Hard-Bop Jazz Masters The Cookers Make Smoke Sessions Records Debut with The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart

The Cookers, the veteran jazz supergroup that The New York Times calls "a dream team of forward-leaning hard-bop," returns with its fifth and most exhilarating album to date, The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart. After nine years together, The Cookers have evolved from a summit of swinging road warriors to become simply one of the most burning and hardest-hitting bands on the scene.

"At this point, we've gelled as a band with an original voice, so the goal is just to be that much stronger each time out," says David Weiss, the next-generation trumpeter that assembled this gathering of elders. "The band itself should be the story at this point, I hope, but I think this album shows off a much stronger spiritual side of the group then previous efforts. I don't know if that's what happens when such great musicians who share this common bond spend so much time together, or maybe it's just that some of the material we chose for this album conveys this spirit so well, but it's certainly there and is quite powerful."

The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart, due out September 9, marks The Cookers' debut on Smoke Sessions Records and is the follow up to their critically acclaimed release Time and Time Again which was the iTunes' Jazz Album of the Year in 2014. Once again, the core of the band consists of five legendary, long-undersung musicians whose credentials read like a who's-who of classic-era jazz: tenor saxophonist Billy Harper was a member of groups led by Lee Morgan and Max Roach and served a two-year stint with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers; trumpeter Eddie Henderson and drummer Billy Hart were both part of Herbie Hancock's electrifying Mwandishi ensemble; pianist George Cables played alongside Dexter Gordon and Art Pepper; and bassist Cecil McBee anchored Charles Lloyd's famed 1960s quartet with Keith Jarrett and Jack DeJohnette. They're joined by torchbearers Weiss and, in his second outing with the band, alto saxophonist Donald Harrison.

The new album's title comes from Harper's opening track, originally recorded for the saxophonist's 1975 album Black Saint. The "wild and peaceful heart" was meant to refer to the dueling passions to be found in the soul of the composer himself, but applies equally well to this ensemble, whose repertoire can range from the tempestuous force of Hart's "Oceans of Time" to the wistful soul of McBee's "Third Phase." As Harper puts it, "The group is set up in such a way that there's a balance of hard drive and cool expressions."

That balance can be nimbly struck in the space of a single composition, as on Harper's album-closing "Thy Will Be Done." The piece begins in the mood of latter-day Coltrane's spiritually seeking excursions, eventually settling into a becalmed but vigorous groove that Harper refers to as "a swinging prayer." Like all three of Harper's contributions to the album, the song features a new arrangement by the composer.

The unique septet, Harper says, "lends itself to a wider range of colors. It's like having the palette of a big band that drives and cooks like a small group."

As always, the album's repertoire is plumbed from the members' vast discographies, a bevy of riches that Weiss says continues to yield surprises. After exhausting what he calls "David's fantasy list" of the group's compositions on The Cookers' first two albums, he's consistently discovered new favorites, embellished by the band's growing camaraderie. "I always think, 'How did I miss this last time?' But as the band grows and I realize more and more what they're capable of, certain tunes speak to me differently the next time through. I think this is our strongest record and top to bottom the strongest collection of tunes that we've done."

Following the urgent momentum of Harper's title tune comes the sharp, soulful swagger of Cables' "Beyond Forever" from his 1994 date of the same name, which first appeared on Eddie Henderson's 1977 release Comin' Through. The album's sole debut recording is McBee's "Third Phase," which begins with the pianist in a contemplative mood before the horns enter to sing the memorable melody. Hart previously recorded the abstract, dark-hued "Teule's Redemption" with his own quartet on his 2014 ECM release One Is the Other, and the song's Ornette-inspired jaggedness is only bolstered by The Cookers' four-horn frontline.

Though he's known for his hard-driving approach, Harper contributes the album's most tender moment with his ballad "If One Could Only See," inspired by a dream in which a hand reached down from heaven and handed him a cassette tape containing the song's wounded but steely melody. Native American influences are obvious in Cables' "Blackfoot," culled from his 1993 SteepleChase debut I Mean You, while Hart's "Oceans of Time" was the title track of his 1997 release.

"These guys should all be considered giants on their own," Weiss insists. "The idea of The Cookers is to bring them to greater prominence, and a big part of that is this incredible legacy of compositions."

The Cookers is unique in the modern jazz landscape, a band that benefits from more than four decades of rapport and shared experiences, as well as first-hand knowledge of the seismic shifts in the music that younger musicians only know through records and stories. "They all come out of basically the same era," Weiss says. "They all saw the same things, they were all blown away by seeing John Coltrane in 1965 - they were all part of something bigger than us. They were right there when some groundbreaking stuff happened, and they still approach the music that way."

  

"The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart" was recorded live in New York at Sear Sound's Studio C  on a Sear-Avalon custom console at 96KHz/24bit and mixed to ½" analog tape  using a Studer mastering deck. Available in audiophile HD format.

