Doug Webb Quartet - Sets the Standard

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:35
Size: 148,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:18)  1. My Shining Hour (Master)
(5:08)  2. Trouble Is a Man
(6:09)  3. Star Eyes
(5:30)  4. Little Girl Blue
(6:39)  5. These Things
(8:45)  6. Gone with the Wind
(6:13)  7. Jitterbug Waltz
(6:20)  8. Chelsea Bridge
(4:33)  9. Ask Me Now
(5:14) 10. I Remember You
(5:41) 11. My Shining Hour (Alternate)

On May 26, 2014 Doug Webb brought together Alan Broadbent, Putter Smith and Paul Kreibich to record this set at Nolan Shaheed's studio in Pasadena, CA. This was a rare opportunity to record Alan Broadbent playing a set of all improvised music on the West Coast in a small group . The music chosen had to be standards that all the participants knew well. It was also understood that Alan's wonderful approach to ballads had to be a focal point. Doug also wanted to get a chance to play more lyrically than on previous recordings. The result is this engrossing set of standards that effectively sets the standard of good taste and musicality for any quartet session. ~ Editorial Reviews  http://www.amazon.com/The-Doug-Webb-Quartet-Standard/dp/B019KDX9K0

Personnel:  Doug Webb (tenor, stritch, soprano sax);  Alan Broadbent (piano);  Putter Smith (bass);  Paul Kreibich (drums).

Sets the Standard

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Laura Dickinson - One for My Baby (To Frank Sinatra With Love)

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2014
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:19
Size: 129,9 MB
Art: Front

(3:33)  1. Come Fly With Me
(3:06)  2. Learnin' the Blues
(2:32)  3. (Love Is) The Tender Trap
(4:33)  4. Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry
(3:13)  5. You're Getting to Be a Habit With Me
(2:44)  6. Here's to the Losers
(3:35)  7. Indian Summer
(5:07)  8. You Go to My Head
(3:08)  9. How About You
(3:15) 10. The Best Is Yet to Come
(3:56) 11. I Only Have Eyes for You
(5:09) 12. My Funny Valentine
(2:52) 13. I'm Gonna Live 'Til I Die
(4:04) 14. All the Way
(4:27) 15. One for My Baby

Paying homage to the Chairman of the Board is never quite an easy thing to do, but vocalist Laura Dickinson takes on this challenge and delivers one of the best tributes to the crooner on her astonishing debut album One for My Baby, To Frank Sinatra with Love. Influenced by the sound early on in her life as a teenager and falling in love with Sinatra every time her parents played his music, the native Southern California songstress vowed to do her part in keeping his legacy alive. An in-demand performer in Hollywood, her voice is heard in the sound track of the hit movie Pitch Perfect, in various commercials and other Disney Channel projects. On this remarkable debut, Dickinson offers some of Sinatra's favorite songs in a fifteen-piece repertoire performed by many of Los Angeles area's jazz masters presenting the music with classic arrangements by such designers as Sammy Nestico, Gordon Goodwin, Marty Paich and Alan Steinberger. Supported by a big band, the vocalist begins this blast from the past with the Sinatra staple "Come Fly with Me" then, belting the melody with crisp powerful vocals, turns the tables on the familiar "Learnin' the Blues."

The band and singer swing on the delicious "(Love Is) the Tender Trap" providing a rousing rendition of the classic. Bringing the sound down a few notches, Dickinson shows her softer side on the delicate "Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out To Dry" and the beautiful ballad of "Indian Summer." Her impeccable vocals seem the perfect fit on the familiar "You Go to My Head," while Burton Lane's immortal "How About You" is clearly one of the memorable tunes of the disc. The music gets a bit intimate and tender with duets featuring guitarist Danny Jacob on "I Only Have Eyes for You" and electric bassist Neil Stubenhaus on the introspective "My Funny Valentine." The big band sound returns with Dickinson reaching on age old standard Sinatra loved to voice, "I'm Gonna Live Till I Die" and begins to wind down the project with two of the most associated Sinatra songs, "All The Way" and "One for My Baby" featuring pianist Vince di Mura on the piano. 

Laura Dickinson introduces herself in the best way, paying tribute to one of the best singers in the world and surely, putting a smile on Sinatra's face as he fronts that big band in the sky, for One for My Baby, To Frank Sinatra with Love, is one impressive performance by a superior vocalist in one of the finest debut recordings around.By Edward Blanco

http://www.allaboutjazz.com/one-for-my-baby-to-frank-sinatra-with-love-laura-dickinson-blujazz-productions-review-by-edward-blanco.php

Personnel: Laura Dickinson: vocals; Chuck Findley: trumpet; Wayne Bergeron: trumpet; Kye Palmer: trumpet; John Fumo: trumpet; Larry Hall: trumpet; Rob Schaer: trumpet; Dan Higgins, Brian Scanlon, Greg Huckins, Tom Luer, John Yoakum, Vince Trombetta Jr., Doug Webb, John Mitchell, Chad Smith: woodwinds; Bob McChesney: trombone; Ira Nepus: trombone; Steve Holtman: trombone; Steve Trapani: trombone; Danny Jacob: guitar; Andrew Synowiec: guitar; Alan Steinberger: piano, keyboards; Neil Stubenhaus: electric bass; Trey Henry: acoustic bass; Ray Brinker: drums; Robert F. Peterson: violin; Ken Yerke: violin; Kevin Connolly: violin; Gerardo Hilera: violin; Steve Richards: cello; Maurice Grants: cello; Randy Kerber: piano (7); Dan Lutz: bass (7); Bernie Dresel: drums (7); Vince di Mura: piano (15).

One for My Baby (To Frank Sinatra With Love)

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Doug Webb - The Message

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:12
Size: 142,7 MB
Art: Front

(4:55) 1. Caught In The Webb
(5:17) 2. Nekide
(5:28) 3. The Message
(4:49) 4. I Was Doing Alright
(4:59) 5. Frustration
(4:26) 6. Doug's Dilemma
(4:53) 7. Keeping Up With The Joneses
(6:14) 8. New Beginning
(4:36) 9. Baubles, Bangles & Beads
(8:35) 10. Where Did You Come From?
(6:54) 11. Bonnie Lass

Tenor saxophonist Doug Webb may have played more gigs than anyone, claiming to never have turned one down. He continues to be the go-to saxophonist on the Los Angeles film and television scene with over 30 years in the business, and over 500 recordings. (One publication claims that he has appeared on over one thousand records). He’s also one of the longest-tenured artists on the Posi-Tone label, retuning with The Message, his eleventh album. While most of his recordings are in a quartet configuration, here he returns to the triple saxophone lineup of his acclaimed 2015 Triple Play, albeit with a mostly different lineup which includes Greg Osby on alto, Bob Reynolds on tenor, Charles Ruggiero on drums, and returning anchor Brian Charette on organ.

While the lineup would at first glance suggest an all-out blowing session, the date is centered in a more disciplined way around the compositions, bringing more ensemble passages like a big band than a series of lengthy solos or heated exchanges. That’s not to say there isn’t plenty of spirit at play in these mostly up-tempo renderings of mostly original material. In fact, while Webb contributes just one, Reynolds offers two with Osby and Charette contributing one each, as well as Webb’s frequent collaborator, Randy Aldcroft, who doesn’t play on the album, authoring three. That leaves just three covers, the title track, Gershwin’s “I Was Doing Alright,” and “Baubles, Bangles, and Beads.” The session invariably swings into hard bop and slight hints of soul-jazz with Charette being the linchpin on bass pedals, textured and nuance comping, concise chords to push the soloists, and his own economical statements.

