Wednesday 30 September 2009

Billy Cobham - Alivemutherforya (1978)

01."Anteres"-The Star
02.Bahama Mama
03.Shadows
04.Some Punk Funk
05.Spindrift.

Mark Soskin - Piano, Clavinet, Fender Rhodes, Arp, Mini Moog, Arp Odyssey, Soloist
Billy Cobham - Percussion, Producer, Soloist
Steve Khan - Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Producer, Soloist
Tom Scott - Percussion, Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor), Lyricon, Producer, Soloist.

Drummer Billy Cobham is heard on this live set heading an all-star quintet also including Tom Scott on tenor, soprano and lyricon, keyboardist Mark Soskin, guitarist Steve Khan and electric bassist Alphonso Johnson. Although the music is mostly funky and uses plenty of electronics (Scott sounds quite faceless on lyricon), there are some strong solos, particularly from Khan and Scott (when he is on tenor). The six group originals are highlighted by "Bahama Mama," "Some Punk Funk" and "On a Magic Carpet Ride." Due to the amount of variety and spontaneity, Alivemutherforya is superior to most of these musicians' individual projects of the era. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide.

Dewey Redman - Tarik (1969)

1.Tarik
2.Fo Io
3.Paris? Oui!
4.Lop-O-Lop
5.Related and Unrelated Vibrations.

Malachi Favors - Bass
Ed Blackwell - Drums
Dewey Redman - Sax (Tenor), Main Performer, Musette.


This is tenor saxophonist Dewey Redman's second recording as a leader cut for the French Byg label. Redman has long been one of the most accessible of the avant-garde players due to his large tone, his willingness to swing hard, and his logical if emotional ideas. At the time of this album, he was working regularly with Ornette Coleman, and the altoist's free-bop approach definitely had a permanent influence on Redman. Joined by bassist Malachi Favors (from the Art Ensemble of Chicago) and the colorful drummer Ed Blackwell, Redman mostly cooks on five originals; in addition, he plays his atmospheric and often droning musette on the title track. This album is well worth searching for. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide.

Derek Bailey - Mirakle (2000)

1.Moment (16:35)
2.What It Is (9:01)
3.This Time (16:00)
4.Nebeula (8:53)
5.Present (12:24)
6.S'now (7:50).

Jamaaladeen Tacuma Bass
Calvin Weston Drums
Derek Bailey Guitar.


In one of the most unlikely groupings in music history, avant-skronk guitar godfather Derek Bailey teams up with the harmolodic, free funk rhythm section of Jamaaladeen Tacuma and Calvin Weston. Weston and Tacuma have been the anchor for Ornette Coleman, James Blood Ulmer, and James Carter's first electric album; Weston has been a member of the Lounge Lizards, so these guys can clearly cut a groove. You'd be hard-pressed to say that Derek Bailey has ever grooved in his recorded career. That's what makes Mirakle so much fun. No one compromises their individual sound or strengths, but each is a good enough listener and improviser to make things happen as a group. Weston and Tacuma lay it down super funky, while Derek Bailey does his thing over the top, and it works! Who says the avant-garde can't be a rocking good time? ~ Sean Westergaard, All Music Guide.
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Daly-Wilson Big Band with Marcia Hines (1975)

01.El Boro
02.Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans
03.Theme From The Rockford Files
04.Chameleon
05.Satin Doll
06.The Way We Were
07.Ain't No Mountain High Enough
08.Jimmy Webb Medley: Up Up And Away - Wichita Lineman - MacArthur Park.

Trumpets - Don Raverty, Norm Harris, Lary Elam, Warren Clarke & Pat Crichton
Trombones - Ed Wilson, Herbie Cannon, Merv Knott & Peter Scott
Saxaphones - Doug Foskett, Paul Long, John Mitchell & Bob Pritchard
Vocals - Marcia Hines
Drums - Warren Daly
Bass - John Helman
Guitar - Dave Donovan
Keyboards - Ray Alridge


Marcia Hines

Arriving in Australia at the age of 16 to perform in the Australian production of the musical Hair, Bostonian Marcia Hines went on to become one of Australia's most loved and successful dance performers of the '70s.

After Hair, she appeared as Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar until the show ended in February 1974. Hines then joined the Daly-Wilson Big Band and toured Australia, the U.S.A., and Russia. A solo deal followed in July 1974 and album sales of over half a million saw her crowned Australia's Queen of Pop from 1976-1978.

She had several Australian Top Ten hits between 1975 and 1979, including James Taylor's "Fire and Rain"/&You" (number nine in May 1975), "From the Inside"/Jumping Jack Flash" (number eight in November 1975), Burt Bacharach/Hal David's "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself"/&Trilogy" (number three in September 1976), "What I Did for Love"/&A Love Story" (number seven in June 1977), "You"/&In a Mellow Mood" (number one in November), and "Something's Missing in My Life"/&Moments" (number ten in April 1979).

Her albums were also successful, Shining (number four in December 1976) selling over 150,000 copies and the double-album Live Across Australia (number six in March 1978) over 100,000. Her other hit albums were Marcia Shines (number ten in November 1975), Ladies and Gentlemen...Marcia Hines (number five in September 1977), and Ooh Child (number 15 in June 1979). From 1978 to 1979 she appeared in her own TV series, Marcia Hines Music, and briefly reprised her role of Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar until throat and respiratory problems cut her tour short.

In 1980, Hines left the Wizard label and signed with Midnight (through WEA. She scored a minor hit with "Your Love Still Brings Me to My Knees"/&Till It's Too Late" (number ten in August 1981) and her next album, Take It from the Boys, reached number 16 in October 1981. The compilation album Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 fared better, reaching number two in February 1982. With the unsuccessful release of Love Sides in May 1983, Hines once again returned as Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar.

Hines spent the next decade raising her daughter Deni until 1993 when she appeared on stage in The Masters of Rhythm and Taste. In 1994, she released her first album in 12 years, Right Here and Now, which produced the singles "Rain (Let the Children Play)" (August 1994) and "Give It All You've Got" (October) and a national tour in March 1994.

In 1998, Marcia Hines traveled to the U.K. to work on a new album, the first single a cover of Irene Cara's "What a Feeling." The next single, "Time of Our Lives," hit number 31 in June 1999 and polled at number 29 on the Top 100 Most Played Tracks on Australian Radio for 1999.

Time of Our Lives hit number 17 in July 1999 and the third single, "Making My Way" was released in September. Her version of "The Lord's Prayer" appeared on the charity album Spirit of Christmas in December which was followed by the single "Woo Me" in January 2000. The Queen of Pop album was released on BMG in 2000 and in 2001, the anthology, DIVA, was released through Warner, supported by the single "(I've Got To) Believe." A fully authorized biography, Diva: The Life of Marcia Hines, was published in October 2001.
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Tuesday 29 September 2009

Adam Rudolph and Yusef Lateef - The World at Peace (1995)

DISC 1
1.Ramifications
2.Coltrane Remembered
3.Africa 35
4.Chaos #3
5.Beloved
6.Like a Secret Argosy 7 Masara #2

DISC 2
1.A Feather in the Bright Sky
2.Ourobouros
3.Beyond Futility
4.Dreaming of the Skyway
5.Peace & Love
6.Overlay
7.Wheel of Life
8.Encore.
(Missing Tracks:*Disc I:Tracks 02-04-07.*Disc II:Tracks 03-05)

"In composing this piece I explored avenues I hadn't explored before. A plant living within another plant is known as an endophyte in biology, and I relate some of these ideas to constructing melodies and counter melodies from intervals already existing within a vertical chord. I also create a certain aesthetic by assigning a group of notes to a certain instrument, exclusive to other instruments which are assigned other groups of notes. I derived this idea from Chaos Theory, and the music that results brings to my mind the music of the Banda, a group of people from Central Africa. And as always, I meld my soul with the composition."
Yusef Lateef

