Eric Le Lann - Le Lann, A.Foster, David Kikoski And Douglas Weiss

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:53
Size: 119,6 MB
Art: Front

(7:17)  1. Yesterdays
(7:37)  2. Ayam
(6:18)  3. C'est la nuit Lola
(5:30)  4. Le Bleu d'Hortense
(7:14)  5. You don't know what love is
(5:19)  6. Today I fell in love
(5:18)  7. Herve in Black and Blue
(7:17)  8. Ayam (alt)

Trumpeter Eric Le Lann must be a late bloomer according to the studio photographs included on this recording. His personal sound also reflects that he is a developing jazz musician, featuring a diffuse sound that occasionally drifts off into sunset horizons. With minor-key flourishes and fading-light tonalities, Le Lann is definitely a work in progress as he sails through calm waters on this mix of standards and originals whose focus is dimly lit, smoky, and elusive to a small degree. Certainly Le Lann has hired a top-notch band to back his hazy sound, with the always extraordinary pianist David Kikoski, veteran drummer Al Foster, and solid pro bassist Douglas Weiss. Perhaps the sound of this brassman takes getting used to as he sounds like nobody else, but that in fact might be his ace in the hole. His rounded, softer edges may sound somewhat enigmatic, but to others strike an appealing chord far removed from the modern edgy or more heartily swinging vintage horn players. His warmth is easily heard on the well-worn "Yesterdays" and the light bossa treatment of "You Don't Know What Love Is," where his legato-based stream of sounds comes through clearly. His originals sport French titles like the somber funereal dirge "C'est la Nuit Lola" and the bopper "La Bleu d'Hortense," while "Hervé in Black and Blue" reflects the style of Dizzy Gillespie and the composition flavor of Benny Golson and "Today I Fell in Love" is a light funk strut with Kikoski on Fender Rhodes electric piano for contemporary contrast. There are two versions of "Ayam," both paced in easy swing where Le Lann's unanchored, wandering mood is laid down gently. The strength of the backing trio bolsters the trumpeter immeasurably in his favor in an overall credible effort, not essential or spectacular, but fateful via a pleasant mood. ~ Michael G. Nastos https://www.allmusic.com/album/le-lann-kikoski-foster-weiss-mw0000831555

Personnel:  Eric Le Lann - trumpet;  Al Foster - drums;  David Kikosky - piano;  Douglas Weiss - acoustic bass

Le Lann Foster Kikoski Weiss

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Don Byron - Love, Peace, And Soul

Styles: Clarinet And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 73:51
Size: 169,7 MB
Art: Front

( 6:08)  1. Highway To Heaven
( 6:24)  2. When I've Sung My Last Song
( 7:54)  3. It's My Desire
( 4:49)  4. Sham Time
( 5:19)  5. Consideration
(10:09)  6. Take My Hand, Precious Lord
( 3:54)  7. Beams Of Heaven
( 6:22)  8. Hide Me In Thy Bosom
( 5:30)  9. Himmm
( 7:11) 10. I've Got To Live The Life I Sing About In My Song
( 4:34) 11. Didn't It Rain
( 5:31) 12. When I've Done My Best

Don Byron's catalog reveals him to be a musical chameleon and master conceptualist. The range of music he's had fun melding with jazz Raymond Scott's, Mickey Katz's classical arias and lieder, Blaxploitation funk and more is expansive. It should come as no surprise then, that Love, Peace and Soul is an album of (mostly) classic gospel tunes, primarily written by Thomas A. Dorsey. It was Dorsey who kept the blues and ring-shout lineages inherent in gospel as it evolved, and revolutionized the music in the process. The other inspiration here is master guitarist and vocalist Sister Rosetta Tharpe. While she played primarily sacred music drenched in jazz and blues, she moved effortlessly between it and secular tunes. Byron's New Gospel Quintet are D.K. Dyson on vocals, pianist Xavier Davis, bassist Brad Jones, and drummer Pheeroan akLaff, with guest appearances by guitarists Brandon Ross and Vernon Reid, trumpeter Ralph Alessi, vocalist Dean Bowman, and baritone saxophonist J.D. Parran. Byron’s clarinet and akLaff's tom-toms introduce "Highway to Heaven," adding the spirit of Sidney Bechet's and Louis Armstrong's New Orleans jazz to Dorsey's blues before Dyson cuts loose on the vocals; Jones' funky bassline makes the entire thing pop. The spirit of improvisation on this set is alive and well too, as evidenced by "When I've Sung My Last Song," the very next cut. Byron's clarinet and Dyson's vocal play on and around the melody before the band enters, and while Dyson moves more toward the straighter end of the lyric, akLaff creates a slippery sense of time and establishes a jazz groove, and Davis' piano solo solidifies it. Given the feel of the album's first three sacred numbers, the juxtaposition of Eddie Harris' funky party anthem "Sham Time" feels right at home. Even the more reverential numbers, such as Dorsey's "Take My Hand Precious Lord" (introduced by a beautiful duet between Byron's saxophone and Dyson's vocal) carry blues into melodic jazz improvisation. Charles Tindley's "Beam of Heaven" is drenched in early blues, from Jones' bumping bassline, Byron's swooping clarinet, akLaff's shuffling kit, and Ross' acoustic slide guitar. Dyson's vocal is simply sublime. In Dorsey's “I’ve Got to Live the Life I Sing About," the hard blues in Tharpe's example underscore the message in the lyric. Love, Peace and Soul is another successful Byron experiment, but it's more than that. While its grooves are not a vision of gospel music since Dorsey, the music points to possibilities for the future that, like Dorsey's and Tharpe's examples, never lose sight of the blues. ~ Thom Jurek https://www.allmusic.com/album/love-peace-and-soul-mw0002289389

Personnel: Don Byron: clarinets and saxophones; DK Dyson: voice, choirs; Xavier Davis: piano, choirs; Brad Jones: acoustic and electric bass, choirs; Pheeroan Aklaff: battery. Guests: Brandon Ross: electric and acoustic guitar; Vernon Reid: electric guitar; Dean Bowman: solo voice; Ralph Alessi: trumpet; JD Parran baritone sax.