  

The Cookers' Upcoming Performances

September 13-17 | Birdland | New York, NY

October 15 | Angrajazz | Terceira Island, Portugal

October 18 | Night Town | Cleveland, OH

October 19 | Jazz Kitchen | Indianapolis, IN

October 20 | Constellation | Chicago, IL

October 21 | Musical Instrument Museum | Phoenix, AR

October 22 | Yoshi's | Oakland, CA

October 23 | (venue tbd) | Los Angeles, CA

October 24 | Kuumbwa | Santa Cruz, CA

October 25-26 | Jazz Alley | Seattle, WA

November 5 | Bologna Jazz Festival | Bologna, Italy

November 7 | Music Academy Chamber | Zagreb,Croatia

November 8 | Reigen | Vienna, Austria

November 11 | Szeged Jazz Days | Szegedy, Hungary

November 12 | Moncalieri Jazz Festival | Moncalieri, Italy

November 13 | The Sage | Gateshead, United Kingdom

November 15 | Band on the Wall | Manchester, United Kingdom

November 16 | Turner Sims | Southhampton, United Kingdom

November 17 | London Jazz Festival | London, United Kingdom

November 18 | Club Bahnhof Ehrenfeld | Cologne, Germany

November 23 | La Usina del art | Buenos Aires, Argentina

November 25 | Teatro Municipal Bahia | Blanca, Argentina

The Cookers · The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart

Smoke Sessions Records · Release Date: September 9, 2016

NEW MUSIC: PETER KUHN TRIO – THE OTHER SHORE; JAZZTRONIK – KEYSTONE; ELZA SOARES – WOMAN AT THE END OF THE WORLD (A MULHER DO FIM DO MUNDO)

PETER KUHN TRIO – THE OTHER SHORE

It seems like it's been many years since we last heard from reedman Peter Kuhn – but the sharpness of this set hardly marks the passage of time, as Kuhn's every bit as vibrant as he was a force on the avant scene of the late 70s and early 80s! As before, Kuhn handles a lot of b-flat and bass clarinet – but he also blows a bit of tenor and alto too – shaping sounds in very open territory, in a trio with Kyle Motl on bass and Nathan Hubbard on drums, in a mix of freedom and spirituality that almost recalls the New York loft jazz mode of decades back. Titles include "Not Two", "Unstrung Heroes", "Is Love Enough", "Beginning Anew", and "No Coming No Going". ~ Dusty Groove

JAZZTRONIK – KEYSTONE

Beautiful sounds from Jazztronik – a set that reminds us why we first fell in love with his music so many years ago! The album mixes wonderful keyboard lines and warmly soulful vocals – the former from the man himself, Ryo Nozaki – the latter from guests who include Valerie Etienne, Eliana, Love, Kaori Takeda, and Sumire – singers whose presence is interspersed with instrumental tracks that further the lyrical vision of Nozaki's music! Nozaki's really upped his vision here – and not only works in strings on some of the more soaring numbers, but also creates these gentler, poetic passages at mellower moments – all blended together at a level that makes this the most sophisticated Jazztronik set we've ever heard. Titles include "Now", "DGA", "Lost Melody", "Parade", "Warp", "The City Beyond", "Peach Boy", and "A New Phase Of Life".  ~ Dusty Groove

ELZA SOARES – WOMAN AT THE END OF THE WORLD (A MULHER DO FIM DO MUNDO)

A stunning new set from the legendary Elza Soares – the samba singer who gave us some wonderful music in the 70s, but who hits a completely different sound here! The set really focuses around Soares' amazing vocals – which are often sometimes out there completely on her own – but the instrumentation is unusually contemporary, and uses bits of electronics, fuzzy guitar, and some especially great basslines to create these very different soundscapes for her vocal performance! The shift is a bit like those late-life projects that Gil Scott-Heron did – such as his I'm New Here album – although with a different vibe, given Soares' background in Brazilian music. Titles include "Coracao Do Mar", "Comigo", "Danca", "O Canal", "Solto", "Pra Fuder", and "Luz Vermelha".  ~ Dusty Groove

Henri-Pierre Noel's "Piano" + "One More Step" re-released in Deluxe Editions, featuring remixes and bonus tracks

Four years on from the hugely anticipated re-issue of this much sought after tropical jazz masterpiece, Wah Wah 45s have announced the release of a Deluxe Edition of Henri-Pierre's Piano, now featuring remixes and bonus tracks for the first time in one package.

On moving to Canada from his original home of Haiti, pianist and singer/songwriter Henri-Pierre Noel brought with him much of the tropical island's influences. The Kompa Funk sounds of his homeland, along side contemporary North American jazz and disco, run throughout both of Henri's albums recorded in the late 1970's - Piano and One More Step. Both wre released on very limited private presses and have since become holy grails of the back music scene.

Henri-Pierre Noel is an incredibly versatile musican who uses the piano in a very percussive and syncopated way, almost like a drum. This particular technique naturally brings disco and afro-funk elements into hisunique brand of dance floor fusion.

Re-mastered from the original multi-track tapes, Henri-Pierre Noel's debut Piano is now available in an exclusive deluxe package featuring the foot friendly covers Mercy, Mercy, Mercy and A Fifth of Beethoven, that only appeared as a limited 7-inch single and have never featured on the album, as well as Re-Visions from a huge fan, The Reflex. The French disco don's club friendly re-workings of A Fifth of Beethoven, as well as his full length edit of album favourite Diskette, are also featured on this explosive package.

Three years on from the hugely anticipated re-issue of this much sought after tropical funk masterpiece, Wah Wah 45s are proud to announce the release of a Deluxe Edition of Henri-Pierre's One More Step, now featuring bonus remixes for the first time in one package.

On moving to Canada from his original home of Haiti, pianist and singer/songwriter Henri-Pierre Noel brought with him much of the tropical island's influences. The Kompa Funk sounds of his homeland, along side contemporary North American jazz and disco, ran throughout Henri's debut, Piano, re-released by Wah Wah 45s in 2012, and the follow up dance floor friendly One More Step - both albums having been originally released on very limited private presses and since become holy grails of the back music scene.

Henri-Pierre Noel is an incredibly versatile musican who uses the piano in a very percussive and syncopated way, almost like a drum. This particular technique naturally brings disco and afro-funk elements into hisunique brand of foot friendly fusion.