"In composing ' The World At Peace,' one of the ways I attempted to extend my use of musical elements was to apply the shapes and gestures of language to sound and rhythm. In 'Wheel of Life' for example, the movement of call-and-response patterns allows each performer to weave their instrumental language into the musical fabric. Another compositional tool I call Cyclic Verticalism integrates a cyclic concept of rhythm (such as is used in much North Indian music) with a polymetric concept (such as is used in certain West African drumming practices). For example, in 'Africa 35' each instrumentalist has the freedom to develop the thematic materials through time with their own individual motion, creating tension and release while still relating to the overall form. I use these musical concepts in my composition to better serve my own aesthetic intent as well as that of the performers, so that sincere thoughts and emotions may be expressed."
Adam Rudolph

Yusef Lateef : tenor saxophone, flute, shenai, bamboo flutes, vocal | Adam Rudolph : hand drums, bendir, udu drums, talking drum, thumb piano, achimevu | Susan Allen : harp | Marcie Brown : cello | Eric Von Essen : bass | Jeff Gauthier : violin | David Johnson : vibes, marimba percussion | Ralph Jones : soprano & tenor saxophone, c and alto flute, bass clarinet, mussette | Charles Moore : trumpet, dumbek, kudu horn | Jose Luis Perez : trap drums, candombe drums, dumbek | Federico Ramos : acoustic, electric & midi guitars, kudu horn | Bill Roper : tuba, kudu horn

JAZZIZ - January 1998
Composers/multi-instrumentalists Yusef Lateef and Adam Rudolph haven co-created a master work so far-reaching in its beauty, range, and significance that, in a better world, this album would inspire T shirts worn across the nation.
Picture a 12-piece orchestra with percussion from Africa, the Americas, India, and the Middle East; a rainbow of wind instruments (shenai, musette, kudu horn, bass clarinet, tuba, saxophone, trumpet, flute); and ethereal strings (cello, harp, violin, and classical acoustic and electric MIDI guitar). Now, picture a seamless integration of those textures and tones, a ritual celebration of live trance beats, shamanistic polyrhythms, melodies with wings, drum skins on fire, space and silence between thick brush strokes of color.

The compositions are as harmonically elegant as any score in the Duke Ellington catalog. At once earthy and cosmic, Lateef & Rudolph's two-CD set transcends the myopia of genre-based thinking. Reaffirming the power of the creative spirit, The World at Peace offers up pure expression as a source of positivity and wonderment. Its cultural import spans the planet.
- Sam Prestianni
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Danny Gottlieb - Aquamarine (1987)

01.aquamarine
02.monterey
03.the aviary
04.alaska
05.waterfall
06.being
07.duet
08.upon a time
09.peace of mind.

For many years one of the best-known drummers in Jazz and Jazz Fusion, Danny has performed with world - acclaimed artists like Sting, Pat Metheny, Gil Evans, John McLaughlin, Stan Getz and Al DeMeola. A past winner of Modern Drummer's readers' poll as best electric jazz drummer, Danny has been featured on the covers of Down Beat and Modern Drummer. Growing up in New Jersey, he studied with the legendary drummers Joe Morello and Mel Lewis. After graduating from the University of Miami, he joined Pat Metheny's original group that featured bassist Mark Egan and keyboardist Lyle Mays. In 1982 Danny and Mark formed their own group, Elements. Today, after 10 albums, Elements continues to record and perform. Also in the 80's, Danny joined the legendary Gil Evans Orchestra where he and Pete Levin first played together. For years they performed at the group's famous Monday-night engagements at Sweet Basil in New York, toured and performed on live recordings with the band. Danny has recorded two solo albums for Atlantic, AQUAMARINE and WHIRLWIND. Currently he keeps a busy schedule as a studio sideman and drum clinician while touring with Elements and the Blues Brothers.

A flexible and talented drummer, Danny Gottlieb studied with Mel Lewis and Joe Morello. After graduating from the University of Miami (1975), he did session work in the Miami Beach area. Gottlieb joined Gary Burton's Quartet (1976) at a period when Pat Metheny was the guitarist. When Metheny soon formed his group, Gottlieb became a charter member (1977-1983). In 1981, he teamed up with Metheny's bassist Mark Egan in a band that by 1983 was called Elements. He has worked in many other settings since then, including with John McLaughlin in the short-lived later version of the Mahavishnu Orchestra (1984) and Al DiMeola (1985). Gottlieb now plays on a part-time basis with Elements.

On this album he is joined by some really great guitarists as well;
John Abercrombie, John Mclaughlin, Steve Kahn, Joe Satriani..etc

Airto Moreira & Jacob Anderskov - Ears To The Ground (2008)

1.In the air
2.Ears to the ground
3.Anytime
4.We are ready
5.Out of hand.

This is the kind of music that I like the most. It is pure improvisational with no ego involved. I wish I could play this music all the time.- Airto Moreira.

For me, making this music felt like stepping into an enchanted parallel reality. The extreme awareness between us gave me a feeling similar to being hypnotized, while the music basically found its paths by itself. - Jacob Anderskov.

Ears to the Ground is an epic and poetic duet between Jacob Anderskov on piano and Airto Moreira on percussion, drums and vocal. A meeting of two strong music makers from very different backgrounds, with a direct and intuitive interaction.
The music transcends categories and styles, and is maybe mostly about presence, sensibility and a way of approaching life. At the same time, it seems like the duo has created a situation around the two musicians that brings forth the best in each of them, and brings them to places they have not been before.
Airto Moreira needs no further introduction. More than anybody else he has had a defining role for the use of percussion in Western music. He met Jacob Anderskov in Denmark in 2005, and they instantly agreed to work together when the chance arose. This album documents the result of the 2006 meeting.
Anderskov’s carrier is skyrocketing these years. This duo album naturally continues and expands the musical and artistic thread in his production so far. Yet his meeting with Airto has unique characteristics, and will probably reach an even broader audience than his earlier works. It is no bad place for new listeners to start.

Jacob Anderskov - piano
Airto Moreira - percussion, drums & vocal

Friday 25 September 2009

Luis Di Matteo - Candombe Uruguayo - 2001

1.El 141
2.Jolgorio Musical
3.Lonja Y Fuelle
4.Eroticband
5.Esa Figura
6.Candotang
7.Cuarteto Para Saxofones (La Discordia).

Originally the term Candombe referred to the entire complex of musical and ritual activities practised by the black (and mulatto) population of Uruguay.

Candombe

In the countries bordering the Rio de la Plata, black people traditionally make up only a small portion of the population. The first African slaves arrived in Montevideo, Uruguay in 1750, a mere twenty-five years after the city had been founded by the Spanish. Whereas in Buenos Aires domestic slavery existed only in isolated cases, entire black districts had sprouted up in Montevideo by the end of the eighteenth century. Soon, however, – in 1814 – slavery was abolished in Uruguay, enabling the black people to introduce elements of their African heritage into the cultural activities of the whites. Driven by necessity, they fused their native traditions with the religious festivals celebrated in honour of the Catholic saints. In as early as 1760, the Afro-Uruguayan Cabido (council) decided on the participation of a representative group in the Corpus Christi procession. Today one can imagine how that encounter must have sounded when one experiences one of the famous "Llamadas" – Candombe festivals in the primarily black districts. The "Llamadas" are the heart of the Uruguayan carnival festivities. Today it designates the traditional drumming style of the Afro-Uruguayans living in Montevideo. What is more, it is associated with a particular rhythm which forms the musical foundation of the Uruguayan carnival.

Tango emerged from the African-based rhythms of Candombe. In Uruguay the descendants of the slaves danced to this rousing music with pronounced hip movements. In the 1880s the "Compraditos", the forefathers of Tango, passed the time by imitating these movements, now dancing in pairs to the exotic rhythms.

Candombe is played on three drums: the "Piano" (low register / bass), the "Repique" (medium register/tenor) and the "Chico" (high register/alto). The drums are similar to African congas but much larger in circumference. They are played with one bare hand and a stick held in the other hand.