They open with Webb’s “Caught in the Web” with the three saxophonists making rapid, rousing runs in just a few choruses each. There’s a clear emphasis on getting in out strong entries, focused improvisations, and precise handoffs to the next. Osby’s’ mid-tempo “Nekide” has the composer blowing fiercely before while the other group members join intermittently just to encourage him to go further. Eventually, the tenors get their say, joining in for an eventual explosive climax. The melodic title track follows as the horns mix ensemble parts with energetic individual statements. Charette’s organ and Ruggiero’s pulsating drumming steer the group deftly through changes like those heard on the title track. Charette sets up the mid-tempo Gershwin swinger “I Was Doing Alright” with Webb leading first to snappy snare work from Ruggiero and Osby and Reynolds follow as does Charette with his first solo opportunity.

We next have four consecutive originals, beginning with Reynolds’ “Frustration,” which opens at a blistering pace, settling in somewhat for his tenor solo before passing the baton to Osby’s frenetic cluster of notes and finally to Webb, who like, Reynolds settles it somewhat until Charrette takes up a notch in this turn as all go out with choruses of drum rolls on the eights. “Doug’s Dilemma” is the first of the three Aldcroft compositions, and we can breathe a little as Webb and company deliver the first ballad. The sound of the tenor and organ in unison on the melody is an interesting touch, just another example of how Webb deftly navigates various tempos and brings fresh perspectives to the material. “Keeping Up with the Joneses’ is taken at a steady pace although the title may suggest a brisker one. It’s another swinger. Charrette seems anxious to move into the soul-jazz mode, taking that tact with his solo and carrying the latter half of the tune in that direction. Finally, the highly melodic “New Beginning” is another mid-tempo swinger with concise statements from each front liner and Charette.

“Baubles, Bangles & Beads” is from the 1953 musical Kismet and is most often associated with Frank Sinatra. The quintet puts plenty of juice into this rendition, a feature for Charette, with each stating the theme beautifully to the abrupt close. Reynolds’ “Where Did You Come From” weighs in as the longest rack at eight and half minutes, giving each a chance to stretch at a relaxed pace. As he consistently does, Osby bursts in with a flurry of energy that lifts up the subsequent flights of each soloist. When one threatens to go to stratospheric levels, it almost seems like Webb acts as a conductor, cutting off ideas then offering something else, without any hint of disengagement or loss of continuity. Charette has the closer, “Bonnie’s Lass,” so organ centric that it conjures slight strains of soul-jazz but blossoms into one where the horns take their customary inspired flights.

One gets the impression that Webb could play virtually anything. His career reflects it and this album echoes strains that we’ve heard in jazz for the past six decades or more. These players know how to get in and get out, holding little back, saying tons with just a few impassioned choruses on most of the tracks in this joyous session. https://glidemagazine.com/273671/veteran-saxophonist-doug-webb-goes-all-out-with-bop-soul-jazz-mission-via-the-message-album-review%EF%BF%BC/

Personnel: Doug Webb - tenor saxophone; Greg Osby - alto saxophone; Bob Reynolds - tenor saxophone; Brian Charette - organ; Charles Ruggiero - drums

The Message

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Cheryl Bentyne - Let's Misbehave: The Cole Porter Song Book

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:56
Size: 126,5 MB
Art: Front

(5:16)  1. Love For Sale
(4:08)  2. It's Alright With Me
(3:14)  3. My Heart Belongs To Daddy
(3:21)  4. I Love Paris
(3:03)  5. You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To
(4:14)  6. Night and Day
(2:17)  7. Just One of Those Things
(3:36)  8. What is this thing called Love
(3:34)  9. Begin the Beguine
(3:37) 10. All of You
(6:40) 11. I Concentrate on You
(3:53) 12. It's Delovely
(5:44) 13. Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye
(2:12) 14. Let's Misbehave

Cheryl Bentyne has maintained an active solo career in addition to her work with the Manhattan Transfer. Let's Misbehave is a fresh look at the Cole Porter songbook, featuring a baker's dozen of his best-known compositions, and showcasing a terrific band including pianist/organist Corey Allen, guitarist Larry Koonse, saxophonist/clarinetist Doug Webb, and bassist Kevin Axt (a member of Tierney Sutton's band), among others. Bentyne's sassy take of "Love for Sale" is buoyed by the piano/organ backdrop and Webb's soulful tenor. She devours the playful, hip Cuban setting of "My Heart Belongs to Daddy," while her interpretation of "I Love Paris" is pure magic. Her vocal gifts can especially be appreciated in "Begin the Beguine," with drummer Dave Tull as her sole accompanist. 

The late James Moody is a special guest on tenor sax for the breezy setting of "What Is This Thing Called Love" and the haunting, deliberate "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye," the latter of which Bentyne sings the words as if she's lived them. Let's Misbehave is clearly one Cheryl Bentyne's best recordings. ~ Ken Dryden https://www.allmusic.com/album/lets-misbehave-the-cole-porter-songbook-mw0002392520

Personnel:  Vocals – Cheryl Bentyne; Acoustic Guitar – Octavio Bailly, Tom McCauley; Bass, Tuba – Kevin Axt; Drums – Dave Tull; Guitar [Guitar Solos] – Larry Koonse; Mandola – Tom McCauley; Piano, Keyboards, Banjo – Corey Allen; Saxophone, Clarinet – Doug Webb; Tenor Saxophone – James Moody; Trumpet – Chris Tedesco

Let's Misbehave: The Cole Porter Song Book

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Debby Yeager - Psychology of Jazz

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 42:05
Size: 97,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:13) 1. Visit Me
(3:48) 2. Devil May Care
(3:16) 3. Suddenly
(2:03) 4. Hear Me Blow
(3:43) 5. Tomorrow's Another Day
(2:19) 6. L’ Étang
(3:58) 7. I Could Write a Book
(4:18) 8. In the Land of Oo Bla Dee
(6:00) 9. Without Rhyme or Reason
(3:44) 10. Relaxin' at Camarillo
(4:39) 11. Happy Endings

During the mid-1950’s I was born into a Bohemian environment. Music was like breathing. At the age of three, pop tunes were blasting from a little radio in our kitchen. And in another direction, the ocean breeze carried jazz sounds from our neighbor's hi fi record player, while someone from down the street played bag pipes every morning! Venice, California (known for its eccentric artists and beatniks) was a magical place in time. "Harry Belafonte to the left, Miles Davis to the right, Bob Dorough in back, Scotland coming through the front, and Chet Baker around the corner! I guess I breathed it all in, got a good dose of early ear training and was labelled the goofy kid!”

By the time I was five, the family took a financial tumble and relocated to the inner city of Lynwood, CA, where I first heard Gospel music. Since it came from a small church on the corner of our shabby street, I believed those glorious voices were sent from the heavens above. Ballet training came shortly after and continued well into my teens, dancing and singing my way through a disheveled childhood. At about eight or nine, every bit of my weekly allowance was spent on vinyl and a record collection began to grow like wildfire. Jazz, pop, blues, African rhythms, Broadway, R&B... and then a new sound, the Bossa Nova, which stopped me in my tracks! I discovered the voice of Wanda De Sah. It was true! Brazilian music (at that time) seduced the world. Who would have thought that thirty-seven years later, I'd be recording "Reza" on my debut disc, "Mood Swing" History played the same trick on me when I also recorded a duet with the legendary, Bob Dorough.

