Wallace Roney - Jazz

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 65:05
Size: 149,9 MB
Art: Front

( 8:51)  1. Vater Time
( 5:22)  2. Children of the Light
( 6:29)  3. Inflorescent
( 5:00)  4. Fela's Shrine
( 9:18)  5. Nia
( 5:28)  6. Revolution: Resolution
( 5:46)  7. Her Story
(11:00)  8. Stand
( 7:48)  9. Un Poco Loco

In a time when the definition of the word jazz is in heated debate, it takes a certain amount of courage for trumpeter Wallace Roney to use it as the title of his third release for HighNote. Roney continues to mine the place where contemporary rhythms and technology meet the language of jazz, and while there are those who will balk at his use of turntablists, synthesizers and hip hop rhythms, one listen is all it takes. It may be increasingly difficult to empirically define jazz, but one knows it when one hears it, and Jazz is most definitely a jazz album. With the same core group that's been with him since Prototype (HighNote, 2004) saxophonist/clarinetist/brother Antoine Roney, pianist/keyboardist/wife Geri Allen and drummer Eric Allen there are a couple of new faces, most notably keyboardist Robert Irving III, who replaces Adam Holzman. Both Irving and Holzman were key players in Miles Davis' 1980s bands and, given that Roney's starting point has, since Village (Warner Bros., 1997), been the late trumpeter's earliest forays into electric music and he was a protégé of the late icon in his final years working with Miles alumni has always felt completely right. Roney is no mere Miles clone, however, and only those listening to him with the most cursory of ears could suggest otherwise. Roney possesses a similarly rich tone, an ear for playing exactly what's required no more, no less and an ability to morph pop music like Sly and the Family Stone's "Stand" into an extended and open-ended modal workout. 

But while the persistent, In a Silent Way-like groove that defines its core is referential, the hard-hitting and virtuosic trumpet/drums duo that opens "Stand" is not. Miles' technical skill often ebbed and flowed with his health, but Roney suffers no such inconsistencies. He's never sounded better, moving from strength to strength. Roney's time spent from the mid-1980s to the early-1990s with another Miles alumnus, the late drummer Tony Williams, informs bassist Rashaan Carter's "Inflorescent," a relaxed, largely acoustic track that features Geri Allen's best piano solo of the set. Antoine Roney's "Nia" is another lyrical piece, with subtle turntable work by another regular collaborator, Val Jeanty, and stunning less-is-more (but all the more powerful for it) solos from both Roney brothers. It's the more energetic tracks, however, that are the most revealing indicators of just how far along the trumpeter has come at taking his stylistic starting point and making it his own. His "Vater Time," which begins with a hip hop beat and turntable work by DJ Axum but turns decidedly swinging for Antoine Roney's tenor solo, proves that there is a nexus where the traditional and the modern can coexist. It's a theme that's run through Roney's albums for a decade now, but it's never been so clear, so wonderfully conceived and so flawlessly executed. For those who think jazz has to live in a time warp, Jazz just might sway that opinion. ~ John Kelman https://www.allaboutjazz.com/jazz-wallace-roney-highnote-records-review-by-john-kelman.php

Personnel: Wallace Roney: trumpet; Antoine Roney: soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone, bass clarinet; Geri Allen: piano, keyboards (2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9); Robert Irving III: keyboards, Fender Rhodes (1, 4, 6, 8); Rashaan Carter: bass; Eric Allen: drums; DJ Axum: turntables (1, 4); Val Jeanty: turntables (5, 6, 8).

Jazz

---

Doris Day - I Have Dreamed

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1961
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 39:40
Size: 91,9 MB
Art: Front

(2:59)  1. I Believe In Dreams
(3:43)  2. I'll Buy That Dream
(4:08)  3. My Ship
(3:14)  4. All I Do Is Dream of You
(3:02)  5. When I Grow Too Old to Dream
(4:15)  6. We'll Love Again
(3:12)  7. I Have Dreamed
(3:20)  8. Periwinkle Blue
(3:01)  9. Someday I'll Find You
(2:47) 10. You Stepped Out of a Dream
(3:25) 11. Oh What a Beautiful Dream
(2:29) 12. Time to Say Goodnight

"The mood of these songs is dreamy," writes annotator Pete Martin, thus defining the theme of Doris Day's second LP of 1961. As usual, someone Day herself, her conductor, a Columbia Records A&R person had chosen a theme for her album and picked a group of songs, most of them interwar standards that derived from stage musicals or movies. Dreaminess was a concept familiar to any band singer of the 1940s, and Day was such a singer, so she certainly knew her way around "I'll Buy That Dream," even if the hit versions of the 1945 song were by such competitors as Helen Forrest (with Dick Haymes) and Kitty Kallen (as vocalist with Harry James' band). Her vocal style, warm, but never actually sensual, had always conformed to the unruffled approach of the '40s band singers, and she was right at home exploring sedate nighttime fantasy. Actually, though, the concept was a bit threadbare by now; Day had already recorded "Dream a Little Dream of Me" and "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams (And Dream Your Troubles Away)" on her 1958 album Day by Night, and obvious choices such as "Dream," "I Had the Craziest Dream," and "Darn That Dream" were eschewed in favor of a handful of unknown songs. Day did well by such unusual theater choices as "My Ship" from Lady in the Dark and "Someday I'll Find You" from Private Lives, and orchestra director Jim Harbert (who contributed his own "I Believe in Dreams") swathed everything in blankets of strings. But the album was not all it could have been, and the use of second-rate material and a second-rate conductor suggested that Columbia was losing faith in Day as a recording artist after years of poor sales. Ironically, it became her first new album to chart since 1957. ~ William Ruhlmann https://www.allmusic.com/album/i-have-dreamed-mw0000845878

