Dena Derose - We Won't Forget You... An Homage To Shirley Horn

Size: 117,6 MB

Time: 50:27
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2014
Styles: Jazz Vocals
Art: Front

01. You Stepped Out Of A Dream (5:31)
02. Sunday In New York (3:12)
03. Quietly There (6:24)
04. A Time For Love (5:36)
05. Don't Be On The Outside (4:53)
06. You Won't Forget Me (4:35)
07. I Just Found Out About Love (3:23)
08. Big City (4:37)
09. Your're Nearer (4:31)
10. Wild Is Love (2:50)
11. The Great City (4:50)

It's no small thing to be called "The most creative and compelling singer-pianist since Shirley Horn," but that's how Joel Siegel, Washington City Paper, described Dena DeRose. It is with great pleasure that HighNote Records welcomes Dena to their roster with this debut recording. Joining her usual trio of Martin Wind, bass and Matt Wilson, drums, are trumpeter Jeremy Pelt, tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander and baritone saxophonist Gary Smulyan. Boasting an imaginative set list and varied use of instrumental color, Dena DeRose's first HighNote CD is jazz singing of the highest order.

We Won't Forget You... An Homage To Shirley Horn

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Diego Figueiredo - Tempos Bons

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:02
Size: 153.4 MB
Styles: Guitar jazz, Latin rhythms
Year: 2012
Art: Front

[ 5:07] 1. Na Baixa Do Sapateiro
[ 2:30] 2. El Colibri
[ 4:25] 3. Spain
[ 4:51] 4. Que Reste-T-Il
[10:42] 5. Retratos Do Nordeste
[ 3:33] 6. Carinhoso
[ 2:57] 7. Old Devil Moon
[ 5:43] 8. Granada
[ 4:19] 9. Wave
[ 6:16] 10. Lamentos Do Morro
[ 5:02] 11. Dindi
[ 4:06] 12. Round Midnight
[ 1:58] 13. Las Abejas
[ 5:27] 14. Stella By Starlight

At only 29, Brazilian Diego Figueiredo is already considered one of the world’s great guitarists. His story is that of the child prodigy who was first photographed with a guitar at the age of four. At six he received a mandolin, and he went through a succession of various other instruments, before settling down with the guitar at twelve. Soon he was performing locally, and his improvisational and har- monic talent was apparent even at this early stage. At fifteen he was playing in small concert halls and nightclubs either alone or with others. While performing with various Brazilian bands, he was also studying classical guitar and popular Brazilian music and jazz at the conservatory in his hometown Franka and in Ribeirão Preto and Tatuí. He won his first prize at a contest in South America and received a grant to study at Berklee College of Music. In 2001 Diego Figueiredo received the Visa Award for his performance of “instrumental Brazilian popular music”; and the shower of honors on this modest, but giant talent has never ceased – the first prize at Montreux Jazz Competition is but one example.

These days Diego is accompanist to vocalist and composer Belchior on tours of Brazil and abroad. He has played with Hermeto Pascoal, Sebastião Tapajos, Osvaldo Montenegro, Jair Rodrigues, Toquinho Horta, Tunai, Paulinho da Viola, Moraes Moreira, Fafa de Belém, Amelinha, Zeca Baleiro and other prominent Brazilian musicians. But he is also known outside South America, and he tours most of the world as a soloist. He is famous for his technique as well as his sensitive interpretations of South American, classical and jazz music. He is often compared with Baden Powell, Helio Delmiro and Joe Pass. After hearing his set at the Montreux Jazz Festival, George Benson exclaimed, “Diego is the best guitarist I’ve ever heard!” Pat Metheny was equally impressed, and spoke of magic moments. Next time he visits Brazil, he says he will insist on playing with Diego. Diego has released several albums, including DADAIÔ, recorded in Copenhagen with bassist Rodolfo Stroeter and legendary drum- mer and percussionist Robertinho Silva, and released on Stunt Records. The Danish critic Henrik Palle gave the CD six out of six possible stars, calling it “a lovely dream of a record... enticing and enchantingly show-offish”, tying up his review with the following statement: “contagious joy in portions large enough to make it damn hard to keep a winter depression alive”. His newspaper, Politiken, placed DADAIÔ among the year’s ten best albums.

