSI Records) scored an award in the category of Best Contemporary Instrumental Album.
 
GRAMMY Awards were announced on Sunday, April, 2022, on the CBS Television Network and streamed live on GRAMMY.com. For a complete list of winners, please visit:
https://www.grammy.com/news/2022-grammys-complete-winners-nominees-nominations-list
 
Below is a list of GRAMMY winners for Chart Room Media:
 
BEST CONTEMPORARY INSTRUMENTAL ALBUM
Tree Falls
Taylor Eigsti (GSI Records)
 
BEST IMPROVISED JAZZ SOLO
“Humpty Dumpty (Set 2)” from Akoustic Band LIVE (Chick Corea, John Patitucci & Dave Weckl)
Chick Corea (Concord Jazz)
 
  
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Monday, April 04, 2022

Smooth Jazz Chart - Weekly Top 100 - April 4, 2022 #jazz

Smooth Jazz Chart 
This chart from smoothjazz.com generally updates every Monday. 
When it updates, this post will be repeated with the most recent chart. 






The 2022 Jazz GRAMMY Award Winners #jazz #grammy

Best Improvised Jazz Solo

Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, “Sackodougou”
Kenny Barron, “Kick Those Feet”
Jon Batiste, “Bigger Than Us”
Terence Blanchard, “Absence”
Chick Corea, “Humpty Dumpty (Set 2)”

Best Jazz Vocal Album

The Baylor Project, Generations
Kurt Elling & Charlie Hunter, SuperBlue
Nnenna Freelon, Time Traveler
Gretchen Parlato, Flor
Esperanza Spalding, Songwrights Apothecary Lab

Best Jazz Instrumental Album

Jon Batiste, Jazz Selections: Music from and Inspired By Soul
Terence Blanchard Featuring The E Collective and the Turtle Island Quartet, Absence
Ron Carter, Jack DeJohnette & Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Skyline
Chick Corea, Jon Patitucci & Dave Weckl, Akoustic Band LIVE
Pat Metheny, Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV)

Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album

The Count Basie Orchestra directed by Scotty Barnhart, Live at Birdland!
Jazzmeia Horn and Her Noble Force, Dear Love
Christian McBride Big Band, For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver
Sun Ra Arkestra, Swirling
Yellowjackets + WDR Big Band, Jackets XL

Best Latin Jazz Album

Eliane Elias with Chick Corea and Cucho Valdés, Mirror Mirror
Carlos Henriquez, The South Bronx Story
Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Virtual Birdland
Dafnis Prieto Sextet, Transparency
Miguel Zenón & Luis Perdomo, El Arte Del Bolero


Jon Batiste was one of this year’s big winners, receiving the coveted GRAMMY for Album of the Year for We Are. “Cry” from the record received recognition for Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song, while the accompanying video for “Freedom” won Best Music Video. In addition, Batiste received a GRAMMY as one of the composers of the original score for Disney/Pixar’s animated feature Soul, alongside Trent Raznor and Atticus Ross.

Elsewhere, Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga’s collaborative full-length, Love for Sale, was awarded the Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album prize, while Béla Fleck received the Best Bluegrass Album GRAMMY for My Bluegrass Heart. In addition, Arooj Aftab made history by becoming the first Pakistani-born artist to win an award, as she took home the Best Global Performance GRAMMY for “Mohabbat” from her acclaimed full-length, Vulture Prince.



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