Re-mastered from the original multi-track tapes and featuring seriously foot friendly cuts like Afro-Funk Groove and Latin Feeling, One More Step is finally available along with hugely popular remixes from French disco don The Reflex, who hits all the right notes with his club focused re-workings of Funky Spider Dance and Back Home... Sweet Home.

The Battle of Santiago Announces East Coast Dates

There’s an epic soundclash taking place North of the Border. Toronto-based group the Battle of Santiago combines classic Afro-Cuban rhythms and vocals with a distinctly Canadian post-rock spirit and sensibility. The result is a wholly unique sound that tells a universal 21st Century story, transcending borders while staying rooted in one city’s immigrant experience.

“There are a couple of different Battles of Santiago’s to choose from,” explains the group’s founder Michael Owen. “There were a few in Cuba, mostly during the Spanish-American War, and there was even an infamous World Cup match in Chile that’s been given the name, too. So you can take your pick. We liked that ambiguity. It reflects how our music can change and take on different vibes. The name also implies some kind of soundclash, which works for us since the band has both a Latino and non-Latino section, and that dynamic can create a really exciting creative tension.”

While Canada is well-known for its thriving indie rock and electronic scenes, with acts as diverse as Grimes and God Speed You Black Emperor, the country is seldom thought of as a Latin music hotbed. But Toronto hosts many thriving immigrant communities — including one of the largest Cuban expat communities in North America — and the Battle of Santiago is strongly rooted in the city’s wealth of Cuban musical talent.

“The group has always had a strong Afro-Cuban base,” Owen explains. “In the beginning we had a much more pan-Latin mix, with members from Chile, Venezuela and Mexico. But as the band evolved we added more and more Cuban members until we reached a critical mass, and our sound has taken on a much stronger Cuban flavour as a result.”

Founded in 2011, The Battle of Santiago has been marked by this restless, transnational experimentalism since the beginning. The group has evolved from an exploration of experimental rock grounded in drummer-less Latin percussion, to an instrumental groove machine, to the tight Afro-Cuban post-rock outfit that it is today.

That evolution can be heard on the band’s two full-length albums, 2012’s Full Colour and 2013’sFollowed by Thousands. Now, with the addition of vocals, the Battle of Santiago is poised to break new ground in 2016 with their new EP.

Set for a 2016 release on the band’s own Made With Pencil Crayons label, this EP release dives deep into Afro-Cuban waters, mixing Afro-Cuban Yourba chants with subtle electronica (“Barasu-Ayo”) and rumbas with post-rock experimentalism (“Asi Vengo Yo”). The sound is more than just Radiohead meets Irakere, though: there’s cumbia tinged with dub (“Cimmaron”), anthemic Latin rock (“Pa Bailar”) and even the smooth funk of “Complica”.

The Battle of Santiago doesn’t skimp on their live show, either. Their Revolucion Perpetua multimedia show, developed with chilean-born artist/designer Patricio Davila,  integrates digital visual art, live musical performance and audience interaction. The result is a one-of-a-kind organic audio / visual installation not to be missed.

US Tour Dates:

July 7 @ ArtsRoit, Burlington, VT

July 8 @ Rockwood Music Hall, NYC, NY

July 9 @ Joe Pub, NYC, NY

Facebook - www.facebook.com/thebattleofsantiago

Twitter - www.twitter.com/Battle_Santiago

Soundcloud - soundcloud.com/the-battle-of-santiago

Last.fm - http://www.last.fm/music/The+Battle+of+Santiago

Bandcamp - http://thebattleofsantiago.bandcamp.com/

 

Imagineer Corrado Rustici explores expressive new sonicscapes using only the guitar on “Aham,” arriving July 15

Eager to emerge from the “trance” and “lack of imagination” plaguing electric guitarists for the past several decades, Corrado Rustici devoted six years to exploring sounds and expansive musical contexts utilizing only the guitar as his field of experimentation and expression. The imaginative results are the nine songs he composed that together form “Aham,” an audacious collection of ambient fusion, progressive jazz, ethereal rock, moody pop, and dramatic classical performed and produced by Rustici set for release in the U.S. on July 15.   

Rustici’s aural pursuit began in conjunction with a spiritual quest, an existential search into his being, which conjointly led to exploring the essential nature of his perception of music. Everything that you hear on “Aham,” a Sanskrit word meaning “I am,” from what sounds like drums, bass, strings, woodwinds and voice were created exclusively using electric and acoustic guitars through analog pedals and digital plug-ins. The only exceptions are two vocal tracks – one by Rustici on the poetic confessional “The Guilty Thread” and another featuring the soulful tenor voice of Andrew Strong (“The Commitments”) on the fantastical adventure “Alcove Of Stars” – and handclaps on the meandering balladic sojourn “The Last Light Spoken.” The artist did not use synthesizers, samplers or electronic instruments anywhere on the album.

“When I started to write the music for this album, I wanted to find out how far this wonderful instrument and I could go. During six years of work and experimentation, I’ve been incredibly surprised by the guitar’s versatility and sonic capabilities , which have been seldom used or almost totally ignored up to this point. The deeper I went, I became more and more enthused and excited about the little and big secrets that the instrument kept revealing to me. The way in which the music was conceived and produced created some limitations, constrictions and a distinctive sonic palette, all of which contributed to the overall sound and mood of the album. I hope that after six years of R&D, I was able to create a musical space within which one can hear the first baby cry of what I like to call the ‘Transmodern Guitar,’” said Rustici, who as a byproduct of his work on “Aham” is designing and developing a couple of guitar pedals with DV Mark that will be unvieled in January 2017 at the NAMM Show.

