Friday, March 13, 2015

NEW RELEASES: LARRY CORYELL - THE HEAVY FEEL; MELODY GARDOT – CURRENCY OF MAN; DAYME AROCENA – THE HAVANA CULTURA SESSIONS EP

LARRY CORYELL - THE HEAVY FEEL

Joining Larry are Saxophonist George Brooks, Drummer Mike Hughes, and Bassist Matt Montgomery. The album sounds like a collect of Larry's career. Big open sounding tracks like Ghost Note, Polished and Heavy Feel juxtapose tracks like River Crossing and Oasis Path showing Larry's acoustic side. 2011 East Sharing Air and The Way It Was are sure to be radio pleasers. The guitar virtuoso Larry Coryell has had and up and down career. And quite unjustified being overshadowed by others - be it Jimi Hendrix or John Mclaughlin - for most of his long time as a first class musician. Starting of as psychedelic pioneer with Free Spirits and then producing a string of fabuluos jazz/rock albums likeAt the Village Gate and Coryellbefore almost hitting the big time with the splendid Eleventh House. And performing and recording with the likes of Jack Bruce, John Mclaughlin, Carla Bley, Gary Burton. But after that he seemed to loose focus and producing a string of rather dissatisfactory albums - except for some forrays into world music, Larry like McLaughlin always been inspired by Indian music. As one of the pioneers of jazz-rock -- perhaps the pioneer in the ears of some -- Larry Coryell deserves a special place in the history books. He brought what amounted to a nearly alien sensibility to jazz electric guitar playing in the 1960s, a hard-edged, cutting tone, phrasing and note-bending that owed as much to blues, rock and even country as it did to earlier, smoother bop influences. Yet as a true eclectic, armed with a brilliant technique, he is comfortable in almost every style, covering almost every base from the most decibel-heavy, distortion-laden electric work to the most delicate, soothing, intricate lines on acoustic guitar. Unfortunately, a lot of his most crucial electric work from the '60s and '70s is missing on CD, tied up by the erratic reissue schemes of Vanguard, RCA and other labels, and by jazz-rock's myopically low level of status in the CD era (although that mindset is slowly changing). ~ Amazon 

MELODY GARDOT – CURRENCY OF MAN

The highly-anticipated ‘Currency of Man’ is an intensely creative milestone, transcending musical distinctions of jazz, blues and R&B, to offer a stirring social and musical statement. On the new album, Melody joins forces again with Grammy Award-winning producer Larry Klein. This striking musical partnership saw their last collaboration, 2009’s ‘My One and Only Thrill’, sell over 1.5 million copies, and produce songs that have become modern classics. ‘Currency of Man’ marks a substantial leap forward indeed, as we see Gardot take her gift for songwriting in a completely different direction to her last record, the critically acclaimed release ‘The Absence’. ~ Amazon


DAYME AROCENA – THE HAVANA CULTURA SESSIONS EP

Brownswood and Havana Cultura are delighted to announce this new EP from Cuban singer, composer, arranger, choir director, and band leader Daymé Arocena. At just 22 years old, Daymé is already a skillful, charismatic presence in Cuban music. Recorded in just a few days in London and Havana, The Havana Cultura Sessions EP is a great introduction to Daymé’s broad ranging musical talent. Drama showcases her trademark mix of jazz and Latin styles. El Ruso is what Dayme calls ‘a funny song.’ Its story covers her mother’s enforced study of Russian during the heyday of Cuba’s relationship with the Soviets. “Life never says it; does truth tell a lie?” she sings. On Sin Empezar Daymé glows with the range and use of tones in a superb song. Mellow and slow, its moving and stunning inclusion of the trumpet playing slowly with elongated notes. The sharp and crisp drumming and the piano’s impressively subtle phrases all work in harmony with the chorus and Dayme’s unusually delicate voice in response to some lyrics. A deep rumba re-imagining of the American torch song 'Cry Me a River' completes the package. ~ Six Degrees


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