With TEMPOS BONS, Stunt Records continues its collaboration with Diego Figueiredo. The compilation includes solo guitar selections recorded in Brazil, a trio recording, and three songs with the charming French vocalist Cyrille Aimée, with whom Diego has celebrated long, triumphant American tours. The repertoire on this compilation is varied: the Brazilian mainstay is spiced with a few jazz standards and a wonderful French song, originally made famous by Charles Trenet. Enjoy the good times – TEMPOS BONS – with Diego. Sensitive and lyrical musical postcards from genuine and imagined landscapes, where melody and rhythm go hand in hand with youthful creative prowess in joyous and sensual music.

Tempos Bons

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HAPPY WEEK AHEAD

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Ronny Whyte - Whyte Witchcraft

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2019
Time: 60:43
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 140,2 MB
Art: Front

(2:24) 1. Too Good to Talk About
(4:57) 2. It Amazes Me
(4:01) 3. The Best is yet to Come
(3:13) 4. I'm Watching You
(3:55) 5. Sometime When You're Lonely
(4:37) 6. Witchcraft
(3:22) 7. Sweet Talk
(3:37) 8. On Second Thought
(4:16) 9. Why Try to Change Me Now
(3:36) 10. I've Got Your Number
(3:14) 11. I'm in Love Again
(3:36) 12. Rules of the Road
(3:16) 13. I Walk a Little Faster
(3:51) 14. You Fascinate Me So
(2:21) 15. Don't Ask a Lady
(4:04) 16. Here I Go Again
(2:19) 17. All Right I Love You

Cy Coleman (1929-2004), the jazz pianist turned theater composer, is best remembered for his string of golden Broadway scores—Little Me, Wildcat, Sweet Charity, Seesaw, I Love My Wife. But to cabaret-goers of the 1950s, Coleman was a nightclub mainstay whose songs formed a smart soundtrack to big-city life. His music, with its syncopated, conversational bounce, has a distinctly New York pulse; the lyrics of his key collaborators, Joseph McCarthy, Jr., Carolyn Leigh, and Dorothy Fields, are dazzlingly nimble and worldly-wise. In “You Fascinate Me So,” Leigh’s words have a swing all their own: “I feel like Christopher Columbus when I’m near enough to contemplate/The sweet geography descending from your eyebrow to your toe.” 

It’s a lost language of songwriting, and most of its great interpreters—Blossom Dearie, Sylvia Syms, Mabel Mercer, Bobby Short—are gone. But their urbanity and musicianship live on in Ronny Whyte, a sixty-year member of a grand tradition of New York singer-pianists. Suave but eternally boyish, with jazz chops and a breezy air, Whyte was Coleman’s friend; the composer gave him copies of many of his songs. From these Whyte has assembled his latest album, which focuses mainly on Coleman’s partnership with Leigh. 

Thousands of nights in saloons haven’t dulled the satin sheen of Whyte’s voice. On half the tracks, Cecilia Coleman (no relation), the Los Angeles-based bandleader and pianist, backs Whyte with a sixteen-piece orchestra that is strong on instrumental color but never competitive. Elsewhere Whyte performs in a trio that includes accordionist Eddie Monteiro. Singing the best of early Cy—“Why Try to Change Me Now?,” “Witchcraft,” “I Walk a Little Faster,” “The Rules of the Road”—Whyte captures the wit and the lilt in every phrase.

Whyte Witchcraft

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Chet Baker & Bud Shank - Theme Music From "The James Dean Story"

Styles: Cool Jazz
Year: 2016
Time: 42:17
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 98,1 MB
Art: Front

(2:53) 1. Jimmy's Theme
(4:45) 2. The Search
(3:38) 3. Lost Love
(3:35) 4. People
(3:35) 5. The Movie Star
(4:33) 6. Fairmont, Indiana
(3:43) 7. Rebel at Work
(4:11) 8. Let Me Be Loved
(3:58) 9. Success and Then What?
(5:05) 10. Hollywood
(2:15) 11. Let Me Be Loved (Vocal Version)

Theme Music from the James Dean Story

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Presented here for the first time on CD in full Stereo sound, with detailed recording dates and complete, accurate personnel data, the splendidly varied contributions of soloists and arrangers give the album the jazz qualities that help to make it such a satisfying experience.