Candombe Uruguayo

Sometimes an artist needs an impulse from the outside. An old friend of LUIS DI MATTEO, the Uruguayan Daniel Philipp – like DI MATTEO himself a resident of Germany – was the first person to suggest basing a production on Candombe. The idea came at a time when LUIS DI MATTEO was busy with other projects, but in the years that followed he was confronted with it again and again. Finally, in 1999, with the support of his recording company, DI MATTEO became actively involved with Candombe.

He was so enthusiastic about the project that he wrote all of the compositions within a few months, then going straight to the studio to begin recording with the Uruguayan musicians he had chosen for this purpose.
*****
LONJA Y FUELLE Cuando comenzé a trabajar para este proyecto no estaba en mi pensamiento una relación, Candombe-Tango; Si bien desde mi niñez el tango me ha nutrido y formado, dándole a mi vida una identidad musi- cal, mi relación profesional con este género, desde el punto de vista de la composición y la ejecución murió hace ya unos 20 años, aunque todavia algunos críticos y personas especializadas me adjudiquen el rótulo, la "etiqueta" de "Tango Nuevo" Graso error. Esto limita mi camino de compositor hacia metas mas ambiciosas y hace que otro público que, eventualmente esté interesado en la nueva música que trato de dar a conocer, nunca tenga acceso a la misma. Definitivamente.No soy un tanguero. Soy un compositor. Esta a sido mi primera experiencia escribiendo para cuatro saxos, bajo eléctrico , bateria y tamboriles, ( estos últimos improvisan todo el tiempo) tarea realizada durante el invierno de 1999 en Montevideo y ello a sido de gran regocijo para mi, el escuchar este Disco ya terminado bien tocado, bien mezclado, con buenas tomas de sonido y buen Masterizado. Debo decir sin temor a equivocarme que nunca antes habia escuchado una banda dirigida por mí, tan bien grabado. Nunca antes he logrado ni aqui ni en otra parte, el bandoneón grabado en ese " Primer Plano " tantas veces pedido por mí. Fenomenal la participacion de los colegas, (son todos solistas) que me acom- pañaron en este Disco El 141 Este es el primer candombe que compuse y su melodia fue concebida y "almacenada" en mi memoria, precisamente, mientras yo viajaba sobre un Bus que lleva ese número. El bullicio del comienzo pertenece a una gran fiesta popular realizada cada Febrero en un barrio típico de candombe en los carnavales Montevideanos. Dicha fiesta lleva el nombre de "LLAMADAS" y es la mas popular del Carnaval. Se congregan alli una gran parte de la población de Montevideo y del pais. Jolgorio Musical Esta obra, como todas las que integran este CD tiene una relación con el Candombe y también con otras corrientes musicales tanto sea popular como la mal llamada, clásica. A propósito y como forma de ejemplo, llegando al final de esta pieza, se da a entrever en la instrumentación, en su parte rítmica, la influencia del rítmo de Salsa,dando lugar asi a una improvisación a cargo de los 4 saxos, mientras el bandoneón, el bajo y la bateria acompañan. Sobreviene el fin, establecido por el bandoneón, seguido por la banda en un OBSTINATO que alcanza un climax total. Lonja y Fuelle Se oye lenta y suavemente el sonido del "Repique" hasta establecerse un diálogo entre bandoneón y cada uno de los saxos, siempre con el fondo rítmico de los tres tamboriles, transitando luego por caminos musicales diversos, a veces de dificultades técnicas, otros con un toque de romanticismo. Muchas veces cada uno de los sectores de la Banda tuvieron que resolver dificultades de ejecución y episodios donde la interpretación, es vital para transmitir al oyente, lo que el autor quiso "decir" con sus notas Obviamente y pese a lo tortuoso del "camino," lo principal, la musicalidad, el mensaje, etc. fueron logrados aqui y en general en cada una de las obras que componen este trabajo. Eroticband A manera de "balada" con el metronómico "Pulso" del bandoneón y el bajo el Barítono deshilvana una melodia de sereno romanticismo por espacio de breves compases, al cabo de la cual comienza el Alto con otra "historia " similar y de mas profundidad, entrelazado posteriormente por los otros saxos quienes dialogan con el Alto hasta alcanzar, hacia el final y ya con el bandoneón, la culminación de este momento tan emotivo. Irrumpe el Barítono con un motivo de candombe y los episodios musicales se suceden alternativamente hasta el final, con colores y rítmos muy variados Es para mí, muy dificil tratar de redactar cada paso de una obra, que como todas las que compongo, no es música descriptiva. En general, tiene un carácter Universalista y todo responde, mas bien a un estado de ánimo anarquicamente musical y con una inolcultable esponta-neidad. Esa Figura Las notas ejecutadas por la mano izquierda del bandoneón al inicio de ésta obra son como mis pasos de cada mañana en dirección al balcón de mi casa para ver pasar, como todos los días, a "Esa figura" que, todavia increible- mente, me persigue, como El Destino, Fascinandome cada vez mas. Acto seguido, el tema se repite tocado con ambas manos con acordes disonantes que en su extridencia son como gritos de impotencia al notar que eso no es mas que una ilusión creada por la" imaginación." Entran en escena los saxos y el bajo y en un tono de burla repiten el tema; El bandoneón insiste en reclamar su derecho a la ilusión peleando con el grupo hasta quedar otra vez triste y desolado. Hay un cambio de escena; El bandoneón propone un tiempo de candombe en un "tono" Dramatico y de ferocidad rítmica secundado por la banda en un FORTISSIMO apasionante. Todo transcurre como la Vida misma, con momentos de alegria, de tristezas, de romanticismo, Dramáticos, donde cada uno de los sectores del grupo tienen que hacer "malabares" para sortear las dificultades técnicas y tratar de llegar al final para encontrarse nuevamente con la paranoia bandoneonistica que insiste en su convicción de lo relatado al principio. Candotang Aqui el bandoneón expone el tema principal el cual es seguido por la banda en pleno, con un rítmo muy frenético ya en la tonalidad de sol menor. Hay un breve intermedio comenzado por el Barítono y seguido por el Alto en el que se pueden escuchar momentos de belleza melódica y relajado, entre la primera y siguiente parte,las dos, de características singularmente vehemente. Abrupta e inesperadamente el bandoneón arranca un tema de tango impulsando asi al resto de la banda a tocar un Tango a la mejor manera Rio platense. Mas tarde y luego de un SFORZZATO, la batería repite el tema de Tango, improvisando con figuraciones musicales ineherentes a su naturaleza percutiva, seguido mas tarde por los tamboriles que lentamente hacen su aporte candombero, como diciendo: " Basta de Tango y vamos a lo nuestro" La Banda remata con el tema principal en la tonalidad de sol menor. Cuarteto para saxofones (La discordia) Quise demostrarme a mi mismo hasta donde podia llegar con estos 4 desconocidos. Tambien la posibilidad de presentar por primera vez una obra de mi producción, para una formación todavia atípica para mí. La obra, como todas las que compongo no está sujeta a ninguna regla musical salvo lo que respecta a la construcción armonica (Acordes); Posee una canti- dad de colores y rítmos diversos que me atrevería a decir: " Es una obra de cámara con pinceladas o trazos de Tango, Candombe, Milonga, música del Brasil, elementos de Jazz, etc. etc. Las improvisaciones realizadas, están marcadas en la partitura y fueron ejecutadas con un alto nivel creativo y profesional. Recomiendo escuchar esta Obra, por lo menos tres veces antes de arriesgar una opinión.

Elvin Jones, Cecil Taylor, Dewey Redman - Momentum Space (1999)

1.Nine
2.Bekei
3.Spoonin'
4.Life as...
5.It
6.Is
7.Dew.

