Ralph Reichert, Jerry Tilitz Quintet - Back To Back

Styles: Saxophone And Trombone Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 55:49
Size: 128,1 MB
Art: Front

(5:37)  1. Nik's Got The Knack
(5:36)  2. Crazy Rhythm
(6:17)  3. Lush Life
(7:11)  4. Bajan Bacchanel
(5:25)  5. Blues In The Closet
(6:53)  6. Yesterdays
(5:37)  7. Alfie
(6:49)  8. Red, White And The Blues
(6:19)  9. Nik's Got The Knack (alternate take)

The Jazz trombone of the currently Hamburg based New Yorker Jerry Tilitz and local high profile saxophonist Ralph Reichert lead a swinging Nagel Heyer date that highlights the warmth and excitement of straight ahead jazz.

"Tilitz is an imaginative player whose improvisations are filled with warmth and good humor." ~ Joseph Taylor, SoundStage Magazine

Jerry Tilitz is an american trombonist,vocalist and composer from New York City. In the course of his career Mr. Tilitz has performed and recorded with many exceptional artists including Gerry Mulligan, Horace Parlan, Hank Jones, Roy Eldridge, Benny Golson, Herb Geller, Tommy Flanagan, Al Foster, Tete Montoliu, Danny Moss, Randy Sandke, Tom Harrell, Benny Bailey, Bill Mays, Randy Brecker and others. After studying with Jazz luminaries Lennie Tristano and the influencial trombonist Curtis Fuller, Jerry began his professional career with Billy Taylor's Jazzmobile Big Band program. 

In addition to becoming involved in New York City's vibrant club and studio scene he taught jazz theory and analysis at Queensboro College and received a grant for composition and performance from the prestigious U.S. National Endowment for the Arts. More recently, Mr.Tilitz has hosted his own radio program in Germany called An American In Hamburg, played in musical productions including Cats, Chorus Line, 42nd Street and Ain’t Misbehavin’ and written for publications such as the well regarded Jazz Journal International. He has produced several recordings for his own label Both Feet Records including The Dance Of The Living Room Sofas (BF 1002-2) featuring Don Braden, Lonnie Plaxico, Cecil Brooks III and Michael Cochrane and Jerry Tilitz/The New York Tapes (BF 1001-2), a CD sampler of his New York City period which includes his bands featuring Tom Harrell, Arnie Lawrence, Jim McNeely, Bob Moses, Harold Danko, Jerome Harris, Gary Smulyan and Billy Hart. Also available is a recording released on the german label Bellaphon, Tales Of Two Cities (CDLR 45035) with Horace Parlan, Adam Nussbaum, Ray Drummond, and Bill Mays and the new CD Back To Back, the latest addition to his discography on the Nagel Heyer label. These days Jerry appears as a guest soloist or with his trio and quartet and tries to find time to write for his 4 trombone latin group Raging Bones and The Hamburg Composers’ Orchestra. Jerry Tilitz ist ein amerikanischer Posaunist und Sänger aus New York City. Er spielte mit Gerry Mulligan, Horace Parlan, Randy Brecker, Roy Eldridge mit Curtis Fuller und Lennie Tristano. Er lehrte Jazz in den U.S.A. und erhielt dafür die Auszeichnung „U.S. National Endownment For The Arts“. https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/tilitzreichert

Personnel:  Jerry Tilitz - trombone, vocals;  Ralph Reichert - tenor saxophone; Enno Dugnus - piano;  Joachim Gerth - bass;  Björn Lücker - drums

Back To Back

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Ralph Reichert Quartet With Randy Sandke - Reflections

Styles: Trumpet And Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 77:07
Size: 176,9 MB
Art: Front

( 9:22)  1. Just In Time
( 8:03)  2. My Ideal
( 9:42)  3. Reflections
( 9:08)  4. Darn That Dream
(10:17)  5. Bernie's Tune
( 9:25)  6. Nancy With The Laughing Face
( 9:49)  7. It Might As Well Be Spring
(11:17)  8. What Is This Thing Called Love

Mainstream albums that continue to interpret and reinterpret the Great American Songbook have to be assessed with a different set of criteria than more overtly contemporary forms of the idiom. They rarely break any new ground, and the players, while often highly capable, or not necessarily what one would call adventurous. Still, there's a lot to be said for a well-organized, well-executed set of mainstream jazz, and tenor saxophonist Ralph Reichert and his quartet, on the live set Reflections , clearly have it. Energetic and swinging at times, tender and heartfelt at others, Reichert and the group are filled with a positive energy and the songs literally jump out of the speakers. This may not be trend-setting music, but it is clearly compelling stuff, and makes as good an argument as any that the mainstream can still be vibrant and exciting. 

Guest trumpeter Randy Sandke has an interesting history that saw him turn down an opportunity to play with Janis Joplin because of a hernia in his throat, a condition which, while ultimately cured, caused him to eschew the trumpet and work as a guitarist for most of the '70s. He returned to the trumpet again in the '80s, working with artists including Vince Giardino, Bob Wilbur and, most notably, Benny Goodman's last band in the mid-'80s, which established him as a fine player in the swing tradition. He possesses a sharp tone, and a direct and economical style. Drummer Wolff Reichert demonstrates a sense of time, conciseness and flair that comes from one of his main influences, Steve Gadd. Pianist Buggy Braune is a comfortable accompanist, and a soloist who brings together traditions as diverse as Oscar Peterson and Bill Evans. Bassist Andreas Henze may have a background in classical music, but here he swings hard, contributing a number of well thought-out solos. And Ralph Reichert is a melodic player with a sense of the dramatic that comes from the Joe Lovano school; this comes as no surprise as he also works with guitarist Hendrik Meyer, exploring and expanding on the work done by Lovano with John Scofield. 

The set list may be conventional, with the band working their way through well-heeled tunes including "Darn That Dream," "It Might As Well Be Spring" and "What Is This Thing Called Love," and giving a more straightforward and less idiosyncratic reading of Monk's "Reflections," but the set is wonderfully paced, generating energy at just the right time, while knowing exactly when to slow down the pace and let the audience breathe. Without a doubt the Birdland Jazzclub in Hamburg must have been an extremely fun place to be on March 8, 2002, when this set was recorded. What Reflections lacks in creative originality it more than makes up for in sheer engagement, playfulness and fun. And in this case that's absolutely more than enough. ~ John Kelman  http://www.allaboutjazz.com/reflections-ralph-reichert-nagel-heyer-records-review-by-john-kelman.php#.VBXOzBawTP8
 

Personnel: Ralph Reichert (tenor saxophone), Buggy Braune (piano), Andreas Henze (bass), Wolff Reichert (drums), With special guest Randy Sandke (trumpet)

Reflections

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