Around 1977, divorced as a young mother, music was still the guiding force. Vocal lessons became necessary when I auditioned as a lead vocalist and landed my first job as a singer. Formal training was essential in order to belt out rock tunes for several hours, five nights a week. A few years later with an intensive vocal study regimen and carrying a beautiful daughter in my arms, I landed a gig on a Japan tour as a lead vocalist for a Funk band. As time marched on, I was fortunate to have studied under Grammy winning composer/arranger Alan Copeland, jazz genius Horace Silver and Jim Mooney from the original Sage and Sound Recording Studio in Hollywood, and jumped into the Jazz Scene. Lucky to work with some of the most gifted musicians in LA, my performance level continued to progress, especially in regard to improvisation. Eventually I became a band leader and began to teach vocal technique and therapy while playing jazz clubs, concerts and various venues. But living the dream ended abruptly when repressed memories of childhood abuse surfaced and all hell broke loose. Suffice it to say life got in the way. Early June 1996, “Mood Swing” was released. The album was remastered and re-released in 2017, with a bonus track. Now recording and producing a variety of music, my second disc, "Precocious", was released January 2018, following up with a vocal project, "Psychology of Jazz", to be released in mid 2018.

'A portion of proceeds is donated to the education of child abuse prevention services'https://debbyyeager.com/bio/

Personnel: Debby Yeager - vocals; Stu Goldberg - piano; Tony Dumas - bass; Willie Jones III - drums; Doug Webb - tenor & soprano saxophones; Ron Stout - trumpet & flugelhorn; Ron Escheté - guitar; Melissa Hasin - cello;Yayo Morales - percussion

Psychology of Jazz

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Carl Saunders - Be Bop Big Band

Styles: Trumpet Jazz
Year: 2003
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 77:36
Size: 179,1 MB
Art: Front

(6:31)  1. Compilation
(8:20)  2. Love Dance
(3:39)  3. Emily
(8:36)  4. I'm All For You
(8:08)  5. Perceptive Hindsight
(6:38)  6. Never Always
(5:42)  7. Some Bones Of Contention
(5:19)  8. Strike Out The Band
(5:10)  9. Autumn In New York
(6:34) 10. Dearly Befuddled
(5:07) 11. An Apple For Christa
(7:48) 12. Baby Blues

I'd best take care when reviewing this album by trumpet maestro Carl Saunders, as I could run short of laudatory adjectives before the appraisal has been completed. For those who are unfamiliar with his c.v., Saunders has been enriching big-band trumpet sections for more than four decades, having cut his teeth with the renowned Stan Kenton Orchestra while still a teen-ager in 1960. The pedigree is immaculate too; Carl's mother, Gail Sherwood, once sang with Kenton, and his uncle, Bobby Sherwood, was a well-known bandleader in the '40s. While Saunders has presided over a number of bands in his hometown of Las Vegas, he has recorded only twice before as leader, and never with an ensemble that is in any way comparable to this one. Saunders has made a lot of friends in the music business, and with friends like these one is able to put together a big band so proficient and powerful that it can easily blow almost any adversary out of the water. But no orchestra is better than its charts, and here Saunders scores another coup with the inclusion of half a dozen incontestably brilliant compositions and arrangements by his long-time friend and mentor, the late Herbie Phillips, to whom the album is dedicated. To them Saunders adds three of his own ("I'm All for You," "Never Always," "Baby Blues"), Ivan Lins' "Love Dance" and the beauteous standards "Emily" (a tour de force for the superb young trombonist Andy Martin) and "Autumn in New York" (showcasing Saunders' mind-blowing trumpet). Phillips was fond of clever titles, and his tunes include "Perceptive Hindsight," "Some Bones of Contention" (the "'bones" in question belonging to Martin and Bob McChesney), "Strike Out the Band," "Dearly Befuddled" and "An Apple for Christa" (for the late teacher-turned-astronaut Christa McAuliffe). Phillips also wrote the sunny opener, "Compilation," which serves to introduce another of the band's stellar improvisers, veteran alto saxophonist Lanny Morgan, whose fiery deposition complements those by Saunders, McChesney, tenor Jerry Pinter and pianist Christian Jacob. Saunders is featured on trumpet and flugel on "Love Dance," on trumpet (with Morgan) on "I'm All for You," but he's not the only member of that section to make the spotlight his own. Ron Stout is bright and agile on "Hindsight" and "Never Always," Bobby Shew smooth and steady on "Strike Out the Band," Bob Summers quick and expressive on "Christa" before Saunders returns to close the show with a typically eloquent discourse on "Baby Blues." Other soloists of note include tenor Doug Webb ("Hindsight," "Dearly Befuddled"), alto Brian Scanlon ("Never Always") and bassist Kevin Axt ("Baby Blues"). Well, we're nearing the end of the review and have a few adjectives left, so we may as well use some of them now. Awesome. Spectacular. Breathtaking. Sublime. Be Bop Big Band is all of that and more. Simply put, one of the most memorable big-band albums in recent memory, one that should not be passed over by anyone who admires the genre. ~ Jack Bowers https://www.allaboutjazz.com/be-bop-big-band-carl-saunders-sea-breeze-jazz-review-by-jack-bowers.php

Personnel: Carl Saunders,Frank Szabo,Bobby Shew,Ron Stout,Bob Summers,Scott Englebright,trumpet; Charlie Loper, Andy Martin, Bob McChesney, trombone; Pete Brockman, Sam Cernuto, bass trombone; Lanny Morgan, Brian Scanlon, alto sax; Jerry Pinter, Doug Webb, tenor sax; Bob Efford, baritone sax; Christian Jacob, piano; Kevin Axt, bass; Santo Savino, drums.

Be Bop Big Band

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Doug Webb - Midnight

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2010
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 73:39
Size: 169,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:24)  1. Try A Little Tenderness
(6:16)  2. I'll Be Around
(6:16)  3. Fly Me To The Moon
(6:25)  4. You Go To My Head
(3:53)  5. The Boy Next Door
(8:56)  6. Crazy She Calls Me
(6:20)  7. Quasimodo
(8:47)  8. Emily
(4:02)  9. You Do Something To Me - bonus track
(8:05) 10. Ask Me Now - bonus track
(3:52) 11. There's A Small Hotel - bonus track
(5:17) 12. Trouble Is A Man - bonus track

Saxophonist Doug Webb leads a superb quartet on Midnight, creating a late-night atmosphere with a hint of nostalgia on a range of classic tunes. Webb's career stretches back for 30 years and includes work with some of the finest jazz musicians, including Bud Shanks, Horace Silver and Freddie Hubbard, as well as leading rock and pop acts including Rod Stewart. Midnight sees Webb joined by an equally talented rhythm section; the result is a true ensemble performance with every musician given the opportunity to stretch out and put their own individual stamp on the recording. Bassist Stanley Clarke and drummer Gerry Gibbs hold down the rhythmic center of the music with an inventive enthusiasm. Clarke, in particular, seems to relish his role in the traditional acoustic lineup, playing with verve. Their command of the rhythm is total, providing space and opportunity for the pianists to take on more of a lead role as well as delivering some exceptional solos. The tunes may be familiar, but the quartet makes each one sound fresh, even when playing them in what might be termed the "standard" fashion. Alec Wilder's "I'll Be Around" finds Webb playing in a style reminiscent of fellow tenor saxophonist Scott Hamilton, the solos by Webb and pianist Larry Goldings are rich and warm. By contrast, "Try a Little Tenderness," usually performed as a ballad by artists such as Otis Redding, is delivered in a swinging, up-tempo, style with a terrific tenor solo from Webb. 

