Jordan Officer - Blue Skies

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 40:33
Size: 92.8 MB
Styles: Jazz/Blues guitar
Year: 2015
Art: Front

[3:21] 1. Blue Skies
[2:58] 2. Got You On My Mind
[2:58] 3. It's You I Love
[3:04] 4. Shot Of Rhythm And Blues
[4:28] 5. Chains Of Love
[4:08] 6. Night Flight
[2:40] 7. How Long Blues
[3:38] 8. That's For Me
[3:54] 9. Then She Kissed Me
[5:01] 10. When The Deal Goes Down
[4:18] 11. Takin' Off

Jordan Officer treads a fine line between jazz, blues, country and traditional rock’n’roll. On his latest release, Blue Skies, he opens the album with his version of Tom Waits’ title track, but eschews Waits’ solo finger-picking in favour of a two guitar backing, one comping and one adding solos and licks, adding a trad-jazz sheen that wasn’t altogether obvious on the original. And it works very nicely, adding a little joie de vivre to the already-excellent original.

As it turns out, this inventive, almost playful approach to the music inhabits the rest of a fascinating album that takes in covers by Waits, Leroy Carr, Bob Dylan, Fats Domino and Phil Spector as well as songs popularised by the likes of The Big Three Trio, Big Joe Turner, Louis Armstrong and Arthur Alexander. Officer himself contributes two instrumentals, the enticingly discordant “Night Flight” and the closing track, “Takin’ Off”, which features the top-notch keyboard talents of Augie Meyers, formerly with the Sir Douglas Quintet and the Texas Tornados. ~Rhys Williams

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Susie Arioli Band - That's For Me

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:50
Size: 102.7 MB
Styles: Jazz vocals, Easy Listening
Year: 2004
Art: Front

[2:57] 1. On The Sentimental Side
[2:36] 2. The Way You Look Tonight
[2:32] 3. If You Ever Should Leave
[3:40] 4. You Don't Know Me
[2:47] 5. Tess' Torch Song
[2:14] 6. Why Do I
[3:00] 7. Mother Earth
[3:26] 8. That's For Me
[3:15] 9. It's All Your Fault
[3:34] 10. Victor Stomp
[3:24] 11. Easy Living
[3:25] 12. Nuages
[3:08] 13. Hot Head
[2:23] 14. It's A Good Day
[2:24] 15. Now I Know

That's for Me is the Susie Arioli Band's third release for Justin Time and it makes a specialty of a 1930s style of swing. With influences and a knowledge of repertoire from Leadbelly to Stuff Smith, from Tammy Wynette to Ella Fitzgerald, listeners seeking an array of rarely heard songs are sure to enjoy this great collection of music. Arioli's soft, sincere, charming voice is the perfect foil for Jordan Officer's acoustic and electric jazz guitar stylings which provide a hint of folk, light swing and country music flavors. The Canadian chanteuse has a very interesting voice that is reminiscent of Peggy Lee, Patsy Cline and Tammy Wynette all rolled into one (check out "It's a Good Day," "Tess' Torch Sing" and "Why Do I.") However, Susie Arioli revitalizes and adds to these Great American Songbook standards and makes this music her own. Her treatment of "Mother Earth" as a soft blues that tells it like it is after your time is over here on earth shows her musical depth and knowledge of repertoire outside of her native Canada and well-known swing style. Rodgers & Hammerstein's obscure gem "That's for Me" features a memorable solo from Jordan Officer on acoustic guitar. The lyrics are very sweet and Arioli manages to seduce her listeners with a wispy interpretation of being attracted to someone she notices in the park! Overall, Arioli's choice to re-interpret these obscure songs, and to restyle them in such an appealing manner is quite an accomplishment. Vintage or not, on That's for Me, they speak to a different generation and provide a wonderful vehicle for Susie Arioli's talents as a vocalist and drummer. ~Paula Edelstein

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Susie Arioli Swing Band - It's Wonderful

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 49:06
Size: 112.4 MB
Styles: Standards, Vocal jazz
Year: 2001
Art: Front

[2:25] 1. If Dreams Come True
[3:15] 2. He's Funny That Way
[3:25] 3. What Is This Thing Called Love
[2:49] 4. Lover Come Back To Me
[4:06] 5. It's Wonderful
[5:59] 6. I Cover The Waterfront
[3:48] 7. Reuben's Blues
[2:29] 8. The Big Hurt
[2:33] 9. Trying To Get To You
[3:34] 10. No Smoke Blues
[5:14] 11. I Got It Bad
[2:53] 12. Sailboat In The Moonlight
[3:15] 13. Instrumental #2
[3:14] 14. Blue Prelude

Double Bass [String Bass] – Shane McKenzie, Stephen Barry; Guitar – Jordan Officer, Michael Browne; Trumpet – Aron Doyle; Vocals, Snare – Susie Arioli. Recorded, Mixed & Edited at Le Studio, Morin Heights & Good Noise Studios, Arundel, OC.

Even though this is the first album of her own, Susie Arioli is no newcomer to the vocal game. She has been performing in and around Montreal for several years, and the Susie Arioli Swing Band has also performed at the JVC Jazz Festival in New York. This maiden effort is a happy marriage of classic 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s standards with some non-jazz material. On the standards, Arioli follows firmly in the footsteps of such singers as Billie Holiday, Maxine Sullivan, Peggy Lee, and June Christy. Like them, no matter what she sings, Arioli conveys the lyrics of a song with sensitivity, understanding, and emotion -- just what one might expect to hear from a top-flight vocal artist who knows what she's about.

Arioli's interpretation of "I Cover the Waterfront" is done with a combination of mournful loneliness and hopeful anticipation. In his only appearance, Aaron Doyle plays trumpet figures underneath Arioli to help her set the mood. The album's coda, "Blue Prelude," is reminiscent of Nancy Wilson's 1963 recording. Arioli's version matches Wilson's for the down-in-the-dumps feeling, which comes from the "pain in my soul" caused by terminal heartbreak. Arioli also puts her accomplished snare drum playing on display during the session. On the non-classic standard side, "The Big Hurt" and "It's Wonderful" sound like 1950s pop imports and something that Joni James would be comfortable singing. "Trying to Get to You" by rockabilly star Rose Marie McCoy shows a down-to-earth side of Arioli. Snippets of country swing sneak in on her renditions of "Lover Come Back to Me" and "If Dreams Come True," and it works.

The Susie Arioli Swing Band is augmented by guest guitarist Jordan Officer, who makes immense contributions to the proceedings. He plays an old-style Harmony guitar that gives off a deep, resonant sound, much like a bass pitched slightly higher than usual; the guitar sets off Arioli's voice very nicely. Officer's soloing and Arioli's vocalizing are made more eloquent by the strong presence of Michael Browne's outstanding rhythm guitar. This is a very entertaining CD and hopefully a forerunner of many others to follow. Recommended. ~Dave Nathan

It's Wonderful

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