To Rustici, it was important that the songs on “Aham,” including the epic two-part title track opus, connect with listeners meaningfully and are capable of shining on their own merits, and do not simply become guitar demos for his revolutionary techniques and ingenuity.

“I was absolutely not interested in recording a ‘shredder’ project. In the end, it’s not important how we construct a piece of music, but only if and in which way a musician is capable of creating that emotional and – always virtual - space within which both the artist and the listener find a way to share the joy, the pain and the very reason for our ‘Existence.’”

The Naples, Italy native will perform music from “Aham” on home soil in November in support of the album, which Sony Classical is releasing in that territory next month. After leading his own band (Nova) in the mid-to-late 1970s, which included collaborations with Phil Collins and hit-maker Narada Michael Walden, Rustici relocated to California and has been a San Francisco resident since 1978. As an award-winning producer, Rustici helped craft a library of No. 1 Billboard singles in Europe and multi-million selling albums working with global superstars such as Zucherro, Paul Young and  Luciano Pavorotti. In 2007, he became the first producer to simultaneously occupy the top 3 spots on the Nielsen chart with three different artists (Ligabue, Negramaro and Renga). Over the years, his passion for sonic innovation has resulted in unearthing now widely accepted and used production methods such as Push & Pull, which combines the irreverent approach of rock and pop with the softer and more evocative effect of ambient music. As a solo artist, his previous releases are “Deconstruction Of A Postmodern Musician" (2007) and “Blaze & Bloom: Live In Japan” (2014), the latter of which was also issued as a DVD.  

Rustici’s “Aham” contains the following songs:

“As Dark Bleeds Light”

“Ananda’s First Steps”

“The Duke And The Hare”

“The Guilty Thread”

“Roots Of Progression”

“Alcove Of Stars”

“The Last Light Spoken”

AHAM Suite:

Part 1: “The Enquiry”

Part 2: “Aham”

Featured this week on The Jazz Network Worldwide: Vocalist, Redora Caruso, debut Solo Album of Jazz Standards entitled "My Funny Valentine”

Redora Caruso is no stranger to a lit up stage of funky rhythms engulfed in jazz and blues flavorings, sizzling vocals and an execution of song all her own.  Redora has been singing professionally now for over 20 years. She sings all styles, ranging from Jazz standards to Disco, Motown to R&B and Blues.

Redora was raised in a theatrical family. Both her parents were Opera singers who later owned a string of restaurant-dinner theaters. She was exposed to various genres of music from different eras, which became a benefit in becoming a well-rounded performer.

From singing in jazz clubs in Toronto with a latin jazz group to joining a Top 40 duo in Florida and often doing cruise ship performances on "Carnival cruise Lines." From a popular R&B house band at “Hemmingways” in Hollywood, FL to joining an all-girl group called "Beat Reaction" under contract with an Independent Record Label, Redora has tapped many diverse musical stages.

After recording an R&B single, Redora was introduced to Jimmie "bo" Horne formally of "K.C. and the Sunshine Band" who invited her to Co-star on the Cruise Ship "Fantasy". Noted as a steady main stay in southern Florida performing with different bands and keeping busy with club dates, conventions, fundraisers, special events and golf & country clubs.   Other live performances included the House Band at "Bianca's, "Sun Cruise", the "Colony Hotel" and "Club 10” at the Airport Hilton Hotel in Palm Beach, "Watercolors Cafe" and "Carmen's at the Top of the Bridge" which is a popular hot spot was located inside the Bridge Hotel in Boca Raton.

“This woman has done it all in preparation for her step forward with her first solo project.  She has many portals of musicality to draw from to create a cohesive expression of all her influences wrapped into one. I was taken by the many musical dimensions she works within, I found her quite unique, polished, authentic and eager in heart to share her gifts worldwide” says Jaijai Jackson of The Jazz Network Worldwide.

Redora's first solo album of jazz standards "My Funny Valentine" was released early 2016 and is gaining momentum worldwide with a fan base that is growing in popularity through internet radio hubs. Recently interviewed on (http://www.rnbrhythms.info/site/category/interviews/).

"I have received such an overwhelming response from my first album ‘My Funny Valentine’.   It is my soul desire to continue making music from my heart by way of live performance and recording.  I'm looking forward to a closer relationship with my fans where we can communicate through social media and with God all things are possible, to them that believe” says Caruso.

Currently you can catch her live performance every Wednesday from 5:30 to 8:30 at "Anthony's Coal fired Pizza”, on Atlantic Ave., in Delray Beach, FL sharing her love for people and her desire to bring some fun into their lives through her music.  In addition, Redora seeks to collaborate with songwriters to compose original material for her next CD project.

Visit THE JAZZ NETWORK WORLDWIDE "A GREAT PLACE TO HANG" at: http://www.thejazznetworkworldwide.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

NEW MUSIC: STEVE SALUTO – THE POWER OF 6 FLOWERS; MIKE DILORENZO – SOUL TO SOUL; AKIRA SAKATA - THE TALE OF THE HEIKE

STEVE SALUTO – THE POWER OF 6 FLOWERS

Italian guitarplayer, singer and songwriter Steve Saluto is releasing "The Power of 6 Flowers" on Monday, June 6, 2016. Written, performed, recorded and produced by Steve himself "The Power Of 6 Flowers" is an album that transcends genres; It's a journey of 6 songs through happy and sad and intimate moments of life… as Steve said "The 6 songs are pictures of moments; Life is Love and Loss. Period... But, you know, it ain't over till it's over so never give up ... "... As a result, "The Power Of 6 Flowers" is a remarkably diverse album that pushes boundaries on Saluto's evolution as an artist and it has much to offer to the listeners. Whether it's slick beats, guitar slinging or vivid storytelling, Saluto's 15th effort launches the artist into new territories showing exactly why it's absolutely necessary to keep a watchful eye on him. Tracks include: Get Out; Words; Crucify The Visionary; Don’t Touch Me; The Coldness The Distance; and It Ain’t Me.

