A tag line that labels the latest CD by bass player Sean O’Bryan Smith as a tribute to great hymns and worship tunes may just cause fans of contemporary jazz to think twice before jumping in. This being the case, worry not. ‘Reflection’, that was released on July 17, certainly does showcase a variety of sacred anthems but in so doing also returns Smith to his roots in soul music and fulfills his aim of creating a feeling that has all the hallmarks of an old STAX album. He is helped in this endeavor by a veritable ‘who’s who’ of jazz talent. Gerald Albright, Randy Brecker, Frank Catalano and Chuck Loeb all variously play a part with the result that this is a collection, which although very different includes some genuinely inspired moments.
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July 30, 2012
July 28, 2012
Michael Lynche - Who's Gonna Love You More
Who says that ‘talent show’ performers are not the real deal? Michael Lynche, who some will recall as a finalist on American Idol, is all set to release his self-titled debut album and the first single, ‘Who’s Gonna Love You More’, is steadily climbing the Urban AC charts. Not only that, the follow-up, ‘Today’ has just become the #1 most added track on Billboard's Smooth Jazz chart.
This guy has soul to burn and given the gap in the market that currently exists for a soulful singer who can genuinely captivate a contemporary jazz audience, it just might be that Michael is very much in the right place at the right time.
July 26, 2012
Gabriel - Kissed By The Sun
After his 2010 project ‘Told Ya So’, horn player Gabriel Mark Hasselbach, aka Gabriel, certainly had a lot to live up to. It was a recording that brimmed with understated magnificence and included contributions from Jeff Lorber, Paul Brown, Marc Antoine and Darren Rahn. Now Gabriel has re-united with Lorber for the splendid ‘Kissed By The Sun’. Not only does it live up to expectations but in fact blows them sky high. With all ten tracks written produced and engineered by these two fine musicians (and with Lorber variously playing guitar, bass and keys throughout) this is a body of work that is sure to be one of the highlights of the contemporary jazz year.
July 24, 2012
July 22, 2012
Shilts - All Grown Up
If anyone was in any doubt as to the ability of sax-man Paul Weimer, aka Shilts, to ‘move on’ from his typecasting as leader and front man of urban jazz funk outfit Down To The Bone then one need look no further than his latest release, the appropriately titled ‘All Grown Up’. Its an album that majors on what might be described as his more jazzy side and is the latest installment in a solo career that started out in 2001 with ‘See What Happens’ and gained momentum in 2006 with ‘Head Boppin’. The added sophistication that came courtesy of his 2008 project, ‘Jigsaw Life’ clearly demonstrated his rapidly growing musical maturity and in 2010 this was again the case with the the excellent ‘Going Underground’. For ‘All Grown Up’ and in keeping with previous ventures, Shilts is backed by some of the best musicians around. Long term collaborator Bill Steinway shares writing credits on seven of the tracks and is his usual splendid self on keys while other notable performances comes from Phil Mulford, Gerey Johnson, Jervonny Collier, Jay Rowe, Allen Hinds and Ross Bolton.
July 20, 2012
David Sanborn - The Dream
Serviced to radio ahead of the new CD from David Sanborn, ‘The Dream’ might well have a familiar ring to it. In fact it was originally part of Sanborn’s 1987 project ‘A Change of Heart’ and its inclusion here betrays the fact that this new collection is in fact two-disc retrospective. Titled ‘Then Again: The David Sanborn Anthology’ it features twenty-nine of his greatest tunes from the period spanning the mid seventies to the mid nineties. Sanborn is recognized as one of few genuine crossover artists and over time his instantly recognizable mix of jazz, R&B and pop has garnered six Grammy® Awards plus nine gold and platinum albums.
Not only that, Sanborn’s recent (and ongoing) involvement with the Smooth Jazz Cruise has opened him up to a whole new fan base and made possible collaborations such as that currently coming to fruition with Brian Culbertson on their three month, thirty city, The Dream Tour.
‘Then Again: The David Sanborn Anthology’ will be released July 31 on the Rhino label.