Momentum Space throws a sucker punch with its billing as a trio album, when in fact the three legends--tenor saxophonist Dewey Redman, drummer Elvin Jones, and pianist Cecil Taylor--only perform together on two selections. But when they perform as a trio, it's a rare treat. On Redman's "Nine" Taylor unravels his customary arsenal of tone clusters, percussive jabs, and jarring trills. Jones keeps Taylor's nervy activity and Redman's sweet passionate cries in forward motion as he propels the composition with thundering polyrhythms. The trio takes a comparatively reflective view on Taylor's "Is," in which the pianist's broken-glass-like shards are balanced by Redman's Ornette-ish wails. The other compositions feature the musicians in either duet or solo settings. Taylor's solo performance of "Life As" finds the CD at its most pensive, while the duet between Redman and Jones on "Spoonin'" amounts to the CD's most playful and swinging moments. All in all, Momentum Space results in an engaging, if not erratic, listening experience. --John Murph

Dewey Redman (tenor saxophone); Cecil Taylor (piano); Elvin Jones (drums).

Recorded at Avatar Recording Studio, New York, New York on August 4 & 5, 1998. Includes liner notes by Cecil Taylor, Dewey Redman and Philippe Carles.

Few names conjure the ideal of sonic adventurousness as distinctly as those of Dewey Redman, Cecil Taylor, and Elvin Jones. With MOMENTUM SPACE, this explosive triumvirate comes together to present an uncommonly challenging and intriguing recording. At every turn, Redman's expressive wails, Taylor's dynamic explorations, and Jones' bombastic thunder seem to challenge the very laws of nature. Indeed, what we hear are three musical forces converging as one, pushing, pulling, blasting, and pounding their way into uncharted territory.
The opening "Nine," an eleven-minute wall of sound that proceeds to shake the foundations of all you hold dear, should be enough to clear away any preconceptions. "Bekei," Jones' staggering solo piece, is an inspiring percussive statement that only a master of his magnitude could proclaim. The Redman/Jones duet "Spoonin" blasts us with the spirit of Coltrane before Taylor leads us on a solo journey of the imagination with "Life As." "It" and the epic "Is" are much too complex to explain with words, but the bizarre sounds that Redman produces on the brief "Dew" can be described with but one: unforgettable.

Gary Peacock & Bill Frisell - Just So Happens (1994)

01.Only Now
02.In Walked Po
03.Wapitis Dream
04.Home on the Range, No. 1 Traditional
05.Home on the Range, No. 2 Traditional
06.Through a Skylight
07.Red River Valley Traditional
08.Reciprocity
09.Good Morning Heartache
10.N.O.M.B.
11.Just So Happens.

Review by David R. Adler
Gary Peacock's duo album with Bill Frisell is rewarding, though a bit repetitive. Most interesting is the sonic contrast between Peacock's imposing upright bass and Frisell's quirky electric guitar. After eight tracks, however, the appearance of Frisell's acoustic guitar — on the standard "Good Morning, Heartache" — comes as a welcome change. Most of the pieces are free improvisations, and while they all have their moments, some wind up treading water. "In Walked Po," an oblique take on the blues, is an exception. "Reciprocity" and "N.O.M.B." are the only originals credited solely to Peacock, leading one to believe they were written before the session. Perhaps not surprisingly, these two tracks are the most coherent on the record. The duo also plays two versions of "Home on the Range" (one would have sufficed), and Peacock renders "Red River Valley" as an unaccompanied solo. For Frisell, at least, this could have been a sign of things soon to come: His Nashville album was released about a year later.

Steve Khan - Helping Hand (1987)

01.Tree Of Building
02.Where's Mumphrey?
03.The Suitcase
04.In A Silent Way
05.Warm Blue Town
06.Blades
07.Infant Eyes
08.Dr. Slump
09.In A Star's Arms
10.Penetration.

Steve Khan - guitars
Anthony Jackson - electric bass
Steve Jordan - drums
Manolo Badrena - percussion, vocals
Bill Evans - soprano saxophone
Clifford Carter - keyboards
Neil Jason - electric bass
Christopher Parker - drums
Cafe - percussion.

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Friday 18 September 2009

James Morrison - Postcards From Down Under (1988)

1.Wednesdayrade
2.Freshwater Girls
3.From This Day
4.Outback
5.Satruday Sailing
6.Under the Reef
7.Pinnacles
8.Wet Monday
9.Sydney by Night.

James Morrison, trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone, Akai EVI, baritone horn; John Morrison, drums, percussion; Garry Dial, piano, synthesizer; Steve Brien, guitar; Sunil da Silva, percussion; Victor Rounds, electric bas; Craig Scott, acoustic bass.

A collaboration between James Morrison and artist Ken Done, this fairly obscure Atlantic set finds Morrison and pianist Garry Dial performing nine originals that were inspired by Done's paintings; in a few cases, Done reversed the process by creating a painting based on his impressions of Morrison's music. The performances (featuring the leader on trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone, the EVI, baritone horn and organ, Dial, guitarist Steve Brien, electric bassist Victor Rounds and drummer John Morrison) are solid, sometimes impressionistic and generally straight-ahead, although none of the individual songs would catch on. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide.

Hilario Duran - Habana 9 pm (1976)


Cuban Pianist, Composer, Arranger, Orchestra Leader, Educator.

HIlario DuranHilario Durán (Hilario Luis Durán Torres) was born in Havana, Cuba in 1953. He was born into a musical family surrounded by various musical influences. Hilario’s grandmother played guitar; his mother studied piano, and his father, Hilario Durán Senior, played guitar and sang throughout his lifetime. Hilario started playing the piano by ear when he was eight years old. He played the piano like it was a toy, and his mother could not get him away from itso - she had to lock it up and hide the key!

In the 1940s, Hilario’s father was part of the Cuban musical movement called “Movimiento del ‘Feeling’” (The ‘Feeling’ Movement). Hilario Senior used to meet with a group of musicians in Callejón de Hamel. Some of these musicians included Omara Portuondo, José Antonio Méndez, Cesar Portillo de la Luz, Angel Diaz, Ñico Rojas, Frank Emilio Flynn. Hilario’s father introduced the singer Elena Burke to this movement. He was very friendly with all of the musicians of this group. When Hilario was a young boy, the great Omara moved into a home across the street from the Durán house and one day she heard Hilario playing his sister’s upright piano. A few days later, she knocked on the door and presented him with a gift -his very first copy of a musical lead sheet for the song Debí Llorar, by Giraldo Piloto and Alberto Vera.

As a young boy, Hilario was obsessed with the piano and absorbed himself in the works of artists such as Errol Garner, Roy Eldridge, Harry James, Jachaturian, Tchaikovsky, Gershwin, Ernesto Lecuona, Bola de Nieve, Vicentico Valdés, Adolfo Guzman, and Frank Emilio Flynn. He listened, learned, imitated, and tried to reproduce all of the music he was hearing. His parents decided to give him and his sister private piano lessons with different teachers in Havana including Caridad Mezquda, the aunt of the great Cuban guitarist, Leo Brower.

In 1968, Hilario studied piano part time at the Amadeo Roldan Conservatory of Music, and also took private piano lessons with Andrea Mesa, a well-known Havana based piano teacher. In 1969, Hilario was accepted as a full time student at the Amadeo Roldan Conservatory of Music and was taught by the professor Oscar Lorie, one of Hilario’s treasured teachers.

During this period, Hilario became addicted to jazz and listened to recordings by Stan Kenton, Dizzy Gillespie, Charles Lloyd, Keith Jarrett, Chucho Valdes, and he also listened to recordings from Eastern European artists from Czechoslovakia, Russia, Germany and Poland. Also during this period, it was difficult to find certain American jazz recordings, so Hilario and his musician friends Justo Gabriel Perez/flautist, Mario Fabian/saxophonist and piano player, and Orestes Urfe/flautist (son of musician Odilio Urfe) listened to whatever tunes they could hear from short wave radio.

In 1970, Hilario started his military service in Cuba and played clarinet with the military band “Estado Mayor del Ejercito”. This gave him the opportunity to work with musicians such as Jorge Reyes, ElpiIdio Chapotin, Carlos del Puerto and Ignacio Berroa, and also to work with the director Remberto Egües.