Clarke's solos on "Crazy She Calls Me" and Charlie Parker's "Quasimodo" are positive, precise and affecting album highlights. He also takes the spotlight on Bart Howard's "Fly Me to the Moon." The arrangement is rather bland to that point, but Clarke's performance is an object lesson in how to play a bass solo to complement the mood of a tune. Goldings' bell-like piano chords on the closing bars of the tune are an inspired and delightful ending. "You Go To My Head" is a piano and saxophone duet, with pianist Joe Bagg playing on this tune, in a more angular and percussive contrast to Goldings elsewhere on the disc, and works exceptionally well in underpinning Webb. The third of the album's pianists, the young Sri Lankan Mahesh Balasooriya, joins the band for "The Boy Next Door," and brings yet another distinctive style to the group. Closer to Bagg's technique than Goldings, his chordal playing is economical and unselfish, and gives Gibbs the chance to create some inventive drum patterns. Webb puts his own musical identity on this album with confidence. His tone is welcoming, whether he's playing soprano, alto or tenor, and his solos are wonderfully melodic every note counts, with no need to overpower the music with unnecessary displays of complex runs or techniques. Production is exceptionally good, and the trademark Posi-Tone packaging adds to the rather nostalgic feel of the music. Midnight is a triumph of thoughtful yet romantic late night jazz. ~ Bruce Lindsay https://www.allaboutjazz.com/midnight-doug-webb-posi-tone-records-review-by-bruce-lindsay.php

Personnel: Doug Webb: saxophones; Larry Goldings: piano (2, 3, 6-8); Stanley Clarke: bass; Gerry Gibbs: drums; Joe Bagg: piano (1, 4); Mahesh Balasooriya: piano (5).

Midnight

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Doug Webb - Fast Friends

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2018
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:37
Size: 129,8 MB
Art: Front

(4:23)  1. Last Trane To Georgia
(4:57)  2. Friends Again
(4:35)  3. High Groove, Low Feedback
(5:15)  4. Surfing The Webb
(6:23)  5. Ah-Leu-Cha
(4:31)  6. Dease Things
(5:48)  7. Dream Stepper
(5:04)  8. A Night In Tunisia
(5:07)  9. Dig Doug
(4:35) 10. The Things We Did Last Summer
(4:53) 11. Nopolo

Doug Webb is a heck of a great tenorist here deft, tight, yet wonderfully soulful and open too really the completeness of an old school player on his instrument but without ever sounding old school at all! The tunes are a mix of Webb originals, standards, and bop classics and Doug handles them all with a freshness that's great quick-moving energy that's full of color and life, balanced by work from bandmates Michael Dease on trombone, Mitchel Forman on piano, Chris Colangelo on bass, and Roy McCurdy on drums. The combination of Dease's trombone and Webb's tenor is especially great  and titles include "Last Trane To Georgia", "Dease Things", "Dream Stepper", "Nopolo", "Dig Doug", "Surfing The Webb", and "High Groove Lo Feedback".  © 1996-2018, Dusty Groove, Inc. https://www.dustygroove.com/item/896220/Doug-Webb:Fast-Friends

Personnel:  Doug Webb - sax;  Michael Dease - trombone;  Mitchel Forman - piano;  Chris Colangelo - bass;  Roy McCurdy - drums

Fast Friends

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Stanley Clarke - The Message

Styles:  Guitar Jazz
Year: 2018
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:48
Size: 103,0 MB
Art: Front

(1:58)  1. And Ya Know We're Missing You
(6:59)  2. After the Cosmic Rain/Dance of the Planetary Prince
(3:32)  3. The Rugged Truth
(5:04)  4. Combat Continuum
(2:47)  5. The Message
(5:31)  6. Lost in a World
(3:46)  7. Alternative Facts
(2:25)  8. Bach Cello Suite 1 (Prelude)
(4:04)  9. The Legend of the Abbas and the Sacred Talisman
(3:44) 10. Enzo's Theme
(4:52) 11. To Be Alive

Once upon a time, he was the enfant terrible of jazz bassists, whizz-kid of Chick Corea's Return to Forever. On his latest album, The Message, at the ripe old age of 66, Stanley Clarke is very much the elder statesman, standing back on the cover pic, arms crossed, letting the youngsters grab the limelight and not giving a damn.  Open up the sleeve and there's Clarke again, besuited, sitting in a leather armchair, holding his electric bass, cool and calm, surrounded by the dudes of his band, in ripped jeans, creative hairstyles and looking as though they have attitude problems.  The opening track is a requiem for recently departed musical luminaries Al Jarreau, Tom Petty (yes, Tom Petty), Chuck Berry (yes, Chuck Berry), Larry Coryell and Darryl Brown. Clarke seemingly wants you to know he does not approve of categorization when it comes to music, man.  The main ambience of the album is spacey, courtesy, Clarke says, of L. Ron Hubbard, sci-fi writer and founder of Scientology . But there are many digressions. "Lost in a World" and "After The Cosmic Rain/Dance of the Planetary Prince," leavened with girly back-up vocals, are pure pop. More importantly, "The Message" features the leader on acoustic guitar. It's a lovely number and a relief from the spacey hokum.  But "Combat Continuum" sees Clarke switching to Orson Welles-mode as -courtesy of voice actor Steve Blum -he broadcasts news of an alien invasion. Things are looking grim for Planet Earth until Blum reveals that it was all a linguistic misunderstanding; the aliens only wanted to help us heal the planet from the ecological damage we've inflicted on it.  Meanwhile, full marks, Commander Clarke, for a masterly Bach prelude, expertly bowed. But surely we could have been spared "To Be Alive" the seemingly inevitable rap number. The message (perhaps from an older, wiser civilisation in a galaxy far, far away) is that even a great musician comes unstuck trying to be all things to all men... and women. ~ Chris Mosey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/stanley-clarke-band-the-message-stanley-clarke-mack-avenue-records-review-by-chris-mosey.php

Personnel: Stanley Clarke: guitar, bass; Beka Gochiashvili: piano; Cameron Graves, Pat Leonard, Dominique Taplin: synthesizers; Mike Mitchell: drums; Salar Nadar: tabla; Doug Webb: saxophone, flute; Chuck Findley, Ron Stout: trumpet, French horn; Dwayne Benjamin: trombone; Michael Thompson: guitar; Steve Blum, Skyeler Kole, Trevor Wesley, Sofia Sara Clarke, Chris Clarke, Doug E Fresh: vocals.

The Message

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Brian Bromberg - Thicker Than Water

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2018
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:55
Size: 154,7 MB
Art: Front

(5:35)  1. Is That the Best You Can Do?
(5:59)  2. Minneapolis, 1987
(6:32)  3. Thicker Than Water
(1:26)  4. Coupe De Ville (Intro)
(6:06)  5. Coupe De Ville
(3:27)  6. Changes
(7:46)  7. Trials and Tribulations
(2:12)  8. It's Called Life (Intro)
(5:59)  9. It's Called Life (For Mom)
(7:06) 10. Uh-Huh
(5:58) 11. Your Eyes
(6:34) 12. Land of the Rising Sun
(2:10) 13. A Familia

Brian Bromberg specializes in smooth jazz. That's music with rough edges removed. He plays it on basses, upright and electric, and on piccolo basses which are tuned to sound like guitars. It's all fiendishly clever but Bromberg remains modest. He uses a whole side of the album's cover to thank everyone, including God, "for trusting me with the gifts that you have given me." He's had his ups and downs. In 1979, when he was just 19, Bromberg toured with Stan Getz, then went on to release a series of solo albums used all over the world to demonstrate high quality stereo equipment, and was nominated for a Grammy. Then two years ago an accident resulted in him breaking his back in two places with severe trauma. He made an amazing recovery, celebrated here with what he describes as "high energy, funky, in-your-face, original music ensconced in memorable melodies, infectious grooves, and deep pocket." George Duke, Randy Brecker, Brandon Fields, and Gary Meek helped in its creation. There's actually a reflective, almost melancholy feel to many of the tracks, with Bromberg paying homage to the blue-eyed soul sounds of his youth. Most are based on funky, repetitive bass riffs, kicking off with "Is That The Best You Can Do?" and "Minneapolis 1987." The title track is looser, more jazzy.  "Coupe De Ville" builds slowly before settling on a bass riff, followed by a tenor solo from Najee, which keeps the proceedings very much on the smooth side of soul. "Trials and Tribulations" sees Bromberg in thoughtful mood but with some very fast piccolo bass work (sounding like guitar). "Uh-Huh" shows off his orchestrating skills with a cast that includes George Duke playing one of his last gigs. "Your Eyes" is a lovely, relaxed ballad and is followed by "Land Of The Rising Sun," Bromberg's take on Japan. This comes as a welcome surprise after all the bass riffing, featuring Mark Hollingsworth on bamboo flutes and June Kuramoto, from the band Hiroshima, on koto. To close, Bromberg reverts to upright bass for "A Familia," keeping it short and sweet, which is how upright bass solos should be. ~ Chris Mosey https://www.allaboutjazz.com/thicker-than-water-brian-bromberg-mack-avenue-records-review-by-chris-mosey.php