July 18, 2012
July 16, 2012
The Dream Tour At Thornton Winery
July 15, 2012. With a brand new album titled ‘Dreams’ just out, one could have been forgiven for thinking that Brian Culbertson’s ‘The Dream’ tour might just have been a timely showcase for what is already proving to be a fantastic collection. In fact nothing could have been further from the truth as in the user friendly confines of the Thornton Winery in Temecula, CA, Culbertson shared the stage with the legendary David Sanborn to enthrall a packed gathering with some memorable moments from their combined discographies. In fact Sanborn also has a new recording all set for release. This two-disc retrospective, ‘Then Again: The David Sanborn Anthology’ celebrates Sanborn’s first two decades as a recording artist and in the heat of a Southern Californian Sunday afternoon he dipped frequently into it as he and Culbertson traded hits in the way that only true musical icons can. With a heavyweight backing band that included both Eddie Miller and Ricky Peterson on keys, drummer Chris Miskel, Nicky Moroch on guitar and Richard Patterson on bass this was an immaculately presented show performed to the highest standard imaginable. In fact there was something there for everyone and as Culbertson got things moving with his seminal ‘Back In the Day’ the stage was set for a tremendous event.
July 12, 2012
Project Grand Slam - Spring Dance
It was back in 2008 that I first became acquainted with contemporary jazz collective Project Grad Slam. Their debut album ‘Play’ featured five tracks from the hit NBC series ‘Lipstick Jungle’ plus a memorable cover of Double’s 1986 hit ‘Captain Of Your Heart’ which the band delivered in both instrumental and vocal form. Now, with a reworked line-up, they are back with the CD ‘Spring Dance’.
In fact Project Grand Slam is led by bass-player Robert Miller who is an established recording artist in his own right and who for ‘Spring Dance’ invited keyboard player Mike Eckroth and smooth jazz sax man Danny Lerman to complement the core trio.
The first single from ‘Spring Dance’ to be offered to radio is the upbeat title track which, with a jazzy ‘feel-good’ vibe, has everything necessary to tempt listeners to check out the entire collection.
A complete review of this interesting recording can be found here soon.
July 08, 2012
Rippingtons - Cougars
It is hard to believe more than twenty five years have passed since Russ Freeman gathered together a bunch of his musical friends to create Rippingtons and the bands debut recording ‘Moonlighting’. Since then one of contemporary jazz's most enduring legacies has evolved with almost twenty albums, a steadily revolving door of band members and Freeman’s trademark melodies still front, back and center.
The band’s latest project, the appropriately titled ‘Built To Last’ will be released on August 28 and is being fan-fared by the radio single ‘Cougars’. This Latin spiced easy grooving number finds Freeman on guitar at the very center of a song which, when compared to past classics such as ‘Tourist In Paradise’, is very much Rippingtons on the reflective side.
Check back here soon for a complete review of ‘Built To Last’.
July 06, 2012
Cutmore Records - A New Label, A New Opportunity
Trippin n Rhythm have just announced it is launching a new label, Cutmore Records, that it will use as a developmental platform for fresh young talent. The move recognizes a groundswell of new artists in their late teens and early twenties that are embracing contemporary jazz and readying themselves to be stars of the next generation. Cutmore hopes to maximize retail opportunities by using Sony Music for worldwide distribution while the first artist to benefit from this new structure is rumored to be eighteen-year-old producer and keyboard player Nicholas Cole.
Cole’s label debut will feature fourteen self produced originals and includes guest performances from Steve Cole, Julian Vaughn, Tim Bowman, Lynne Fiddmont and Steve Oliver. The lead single will be serviced to radio on July 13th and expect to find the album in stores on September 11.
July 04, 2012
Brian Culbertson - Dreams
Sometimes its nice to be taken by surprise and that is certainly the case with the release of Brian Culbertson’s thirteenth CD, the totally brilliant ‘Dreams’. With a publicity machine that maybe didn’t crank at what might be considered ‘full force’, the album hit the streets on June 12 without much of the pre-release hype that would normally be associated with an artist of Culbertson’s stature. This notwithstanding ‘Dreams’ is an absolute gem that returns him to the sort of seductive smooth jazz, which was such a feature of his 2005 CD ‘It’s On Tonight’. Not only that, it’s a project for which Culbertson brings together an engine room that draws from some of the best that jazz tinged R & B has to offer and among them are longtime collaborator and arranger Rex Rideout plus incredible session musicians Alex Al, Michael Thompson, Rob Bacon and John ‘Jubu’ Smith.