Hilario visited a variety of clubs that featured jazz bands. Many big band orchestras played in Havana at venues such as The Tropicana, Salon Rojo (Capri Hotel), Palermo Club, The Copa Room (Havana Riviera Hotel), El Parisien (Hotel Nacional), and Caribe Cabaret (Habana Libre Hotel). Hilario recalls, “I was fascinated with the sound created by the combination of horns and saxophones. My dream was to, one day play in one of those orchestras”

Hilario Durán completed his military service in 1973 and began working as a professional musician in Cuba’s Los Papa Cun-Cun Ensemble, where he substituted on piano for the late great pianist Freddy Gonzalez de la Maza. This ensemble was directed by Evaristo Aparicio, who was known for his work as a composer for the Cuban legendary orchestraLos Van Van. Hilario says: “To be performing with Los Papa Cun-Cun alongside the great Evaristo Aparicio, was an amazing experience for me, learning about Cuban musical forms such as tumbaos, and montunos”. Hilario also worked with The Castellanos Orchestra. (After Beny Moré had passed on.)

In the mid 1970s, Hilario’s career took an important new direction when the great Cuban pianist Chucho Valdes decided to leave the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna to work with his legendary group Irakere, and Chucho requested that Hilario Durán be his replacement. This honoured request took Hilario to new and wonderful musical territories under the musical directorship of German Piferrer who introduced Hilario to the intricacies of the big band orchestras. With Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, Hilario learned and collaborated with many more great musicians that included Guillermo Barreto, El Chino Lam, Braulio Hernandez, Adalberto Lara, and Güajiro Mirabal. This orchestra also gave Hilario the opportunity to travel and perform at festivals and events in Eastern Europe and all over Cuba. The Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna also gave Hilario the opportunity to learn orchestration from performing the scores by arrangers such as Rafael Somavilla, Armando Romeu, and German Pifferrer.

During this same period in Cuba, Hilario was involved in a variety of diverse projects where he was expressing himself more and more as a pianist and also as anarranger. He was an integral part of the Cuban All Stars Orchestra that performed with Oscar D’Leon, at the Varadero Festival. Hilario also worked at the famous Havana EGREM recording studios, first as a pianist, and later on as an arranger, composer and musical director, where he worked with such artists as Omara Portuondo, Miriam Ramos, Amaury Perez Vidal, Donato Poveda, Silvio Rodriguez, and Beatriz Marquez. Hilario also worked as an arranger with German Piferrer, Demetrio Muñiz, (The former director of the Buena Vista Social Club) and Rolando Baró at many of the famous Havana Cabarets such as Caribe, (Habana Libre Hotel); Cabaret Parisien (Hotel Nacional); Salon Rojo (Hotel Capri); the Cabaret Tropicana and the Cabaret Internacional located on Varadero beach.

In 1981, the great Cuban trumpet player Arturo Sandoval invited Hilario Durán to join his band as a pianist & arranger, and to participate in the artistic direction of his band, which he did from1981 to 1990. This was thrilling for Hilario and gave him the opportunity to develop further and perform at many festivals around the world. With Arturo’s band, Hilario shared a stage with Dizzy Gillespie, who joined the band for performances in Umbria, Italy; Trinidad & Tobago; Ronnie Scott’s in England; San Juan, Puerto Rico and also at home in Cuba at The Havana Jazz Festival, as part of the All Star Orchestra. Arturo’s band also shared a stage with Michel Legrand for a concert in Nice, France. Hilario appeared in the film “Una Noche en La Habana” that featured Dizzy Gillespie, Arturo Sandoval, and Gonzalo Rubalcaba. In 1982, Hilario won the prestigious Cuban musical award, the Premio EGREM, for Best Arranger of the Year. In 1987, Hilario Durán made his first trip to Canada with Arturo’s band when they performed at The Spectrum during The Montréal International Jazz Festival.

In 1990, Arturo Sandoval left Cuba to start his new life in the United States.The musicians remained in Cuba and Hilario reorganized the remaining band members and started working with what he called ‘a new perspective’ …Hilario named this band Perspectiva. Perspectiva toured Europe and South America, and performed with the Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional de Cuba (Symphony National Orchestra of Cuba) to a sold-out house at Cuba’s Carlos Max Theatre, (capacity 5500). Perspectiva recorded two albums, Tiembla Tierra and Buscando Cuerdas. Also during this period, Hilario collaborated with Chucho Valdes, who commissioned him to do arrangements for Irakere. Some of this work can be heard on the recording Indestructible.

The 1990s marked a decade of changes in Hilario Durán’s life. In 1991, the late Cuban drummer Guillermo Barreto, (Hilario worked with Guillermo in the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna) introduced him to the Canadian flautist Jane Bunnett. Jane invited Hilario to perform on her recording Spirits of Havana with Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Frank Emilio Flynn, Yoruba Andabo and singer Merceditas Valdes. Spirits of Havana won the Canadian JUNO Award in 1992. At Bunnett’s invitation Hilario came to Toronto, Canada to perform with The Spirits of Havana group along with Merceditas Valdes and others. In 1994, Jane Bunnett once again invited Hilario Durán to Toronto to record Rendezvous Brazil Cuba, with Carlitos Del Puerto Jr., and the Brazilian brothers Filo & Celso Machado.

Hilario continued to work as a pianist, arranger and director with Jane Bunnett & Spirits of Havana. They toured for three years, performing at many international festivals in North America and Europe. In 1994, during one of his visits to Toronto, Hilario met the Canadian bass player Roberto Occhipinti for the first time, and they played some local gigs together. Jane and her husband, the Canadian trumpet player Larry Cramer produced three recordings for Hilario Durán on Canada’s Justin Time Records label: Hilario’s first solo recording Francisco’s Song in 1996, a second recording, Killer Tumbao in 1997, recorded at Cuba’s EGREM studios, whichfeatured the great Cuban percussionists Tata Güines and Changuito; and also Roberto Occhipinti on bass. Killer Tumbao was the first time that Hilario Durán and Roberto Occhipinti recorded together. Hilario did a third recording with Jane and Larry called Habana Nocturna which was released in 1999, which featured Jane Bunnett, drummer Horacio “El Negro” Hernandez, and bassist Roberto Occhipinti.

In 1998, Hilario Durán’ started a new chapter in his life, leaving Cuba and relocated in Toronto, Canada, with his wife Cristobalina and their daughter Yailen, who is also a pianist, singer, and composer. When they first arrived in Toronto, Hilario immediately immersed himself in the local music community and also worked abroad with different artists. One highlight during this period was a performance at The Drummers Festival inNew Jersey, United States – with Horacio “El Negro” Hernandez, John Patitucci, Michael Brecker and Mark Quinones. This concert was also filmed for video.

Hilario continued to work and establish himself in his new country. He volunteered his services as a teacher at Toronto’s Humber College Music Department/School of Arts and Technology. He was invited by the Canadian record label Solitudes, to recordHavana Remembered. Hilario brought together an A-list of Canadian and Cuban musicians for this recording. Havana Remembered is a collection of traditional Cuban music from the 1920s-1940s. In 2001 Havana Remembered received a Canadian JUNO Nomination for Best World Music Album.

In October 2002, saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera invited Hilario, violinist Regina Carter and legendary Brazilian singer Leny Andrade, to perform in The World Festival Orchestra at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. Hilario composed Suite Afro-Cubana for this event.

In 2004, Hilario Durán signed a recording contract with the Canadian jazz label ALMA Records, with president Peter Cardinali. Hilario met Peter through Roberto Occhipinti who is also signed with ALMA. This label is committed to presenting Hilario Durán as a pianist, bandleader, composer, and arranger under his own name. In 2004, Hilario recorded his debut ALMA CD, produced by Roberto Occhipinti. New Danzon featured Roberto on bass and Horacio “El Negro” Hernandez on drums. New Danzon won the Canadian JUNO Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year, in 2005. That same year, ALMA Records released Hilario’s second recording, Encuentro en La Habana, which was a reunion with the former members of Perspectiva and a musical celebration of the great energy, spontaneity and creativity this group shared. It was recorded at the EGREM studios in Havana. Encuentro en La Habana was also produced by Roberto Occhipinti, and was nominated for a Canadian Juno Award in 2006.