The famous television host, actor and jazz pianist, Steve Allen, once said that Chet Baker was, because of his general air, looks and attitude, “the James Dean of Jazz.” Since Chet also shared with Dean a similar reputation as a rebel, it seems fitting that he was chosen as co-leader on this album with Bud Shank. Originally written by Leith Stevens for “The James Dean Story” the music for the film contains that background quality, meant to amplify visual action, which gives it a cohesiveness that, in lesser hands, has the potential to make one track sound a great deal like another. However, the Johnny Mandel and Bill Holman orchestrations here simultaneously reflect the James Dean spirit, while providing a rich instrumental framework for the solo work of Baker and Shank. And if Chet plays with consistent force and lyrical warmth throughout, and sings with emotional involvement on the James Dean theme, Let Me Be Loved, it is Bud who steals the show overall with the authoritative vitality and soulfulness of his alto and flute work.

Music composed by Leith Stevens, except “Let Me Be Loved” by Jay Livingston-Ray Evans

Tracks #1-10, originally issued on the Mono 12” album

“The James Dean Story” (World Pacific P-2005)

Tracks #11 from the 7” single World Pacific X-641

Tracks #1,2,4,5,6,8,9 & 10 issued in Stereo on the

12” album “Swinging Soundtrack” (Kimberly 11016)

Personnel includes:

Chet Baker, trumpet & vocals; Ray Linn, Don Fagerquist, trumpets; Milt Bernhart, trombone; Bud Shank, Charlie Mariano, Bill Holman, Richie Kamuca, Herbie Steward, Pepper Adams, reeds & woodwinds; Claude Williamson, piano; Monty Budwig, bass; Mel Lewis, drums; Mike Pacheco, bongos.

All sessions recorded at Radio Recorders, in Hollywood, August 1957

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Charlie Mariano: Plays / Plays Alto and Tenor

Charlie Mariano Plays

Styles: Easy Listening, Cool Jazz, Contemporary Jazz
Year: 2005
Time: 63:49
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 148,0 MB
Art: Front

(4:11) 1. S Nice
(4:07) 2. Clho - E
(4:41) 3. Three Little Words
(3:25) 4. Green Walls
(5:10) 5. My Melancholy Baby
(2:39) 6. You Go to My Head
(3:18) 7. Slugger
(3:09) 8. There Will Never Be Another You
(3:15) 9. Sunday
(3:21) 10. Sapphire
(3:29) 11. Don't Get Around Much More
(3:52) 12. Strike Up the Band
(3:40) 13. Just Max
(2:52) 14. Sweet Georgia Brown
(3:16) 15. I'll Never Smile Again
(3:25) 16. T. K.
(2:25) 17. Rubberneck
(3:26) 18. Jeppers Creepers

Altoist Charlie Mariano, active since the late Forties playing around his native Boston, became much better known through his stay at Stan Kenton's orchestra (1953-1955). He managed to assert his own individual quality and his own musical importance while keeping a deep-seated devotion to Charlie Parker. On these early sides, recorded in Los Angeles, Mariano blows with a great deal of emotion, authority, bite and consistency, showing why he became one of the most demanded studio sidemen in the West Coast (1953-1957) as well as one of the most important altoists in modern jazz since Charlie Parker.

Charlie Mariano Plays

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Charlie Mariano Plays Alto and Tenor

Styles: Bop
Year: 2005
Time: 54:01
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 125,0 MB
Art: Front

(5:32) 1. Johnny One Note
(4:00) 2. The Very Thought of You
(3:11) 3. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes
(5:24) 4. King for a Day
(4:21) 5. Darn That Dream
(4:33) 6. Floormat
(6:43) 7. Blues
(4:12) 8. I Heard You Cried Last Night
(3:29) 9. Manteca
(4:35) 10. It's You or No One
(2:56) 11. I Should Care
(5:00) 12. Give a Little Whistle

On these 1955 quartet sessions, whether on alto or tenor saxophone, we hear Charlie Mariano play some of the strongest and most impressive sides he had recorded until then. He was backed by a solid rhythm section, featuring the stabbing and leanly imaginative pianist John Williams, the striding beat of Max Bennett, and the always tasteful drumming of Mel Lewis. All the tracks are marked by a pulse and a flow and deftness which demand satisfactory attention.