R.I.P.
Died: May 13, 2019
Born: April 3, 1922

I Have Dreamed

---

Donny McCaslin - The Way Through

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:06
Size: 129,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:01)  1. Skyward
(2:49)  2. San Lorenzo
(6:31)  3. Shadowlands
(5:59)  4. I Should Care
(7:50)  5. The Way Through
(3:57)  6. Break Tune
(3:23)  7. Free California
(5:40)  8. Fe Fo Fi Fum
(4:36)  9. What Remains
(3:30) 10. Woody And You
(5:46) 11. Flutter

The Way Through explores the many colors of jazz while at the same time respectfully stretching the music’s boundaries. Donny McCaslin, a tenor saxophonist with a rich, warm sound, is also an extremely skilled arranger with an interesting use of space. The basic instrumentation here is sax, bass, and drums, but there’s also sax duet improvisations, solo work by McCaslin, and judicious use of voice, steel pan, and sampler. McCaslin has many paints on his palette, and his selections are always tasteful and interesting. McCaslin combines original compositions with the standard “I Should Care,” Dizzy Gillespie’s “What Remains,” and Wayne Shorter’s “Fee Fo Fi Fum.” McCaslin is not afraid to take chances, and he is not afraid to mix styles and eras. A good example is his song “Break Tune” which, true to its title, breaks down the melody and explores the line between control and chaos. Here McCaslin uses a sampler, and the song is a successful merger of jazz and the new technology. The integration of acoustic and electronic instruments is still evolving, and McCaslin understands both well enough to take a positive step in harmonizing the two worlds. McCaslin’s other original compositions are equally notable. There’s “San Lorenzo,” which starts off with a slow, yearning sax and ends in ecstatic singing. 

The steel pan, vocals, and Latin rhythms combined with McCaslin’s lyrical playing make this song a real gem. Other originals include “Skyward,” which has a swinging melody and interesting chordal work, the meditative exploration “Shadowlands,” and the title track “The Way Through,” where McCaslin stretches out with pure tones and expressive lines. The recording ends with the wonderful “Flutter,” a duet improvisation with McCaslin and altoist David Binney that channels Eric Dolphy and highlights McCaslin’s imaginative playing. McCaslin explores a lot of territory on The Way Through , and whether he’s coloring inside the lines or disregarding them altogether, he always has something interesting to say. His assimilation of different styles and technologies is also compelling, and certainly worth watching. McCaslin is just shy of 40, which in the world of jazz is relatively young; it’s inspiring to hear him emerge as a leader, and listeners should look forward to more. ~ Florenze Wetzel https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-way-through-donny-mccaslin-arabesque-jazz-review-by-florence-wetzel.php

Personnel: Donny McCaslin - Soprano Sax, Tenor Sax; Dave Binney - Alto Sax; Anders Bostrom - Flute, Alto Flute, Bass Flute; Scott Colley - Bass; Adam Cruz - Percussion, Drums, Marimba, Steel Pan; Doug Yates - Clarinet, Bass Clarinet; Luciana Souza - Vocals.

The Way Through

---

Andrew Hill - But Not Farewell

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1991
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 63:22
Size: 146,1 MB
Art: Front

( 7:20)  1. Westbury
( 7:12)  2. But Not Farewell
( 8:28)  3. Nicodemus
(17:19)  4. Georgia Ham
( 5:44)  5. Friends
( 3:44)  6. Sunnyside
(13:32)  7. Gone

This is a recommended set of stimulating post-bop jazz. Andrew Hill's highly distinctive piano playing and unusual compositions hint at the past while following their own rules. The feeling of polyrhythms is present in several of Hill's seven compositions on this CD. The tightness of the bass-drum team (Lonnie Plaxico and Cecil Brooks) is quite impressive, as is the blend of Robin Eubanks' warm trombone and Greg Osby's alto. Osby's angular improvisations, which seem out of place in standard bebop, sound perfectly at home in Andrew Hill's music. "Friends" features the altoist's lyricism in a duet with the pianist. Although the final two numbers (including the 13-and-a-half-minute freely improvised "Gone") are solo piano performances, it is the quintet tracks with Osby and Eubanks that are the main reason to acquire this disc. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/but-not-farewell-mw0000263609

Personnel:  Andrew Hill - piano; Greg Osby - soprano saxophone (tracks 1-3), alto saxophone (tracks 4 & 5); Robin Eubanks - trombone (tracks 1-4); Lonnie Plaxico - bass (tracks 1-4); Cecil Brooks III - drums (tracks 1-4)

But Not Farewell

---

Geri Allen - Home Grown

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1985
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:52
Size: 101,0 MB
Art: Front

(5:36)  1. Mamma's Babies
(2:55)  2. Bemsha Swing
(8:36)  3. No More Mr. Nice Guy
(4:06)  4. Black Man
(6:14)  5. Round Midnight
(3:23)  6. Blue
(7:39)  7. Alone Together
(5:23)  8. Home Grown

Geri Allen's second recording, a solo effort for the German Minor Music label, finds her already displaying a pretty original style (which occasionally has hints of Herbie Nichols). Allen performs a pair of Thelonious Monk tunes ("Bemsha Swing" and "'Round Midnight"), plus six of her diverse and usually rhythmic originals. A fine early set. ~ Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/homegrown-mw0001885479

Personnel:  Geri Allen - piano

Home Grown

---