Personnel: Brian Bromberg: upright, electric and piccolo bass; Everette Harp, Najee, Doug Webb, Brandon Fields, Gary Meek, Mark Visher, Vince Trombetta, Marion Meadows: saxophone; Lee Thornburg, Randy Brecker, Willy Murillo, Tony Guererro: trumpet; Nick Lane, Jason Thor: trombone; Tom Zink, Brian Simpson, George Duke: keyboards; Gannin Arnold, Paul Jackson Jr.: guitar; June Kuramoto: koto; Franklin Richardson III: drums; Lenny Castro, Alex Acuna: percussion; Mark Hollingsworth: bamboo flutes; Zack Bromberg: loops.

Thicker Than Water

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Brian Bromberg - It's About Time: The Acoustic Project

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 57:48
Size: 132.3 MB
Styles: Bop, Fusion
Year: 1991
Art: Front

[4:58] 1. Dear John
[6:09] 2. Echoes
[4:58] 3. One For The Woofer
[5:50] 4. Waltz For Daphne
[7:12] 5. Yes Or No
[5:55] 6. If I Should Lose You
[7:47] 7. From Dust To Dessert
[5:40] 8. The Gnocchi
[9:15] 9. Buddha Belly

Drums – David Bromberg (2) (tracks: 1 to 7, 9); Piano – Mike Garson (tracks: 1 to 3, 6, 7, 9); Producer, Bass – Brian Bromberg; Saxophone – Ernie Watts (tracks: 2, 4, 5, 8, 9). Recorded live on May 21-22 1991 and mixed at: Garden Rake Studios Sherman Oaks CA.

After a few electric projects, bassist Brian Bromberg decided to record a purely acoustic project. With such sidemen as pianists Mike Garson and Mitch Forman, brother Dave Bromberg on drums, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard (on three songs), and tenors Ernie Watts (on five) and Doug Webb (on two), Bromberg holds his own with the fast company. Some of the selections on this CD are quite memorable, particularly Hubbard's "Dear John," Watts' interpretation of Wayne Shorter's "Yes or No," and the trumpeter's feature on "If I Should Lose You." Although the Nova label has since gone belly-up, this excellent CD might still be found and is certainly worth a search. ~Scott Yanow

It's About Time: The Acoustic Project mc
It's About Time: The Acoustic Project zippy

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Dave Tull - Texting And Driving

Size: 174,8 MB
Time: 75:00
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2018
Styles: Jazz Vocals
Art: Front

01. The Texting Song (Feat. Randy Waldman) (3:49)
02. Henrietta (5:01)
03. The Moment (Feat. Inga Swearingen & George Stone) (4:44)
04. Please Tell Me Your Name (Feat. Wayne Bergeron, Doug Webb & Andy Martin) (7:19)
05. I'm Forever In A Fog (Feat. Randy Porter) (6:34)
06. I Will Sing To You (Feat. Larry Koonse) (5:29)
07. The Stoplight At The End Of The Street (Feat. Randy Porter) (5:37)
08. Tell Me That I'm Wrong (3:40)
09. Watch Your Kid (Feat. Randy Porter) (6:39)
10. The Date (Feat. Cheryl Bentyne) (5:15)
11. Clapping On One And Three (Feat. Doug Webb) (5:09)
12. This Summer Night (Feat. Randy Porter) (4:43)
13. You Remind Me (Feat. Kevin Axt) (4:02)
14. I'm So Confused (Feat. Les Benedict) (3:50)
15. Fly By The Seat Of My Pants (3:00)

Wallflower. The word has zero application to describe jazz drummer, vocalist and composer/arranger/producer, Dave Tull. He's more like a Venus Fly-Trap of talent, devouring all those activities and offering a keen eye for life's surrealities. He demos all on his second CD, texting and driving. It might just be what's needed for a long, endless drive from, say, St. Louis to Gallup, New Mexico.

Tull's drum credits are formidable—with Barbra Streisand (whose legendary pickiness imprimaturs Tull's chops), performing with Chuck Mangione, et al. With texting and driving Tull offers 15 (that's a plenty!) solid, swinging selections—all engaging originals—in which he vocalizes, vocaleses, and, with an elite cadre of L.A.'s best (Cheryl Bentyne, Wayne Bergeron, Doug Webb, George Stone, et al), does all that splendidly.

The title-related tune, "The Texting Song" launches the upbeat session with Tull backed by a cooking big band. And, while s(w)inging, he weaves fine lyric, hipster vocalese, and scat. "Henrietta" is a lilting woodwind-backed boy-meets-girl-with-unique-sobriquet thing. Lush strings embrace Tull's fine romancing, a la Jackie Cain and Roy Kral) with Inga Swearingen on the ballad "The Moment." "Please Tell Me Your Name" Latins away with some tasty Lou Rawls vocal embellishments on the swing section. He gets funky on the side-winding "The Stoplight at the End of the Street," too.

Vocally, Tull is more jazzer than pure crooner—think Dave Frishberg, or, perhaps Scatman supreme, Giacomo Gates. He's got solid pipes that invite. His vocal dexterity and word-work is hand-glove with the material throughout. You can't help but really like this Cat. He puts his own tasty seasoning on his recipes of "I'm Forever in a Fog," as well as on the Antonio Carlos Jobim-esque "I Will Sing to You" and on the ballad, "Tell Me that I'm Wrong").

As a composer/lyricist, Tull homers with smarts, wry humor, and pungency throughout the session, on tunes like the faux admonishment, "Please Watch Your Kid," the tasty contrapuntal duet with Bentyne on "The Date," the soul-slick "Clapping on One and Three," and the boss bossa complete with neat Tull set work, "You Remind Me." "I'm So Confused," a flashback ballad with a tasty Les Benedict bone ride that could "reflect" an Astaire classic and the carefree stroll, "Fly By the Seat of My Pants" close the session.

texting and driving is a marvelous panorama of Tull's and his pals' talents. Go for a ride and enjoy "Tull's Merry Pranks"—but, you take the wheel; he's rather involved with his fine texting and driving. ~By Nicholas F. Mondello

Personnel: Dave Tull: drums, vocals; Randy Porter: piano; Randy Waldman: piano (1); Larry Koonse: guitar (1,4,6,15); Kevin Axt: basses; Wayne Bergeron: trumpet (1,4,7,14); Dog Webb: saxes (1,4,7,11,14,15), clarinet (8); Cheryl Bentyne: vocal (10); George Stone: piano, flugelhorn (3), trumpet (9); Les Benedict: trombone (14); Inga Swearingen: vocals (3); Peter Olstad: trumpet (1,4,); Mike Guiterrez: trumpet (1,4); Dave Becker: flute, clarinets (2), saxes (9); Andy MArtin: trombone (1,4,7); Bill Hulting: percussion (6,13); Brynn Albanese: violin (3); Peter Jandula-Clark: viola (3); Ken Hustad: cello (3).

