Alex Sipiagin Quintet - Steppin' Zone

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2000
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:16
Size: 140,6 MB
Art: Front

( 5:17) 1. Catalyst (Take 1)
( 7:56) 2. Room 28
( 8:21) 3. Steppin' Zone
(11:13) 4. Spacing
( 8:14) 5. Missouri Uncompromised
( 6:41) 6. Moonstone
( 8:38) 7. Conception
( 4:51) 8. Catalyst (Take 2)

Trumpeter Alex Sipiagin, one of the mainstays of the Mingus Big Band, has some distinguished company on his Criss Cross debut: Chris Potter on tenor sax, David Kikoski on piano, Scott Colley on bass, and Jeff "Tain" Watts on drums. It's highly unlikely that an A-list quintet such as this would let listeners down and, sure enough, the disc swings like crazy from beginning to end. The program is bookended by two takes of Colley's "Catalyst," which the bassist also recorded for his Portable Universe album.

Other highlights include the difficult and seldom-covered "Missouri Uncompromised" by Pat Metheny, Sipiagin's steady-burning "Room 28," and a long take of Kikoski's harmonically free "Spacing." The group slows things down with Toninho Horta's "Moonstone" and the leader's lilting title track. (Their odd-metered interpretation of George Shearing's "Conception" is strikingly similar to the version that appears on George Colligan's Como la Vida Puede Ser.) Bolder and more unorthodox records have been made, but this kind of scorching, straight-ahead musicianship is always a pleasure to hear.By David R. Adler https://www.allmusic.com/album/steppin-zone-mw0000005071

Personnel: Alex Spiagin (trumpet); Chris Potter (tenor saxophone); David Kikoski (piano); Scott Colley (bass); Jeff Watts (drums).

Steppin'Zone

---

Bill Carrothers - Sunday Morning

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:11
Size: 119,5 MB
Art: Front

(1:50)  1. Oh Gold Our Help in Ages Past
(4:53)  2. Jesus Loves Me
(5:36)  3. Children of the Heavenly Father
(5:14)  4. Beautiful Savior
(2:46)  5. Eternal Father, Strong to Save
(2:56)  6. A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
(4:51)  7. Just a Closer Walk with Tree
(1:10)  8. Crown Him with Many Crowns
(3:51)  9. Watchman, Tell Us of the Night
(4:52) 10. This Is My Father's World
(3:28) 11. Lift High the Cross
(5:10) 12. Just as I Am, Without One Plea
(3:07) 13. The Lord's Prayer
(1:21) 14. Oh God, Our Help in Ages Past

Sunday Morning by jazz pianist Bill Carrothers is a recording that comes straight from the heart. It brings together music of the church (where Carrothers learned to play the piano) and the cotton fields of the American south. The result is something not quite jazz, not quite gospel and not quite classical, but something totally unique and glorious. Carrothers is joined here by his wife Peg Carrothers on vocals, clarinetist Jean-Marc Foltz, cellist Matt Turner, bassist Nicolas Thys and a full gospel choir. ~ Editorial Reviews https://www.amazon.com/Sunday-Morning-Bill-Carrothers/dp/B00EPMODPW

Personnel:  Piano, Arranged By, Conductor [Choir] – Bill Carrothers; Cello – Matt Turner;  Clarinet [Clarinets] – Jean-Marc Foltz; Double Bass – Nicolas Thys;  Voice – Peg Carrothers

Sunday Morning

---

Bobby Broom - Keyed Up

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:53
Size: 130,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:23) 1. Hallucinations (Budo)
(6:08) 2. Second Thoughts
(5:06) 3. Humpty Dumpty
(4:43) 4. Soulful Bill
(6:38) 5. Quicksilver
(6:16) 6. Misty
(4:58) 7. Driftin'
(6:06) 8. Blues On The Corner, Tk 2
(6:18) 9. Scoochie
(6:13) 10. Blues On The Corner, Tk 1

On his latest album, Keyed Up, the well-traveled and well-respected guitarist Bobby Broom pays tribute to pianists "who have been an important part of [his] musical life." As he writes, ..."many great pianists who didn't need to include my six-string version of what they could already do harmonically and melodically saw fit to include me. Perhaps, among other things, this is my way of saying 'thank you' to them."

Another way to thank them may have been to include their names as composers somewhere on the album. Instead, one has to read an accompanying press release to learn that the honorees include Bud Powell, McCoy Tyner, James Williams, Mulgrew Miller, Erroll Garner

Chick Corea, Horace Silver and Herbie Hancock who collectively wrote nine of the album's ten numbers (including two takes of Tyner's "Blues on the Corner"). In spite of that, their names are nowhere to be found on the album's jacket or playlist, nor in Broom's adulatory liner notes.

