2 Sem 2012 - Part Four

Mary Talbot Fee 

Midwinter Night's Dream




By HBH
Mary Talbot Fee studied jazz with Kevyn Lettau and others well-respected. After years of rumination and planning she finally released her debut album Midwinter Night's Dream (2009). Upholding the flag of classic jazz style Mary is a glorious fighter for the idols of the past.
Keyboardist Rob Whitlock (Jazz Crusaders, Eddie Harris), bassist Trey Henry (Tierney Sutton), drummer Cliff Almond (Michele Camillo), guitarist Pat Kelley (George Benson), percussionist Luis Conte (James Taylor), violinist Charlie Bisharat (John Tesh) and flutist John Rekevics (Checkfield) along with a talented cast of singers that included Amber Whitlock (Max Bennett) and Kleber Jorge (Sergio Mendes) are supporting Mary on the instrumental and vocal side.
Midwinter Night's Dream is a superb collection of jazz standards, international songs and contemporary compositions. Mary comments: “Winter’s dream enters my slumber, stills my thoughts, and encourages me to rest, renew and restore for the coming year’s journey. I don’t fall into the role that people would consider traditional, but I can’t let that stop me now. I don’t know where my recording will travel, but I know that I did the right thing taking this risk in trying. It’s my turn to express myself fully and I have a lot to express!”
The first song If I Had You was originally sung by Ted Shapiro in 1928 and heavily covered by legends like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Les Paul and many more. Mary beautifully captured the charm of the 20's by using the original interpretation and instrumental choice.
Guitarist Django Reinhardt, the innovator of the Gypsy Jazz technique, created the jazz classic Nuages (Clouds). Mary transfers the song into a samba, placed in a Parisian bistro or a "bal musette" nightclub. Eh voila! My gratitude to violinist Charlie Bisharat. Stephane Grappelli couldn't do it better.
The famous Anema E Core was composed by Salve D'Esposito. Grazie a Mary for this Italian rendition. Visit the gulf of Sorrento. It's a fabulous place and don't forget to visit the awesome Amalfi Coast.
Winter Snow Ballet, a composition by Mary Talbot Fee, is a picture of her Winter memories. Flutist John Rekevics lets the notes drop like snowflakes. Cozy and heartfelt.
Norwegian Wood is a song by the Beatles, released on their album Rubber Soul (1965). The most important impact of the song was the use of a sitar by George Harrison creating the Indian style in European and American music. On Mary's rendition the sitar is substituted by Charlie Bisharat's violin. The tune has now a great folk music/jazz appeal.
Henry Mancini composed Moment To Moment for his album A Warm Shade Of Ivory (1969) showcasing his skills as a pianist. Mary Talbot Fee's interpretation is a dark ballade with Latin feelings.
River is a song by Joni Mitchell, from her 1971 album Blue. This famous tune is a modern Christmas standard and newly interpreted by Mary in her own way. Taccani's On An Evening In Roma was very popular by Dean Martin's version. Mary fetches back this ancient song with the flair of the 50's.
Although written by Christina Rossetti before 1872, In The Bleak Midwinter was published posthumously in Rossetti's Poetic Works in 1904 and became a Christmas carol after it appeared in The English Hymnal in 1906 with a setting by Holst. While Mary keeps her song as a carol, one can hear some jazzy undertones of the other musicians.
Stevie Wonder's Knocks Me Off My Feet received a great rendition by the late Luther Vandross. Mary slows down the tempo to a lush jazz ballade. Back to Brazil with Inverno Di Gielo featuring singer Kleber Jorge. This is Copa Cabana.
Midwinter Night's Dream is a collaboration of Rob Witlock and Mary. Rob is a much sought after Hammond B3 organist, who also plays piano and keyboards in addition to producing, writing and arranging. Angela from Antonio Carlos Jobim's album Urubu (1976) is a song with tristresse and melancholy.
I Will Wait For You is a song from the French musical The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964). Composed by Michel Legrand and written by Jacques Demy Mary reveals one more time her affection for the ancient time. Stevie Wonder's Bird Of Beauty is perfectly set in scene.
Midwinter Night's Dream is for all jazz aficionados and lovers of jazz ballades.