Texting And Driving

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Doug Webb - Bright Side

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2016
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 62:44
Size: 145,1 MB
Art: Front

(6:01)  1. Society Al
(5:49)  2. Silver Lining
(3:26)  3. The Drive
(5:14)  4. Bahia
(5:20)  5. Doctor Miles
(5:26)  6. Steak Sauce
(4:40)  7. Melody For Margie
(5:51)  8. Slo Mo
(4:45)  9. One For Hank
(4:18) 10. Lunar
(5:58) 11. Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out To Dry
(5:49) 12. Funky Medina

From one perspective, Doug Webb's Bright Side is basically twelve tracks clothed in very recognizable forms a few varieties of soul-jazz, a couple of heartfelt ballads, a taut bossa nova, and an array of middling and up tempo straight- ahead swingers. Although the material is thoroughly enjoyable, it's tempting to succumb to a nagging notion that its all been done countless times before, and then simply move on to a record by yet another brave soul planting his/her flag in the jazz tradition. Fortunately, what enables Bright Side to add up to something more than a competent, professionally executed jazz record, is a slew of highlights, bright moments, and outright cool stuff that populates every track. A quintet consisting of Webb's tenor sax, trumpeter Joe Magnarelli, guitarist Ed Cherry, organist Brian Charette, and drummer Steve Fidyk (all of whom have led dates for the Posi-Tone Records label) operates like a well-oiled machine. Listening to how nicely all of the parts fit together, and the fact that you can easily discern each player's contribution, are important facets of the disc's appeal. For instance, Cherry's work on the heads and his comping behind individual soloists are delivered in subtle yet decisive ways that add rich, distinctive flavors while taking up a minimum amount of space. The same can be said about Charette, whose primary concern is holding down the band's bottom, but, with due cause, asserts himself by means of vivid chords. Fully capable of inhabiting any role the music requires, Fidyk often jolts the band with thickset snare accents, frequently plays fluid, inconspicuous jazz time, and always executes smart, stimulating fills regardless of the type of groove.

Webb's voice as an improviser possesses real character regardless of the kind of song he's playing. Check out the R & B influenced "Society Al" for the way in which he gets down by himself at the onset of the track, pausing and briefly falling silent amidst a fair amount honking and shouting. Later on during his solo over the band's uncluttered funk, Webb executes notey runs, brief, tantalizing hesitations, quick, meaningful digressions, as well as broad, weighty tones and makes all of them sound like they belong in close proximity to one another. Magnarelli's solos particularly on "Steak Sauce," "Slo Mo," and "Lunar"  contain a fair measure of brassy power mixed with a kind of subdued, floating quality that feels emotionally vulnerable. Cherry possesses a unique, understated style, doling out notes with a soulful circumspection. His all-too-brief intro to "One For Hank" is the epitome of sparse perfection, so simple that it's easy to take it for granted. The guitarist's gift for making improvised lines sound both ephemeral and sturdy is also apparent throughout the gentle "Bahia," where every single note and chord breathes easy and carries an almost imperceptible weight. In the end, Webb and company make it simple to enjoy the music instead of indulging in critical hair splitting or fretting about stylistic proclivities and influences. ~ David A.Orthmann https://www.allaboutjazz.com/bright-side-doug-webb-posi-tone-records-review-by-david-a-orthmann.php

Personnel: Doug Webb: tenor saxophone; Joe Magnarelli: trumpet; Brian Charette: organ; Ed Cherry: guitar; Steve Fidyk: drums.

Bright Side

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Doug Webb - Back East

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 60:00
Size: 138,2 MB
Art: Front

(3:34)  1. Back East
(3:58)  2. Sally's Song
(3:42)  3. Spiral
(4:43)  4. RDW Esq.
(5:05)  5. Vivo Sonhando
(4:38)  6. 254 West 82nd
(5:09)  7. Dreamsville
(6:52)  8. Stanley
(4:23)  9. Down East
(4:59) 10. Mr. Green
(3:27) 11. If Ever I Would Leave You
(4:59) 12. Snicker's Lament
(4:26) 13. Old Times

Back East, tenor saxophonist Doug Webb's second 2015 release for the Posi-Tone Records label, is not unlike a thirteen course meal in which every course is sublime, yet the portions are rather small and each dish is cleared quickly, leaving one with an intense desire for more of a particular flavor. Needless to say, there is a practical reason for the programming of short tracks on the part of independent labels attempting to release significant jazz recordings and generate enough black ink to survive. In an age when jazz radio is one route to what's left of the record buying public, a disc such as Webb's with only three cuts exceeding five minutes has a better shot at getting some airplay. Looking at it another way, perhaps we all can use a break from CDs filled with tracks exceeding ten minutes which feature players who sound as if they want to jam the sum total of their knowledge into every single solo.

As it turns out, wanting a little more of Webb isn't such a bad thing after all. Contrary to conventional wisdom, saxophone heroes don't have to be longwinded to make an impact. There's nothing artificial or contrived about Webb's relatively brief solos, and the record certainly doesn't sound like he was put in a position of making artistically unsatisfying compromises. Small doses of the leader's artistry help in finding common ground between a distanced, cerebral appreciation of his style and simply enjoying his offerings without subjecting them to excessive thought or analysis. Webb's ability to engage with diverse material and express different facets of a singular identity are the defining characteristics of Back East. The record's success also hinges on the contributions of a band including pianist Peter Zak, bassist Ben Wolfe and drummer Rudy Royston, all of whom roll with the changes while maintaining their own identities as well.

The saxophonist's work on a number of tracks packs a decidedly visceral wallop. Early on during the up-tempo "254 West 82nd" (one of his seven original compositions) Webb generates acute tension in part by repeatedly cutting phrases short and rapidly grasping new ones while constantly driving forward. A sense of an almost unbearable urgency defines "Mr. Green," from the opening head through solos by the leader and Zak. Both of these tracks benefit from the constant presence of Wolfe's steadfast bass line, as well as intense, slippery, rapidly evolving time figures and fills by Royston. Loud, pointed and resolute, "Snicker's Lament" is slow-to-medium tempo blues with a serrated edge. Invoking heartache and fury in equal measure, Webb pounds out a virtual detonation of notes in a structure wound so tightly that the music denies indifference and doesn't offer a means of escape.

While these tracks sometimes bear the influence of the late 50s, early 60s John Coltrane, throughout the record Webb draws from a larger, more flexible palette. Spurred by Zak's active, full-bodied accompaniment, which frequently hovers over and crowds the saxophonist, Webb's lively, bossa-like interpretation of the standard "If Ever I Would Leave You" achieves parity between a loosening of inhibitions and honoring the tune's romantic promises. Throughout an original waltz, "Sally's Song," Webb treads with grace and grit, his rich, middleweight tone animating the solo as much as the thoughtful manner in which he dispenses ideas. Webb frontloads a turn on Jobim's "Vivo Sonhando" with a number of airy, graceful runs before inserting, brief, fanciful impressions between pieces of the tune's melody. 