The session's other tune, "Scoochie," was written by trumpeter Booker Ervin for pianist Horace Parlan's 1961 Blue Note album, On the Spur of the Moment. So, pianists were in some way involved in the genesis of every number. Yet another pianist, Justin Dillard, is a member of Broom's efficient quartet, and he doubles from time to time on the Hammond SKX organ. Bassist Dennis Carroll and drummer Kobie Watkins help keep the rhythm in sync.

Broom opens with a bouncy reading of Powell's "Hallucinations" (renamed "Budo" once Miles Davis endorsed it), moving next to Miller's meditative "Second Thoughts" and Corea's melodious "Humpty Dumpty." Williams' easygoing "Soulful Bill" and Silver's quirky "Quicksilver" (played a tad slower than most other versions) precede the venerable "Misty," which Broom was reluctant to include until Carroll reminded him, "It's by Erroll Garner!." Hancock's "Driftin,'" a medium-tempo charmer which belies its name, leads to the first reading of "Blues on the Corner," Ervin's amiable "Scoochie" and "Blues on the Corner," Take 2, which closes the studio recording.

Broom's guitar is bright and nimble, and his teammates carry out their assignments handily and without error. In sum, an above-average but rather less than special album whose choice of material (and composers) lends substance. By Jack Bowers https://www.allaboutjazz.com/keyed-up-bobby-broom-steele-records

Personnel: Bobby Broom: guitar; Dennis Carroll: bass; Kobie Watkins: drums; Justin Dillard: piano.

Keyed Up

---

Lyn Stanley - Novel Noel: A Jingle Cool Jazz Celebration

Styles: Vocal, Holiday
Year: 2022
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:41
Size: 132,2 MB
Art: Front

(4:08) 1. Zat You Santa Claus?
(5:36) 2. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
(4:05) 3. Come Dance With Me
(4:47) 4. Little Drummer Boy (Jazz Version)
(3:45) 5. It's Magic
(3:52) 6. The Way You Look Tonight
(6:35) 7. I Concentrate On You
(4:10) 8. Christmas Waltz
(4:33) 9. Boogie Woogie Santa Claus
(3:09) 10. Moonlight In Vermont
(4:11) 11. Merry Christmas Darling
(2:50) 12. Holy Night
(4:55) 13. Mary Did You Know (Bonus Track)

Vocalist Lyn Stanley ironically calls her ensemble the Big Band Jazz Maverick when it is she who is the maverick, the evidence being how seamlessly she expands the holiday canon on Novel Noël: A Jingle Jazz Celebration. Over the past decade, Stanley has done two significant things: one, she has methodically and with carefully considered concepts addressed in the Great American Songbook, and, two, she has become a foremost audiophile, sweating all of the small stuff. This added attention and effort pays off in her superb holiday offering. Originally intended for release in 2021, personal and global circumstances changed the project's trajectory. Six of the 13 selections were released under the same title.

The entire package was worth the wait. Stanley spikes the eggnog with vintage, 100-proof nostalgia, recalling the swinging 1950s. The opening track, "Zat You Santa Claus" sets the tone for the entire release, with Stanley echoing Pops before launching into the most sophisticated and swinging updates of the song. Eartha Kitt may own "Santa, Baby," but Stanley one-ups that performance with this playful and festive steal from Satchmo. "Little Drummer Boy" is mashed up with "Take Five" and "Mary Did You Know" receives a stark and plaintive reading. Stanley deftly slides into the playlist standards made for the holidays: "Come Dance With Me," "It's Magic," and "The Way You Look Tonight" sound as if they have been in the holiday canon all along; what Stanley shows us is that they have been. It is fitting that this recording is the best the singer has imagined and recorded. This is what Christmas is about.
By C. Michael Bailey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/november-2022-novel-noel-a-jingle-jazz-celebration-lyn-stanleyr

Personnel: Lead Vocals [Vocalist (Lead)] – Lyn Stanley; Trumpet – Christopher Gray, Kye Palmer, Robert Schaer, Wayne Bergeron; Trombone – Andrew Martin, Bob McChesney, Craig Gosnell, Francisco Torres; Saxophone, Flute – Brian Scalon, Jay Mason, Kristen Edkins, Sal Lorenzo, Tom Leur; Rhythm Guitar [Rhythm (Guitar And Leader)] – John Chiodini; Piano – Bill Cunliffe, Christian Jacob, Pat Coil; Tenor Saxophone – Rickey Woodard; Drums, Percussion – Aaron Serfaty; Drums – Bernie Dresel; Double Bass [Upright Bass] – Chuck Berghofer

Novel Noel: A Jingle Cool Jazz Celebration

---