Tracks:

01 If I Had You [3:05]
02 Nuages [4:51]
03 Anema E Core [4:22]
04 Winter Snow Ballet [5:24]
05 Norwegian Wood (Intro) [1:14]
06 Norwegian Wood [3:32]
07 Moment To Moment [4:47]
08 River [5:04]
09 On An Evening In Roma [2:45]
10 In The Bleak Midwinter [5:28]
11 Knocks Me Off My Feet [4:26]
12 Inverno Di Gielo [5:24]
13 Midwinter Night's Dream [6:47]
14 Angela [3:54]
15 I Will Wait For You (Intro) [0:34]
16 I Will Wait For You [5:57]
17 Bird Of Beauty [6:01]


Randy Porter Trio

Thristy Soul

Piano trio renditions of Kern, Corea, Rogers, McCartney, Berlin, Wonder and Mandel among others, as well as Randy’s originals. Features the Bay area’s masterful John Wiitala, and amazing drumming by both Reinhardt Melz and Todd Strait. Also includes DVD footage of alternate takes, outtakes and rehearsing. Released in 2008.

Track Listing :

hi wire
it never entered my mind
signed, sealed, delivered
thirsty soul
memoria
along came betty
boomer-angst
cheek to cheek
hey there
i will
it don’t mean a thing
the shadow of your smile
art lets a light by

Holly Cole

Steal The Night

By Christopher Loudon at JazzTimes

Throughout most of the ’90s, vocalist Holly Cole and her trio mates, pianist Aaron Davis and bassist David Piltch, could be counted on for a new album every year. But during the new millennium their output became more erratic, ceasing altogether after their ninth studio release, 2007’s Holly Cole. Finally, late last year, the über-tight trio (augmented by drummer-percussionist Davide DiRenzo, Piltch’s guitarist brother Robert and John Johnson on multiple horns and percussion) reunited for this live date, captured at Toronto’s acoustically sublime Glenn Gould Studio.

The reward for such a long wait between albums is a Cole not so much refreshed or reinvented as fully ripened. The mannered style that defined much of her earlier work has been significantly diminished, replaced by a deeper, richer sound and a generally cooler, shrewder sensibility. Much of the playlist (nine tracks on CD, 11 on the accompanying DVD) is plucked from earlier albums, including Cole’s signature of sorts, “I Can See Clearly Now,” and the clever, Cole Porter-esque list song “Larger Than Life” that she wrote and recorded for the 2007 album. New to the mix—perhaps fodder for the 10th studio album the trio just completed, due out this spring—are a touchingly woebegone “Good Time Charlie’s Got the Blues,” a superbly variegated “Smile,” a blistering rollercoaster ride through Tom Waits’ “Down, Down, Down” and the sly, slinking Cole original “You’ve Got a Secret” that suggests a simultaneous channeling of Billie Holiday and Eartha Kitt. 

Holly Cole’s first live concert CD/DVD, Steal the Night: Live At The Glenn Gould Studio.
Filmed in Toronto on August 11, 2011, the performance was recorded in high definition and mixed in 5.1 surround sound. The DVD is accompanied by a nine-song audio CD and lots of bonus material.
This performance marks the reformation of the original Holly Cole Trio lineup with Aaron Davis on piano and bassist David Piltch, in addition to John Johnson (horns), Rob Piltch (guitars) and Davide DiRenzo (drums).
The CD/DVD release is the beginning of a very busy year for Cole. In the fall, she will release her tenth studio recording, followed by Canadian and international touring beginning in the Summer, straight through to Winter 2012/2013. Hear the brand new original track “You’ve Got a Secret” as well as “I Can See Clearly Now”


Dario Carnovale Trio

Pensieri Notturni: Live In S. Vito

Dario Carnovale (p)
Simone Serafini (b)
Luca Colussi (ds)