Charlie Mariano Plays Alto and Tenor

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Warren Wolf - Wolfgang

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2013
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:09
Size: 141,0 MB
Art: Front

(7:55)  1. Sunrise
(7:18)  2. Frankie and Johnny
(7:25)  3. Grand Central
(6:05)  4. Wolfgang
(5:34)  5. Annoyance
(5:34)  6. Lake Nerraw Flow
(6:07)  7. Things Were Done Yesterday
(6:27)  8. Setembro
(8:41)  9. Variations sur "Le carnaval de Venise"

In a succession of vibraphonists that began with Lionel Hampton and Red Norvo, Wolf has come into his own. His new album finds him with one rhythm section of veterans pianist Benny Green, bassist Christian McBride and drummer Lewis Nash and another of young musicians from his own quartet. He and the increasingly impressive pianist Aaron Diehl play duets on two pieces. With Wolf on marimba, the two defy categories in variations on the 19th century trumpet chops buster “The Carnival of Venice.” In “Wolfgang” and “Grand Central” (unrelated to the John Coltrane piece of that name) Wolf the composer writes straightforward melodic invention that is also a hallmark of his soloing. His improvisation on “Frankie and Johnny” is a bluesy joy. ~ Doug Ramsey  http://www.artsjournal.com/rifftides/2013/09/cd-warren-wolf.html

Wolfgang

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Ramsey Lewis - Them Changes

Styles: Piano Jazz
Year: 1970
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 44:59
Size: 104,9 MB
Art: Front

(6:43)  1. Them Changes
(6:30)  2. Drown In My Own Tears
(8:18)  3. Oh Happy Day
(8:00)  4. Do Whatever Sets You Free
(5:12)  5. Something
(6:19)  6. See The End From The Beginning, Look Afar
(3:54)  7. The Unsilent Minority

Pianist and composer Ramsey Lewis has been a major figure in contemporary jazz since the late 1950s, playing music with a warm, open personality that's allowed him to cross over to the pop and R&B charts. Lewis was born in Chicago, Illinois on May 27, 1935, and was introduced to music by his father, who directed the choir at a local church and enjoyed the music of Duke Ellington and Art Tatum. Lewis began studying the piano when he was four years old, and was soon accompanying the choir at Sunday services. At the age of 15, he joined a jazz combo called the Cleffs, who played at parties and dances. Lewis was interested in a leaner, more bebop-oriented sound, and when the group splintered after several members joined the military, he formed the Ramsey Lewis Trio with two other former Cleffs, bassist Eldee Young, and percussionist Redd Holt. The trio became a fixture on the Chicago jazz scene, and they were signed to a deal with Chess Records, releasing their first album, Ramsey Lewis & His Gentlemen of Jazz, in 1956. Lewis and his trio continued to record and tour steadily over the years, building a sizable audience among jazz fans, but their career received a serious boost in 1965, when they recorded a swinging version of Dobie Gray's hit "The In Crowd" at a gig in Washington, D.C.

Chess released the track as a single, and it became a sizable pop hit, earning Lewis his first gold record, as well as a Grammy award for Best Jazz Performance. As Lewis' star rose, he returned to the pop charts in 1966 with versions of "Hang on Sloopy" and "Wade in the Water." Meanwhile, Young and Holt left Lewis' trio to form their own group, Young-Holt Unlimited, and the pianist hired a new rhythm section, Cleveland Eaton on bass and Maurice White on drums. In 1970, White resigned to form his own group, and Morris Jennings signed on as the trio's new percussionist. Lewis continued to record for Chess until 1972, when he moved to Columbia Records, and as his music developed a more contemporary groove, White's group, Earth, Wind & Fire (also on Columbia), was beginning to enjoy considerable success on the R&B charts. White produced Lewis' 1974 album Sun Goddess, in which he experimented with electronic keyboards for the first time, and several members of EWF played on the sessions; it became a major crossover hit and took Lewis to the upper ranks of the smooth jazz/fusion scene. Lewis would continue to record R&B-influenced material through the '70s, but continued to explore his roots in more traditional jazz sounds as well as Latin rhythms. In 1983, he went into the studio with Eldee Young and Redd Holt again for the album Reunion; in 1984, he collaborated with Nancy Wilson on The Two of Us; in 1988, he recorded with London's Philharmonia Orchestra for the album A Classic Encounter, and in 1989, Lewis and Dr. Billy Taylor cut a set of piano duets, We Meet Again.