Hilario’s musical relationship and friendship with Roberto Occhipinti led to many more sensational collaborations and performances. Roberto, with all of his enthusiasm and support, encouraged Hilario to make one of his musical dreams come true; a dream from his days back in Cuba. Together, they formed a Latin Jazz Big Band that featured the crème de la crème of some of the best Canadian and Cuban musicians. They gave their first performance at Toronto’s The Distillery Jazz Festival in 2005, and this was followed by numerous performances in Ontario, Canada including Big Band Festivals, Toronto’s The Beaches Jazz Festival, Ottawa Jazz Festival, Markham Jazz Festival, Oakville Jazz Festival, and The Chet Baker Festival in Toronto, featuring special guests Randy Brecker and Jane Bunnett,

This Latin Jazz Big Band led to an idea for a new ALMA Records recording in 2006, From the Hear,t featuring Hilario Durán and His Latin Jazz Big Band, produced by ALMA Records president Peter Cardinali. In 2007 From The Heart won the Canadian JUNO Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year; and it received an American Grammy Nomination for Best Solo Performance for the Hilario Durán composition, “Paq Man”. From The Heart featured Roberto on bass, and special guests Paquito D’Rivera,Dione Taylor, and Horacio El Negro Hernandez. This big band performed at the 2007 Toronto Downtown Jazz Festival with a special appearance by Paquito D’Rivera and Dione Tayor.

Since his move to Canada, Hilario Durán has become an integral and important part of the Canadian music scene. His current musical projects as a leader include The Hilario Durán Trio’, ‘Hilario Durán & Orquesta Havana Remembered’ and ‘Hilario Durán & His Latin Jazz Big Band’. Hilario is a faculty member at Toronto’s Humber College, acting as both adjunct Piano Professor and Ensemble Director. Hilario also currently performs as a special guest with international artists and orchestras.

In addition to his many awards, nominations and treasured honours, Hilario Durán recently received a 2007 Chico O’Farrill Lifetime Achievement Award from Latin Jazz USA in the United States for his outstanding contributions to Afro-Cuban jazz and Latin Jazz. This award was presented at a concert at The Artime Theater in Little Havana, Miami, Florida, where Hilario Durán was the special guest pianist of the legendary Cuban conguero, Candido Camero.

Hilario Durán is presently based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In summer 2008, he led his Hilario Durán Trio on a coast-to-coast tour of Canada, featuring Roberto Occhipinti on bass and Mark Kelso on drums. Hilario is currently working on his new ALMA Records recording with a release date soon to be announced.

Billy Cobham - Warning (1985)

01.Mozaik
02.Red And Yellow Cabriolet
03.Slow Body Poppin'
04.Unknown Jeromes
05.The Dancer
06.Stratus
07.Come Join Me
08.Go For It!.

Billy Cobham - drums
Baron Browne - bass
Dean Brown - guitar
Gerry Etkins - keyboards
Sa Davis - percussion.

This was one of the earliest entries in the GRP catalog. It's a keyboard-dominated session, and definitely has a commercial sound to it. There are, however, enough drumming calisthenics to satisfy the intended audience. Cobham's band is not as exciting or as distinguishable as those from his days in the '70s, but the personnel is certainly adequate for the music being played. In particular, "Slow Body Poppin'" contains a fine Larry Carlton-influenced solo by Dean Brown. The remake of "Stratus" was interesting, but does not do the original justice. This is recommended mostly for the Cobham faithful. ~ Robert Taylor, All Music Guide.

Tuesday 15 September 2009

Bill Bruford - Sound Of Surprise (2000)

01.Revel Without a Pause
02.Triplicity
03.The Shadow of a Doubt
04.Teaching Vera to Dance
05.Half Life
06.Come to Dust
07.Cloud Cuckoo Land
08.Never the Same Way Once
09.The Wooden Man Sings, and the Stone Woman Dances
10.The Sound of Surprise.

Recorded at Livingston Studios, London, England in November 2000.

Bill Bruford (drums)
Patrick Clahar (soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone)
Steve Hamilton (piano)
Mark Hodgson (bass).

In past incarnations of Bill Bruford's Earthworks, music often centered around the drummer's electronic sound sculptures using digital triggers and chordal drums. The approach yielded fine results, but Bruford up and changed everything when in 1995 he christened a new Earthworks. Ditching the technology in favor of a traditional jazz kit, his music began reaching back to cool, hard bop, and old-school fusion. In addition to now playing his kit in an unorthodox arrangement, Bruford moved the emphasis from nifty electronics to the kinetic energy generated by his impressive polyrhythmic work. On "Triplicity" his orchestration boasts a dizzying array of time changes, the tempo kept constant only by the hi-hat. It's an aural exercise (albeit a very enjoyable one) just keeping pace. On the spicy "Teaching Vera to Dance," the groove is modern funk; on "Cloud Cuckoo Land," a modified murrenge. Saxophonist Patrick Clahar does an excellent job keeping up with Bruford and pianist Steve Hamilton's changes, but his energies would be better used in emphasizing melody than in rhythmic acrobatics, as his sweetly romantic playing on the languid "Come to Dust" only confirms. But for all the obtuse rhythms and expert playing, The Sound of Surprise lacks a certain sense of drama, which previous Earthworks albums (notably All Heaven Broke Loose and even the concert document Live: Stamping Ground) had in spades. Precisely what made the early Earthworks records so interesting were the chordal drums, largely horn-driven songs, and more progressive outlook. Going back to a traditional jazz quartet format feels somehow like a step backward. ~ John Duffy, All Music Guide.

Roberto Fonseca - Tiene que ver (1998)

1.Negra mía
2.Annet Marina
3.Temperamento
4.Tiene que ver
5.Temperamento Remix
6. Familiar extraño
7.Para que no hables
8.Softly as in a morning
9.Over the rainbow.

Emilio DelMonte Valdés - Cuban Percussion
Magdalena Lopez - Vocals
Javier Zalba - Flute, Sax (Alto), Sax (Baritone), Sax (Soprano)
Roberto Fonseca - Piano, Arranger, Producer, Main Performer, Orchestration, Musical Direction, Mixing Engineer, Sintetizador
Yosvany Verdecia - Percussion.


Pianist, composer, arranger and producer.

Roberto Alain Fonseca Cortés was born in Havana in 1975. At an early age he familiarized with music; first, with percussion and then with the piano. His father played the drums, her mother was a professional singer and his brothers Emilio Valdés (drums) and Jesús Valdés Jr. (piano) are two young musicians of great international prestige.
Roberto Fonseca studied at the "Guillermo Tomás" School of Music in the Guanabacoa municipality in the capital and, later on, he got his degree as pianist and piano and ensemble music professor at the National School of Art.
His first public presentation was during the Jazz Festival in Havana in 1991. He also performed in other Jazz Festivals as pianist with groups representing the schools of art, specially with the "Agua pura" group which, in 1995, was selected to participate in the opening ceremony of the renowned jazz event in Cuba where it attained a resounding success.
In 1997, Roberto Fonseca, together with the multiple-instrument player Javier Zalba, founded the Temperamento group and the following year recorded his first compact disc entitled "En el comienzo" for the EGREM label. This CD received the 1999 Cubadisco Award to the best jazz record.
His success encouraged María Elena Mendiola and EGREM label to make the first Roberto Fonseca`s record as soloist launched on the market under the title "Tiene que ver"; the cha cha chá entitled "Para que no hables", one of the pieces included in his first work, received the highest award in the category of popular music during the Latin American and Caribbean Music Tribune (TRIMALCA) contest held in Havana in the year 2000.
Once again, his second CD entitled "Elengo" combines the Latin jazz, the drum and bass, the hip-hop, the urban music and the Afro-Cuban rhythms. He has also recorded under the Ahora Corporation label.
Roberto Fonseca prefers jazz because, in his own opinion, this genre allows him to develop his imagination thus enriching the harmonic part of the themes, though he can perform from a standard complex jazz music to a bolero, since the fusion has always characterized the repertoire of this artist who travels through music breaking schemes, integrating and experimenting.
Roberto Fonseca, classified as an excellent pianist and composer, has been acclaimed all over the world and has been able to consolidate his work in Canada, Spain, Colombia and France, among many other countries.
He has performed together with Chucho Valdés, José Luis Cortés, Roy Hargrove, George Benson, Frank Emilio, Papo Luca, Giovanny Hidalgo, Gonzalo Rubalcaba and Rubén González, among many others.
He has recorded with Buena Vista Social Club and has performed on the most well-known stages together with this famous orchestra made up by musicians from different generations. Likewise, he forms part of one of the best rhythmic sections in the world. After enjoying his piano accompaniment to Omara Portuondo or Ibrahim Ferrer, the international media reported that Rubén González`s legacy was everlasting, but his successor is already here among us: Roberto Fonseca.