MIKE DILORENZO – SOUL TO SOUL

Soul To Soul, the new CD release by Mike DiLorenzo morphs live latin, jazz and electronic elements on 7 original compositions as well as contemporary reinterpretations from jazz classics to current EDM. As a NY based musician, Mike has had the opportunity to perform on piano, organ and synthesizers with a wide range of artists with styles ranging from R&B to Latin and Jazz. Soul To Soul captures all 3 elements with 7 original compositions from organ swing jazz to samba as well as modern twists of some contemporary jazz classics such as a latin version of Friday Night at the Cadillac Club, a modern tribute to the Ramsey Lewis/EW&F classic Sun Goddess and a different spin on a Weather Report /Jaco Pastorius classic. The jazz standard Cherokee and the EDM hit Latch as recoded by Disclosure and Sam Smith are also represented in a new light.

AKIRA SAKATA - THE TALE OF THE HEIKE

Mindblowing sounds from legendary reedman Akira Sakata – working here in a setting that's mostly solo, but which also includes some group material from a DVD of the performance too! The core tracks have Sakata blowing amazingly on alto, clarinet, and bass clarinet – these long, thoughtful solos that really mark his contribution to improvised music over the years – almost poetic, even though they're very freewheeling – and marked at points by these raspy, rumbling vocal recitations by Akira – with a tone that's almost as mezmerizing and unique as his work on reed instruments! Solo titles include "Gion Shoja", "The Death Of Kiso", "The Matter Of The Six Paths", "The Assault From The Cliff", "The Death Of Atsumori", and "Battle Of Dan No Ura". Then, the set also includes some group numbers, recorded live – with Jim O'Rourke on guitar, Tatsuhisha Yamamoto on drums and percussion, Chizuru Ishii on percussion and taiko, and Yumiko Tanaka on shamisen – on titles that include "See Chanty Of Ondo", "The Chapter Of The Battle", and "The Death Of Kiso". ~ Dusty Groove

NEW MUSIC: MARTHA HIGH – SINGING FOR THE GOOD TIMES; FULL BLAST (PETER BROTZMANN) - RISC; QUANTIC PRESENTS FLOWERING INFERNO – 1000 WATTS

MARTHA HIGH – SINGING FOR THE GOOD TIMES

A great return chapter for Martha High – a singer who began her career working with James Brown, cut some disco for Salsoul Records in the 70s, and who's re-emerged in recent years as a stunning vocalist in a deep funk mode! This album's got High working with an excellent Italian combo – one who wrote all new tunes for the record, and came up with music that's maybe some of the most perfect that Martha's ever worked with – beautiful songs that unlock some soulful sides of her style that she maybe didn't even hit back in the day! The record's not one of those "old divas back for a minute" sets – and instead completely reinvigorate's High's career, and maybe even starts her anew down a path she should have taken so many years before. Hats off to producer and songwrtiter Luca Sapio for getting things so right – on titles that include "Always Worth The Pain", "Fire Shut Up In My Bones", "The Hardest Working Woman In Town", "You Baby", "I'm A Woman", and "The Hard Way". ~ Dusty Groove

FULL BLAST (PETER BROTZMANN) - RISC

Pretty blistering sounds from Peter Brotzmann's Risc trio – a group that really recalls some of the mindblowing intensity he brought to the free jazz scene in his youth! The lineup features electric bass from Marino Pliakas, which really creates a lot of power at the bottom – a rumbling quality that shakes the rafters in ways that an acoustic bass couldn't achieve – matched by frenzied drum work from Michael Wertmuller, who mostly plays in skittish space all over the kit – then matched by some very freewheeling work from Brotzmann on a range of reeds. The electric bass really gives the set a different feel than other improv trio dates – but also in a way that's never "electric" in conventional modes – and titles include "Try Kraka", "Cafe Ingrid", "TTD", "Garnison Lane", "Doss House", and "Schwarspanier Street". ~ Dusty Groove

QUANTIC PRESENTS FLOWERING INFERNO – 1000 WATTS

A dubbier set than even before from Quantic and his Flowering Inferno project – a record that's still quite heavy on the range of Caribbean elements he blended with funk on the previous two albums, but one that also seems to draw a bit more strongly from the sound of Kingston overall! The bottom end of the record is nicely pushed forward to the top – with speaker-rattling basslines and rhythms, peppered with moody trumpet and tenor lines, and sewn together with these beautifully bubbling Hammond lines from Roger Rivas – which are maybe the strongest element in the set, and which definitely give the whole thing its most classic quality. Quantic plays guitar throughout – and most cuts are instrumental, but the album does feature some guest vocals from U-Roy, Alice Russell, Christopher Ellis, and Nidia Gongora. Titles include "Spring Tank Fire", "El Disorden", "1000 Watts", "A Life Worth Living", "Homeward Bound", "Ikey's Vibe", "Shuffle Them Shoes", "Striding On Grand Street", "Macondo", "Night Shade", and "All I Do Is Think About You". ~ Dusty Groove

Icelandic keyboardist JACK MAGNET teams up with two-time Grammy® winner Paul Brown for a soul-jazz album GLOBAL WARMING

Veteran Icelandic keyboardist reunites with longtime friend, two-time Grammy® winner Paul Brown, for a soul-jazz album with a purpose: spreading harmony, love and understanding.   