In 1992, Lewis signed with the successful jazz label GRP Records, and in 1995, he launched the side project Urban Knights, in which he collaborated with a handful of successful crossover jazz stars, including Grover Washington, Jr., Earl Klugh, and Dave Koz. In 1997, Lewis added disc jockey to his résumé, hosting a popular show on Chicago's WNUA-FM that ran until 2009; the show went into syndication in 2006 under the name Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis, and is still on the air. In 2005, Lewis looked back on his roots in gospel music with the album With One Voice, which earned him the Stellar Gospel Music Award for Best Gospel Instrumental Album. In 2007, he was commissioned to write a jazz ballet for the Joffrey Ballet Company, and "To Know Her …" debuted at Highland Park, Illinois' Ravina Music Festival, where Lewis is artistic director of the festival's jazz series, and helped found their Jazz Mentor Program. Lewis has also written several pieces for string ensemble and orchestra that have premiered at Ravina; highlights were featured on the 2009 album Songs from the Heart: Ramsey Plays Ramsey, his first release from Concord Records. In addition to his work as a performer, composer, educator, and disc jockey, Lewis has received five honorary doctorate degrees, won the National Endowment for the Arts' Jazz Master Award in 2007, and is one of the few noted jazz artists to carry the Olympic Torch, having briefly escorted the flame as it passed through Chicago en route to the 2002 Winter Games. Bio ~ Mark Deming  http://www.allmusic.com/artist/ramsey-lewis-mn0000334770/biography

Personnel:  Ramsey Lewis – piano, el. piano (Fender Rhodes),Phil Upchurch – el. guitar (Fender),Cleveland Eaton – el. bass (Fender), Morris Jennings - drums

Them Changes

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Deborah Silver - Glitter & Grits

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2020
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 43:24
Size: 104,5 MB
Art: Front

(3:26) 1. I got rhythm
(3:27) 2. That old black magic
(4:40) 3. I'm gonna sit right down and write myself a letter
(3:44) 4. After you've gone
(3:06) 5. Ballin' the jack
(2:34) 6. Almost like being in love
(3:19) 7. Get happy
(2:57) 8. Ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
(3:44) 9. Embraceable you
(3:18) 10. Bill Bailey, won't you please come home
(2:44) 11. Don't get around much anymore
(3:17) 12. Fly me to the moon
(3:02) 13. Deep in the heart of Texas

I love a good surprise (except for being scared, a favorite pastime of my spouse) and the new Deborah Silver album GLITTER AND GRITS is one of the most pleasant and unexpected of surprises I've had in awhile. I guess the title should have given it away, but I truly wasn't prepared for the rock-a-billy vibe to the CD when you think about standards and Silver, you have your mind pretty much set on something a little more traditional. This is traditional alright traditional Texas swing, man! Oh my GOSH, is it refreshing! From Deborah's opening Gershwin tune, you'll have your fingers snapping and your toes tapping, and if you're not dancing within the first 90 seconds, then you're missing out on something that can only be described as pure fun. And, kids, I WAS dancing and I was at the gym, so put that picture in your head, why don't you? Do yourself the favor of allowing yourself to dance... even if you're at the gym.

Glitter and Grits is a totally appropriate title for the CD because Deborah Silver is rarely seen (in a professional capacity) in anything less than seamlessly crafted glamor, and there is no doubt that the woman has grit. An individual as a person and as a talent, Silver is also a warrior who survived a 58-day isolation with Covid-19, emerging to release the Ray Benson-produced CD. Mr. Benson, famed for an impressive artistic legacy in which he and his band ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL have earned ten Grammy Awards, has created arrangements and orchestrations to which jazz diva Silver takes as though she was born and raised in the land of cowboy boots, Mums, and grits N gravy. Without sacrificing one iota of the jazz efficacy for which she is famous, Deborah gets right down into the Southern sound, no hesitation, no tentative tendencies, she gets into it, and she gets down with it, and (I cannot stress this enough) it is incredible. It would not be a far reach to think that the team on Glitter And Grits might join forces for another album in the future, because, although they might not have dreamed of a partnership of this nature, what they have here is too special to leave at just one album.

The canon of standards that people call The Great American Songbook (a distinction that grows more, and grows more vague, with each passing year) holds specific and personal connections in the hearts and minds of every person who listens to songs like "Embraceable You" and "That Old Black Magic"; whatever their age, whatever the reason they first found this brand of music, everybody loves it for a reason that is all their own. What about the people who don't usually listen to Judy Garland and don't know the song "Get Happy"? There are country music fans who probably never heard "Almost Like Being In Love" before. Well, this CD is a perfect way to introduce those people to incredible works of art from the history of songwriting, just like there are jazz listeners and Deborah Silver fans who are going to be introduced to Texas Swing and this dude Ray Benson, who they never heard of before, and, as a result, have their own musical tastes altered. I'll be doggoned if Deborah Silver isn't only delivering to the public some damn fine music, she is providing a service by bridging a gap for lovers of different genres of music, educating folks a little, and expanding peoples' level of experience. I can't think of a sweeter way to broaden your mind and your artistic tastes.