Francisco Fattoruso - The House of Groove (2007)

01.Introduction
02.Amor Robot
03.Mejor Con Vos
04.Robot Attack
05.The Break
06.Supersoul
07.Boulevard
08.What?
09.Mi Casa
10.Shout!
11.City.
Live with LB on drums,T lee on keys and Ike Thompson on guitar,2009,Atlanta
Born in Las Vegas 1979,spent most of his life in Brazil and Uruguay. Francisco Fattoruso started playing piano at 6,guitar at 8 and bass at 11.He has recorded,toured and jamed with several different artists such as:Ruben Rada,Illya Kuryaki and The Valderramas,Abuela Coca,Pepe Guerra,Silicon Fly,Warren Riker,Dante,Enmanuel Horvilleur,Deitrick Hadden,Liliana Herrero,Milton Nascimento,Elefante,NN Opera,La Trampa,Molotov,Oteil Burbridge,Derek Trucks,Blueground Undergrass,El Buho,david Haynes,Yonrico Scott,Silk,Philipia,Malachi,Lazyeye,Reggie Hines,Ike Stubblefield,Charly Garcia,Right On,Tim McDonald,Elizabeth Baptist Church,Tabernacle Baptist Church,The Soul Factory,Voices Of Faith,Claudio Taddei,Hugo Fattoruso,Anita no Duerme,Jorge Drexler,Daniel Drexler.Francisco Fattoruso endorses DR Strings. Original recordings include:Trio Fattoruso,Cleptodonte,Bacteria,Trio Fattoruso en Vivo en Medio y Medio,Francisco Fattoruso,The House of Groove. * Nacido en Las Vegas, EEUU, comenzó sus estudios de piano a los 6, de guitarra a los 8 y de bajo electrico a los 11. Ha tocado en vivo y/o grabado con grandes artistas de diferentes géneros, tales como: Ruben Rada, Illya Kuryaki and the Valderramas, Jorge Drexler, Pepe Guerra, La Abuela Coca, Rey Toro, La Trampa, NN Opera, Milton Nascimento, The Tabernacle Baptist Church, Soul Factory, Ken ford, Tony Royster JR, Charly Garcia, Luis Alberto Spinetta, Dante, Emanuel Horvilleur, Fito Paez, Daniel Drexler, Claudio Taddei, Elefante,Molotov, Tim Mcdonald, Blueground Undergrass, Col.Bruce Hampton, Oteil Burbridge, Jeff Coffin, Fred Vidgor, Ike Stublefield, Yonrico Scott, Derek Trucks, Jorginho Gularte, Hiram Bullock, Steve Berrios, Carlos Franzetti, Ricardo Leu. En la actualidad Francisco reside en Atlanta, EEUU, donde forma parte del coro gospel "Tabernacle Baptist Church" y del grupo Gospel "Soul Factory". A su vez, está en pleno desarrollo de su carrera como productor musical. Entre sus producciones están: Trio Fattoruso "En vivo en Medio y Medio", Anita no Duerme, Gabriel, Lucila Rada, Bacteria y Col.Bruce Hampton. Band Members: Juan Pablo Chapital,Andres Arnicho,Nicolas Ibarburu,Martin Ibarburu,Tony Royster Jr,Rafa Arcaute,Baltazar Comotto,Tatita,Lebron,Strow,KB.
Francisco MySpace
Live at Central,Montevideo,Uruguay. With:Hugo Fattoruso,Nicolas Ibarburu,Martin Ibarburu,Juan Pablo Chapital,Tatitah,Andres Arnicho.

Sunday 13 September 2009

Paquito D'Rivera - Paquito Para Los Amigos (2006)

01.Claudia
02.Brussels In The Rain
03.Waltz For Sonny
04.Song To My Son
05.Seresta
06.Just Kidding
07.Feelings Of The Heart
08.Wapango
09.Magic City -Miami-
10.Summertime
11.Valse Criollo
12.Carola
13.Tico Tico
14.Reunion.

Paquito Para los Amigos is a compilation by Fernando Trueba of some of the best latin jazz music performed by Paquito d’Rivera. The CD starts with a smooth track composed by Chucho Valdes and takes you into a wonderful atmosphere right from the start. Brussels in the Rain refers to the city of one of Paquito’s good friends Toots Thielemans, the jazz legend with the harmonica. This track could indeed be the perfect soundtrack to a day in Brussels in the rain, there is a great interaction between the harmonica and the saxophone.

Thursday 10 September 2009

Trio Fattoruso Sala Zitarrosa (2006) Video

Hugo Fattoruso:Keyboards
Osvaldo Fattoruso:Drums
Francisco Fattoruso:Bass.

Hubert Laws - My Time Will Come (1993)

01.La Malagueña (Lecuona) (10:06)
02.My Time Will Come (Laws) (5:12)
03.It's So Crazy (Laws, Jeffrey) (4:57)
04.Shades of Light (Laws) (6:59)
05.Valse (Chopin) (10:51)
06.Make It Last (Laws) (8:40)
07.Moonlight Sonata (Beethoven) (7:53)

Hubert Laws (Flute, Piccolo)
Ronnie Laws (Sax Soprano)
Mark Gray (Piano)
George Duke (Keyboards)
Joe Sample (Keyboards)
John Beasley (Keyboards)
John Patitucci (Bass)
Mike Richmond (Bass)
Gary Willis (Bass)
Joan La Barbara (Bass, Vocals)
Clayton Cameron (Drums)
Ralph Penland (Drums)
Dan Gottlieb (Drums)
Terry Santell (Percussion, Conga)
Sue Evans (Percussion)
Skyash 7 (Bass, Percussion, Strings).


This is a streaky affair, Hubert Laws' first recording as a leader in quite a few years. The great flutist has a reunion with Don Sebesky on a version of "Malaguena" that becomes an imitation of Chick Corea's "Spain"...There are some fine performances that feature excellent soloing by Laws and pianist John Beasley. Still, Hubert Laws' most loyal fans are the ones who will enjoy this release most.

Alphonse Mouzon - The Essence Of Mystery (1973)

1.The Essence Of Mystery (4:59)
2.Funky Finger (3:41)
3.Crying Angels (6:22)
4.Why Can't We Make It (3:37)
5.Macrobian (5:14)
6.Spring Water (6:23)
7.Sunflower (4:22)
8.Thank You Lord (5:03)
9.Antonia (4:40).

Buddy Terry (ss) Sonny Fortune (as) Larry Willis (p, el-p) Buster Williams (b) Wilbur Bascomb Jr. (el-b) Alphonse Mouzon (d, timp, tabla, per, el-p, clav, mellotron, vo).
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Jean-Luc Ponty - Open Strings (1971)

1.Flipping (Part I) 4:42
2.Flipping (Part Ii) 10:45
3.Flipping (Part Iii) 5:43
4.Open Strings 14:54
5.Sad Ballad 4:15.

Jean Luc Ponty - violin
Philip Catherine - guitar
Joachim Kühn - piano
Peter Warren - bass
Oliver Johnson - drums.