There is nothing in the ten new songs that make up Jack Magnet’s Woodward Avenue Records’ debut, “Global Warming,” released Friday, that will inflame naysayers who deny climate change or its impact on the environment. It’s not that kind of album. Iceland’s popular musical export is on an entirely different mission: to reset minds using instrumental tunes to bring back love, peace and understanding to the world. Reteaming with his collaborator and friend of more than four decades, two-time Grammy®-winning producer Paul Brown, the keyboardist also known as Jakob Magnusson reenters the U.S. marketplace with the first radio single, “Still Boppin’ Along,” a jazz-funk strut.

“’Global Warming’ is all about spreading the positive, showing empathy and warming up to one another, regardless of place of origin, faith, color of skin or political views. This album is not about climate changes and environmental threats. It is about old and new friends coming together to ignite warm human emotions, seeking to counterbalance all the negativity, the conflicts and threats we´re witnessing in so many places around the globe,” Magnet explained.

Magnet’s message of harmony is ingrained in the DNA of the nine new compositions he wrote with Brown after the two reconnected at a 2012 jazz festival held in the world’s northernmost capital of Reykjavik where the famed Fender Rhodes keyboardist is based. The pair has roots dating back over forty years when as teenagers, Magnet - then Magnusson - moved into the Brown family home in the suburbs of Los Angeles. “Still Boppin’ Along,” which gets a boost from contemporary jazz hornmen Rick Braun and Elan Trotman on trumpet and saxophone, was originally penned decades ago during the duo’s pre-fame days yet it is thematically suited to the tone of “Global Warming.” Brown, who plays guitar throughout the session, lends an American vibe to Magnet’s Euro-leaning pop-jazz-blues-rock predilections. Magnet and Brown’s “Global Warming” set list is heavily influenced by music from the Mojo Triangle – New Orleans, Nashville and Memphis.

As Magnet describes it, “The music is inspired by the early European composers who developed the harmony and styles that later became the foundation of the musical language developed around New Orleans at the turn of the 20th Century when jazz was born. From Vivaldi, Chopin and Mendelson to Duke Ellington, Miles Davis and Joseph Zawinul.”

Magnet’s impassioned and lyrical keyboards emote vibrant and joyous melodies, paint poetic and ethereal reflections, and stir emotions with storming sermons. Brown’s sister, Kathy Brown-Babylon, gets in on the act with vocal embellishments on “From The Other Side,” an aptly-titled song that she wrote with her late husband, Elton John’s longtime bassist Guy Babylon. Paul Brown was a bandmate of Magnet’s in a British blues-rock group long ago fronted by Long John Baldry for which Magnet served as a replacement for the original keyboardist, Reg Dwight, who became Elton John. Also performing on the cut is the late drummer Ricky Lawson.                   

Magnet has cultivated a diverse recording catalogue that boasts jazz notables Stanley Clarke, Freddie Hubbard, Tom Scott and Richard Elliot as well as pop superstars Elton John and Phil Collins. A colorful and charismatic multimedia talent in his native Iceland, he starred in and produced the country’s biggest film in box office history, “Með allt á hreinu (On Top),” and currently serves as a celebrity judge on television’s “Iceland’s Got Talent.” 

 “Global Warming” contains the following songs

 “Still Boppin’ Along”

 “Funk It Up”

 “Florence”

 “A Simple Love”

 “Strut Yo Stuff”

 "From The Other Side”

 “Paris”

 “Compared To Who?”

 “Bourbon Street Boogie”

 “JoJo”

NEW MUSIC: THE MELLOW MOODS – TELL LOVE HELLO; PIERRE FAVRE - DRUMSIGHTS; URAL THOMAS & THE PAIN

THE MELLOW MOODS – TELL LOVE HELLO

A trio of lovely ladies from the Philly scene of the 70s – heard here in a surprisingly great contemporary recording! The Mellow Moods grew up in the same generation as bigger Philly female trios like First Choice or Three Degrees – and although they never hit the heights of those groups, they had a wonderful harmony sound that was every bit as great as some of the stellar male groups that were making mellow soul magic in the underground! All these many years later, a reformed version of the group works here with Butch Ingram and the Ingram Family – who provide the perfect sort of Philly backings for their vocals – contemporary, but handled with lots of classic touches that really fit the choice of material. The whole thing feels more like a set of female harmony soul from the late 70s, instead of something from this century – and titles include "Stop Taking My Love For Granted", "Tell Love Hello", "Right On The Tip Of My Tongue", "Tell Him That I Love Him", "Hello Stranger", and "Selfish One". ~ Dusty Groove

PIERRE FAVRE - DRUMSIGHTS

Percussionist Pierre Favre is at his most tuneful here – working in that mode that's still freely creative, but which also makes him one of the more melodic players on the European avant scene – a distinction that's made us really look out for his records over the years! Favre's working here with his DrumSights quartet – a group with Chris Jaeger, Markus Lauterburg, and Valeria Zangger – who work with with Pierre on a range of drums in a really wonderful way! Unlike similar sessions like this – which could be very bombastic – there's a sense of balance, timing, and tune that make the whole thing really beautiful – as the other players seem to have picked up on Favre's careful touch with his sticks and brushes. Titles include "Dance Of The Feline", "Sycamore", "Along", "Pow Wow", "Again", "Brushes Flock", and "Games". ~ Dusty Groove