Benson and co. are doing work on this CD that is beyond reproach; you could actually take out all of Deborah's vocal tracks and you would have a heck of an enjoyable album. Take my word for it: removing Deborah's voice from the tracks would be a mistake of epic proportion. Golly Gee Moses, is this lady special. You know how sometimes you can listen to a singer who has a gorgeous voice but you're not really sure what emotion is being conveyed, IF any emotion is being conveyed? That's not Deborah Silver. The quality of the voice is exquisite: you can tell that, even without training, this would be a pretty voice - I mean, if you were standing next to her at a party singing Happy Birthday, you would think "What a pretty voice." The thing is, though, pretty voice aside, not only has Silver had training, she has an innate instinct for styling and performance, a showomanship that serves the audience, and she has a kinship that serves the music, whether it's a cheeky "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself a Letter" or a down home "Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home" (come on, Mama!). Then she layers in the emotion, and even though the upbeat Southern nature of the cd doesn't leave a lot of room for ballads with all the moony romantic feels, every single track here still touches the place in your heart where you can tell that Deborah Silver was smiling while recording. She was having fun. She was enjoying life.~ Stephen Mosher https://www.broadwayworld.com/cabaret/article/BWW-CD-Review-Deborah-Silver-GLITTER-AND-GRITS-Swings-Sings-and-Shines-Like-Stars-In-a-Texas-Sky-20201023

Glitter & Grits

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Mike Ledonne - Wonderful

Styles: Jazz
Year: 2024
Time: 56:01
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Size: 129,3 MB
Art: Front

(8:45) 1. Let Us Go
(8:30) 2. Lonnie's Lament
(7:19) 3. Twinkies Organ Prelude / Wonderful
(6:26) 4. Put It Back
(6:05) 5. Bridge Over Troubled Water
(5:59) 6. Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing
(5:48) 7. Make Someone Happy
(7:06) 8. Genesis

In jazz's rich tapestry, where tradition meets innovations, there emerged a convergence exemplified by the present release Wonderful! with the virtuosic Mike LeDonne's Groover Quartet + Gospel Choir, who embark on a transcendent journey into the heart of gospel- infused jazz. The project is informed by LeDonne's desire to offer a heartfelt tribute to his wife Margaret and daughter Mary to showcase the spirited and varied nature of the disability community. Participating in this harmonious affair are the long-time members of the Quartet, including tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander, guitarist Peter Bernstein and drummer Joe Farnsworth, with special guests Daniel Sadownick on percussion and Vincent Herring on alto saxophone plus an eleven-voice gospel choir.

The session opens with the gospel song "Let Us Go," and it is a barn burner from the opening notes. Filled with an uplifting, joyful spirit emanating from the choir's voices, the quartet, enhanced by Sadownick and Herring, picks up a fiery groove that elevates with a sense of spiritual resonance. The John Coltrane composition "Lonnie's Lament" was recorded in 1964 with his Quartet for an album entitled Crescent at the same Van Gelder Recording Studio as this release. With his clear-eyed approach, the expressive tenor player Alexander is at the forefront of this chart. LeDonne and Bernstein play their part in bringing this broad-based canvas to life.

The title track, "Wonderful," is paired with "Twinkies Organ Prelude," which brings the meditative choir and the meticulously flowing sound of the quartet together in the pleasure of the music. The gospel choir continues their assertive and open-minded approach with two popular songs: Paul Simon's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and the Ashford & Simpson number "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing." Farnsworth's intense shuffle drumming sets up the former as Bernstein, LeDonne and Alexander each show a head-long but intelligent approach to improvisation. The latter swings along at a striking clip, with LeDonne and the quartet showing they are a briskly assertive ensemble.

The album closes with a LeDonne original "Genesis," a slashing number with Farnsworth's propulsive drumming leading the way. Alexander, Bernstein and LeDonne are drawn into this irresistible rhythmic inquiry, responding with vital, scintillating work. The band and the gospel choir have a mission to touch all who listen.By Pierre Giroux
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/wonderful-mike-ledonne-cellar-music-group/

Personnel: Mike LeDonne - Hammond B3 organ; Eric Alexander - tenor saxophone; Peter Bernstein - guitar; Joe Farnsworth - drums; Daniel Sadownick - percussion (Let Us Go & Put It Back); Vincent Herring - alto saxophone (Let Us Go)

Wonderful

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