Love, Peace, And Soul

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Lisa Hilton - The New York Sessions

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 45:33
Size: 104,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:11)  1. Both Sides Now
(3:19)  2. Over And Over Again
(3:24)  3. Just Want To Be With You
(3:46)  4. A Bit Of Soul
(5:33)  5. Emily
(4:03)  6. Seduction
(4:10)  7. The Last Time
(3:30)  8. Where Are You Now
(3:33)  9. Listen To Your Heart
(3:17) 10. Epistrophy
(3:23) 11. Mystery
(4:20) 12. Both Sides Now Alt Tk

The New York Sessions is the ninth release by pianist Lisa Hilton, whose last name lovingly adorns the bath towels in the suitcases of itinerant musicians around the world. A self-produced and largely self-motivated musician from the rougher section of Malibu, Hilton's avowed influences and illustrious associations promise great things but the world is a harsh place, and sometimes promises are broken. Hilton is surrounded by a mighty supporting cast, but even a cursory listen reveals that their skills are conspicuously surplus to requirements. How any pianist could assemble a rhythm section that boasts Christian McBride and Lewis Nash, without even the slightest forward momentum, is completely beyond the grasp of this jaded but earnest critic. The musicians are not at fault, since Hilton's compositions and musicianship are uniformly uninspiring, repetitive, and just plain inept. Two takes of "Both Sides Now" showcase Hilton's thrilling execution of major scale runs in the key of C. The aptly titled "Over and Over Again" proves to be a futile, redundant and pedestrian effort all key elements of her compositional and improvisational abilities. "Just Want to Be With You" once again features Hilton's uncanny mastery of the major scale, as the listener is blissfully swept above the clouds and then unceremoniously dropped into a dumpster, despondent and disappointed. From the pantheon of great American music, Hilton has chosen Ray Charles' "A Bit of Soul," (a very little bit of soul, indeed), and manages to transform a pot full of hot gumbo into cold porridge in the span of three minutes and forty-six seconds. "Emily" isn't as bad, despite a few clams and harmonic bypasses, but the real horror here is Monk's "Epistrophy," which finds the pianist in a battle with Monk's trademark, harmonically rich arpeggios. Here's a hint; the arpeggios win the battle, but the hapless listener ultimately loses the war. Now and then, independently produced recordings reveal great work deserving wider recognition, and this disc is certainly not among them. Conventional musical discourse is impossible to apply to works by musicians with ample means and poor skills. Lisa Hilton's acknowledged influences should include the patron saints of self-publishing; Johann Gutenberg, Thomas Paine and, of course, William Randolph Hearst. Their historic efforts have given Hilton the mechanism, the freedom, and the wherewithal to forge a career in the 21st century. Self-identified jazz musicians such as Hilton, whose delusions of street credibility, questionable claims of technical skill, and erroneous assertions of artistic merit somehow consistently lack supporting evidence in their work. So here goes: The New York Sessions is great fodder for the aspiring dilettante, a must for background music at the next gala luncheon, and an ideal coaster for your next cocktail party. Sadly, the only swing to be found on this disc is in the motion of the pendulum, as it ambivalently traverses the arc between philanthropy and misanthropy. In the immortal words of Humphrey Bogart, at the very least, "We'll always have Paris."~ Ken Kase https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-new-york-sessions-lisa-hilton-self-produced-review-by-ken-kase.php

Personnel: Lisa Hilton: piano; Christian McBride: bass; Lewis Nash: drums; Jeremy Pelt: trumpet and flugelhorn; Steve Wilson: sax.

The New York Sessions

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Jorge Rossy, Michael Kanan - Bud

Styles: Vibraphone Jazz
Year: 2017
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:17
Size: 131,4 MB
Art: Front

(5:25)  1. Blue Pearl
(4:25)  2. Monopoly
(6:39)  3. I'll Keep Loving You
(5:22)  4. Tempus Fugit
(4:10)  5. Parisian Thoroughfare
(4:32)  6. Celia
(3:53)  7. Hallucinations
(3:13)  8. Willow Groove
(3:09)  9. Dusk in Saudi
(6:06) 10. The Fruit
(4:56) 11. Un Poco Loco
(5:22) 12. Bouncing with Bud

"For this third offering by our quartet, we have once again chosen the work of a single composer. Bud Powell is widely acknowledged as one of the great pianists in jazz history. His compositions, like his playing, are innovative, sophisticated, lyrical, and swinging. Playing with Jimmy Wormworth and Putter Smith really made this possible. They are both part of thegeneration for whom swing is naturaland having an individual voice is a mandate." ~ Michael Kanan https://www.freshsoundrecords.com/jorge-rossy-michael-kanan-albums/6700-bud.html

Personnel:  Jorge Rossy (vibraphone & marimba);  Michael Kanan (piano);  Putter Smith (bass);  Jimmy Wormworth (drums)

Bud

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