Recorded at Teatro G. Arrigoni in San Vito al Tagliamento, Perdenone Italy, on January 24, 2007
Recording engineer : Luca Brunetti - Creativa Recording Studio, Udine Italy
Mixing & Nastering engineer : Stefano Amerio - Artesuono Studio, Cavalicco Udine

Track List :
Song for Elena (Dario Carnovale)
Pensieri Notturni (Dario Carnovale)
Monk Light (Yuri Goloubev)
Your Lovely Smile - dedicated to my grandfather Pino (Dario Carnovale)
Rava's Tango (Dario Carnovale)
Darius (Dario Carnovale)
Bonagia (Dario Carnovale)

Larisa Dolina & Igor Butman's Big Band

Carnival Of Jazz 2 - CD/DVD

Larisa Dolina - vocal,
Igor Butman - tenor-, soprano- saxophone,
Denis Shvytov - saxophone,
Leonid Sendersky - saxophone,
Dmitry Mospan - saxophone,
Alexander Dovgopoly - saxophone,
Pavel Zhulin - trumpet,
Salman Abuev - trumpet,
Alexander Berenson - trumpet, flugelhorn,
Vadim Eilenkrig - trumpet, flugelhorn,
Alexander Ageyev - trombone,
Ilya Vilkov - trombone,
Pavel Ovchinnikov - trombone,
Nikolay Shevnin - bass-trombone,
Anton Baronin - piano,
Vitaly Solomonov - bass,
Eduard Zizak – drums

Track list:
CD1
St. Louis Blues
Too close for comfort
I can't give you anything but love
Windmills of your mind
I get the blues
Fever
You are my good old wagon
Georgia on my mind
Cabaret

CD2
Water ski
Just the two of us
How high the moon
Mercy, mercy, mercy
Mr. Paganini
Summertime
Swinging at the Blue Moon Bar & Grille
New York, New York
S'est Si bon

Giacomo Gates
The Revolution Will Be Jazz: The Songs Of Gil Scott-Heron

By James Nadal 
An omnipresent cloud persistently hangs over any tribute album—that the music will be compared to the original. Even though this might seem unfair, it's a fact. Knowing this, jazz vocalist Giacomo Gates dares to venture into the distinctive songbook of Gil Scott-Heron with The Revolution Will Be Jazz, and comes out the other side with a remarkable record.
Gates cautiously handpicked the songs from Scott-Heron's repertoire, and wisely does not attempt an imitation or duplication, but performs collective interpretations with his own characteristic baritone styling and phrasing.
The record opens with the swinging "Show Bizness," where Gates displays a confidence which permeates throughout the record. This vocal attitude is highlighted on the classic "Lady Day and John Coltrane," given a laidback treatment with room to set the proper mood, allowing the band to stretch out. The humorous and satirical tracks, "Legend in his Own Mind" and "Madison Avenue," work well with Gates, who delivers as if in a live setting, with ease and comfort.
Gates mentions in the liner notes that the songs "Gun" and "Winter In America," realistic views on modern social problems, are just as pertinent and relevant today as when first released. He takes on these two with a vengeance and maintains the vitality of the message, a key element in Scott-Heron's writing. The sincerity in "New York City," with its autobiographical connotations, might just be the pivotal song on the record where Gates really shines, crooning the subtle intent of the lyrics.
It took a lot of courage to decide to perform an entire record of songs by Scott- Heron, a genuine visionary and revolutionary figure in music. Gates was approached by producer Mark Ruffin for this project, based on his ability to convey the songs with authenticity, originality, and due respect to this legend of a songwriter. The Revolution Will Be Jazz displays all of these requirements and is a verification of just how important this music is.
Track Listing:

Show Bizness; This Is A Prayer For Everybody to Be Free; Lady Day and John Coltrane; Legend In His Own Mind; Madison Avenue; Gun; Winter In America; Is That Jazz; New York City; It's Your World.
Personnel:

Giacomo Gates: vocals; John DiMartino: piano; Tony Lombardozzi: guitar; Lonnie Plaxico: bass; Vincent Ector: drums; Claire Daly: baritone sax (2), flute (7).