URAL THOMAS & THE PAIN

The wonderful return of Ural Thomas – an older soul singer who gave us a few great singles back in the day – but who's now back in tip-top form, as if the passage of years hasn't made a difference at all! Thomas is working here with a younger band of musicians, but the set's hardly got the feel of one of those "old singers with young cats" records – as the production and presentation is very unified – with instrumentation that really gets at the right spirit for Ural's vocals, instead of adding them on as an extra level – and nicely gritty recording of the music, which makes the whole thing feel just like the older singles. Thomas gives us a lot more than before – a bit of funk, some deep soul, even a few bluesy currents – and the double-length set features titles that include "Can't Make It Without You", "Now You Love Me", "Poor Side Of Town", "Smile", "Here Comes The Hurt", "Fade Away", "A Whole New Thing", "Pain Is The Name Of Your Game", and "When I Get This Feeling". (Limited edition of 950 available copies with old school "tip on" cover and booklet!)  ~ Dusty Groove

NEW MUSIC: THIS TIME IT WILL BE DIFFERENT: THE SWEET SOUL OF PHILADELPHIA 1968-1982; DONNIE TATEM - AIN'T NO LOVE; THIS LOVE IS FOR REAL: THE SWEET SOUL OF CHICAGO 1968-1981

THIS TIME IT WILL BE DIFFERENT: THE SWEET SOUL OF PHILADELPHIA 1968-1982

A beautiful document of the Philadelphia soul underground – pulled from a time when the city had so much great music going on, there was a huge amount of excellent music that never got the exposure it deserved! The focus here is mostly on Philly groups – from a period when the harmony styles had matured even past the excellent sound of the city in the 60s – warm, complex, yet completely down to earth, too – mostly male vocals, delivered at a level that's completely sublime! Much of this work is material that was "standing in the shadows of Philadelphia International" – the 70s powerhouse of soul that was Philly's answer to Motown – and which, like Motown, shared links with the much deeper underground of both Pennsylvania and New Jersey soul. Most tracks are mellow harmony soul cuts of the highest caliber – and titles include "Take Your Time" by The Festivals, "We Belong Together" by Paradise, "I Need Somebody To Love" by Phyllis Smith, "Let's Love" by The Invitations, "She Calls Me Baby" by J Kelly & The Premiers, "This Time Will Be Different" by The Blue Notes, "The Echo" by The Epsilons, "When You're Gone Away" by The Elegants, "Tell Love Hello" by The Mellow Moods, "Thinking About My Baby" by The Geminiles, "It's OK With Me" by Broadway Express, and "Betcha Didn't Know" by Choice Of Colors. ~ Dusty Groove

DONNIE TATEM - AIN'T NO LOVE

A contemporary singer with roots in gospel – but one who works here with some great mellow soul backings from The Ingram Family – at a level that maybe makes the set one of the best to come from their recent run of projects on the Society Hill label Donnie's voice goes nice and deep – at a level that really takes us back to quiet storm singers of years back – and the Ingram backings are more mellow 80s than any sort of 21st Century vibe – perfectly suited to Tatum's sound and spirit. Titles include "Tonight I Give In", "Ain't No Love", "Hope That We Can Be Together Soon", "It's A Shame", "Night & Day Dream", "Once In A While", and "Say You Love Me". ~ Dusty Groove

THIS LOVE IS FOR REAL: THE SWEET SOUL OF CHICAGO 1968-1981

Stunning group soul from the Chicago scene – an amazing collection that has an especially strong focus on the city's brilliant work in the early 70s! Most of the material here is post-Impressions, but has a similar warm harmony glow that's completely sublime – that next level of harmony that some of the best groups were using as the decade got started – in ways that really blow away earlier doo wop and 60s soul with their complexity! The set list is exceptionally well-chosen – and the package has some of our favorite soul singles from our hometown – a lineup that includes "Sweet Fools" by Essence, "I'm Not Gonna Be Anybody's Fool" by Harlem Meat Company, "Wait A Minute" by Lost Generation, "Second Story Man" by Chocolate Sunday, "Share My Love With You" by Magnum Force, "I Need Your Love" by The Vegas, "Gotta Let You Go" by The Ledgends, "I Made Up My Mind" by The Cheers, "Just For You" by Windy City, "This Love Is Real" by The Lovelites, "This Love For Real" by Hands Of Time, "Warm Summer Nights" by The Stimulators, and "Gotta Get Away" by Billy & The Bloodknots.  ~ Dusty Groove

Featured This Week On The Jazz Network Worldwide: : The Wenso Ashby Project "Soulfully Yours"

Wenso Ashby, a talented songwriter, producer, and keyboardist is known for his rhythmic inventiveness and collective improvisation. Wenso established himself behind the scenes in Washington, D.C. doing production in the late 1990's. He worked as a hip hop producer and session keyboardist at Oyaban Record's studios in Maryland and Virginia’s nationally recognized Cue Studio. Ashby was content in the background until artist’s manager Amanda Fielding prodded him to cross genres and start showcasing his playing and songwriting talents in smooth jazz.

In 2002, Wenso recorded the well-received album Midnite Walkin’, then relocated to Minneapolis to promote the silken sound he dubbed “Contemporary Jazz with Soul”.

Wenso Ashby has delighted audiences from coast to coast performing his style of music that embraces hard hitting groove based rhythms with timeless melodies and soulful vocals. It was this style that caught the attention of twin cities based Huber Entertainment that ultimately led to a distribution deal in 2008.

