Mark Growden - Saint Judas

Styles: Accordion And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 66:59
Size: 155,2 MB
Art: Front

(6:19)  1. Undertaker
(6:13)  2. Delilah
(3:25)  3. Saint Judas
(3:48)  4. If the Stars Could Sing
(7:04)  5. Been in the Storm So Long
(4:24)  6. I'm Your Man
(3:57)  7. Faith in my Pocket
(2:29)  8. Everybody Holds a Piece of the
(7:19)  9. Coyote
(3:00) 10. Handlebar Improvisation
(5:35) 11. Inside Every Bird
(9:21) 12. Take me to the Water
(3:57) 13. All The Pretty Little Horses

By now, Mark Growden is probably getting tired of the comparisons to Nick Cave and Tom Waits. While he certainly bears some resemblance to those artists  he shares Cave's penchant for drama and Waits' tendency to use unlikely combinations of instruments and junkyard percussion Growden is his own man. He's a stronger, more expressive singer than either Waits or Cave, and while his music is certainly rooted in blues and folk idioms, he also brings European jazz, gypsy music, and the sounds of German cabaret to the mix. The songs on Saint Judas have a cinematic feel and evolve slowly, drawing you into their dissolute world. The title track is an ominous tango that swings like mad, with Growden's accordion and Chris Grady's trumpet adding manic accents to the disjointed rhythms. "Been in the Storm to Long" is an old spiritual and Rev. Gary Davis borrowed the melody for "Death Don't Have No Mercy." Growden's take is a bluesy squall of trumpet and sax, with a wrenching, anguished vocal. "Faith in My Pocket" sounds like a traditional Appalachian lament as played by a drunken chamber group. Growden's banjo is played in and out of time, Alex Kelly's cello adds moaning accents, and Seth Ford Young's acoustic bass thumps like a broken heart. Growden and his band are expert at laying down dense, murky soundscapes with a dissonant edge that will make most listeners feel a bit unsettled. Growden's background is in jazz, new music, and theater, and in the spring of 2010, he was revamping the songs on Saint Judas for his first opera. Needless to say, this isn't a lighthearted album, but its themes of loss and limitation, dissolution and redemption, will strike a chord with those who like to walk on the dark side. ~ J. Poet https://www.allmusic.com/album/saint-judas-mw0001961573

Personnel: Mark Growden (banjo, accordion, baritone saxophone); Myles Boisen (electric guitar, lap steel guitar); Alex Kelly (cello); Chris Grady (trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn); Seth Ford Young (organ, upright bass); Jenya Chernoff (percussion).

Saint Judas

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Mark Growden & The New Orleans Heavies - In Velvet

Size: 102,8 MB
Time: 44:37
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2013
Styles: New Orleans Jazz/Soul
Art: Front

01. Drivin' Into The Sunrise (3:16)
02. The Love Of It All (5:25)
03. Jumpin' Judy (3:08)
04. Something Within Me (5:00)
05. Old Lady From Brewster (3:00)
06. Paris, Texas (6:00)
07. Sunday Afternoon (3:54)
08. You Really Got A Hold On Me (5:12)
09. Old Dutch Davis (3:41)
10. That's All Right (3:41)
11. Here's To You (2:14)

Mark Growden is a singer, multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer and visual artist. From a small mountain community in NE California, Growden has toured the the US extensively and has released several critically acclaimed albums, including Saint Judas, which was ranked in the 2010 Village Voice Critics Poll. His new CD "In Velvet" reflects his year long residency in New Orleans. His all star band, the New Orleans Heavies live up to the name pumping up Growden's original soulful music with a funky horn section lead by legendary trumpeter Wendell Brunious.

Personnel:
LaTosha Brown on voice
Wendell Brunious on trumpet
Loren Pickford on alto sax
Eric Traub on tenor sax
Larry Sieberth on piano
Myles Boisen on guitar
Peter Harris on upright bass
Charlie Kohlmeyer on drums
Mark Growden on voice and bari sax

In Velvet

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