In today's overcrowded field of tenor saxophonists, most of whom possess an abundance of technique plus the desire to huff and puff till they blow the house down, Webb stands apart by virtue of the smart, logical manner in which he moves through every solo, taking heed of a crack rhythm section, and making a visceral impact that never goes over the top. Do good things come in small packages? In the case of Back East, the adage is true in spades. ~ David A.Orthmann  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/back-east-by-david-a-orthmann.php

Personnel:  Doug Webb: saxophone;  Peter Zak: piano;  Ben Wolfe: bass;  Rudy Royston: drums

Back East

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Doug Webb - Triple Play

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2015
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 59:49
Size: 137,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:47)  1. Jones
(5:12)  2. Three's A Crowd
(4:01)  3. Giant Steps
(4:59)  4. The Way Things Are
(4:43)  5. Avalon
(6:31)  6. Jazz Car
(5:01)  7. Your Place Or Mine
(5:50)  8. I Concentrate On You
(7:31)  9. Pail Blues
(4:24) 10. Alligator Boogaloo
(6:45) 11. Triple Play

As tempting as it is to simply consign a blowing session label to Triple Play, a three tenor saxophone plus rhythm date led by Doug Webb, there's ample evidence that something more disciplined and structured is afoot. For one thing, eight of the disc's eleven tracks are under six minutes in other words, there's not a lot of room for indulgence, excess, or one-upmanship of any kind. The material, including striking originals by the leader, Walt Weiskopf, and Joel Frahm, as well as assorted standards such as "Avalon," "Giant Steps," and "I Concentrate On You," is often tendered by the horns like a reed section of a big band, carefully blended and precisely executed. Randy Aldcroft, who doesn't appear on the record, is credited with the arrangements of three selections. Organist Brian Charette serves as the session's ballast, holding things in place with smart, pulsating work on the bass pedals, beautifully shaded and nuanced comping, as well as tweaking soloists with the occasional brash chord. Rudy Royston's drums and cymbals constitute the session's wild card. He offers a busy, sometimes manic commentary, moving in and out of the pocket at will, punching holes in the music with his bass and snare drums, playing stretches of comparatively straight time, as well as tapping out jumbles of strokes.

Webb, Weiskopf, and Frahm are middle-aged veterans of the struggles and triumphs of jazz performance, far too accomplished and certain of their abilities to participate in some sort of spurious tenor battle; thankfully, the record's end result is a wealth of inspired, highly focused improvisations. The three tenors each in his own manner play with a ruthless efficiency, making complete, rousing statements, usually in just a handful of choruses, on selections mostly taken at middling to up tempos. Webb possesses an exemplary ability to navigate various tempos and find fresh perspectives on material that would induce a litany of clichés in a lesser player. Undaunted by the dizzying pace of "Avalon," his ideas cohere without a trace of athleticism or strain. A three-chorus turn on Lou Donaldson's soul-jazz tune "Alligator Boogaloo" includes relaxed, neatly sculpted phrases as well as the requisite blues and R & B effusions. Throughout "I Concentrate On You," amidst Charette's and Royston's firm support, he swings in a way that evinces a momentum of its own. During the first chorus of his composition "Jones," Webb makes an art of stopping short, that is cutting off ideas before an easily anticipated conclusion, and then offering something else, without any hint of disengagement or loss of continuity.

It's easy to become preoccupied with Weiskopf's tone, a dense, vibrating, all-encompassing, blues-fused concoction, at the expense of taking notice of the ways in which he organizes ideas in the service of sustaining momentum. On his composition "Three's A Crowd" and Webb's "Triple Play," he displays a flair for brief, dramatic entrances such as slamming home one note and extending it, or making a handful of notes sound like a buzz saw, immediately following with an impassioned, metallic cry and then rapidly getting down to the business of building a cogent, emotionally compelling improvisation. The second chorus on "The Way Things Are," another one of his compositions, includes some of Weiskopf's most stunning work on the record. His lines are taut, tightly connected, and for the most part etched into the hum and rumble of Charette's bass line. When he pauses, or briefly spins out a flurry of notes that fly against the beat before snapping back to attention, the effect is like an edifice being ripped apart and immediately miraculously put back into place.

Each of Frahm's solos is something of an adventure, as he manipulates his tone, juggles contrasting rhythms, intentionally rushes or drags time, changes temperament from cool to hot, and flashes a number of ideas in relatively short periods. His "Jones" improvisation gradually comes into focus. Frahm lays back for much of the first chorus, playing a little behind the beat and leaving some room between selected phrases. The last eight bars signal a change as his tone assumes a ragged edge. The second chorus begins with the insistent pecking of a number of staccato notes, which he rapidly wrestles into a nifty phrase. Eventually his sound thickens and he integrates squeaks, burr tones, and screams. During "Your Place Or Mine" Frahm evokes jazz of the swing era for about a half chorus in terms of vocabulary and rhythmic nuisances before metamorphosing to the present day. Throughout "Triple Play" he creates tension by playing slightly ahead of the beat, and sprinkles at least three song quotes into the solo's second chorus. Not unlike Swing Shift, Webb's memorable 2012 release on Posi-Tone, Triple Play contains the present centered vibe of the last set of a club date, when the musicians are open to all possibilities, expressing themselves without inhibitions and, for an hour or so, the sounds are strong enough to keep the outside world at bay. ~ David A. Orthmann  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/triple-play-by-david-a-orthmann.php
 

Personnel: Doug Webb: tenor sax; Walt Weiskopf: tenor sax; Joel Frahm: tenor sax; Brian Charette: organ; Rudy Royston: drums.

Triple Play

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Doug Webb - Last Trane To Georgia

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2011
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 70:03
Size: 161,0 MB
Art: Front

(8:30)  1. Last Trane To Georgia
(6:42)  2. I Don't Stand A Ghost Of A Chance With You
(9:43)  3. O Amor Em Paz (Once I Loved)
(5:36)  4. Emily
(5:02)  5. Rhythm-A-Ning
(6:22)  6. You've Changed
(6:28)  7. Speak Low
(9:46)  8. Carter's Blues
(8:49)  9. I Can't Get Started
(3:01) 10. Giant Steps

Doug Webb was born in Chicago and moved to California at the age of 3. He is a graduate of Edison high school in Huntington Beach, CA and received a Bachelor of Music from Boston’s Berklee College of Music. He began playing the clarinet at the age of 8 and added saxophone and flute at 15. He lives in Los Angeles with his beautiful wife Alex and his son, Ryan. Over his career Webb has played and recorded with such notable talents as Horace Silver, Freddie Hubbard, Sal Marquez, Stanley Clarke, Quincy Jones, Mat Marucci, Kyle Eastwood, Billy Childs, Rod Stewart, Carly Simon, Art Davis, Kenny Rogers, Bonnie Raitt, Pancho Sanchez and Vikki Carr. He played with the house band for the Dennis Miller TV show, the Jimmy Cleveland orchestra and continues to tour with the Doc Severinsen big band. He has recorded music for hundreds of movies and television programs. He solos on the sound track for Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby and Jersey Boys. Webb has been featured on hundreds of recordings. ~ Bio  http://www.dougwebb.us/biography.html

Personnel:  Doug Webb – Tenor Sax; Les Portelli – Piano;  Dave Enos – Bass;  Rob Perkins – Drums.

Last Trane To Georgia

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Doug Webb - Swing Shift

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2012
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 54:46
Size: 125,8 MB
Art: Front

( 7:28)  1. Soul Eyes
(22:23)  2. Patagonia Suite
( 7:34)  3. Simone
( 6:35)  4. Where Or When
( 2:41)  5. Rizone
( 8:03)  6. Apodemia

An essential part of jazz fandom is participating in the endless debate about the pros and cons of recordings versus live performances. Despite the obstacles in the pursuit of the holy grail of recorded perfection, such as budget limitations, artistic differences between producers and performers, and the stifling effect of herding musicians into separate cubicles, records give us the opportunity to savor the essence of a performance; after repeated listening, we often make these sounds a part of ourselves. While live shows are frequently subject to encumbrances like noisy patrons and claustrophobic seating arrangements, who among us would forsake the memories of great gigs, the bragging rights that come with catching musicians on a fire-breathing night, or the chance to be a part of the excitement by applauding or offering spontaneous verbal support? Saxophonist Doug Webb's Swing Shift is a studio session that sounds and feels like a late night club set. Though some of the six-track, 55-minute record bears a resemblance to John Coltrane's early 1960s quartet and includes well trodden material by Mal Waldron, Frank Foster and Rodgers and Hart, there's nothing safe, referential or predictable about it. These recognizable points of reference are a framework for a profoundly present-centered music that like the greatest live performances possesses the power to wash away the dust of daily existence.