With his 2011 release, “The Moment of Truth”, Wenso decided to once again be an independent artist. In his own words he is “Blessed” to share his gift with the world. Being an independent artist allows creative freedom to record and perform. He loves performing live on stages from small intimate 100 seat venues to large festivals. He has open up for national recording artists like Saxophonist Kim Waters, Bassist Gerald Veasley, and Songwriter/Singer Kenny Lattimore, Jason "Malletman" Taylor, and Idol winner Ruben Studdard, and Paris Bennett. He has appeared on network TV and his music can be heard both nationally and internationally.

Visit THE JAZZ NETWORK WORLDWIDE "A GREAT PLACE TO HANG" at: http://www.thejazznetworkworldwide.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network 

Damian Draghici’s 'The American Dream" features Chris Botti, Arturo Sandoval, Michel Camilo, Eddie Daniels, Luciana Souza, Stanley Clarke, Brian Bromberg, Frank Gambale & others

A year before he escaped communism in his native Romania by walking through the mountains of Yugoslavia and into Greece, the seed of Damian Draghici’s dream was planted when he was just a 17-year-old teenager who snuck into a Bucharest nightclub to watch a set by an American jazz combo. Nearly 30 years later, his vision will finally come to fruition on July 8 when Century Jazz Records issues “The American Dream,” a 13-song disc of standards produced by Dan Siegel and Tom McCauley that showcases the pan flutist collaborating with nearly two dozen jazz, Brazilian and Latin music greats, Grammy winners, icons and top-shelf musicians. Preceding the album at jazz radio is the sultry bossa nova “Ceora,” an exquisite duet with trumpeter Chris Botti.

As trumpeter Randy Brecker soloed in the crowed club that 1987 evening, what sparked Draghici’s imagination was recording a jazz album that would feature the tones, textures and the unique voice produced on the hollow-tubed bamboo instrument, the pan flute. “The American Dream” also pays homage to the jazz giants that influenced Draghici’s artistic expression.    

"’The American Dream’ has been a dream of mine for a while now,” Draghici recalls. “Here’s how the story started almost 30 years ago. When I was 17 years-old during the communist times in Bucharest, Romania, I saw and heard for the first time real American jazz musicians playing live. That was the moment I fell in love with jazz and I knew that I had to go to America to learn jazz - to play and improvise bebop on my instrument - to become the Bebop Pan-piper.” 

Twenty years ago, Draghici first arrived in America to attend the famed Berklee College of Music in Boston on a full scholarship, which is where he linked up and began working with a bevy of premier jazz musicians, including drummers Vinnie Colaiuta and Dave Weckl, who keep time on “The American Dream.” The respect Draghici garners from his musician peers helped him attract an impressive list of guest soloists who perform on the collection, including Botti, trumpeter Arturo Sandoval, clarinetist Eddie Daniels, Grammy-winning pianist Michel Camilo, Grammy-winning vocalist Luciana Souza and Grammy-winning guitar virtuoso Frank Gambale along with a stellar ensemble of internationally-renown players such as Siegel, Stanley Clarke, Brian Bromberg, Russell Ferrante (Yellowjackets), Tom Kennedy, Alan Broadbent, Charlie Bisharat, Alex Acuna, Luis Conte, Paulinho Da Costa, Oscar Castro Neves, Mitchel Forman, Otmaro Ruiz, Ramon Stagnaro and Jorge Calandrelli. With so much talent gathered around Draghici’s improvisational pan flute forays and flourishes, the musicianship throughout the session is masterful while Siegel and McCauley’s acoustic jazz production is warm and organic. 

The set list Draghici & Company chose to reimagine consists of selections from Charlie Parker (album opener “Donna Lee”), Lee Morgan (“Ceora”), John Coltrane (“Giant Steps”), Chick Corea (“Spain”), Antonio Carlos Jobim (“Modhina” and “One Note Samba”); Michel Legrand, Marilyn & Alan Bergman and Jacques Denny (“You Must Believe In Spring”); Keith Jarrett (“My Song”), Pat Metheny (“See The World”), Bill Evans (“Waltz For Debbie”) Castro Neves (“More Than Yesterday”) and Cesar Camargo Mariano (“Curumin”) as well as Camilo’s “From Within.” Inventive arrangements chisel space in the elaborately-constructed cuts for the pan flute harmonics, genteel vocalizations and stirring melodies knitted from piano, guitar, horns and strings to effortlessly waft beauty and splendor on quieter numbers. More aggressive tracks are granted the expanse to expound dexterously on playgrounds of layered percussion and sinewy basslines. 

Recognized as an award-winning prodigy when he was a teenager in Romania before seeking refuge in Greece, Draghici landed a record deal after busking on the streets of Athens, garnering acclaim in Europe. He’s toured with an array of signature artists that spans James Brown, Joe Cocker, Cyndi Lauper, Shaggy and Gypsy Kings. In 2006, he formed Damian & Brothers with “his gypsy brothers,” adopting the purpose of changing the perception of gypsy music globally. They toured extensively throughout Europe performing over 600 concerts in three years. Draghici now splits his time living in the valley near Los Angeles and abroad. For more information, please visit www.DamianDraghici.com.        

   

Draghici’s “The American Dream” contains the following songs:

“Donna Lee” with Arturo Sandoval

“Ceora” with Chris Botti

“Giant Steps” with Eddie Daniels

“From Within” with Michel Camilo

“Spain”

“Modhina” with Luciana Souza

“You Must Believe In Spring”

“My Song”

“More Than Yesterday”

“See The World”

“Curumin” with Frank Gambale

“Waltz For Debbie”

“One Note Samba”