Recorded at MPS-Studio, Villingen, Germany December 1971

After creating a major stir in the U.S. in 1969, violinist Jean-Luc Ponty returned to his native France for a couple years. One of his few recordings from the period is this stimulating date which was last made available in the U.S. as a Pausa LP. Ponty teams up with keyboardist Joachim Kuhn, guitarist Philip Catherine, bassist Peter Warren and drummer Oliver Johnson for his three-part, side-long "Flipping," the lengthy "Open Strings" and Kuhn's "Sad Ballad." The electric violinist's dynamic playing is heard in peak form throughout the colorful album, an early and creative fusion date.
Scott Yanow, All Music Guide.

Horace Silver - Silver 'N Brass (1975)

1.Barbara
2.Dameron's Dance
3.Adjustment
4.Mysticism
5.Kissin' Cousins
6.The Sophisticated Hippie.

Frank Rosolino - Trombone
Maurice Spears - Trombone (Bass)
Vincent DeRosa - French Horn
Bob Cranshaw - Bass
Oscar Brashear - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Al Foster - Drums
Tom Harrell - Trumpet
Bob Berg - Sax (Tenor)
Ron Carter - Bass
Buddy Collette - Saxophone
Jerome Richardson - Saxophone
Horace Silver - Piano, Main Performer
Bobby Bryant - Trumpet, Flugelhorn.

The first of five LPs that feature Horace Silver's Quintet being augmented by other instrumentalists, this set finds trumpeter Tom Harrell, tenor-saxophonist Bob Berg, either Ron Carter or Bob Cranshaw on bass and either Al Foster or Bernard Purdie on drums joined by five brass players and two reed specialists. Although there are tributes to Tadd Dameron ("Dameron's Dance") and Duke Ellington ("The Sophisticated Hippie"), the music is recognizably Silver -- funky hard bop. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide.

Thursday 3 September 2009

Nguyen Le - Tales From Viet-nam (1995)

01.The Wind Blew It Away - 07:31 (traditional)
02.The Black Horse - 04:09 (traditional)
03.Don’t You Go Away My Friend - Nguoi oi Nguoi O Dung Vê - 07:27 (traditional)
04.Trông Com - The Rice Drum - 04:04 (traditional)
05.Hen Ho - Promise of a Date - 05:24 (traditional)
06.The Banyan Tree Song - Ly Cai Da - 08:19 (traditional)
07.Spring Of Life - Hoai Xuân - 03:21 (traditional)
08.Ting Ning - 03:42 (traditional)
09.Mangustao - Part 1 - 04:36 (Lê, Nguyên / Borker, Dominique)
10.Mangustao - Part 2 - 05:54 (Lê, Nguyên / Borker, Dominique).


Nguyên Lê – el., ac. & fretless guitars, guitar-synth., programming
Huong Thanh – vocals
Hao Nhien – zither, dan bau, sao flute, sapek clappers
Paolo Fresu – trumpet, fluegelhorn
Simon Spang Hansen – saxophones, concert, bass & african flute
Michel Benita – acoustic bass
François Verly – percussions, marimba, keyboards, piano
Joël Allouche – drums
Steve Argüelles – drums, percussions

Special Guests:
Trilok Gurtu – drums, percussions
Thai An – moon lute.

Recorded and mixed by Hervè Le Guil at Gimmick Studios, France, October and November 1995
except #5 and 8 by Walter Quintus at NDR Studio One, Hamburg
Overdubs: Valérie Abrial, Pierre Bengon-Lours, Stéphane Luginbuhl, Nguyên Lê
Mastered by Radu Marinescu at Liquid Gold
Produced by Nguyên Lê.


By Neil Tesser
The hybridization of western and eastern cultures has most often borne offspring of surpassing strength and beauty; no surprise, then, that the fusion of jazz and Asian music cultures has provided some of the most adventurous and exhilarating recordings of the last decade. The examples include pioneering efforts by Fred Ho, Jon Jang, and Francis Wong; to that list you can now add the first of these albums by the Vietnamese-French guitarist Nguyen Le, the marvelous Tales From Viet-nam.

Leading an octet that includes horns and synths-as well as traditional Asian zithers and vocalist Huong Thanh's intense evocations of her ancestral land-Nguyen Le has constructed an elegant and moving program, with most of the pieces derived from traditional Vietnamese melodies. The sweetly pungent trumpet work of Paolo Fresu provides yet another element, which Le exploits both as a western jazz instrument and as a descendant of the Asian bugles of antiquity. The piece entitled "The Rice Drum" proves emblematic in its use of trumpet, voice, and traditional percussion on the martial theme-before Le's electric guitar screams in and completes the cross-cultural circuit.

Le's roots include the fusion jazz of the 1970s, which flowers today in the slashing, searing timbre of his guitar; some have compared this to John Scofield, but Le favors a much cleaner edge to his sound, leaning more heavily on the jazz-rock of John McLaughlin. He clearly counts Joe Zawinul and Weather Report as important influences, and one delight of this album lies in hearing the various references to that band's recordings. On "The Banyan Tree Song," the synthesizer voice derives directly from one of Zawinul's favorite keyboard patches, while other adapted Vietnamese melodies called "Ting Ning" and "The Black Horse" could almost have leaped from the Report repertoire. And Le's zither-like guitar solo on a traditional song called "Hen Ho" actually quotes Weather Report's famous "Boogie Woogie Waltz." With such references, Le actually reminds us of Zawinul's early use of world music, and makes us aware that a big part of Weather Report's strength lay in its blend of west and east.

The guitarist's stake in fusion finds a stronger focus on Three Trios, his latest date, which lives up to its name precisely. Le's own descriptions of these three groupings-which he has named Silk, Silver, and Sand-bears repeating. He thinks of the first trio, which comprises bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Peter Erskine, as "precious but strong silk which weave the interplay between musicians;" indeed, this much-traveled rhythm section anticipates the flow and shifts rhythm and harmony accordingly. German bassist Dieter Ilg and Danny Gottlieb make up Silver, which has the most conventional take on electric jazz-"sparkle of electricity, boisterous & graceful lightning," in Le's words. The impassioned French bassist Renaud Garcia-Fons joins with percussionist Mino Cinelu in a trio that emphasizes lighter textures and the inspiration of Iberian and Brazilian folk music: "Sand of the deserts that haunt the musician's dream of elsewhere."

Even here, traces of Asia still inhabit in Nguyen Le's guitar work; the nasal pinch of Vietnamese singing creeps in as the notes decay, and the busiest solos still incorporate the occasional telltale interval or phrase. As well they should. On Three Trios, Nguyen Le's pan-culturalism gives his music a reach and purpose beyond his obvious skills as a guitarist. And on Tales From Viet-nam, his overt exploration of that pan-culturalism results in a minor masterpiece.

Mike Nock - Ozboppin' (1998)

1.Ozboppin'
2.The Philosophers
3.Five'll Getcha!
4.Exile
5.Snafu
6.Dreamtime Visitor
7.Come Sunday
8.The Emperor's Clothes
9.The End of a Love Affair.

Cameron Undy - Bass
Phil Slater - Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Tim Hopkins - Sax (Tenor)
Mike Nock - Piano.

Review by Scott Yanow
Mike Nock has long been one of the most famous jazz musicians based in Australia, helped by the fact that he has visited the U.S. many times through the years. This CD begins with the most interesting selection, "Ozboppin'," which quickly goes from bop to Ornette Coleman, freer areas, and back to bop. Most of the other numbers alternate between melancholy ballads worthy of the mid-'60s Miles Davis Quintet to more heated numbers. Tim Hopkins on tenor recalls Wayne Shorter in spots, but has a fairly original tone, as does the talented young trumpeter Phil Slater; bassist Cameron Undy and drummer David Goodman are fine in support. With the exception of "Come Sunday" and "End of a Love Affair" (a ballad feature for Hopkins), all of the selections are Nock originals. A stimulating set of advanced hard bop.