At the record's core is a rhythmic thrust that is at once nimble, bold and almost unremittingly aggressive. Bassist Stanley Clarke and drummer Gerry Gibbs are one of the fiercest and most focused bass and drums teams in recent memory. They generate their own brand of conventional swing, and manufacture a steely momentum outside the confines of a traditional, steady pulse. There's something primal and dead certain about Clarke's lines, whether he's walking or finding other, more skeletal ways to mark time and outline harmony. The brisk, irregular chatter of Gibbs' snare, as well as frequent bass drum and tom-tom punctuation, offers another layer of rhythmic stimulation that manages to stay on point. During "Soul Eyes," the disc's opening track, it's impossible to tell who's responsible for the music's steadily rising temperature Clarke and Gibbs, in cahoots with pianist Larry Goldings, or the leader's muscular, cogent tenor solo. Throughout the permutations of the 22-minute "Patagonia Suite," Clarke and Gibbs (along with pianist Mahesh Balasooriya) aggressively maneuver amidst Webb's tenor and soprano, going inside and outside as the suite evolves. 

When Webb and Gibbs square off on the all-too-brief "Rizone," they fashion a claustrophobic zone somewhere between ludicrously fast straight-ahead time and free form; the cumulative effect sounds like they're slapping each other silly. Webb is a smart, effusive and resourceful soloist who finds his own ways of dealing with the melodies and changes of familiar tunes, like "Soul Eyes," "Simone" and "Where Or When." His improvisations exhibit the gritty, uninhibited feel of a jazzman playing for the sake of the music alone, with no other agenda in mind. Webb juggles a variety of phrases of varying lengths, makes brief, interesting digressions, takes into account whatever Clarke and Gibbs throw at him, and never ties things together too neatly. The mastery that comes with ardently playing the horn for decades and taking the standard repertoire seriously runs through these tracks and results in music that is deep, challenging and emotionally satisfying. As Webb and his bandmates throw their whole selves into every note, playing like there's no tomorrow and caring not one whit about the consequences, you might almost hear an audience's applause and shouts of delight. Swing Shift is a terrific record.~ David A.Orthmann  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/doug-webb-swing-shift-by-david-a-orthmann.php#.U_6q32MfLP8

Personnel: Doug Webb: saxophones; Stanley Clarke: bass; Gerry Gibbs: drums; Larry Goldings: piano (1); Joe Bagg: piano (4, 6); Mahesh Balasooriya: piano (2, 3).

Swing Shift

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Doug Webb - Renovations

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2010
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 75:38
Size: 173,5 MB
Art: Front

(7:01)  1. Satin Doll
(7:25)  2. Feliscia
(7:48)  3. Moose The Mooche
(6:43)  4. Then I'll Be Tired Of You
(4:02)  5. I Can't Get Started
(6:44)  6. I've Never Been In Love Before
(8:00)  7. You've Changed
(3:57)  8. They Can't Take That Away From Me
(7:10)  9. Blusette
(8:11) 10. Slow Hot Wind
(8:30) 11. Once I Loved

April 24, 2009 was a busy day for saxophonist Doug Webb, his fellow musicians and the production team at North Hollywood's Entourage Studios. Recordings from that day have already been released on the excellent Midnight (Posi-Tone 2010): now Renovations delivers more music from the session, and very welcome it is too.  As with the previous recording Renovations features the core trio of Webb, bassist Stanley Clarke and drummer Gerry Gibbs on a collection of jazz standards, joined on each track by one of three guest pianist. Larry Goldings had equal credit on the sleeve of Midnight, appearing on five tunes, but on this album he shares the piano work more equally with Joe Bagg and Mahesh Balasooriya. The tunes, as before, are familiar overly so, perhaps but the band is so stylish and inventive that each tune seems more like an old friend from way back than a relative who's overstayed a welcome. The band is tight, melodic and richly-toned, treating these standards with respect, but also with an almost boyish enthusiasm. 

Clarke's bass playing seems especially strong and inventive, whether driving hard on Toots Thielemans' "Bluesette" or taking a more measured and gentle approach on Henry Mancini's romantic "Slow Hot Wind." Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn's "Satin Doll" is taken at a terrific pace, its usual seductiveness replaced with excitement and verve, both of which are epitomised by outstanding solos from Bagg and Clarke. Arthur Schwartz' "Then I'll Be Tired Of You" swings gently thanks to Clarke and Gibbs: Goldings' piano and Webb's alto saxophone share the lead line, both playing with a delicate grace. Frank Loesser's "I've Never Been In Love Before" is introduced by Goldings' Monk-like piano. Underpinned by Gibbs' brushed shuffle beat, it features another rich bass solo from Clarke as well as lyrical and flowing solos from Webb and Goldings. Renovations closes with "Slow Hot Wind," Webb's saxophone and Goldings' piano both lending the tune a late-night feel. It's a stylish end to the second set of tunes from that April day. ~ Bruce Lindsay  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/renovations-doug-webb-posi-tone-records-review-by-bruce-lindsay.php#.U-95cWNryKI

Personnel: Doug Webb: saxophones; Stanley Clarke: bass; Gerry Gibbs: drums; Joe Bagg: piano (1, 5, 6); Mahesh Balasooriya: piano (3, 7); Larry Goldings: piano (2, 4, 8).

Renovations

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Doug Webb - Another Scene

Styles: Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:56
Size: 142,4 MB
Art: Front

(4:04)  1. Mr. Milo
(7:01)  2. One For Art
(4:29)  3. Smatter
(5:52)  4. Southern Scene
(4:58)  5. Another Step
(5:52)  6. Double Rainbow
(5:42)  7. Eulogy
(3:47)  8. Rhythm With Rudy
(5:17)  9. What Is There To Say
(6:16) 10. Verdi Variations
(4:44) 11. Bird Song
(3:48) 12. Only Trust Your Heart

Doug Webb has released three critically acclaimed recordings on the Posi-Tone label. So who is Doug Webb? Having played and recorded with such luminaries as Stanley Clarke, Rod Stewart, and Pancho Sanchez there is no questioning Webb's versatility. Small screen work for Webb includes such smash television shows as Family Guy and Law And Order, toss in solos from big screen soundtracks that include Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby, and Grand Torino and you are looking at perhaps the premier first call tenor player on the left coast. It would be all too easy to lump Doug Webb in the category of that all too typical session player that bangs out some righteous solos and then packs his horn up only to move on to the next gig.  Another Scene is Webb's finest solo work to date with a formidable 4tet that hits all their marks and then some! Well traveled bassist Dwayne Burno works well within a rhythm section including the largely unheralded Peter Zak on piano and perhaps one of the finest half dozen drummers on the planet in Rudy Royston. 

Everyone needs a change of scene on occasion and with Another Scene recorded in the improvisational mecca we know as New York, Doug Webb embraces a hard swing and intense lyrical sense of direction that his musical co-conspirators work to a new level of hard bop. A release with six of the twelve tunes as originals puts Webb's compositional prowess front and center. The opening "Mr. Milo" and "Rhythm With Rudy" coupled with the striking Jobim cover of  "Double Rainbow" reinforce colors, textures and a deft hand at shading that push Another Scene into the rarefied air of hard bop for the next generation.  Posi-Tone clearly has a stable of perhaps the finest saxophonists working today and Webb is certainly deep in the mix. This is jazz that is real, raw, and at times on a delightful ragged edge. While others are languishing in odd meter to make a point and attempting to work from that pretentious speed is king mentality, Doug Webb keeps it real.  A stellar effort!  http://www.criticaljazz.com/2013/10/doug-webb-another-scene-posi-tone-2013.html

Personnel: Doug Webb: Tenor Saxophone; Peter Zak: Piano; Dwayne Burno: Bass; Rudy Royston: Drums.

Another Scene

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