Reviews
Date = 6 July 2014
Artist’s name = Adrian Cunningham
Genre = Jazz
Title = “Ain’t That Right!” The Music of Neal Hefti
Record company = Arbors
Review =
Trumpeter Neal Hefti played in bands led by Benny Carter, Woody Herman, Harry James, and others, and recorded with the likes of Billie Holiday and Lucky Thompson. In time he led his own band. Yet he is most important as a composer and arranger. He made his mark on popular culture by creating the theme for the television series Batman and producing scores for such movies as Barefoot in the Park and The Odd Couple. His writing contributed significantly to the smaller world of jazz. He wrote for many groups and arranged for jazz-oriented singers, including Peggy Lee, Frank Sinatra, and Mel Tormé. He arranged the music for the masterful Clifford Brown with Strings. His major contribution to jazz resulted from composing and arranging for the Count Basie band in the 1950s. The tunes immediately entered and forever remained in Basie’s book. Partly because of his arrangements of them, the focus of the band changed. Previously, it had used arrangements primarily to set up solos by such musicians as Buck Clayton and Lester Young. In the 1950s, the arrangements of Hefti and others required the band to focus more on the arrangements themselves than on solos, though the band included solid soloists, including Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis, who is especially forceful on Basie (also known as The Atomic Basie), the initial Basie album of Hefti’s compositions and arrangements.
Australian Adrian Cunningham performs only Hefti’s music on his newest release, and such a tribute is welcome. Though he plays some of the composer’s most familiar tunes, many are not well known. Among the latter, surprises abound. “It’s Awfully Nice to Be with You” is a pretty melody that Cunningham interprets slowly on clarinet and that features pianist Dan Nimmer. “Ain’t That Right” and “I’ve Got Love” are in a gospel vein. Of these less familiar tunes, I find most rewarding “Zankie,” a blues Hefti wrote for the movie Synanon. Cunningham (again on clarinet) takes it at an attractive deliberate tempo.
In the notes to this release, Will Friedwald comments about Cunningham’s probable rationale for omitting some Hefti tunes. He writes: “Some works are not included for the apparent reason that they’ve already been played so definitively that no one wants to come up with something that would, in all likelihood, be compared unfavorably to the iconic recordings.” He identifies “Splanky” as a composition possibly rejected for this reason. His statement implies that the tunes Cunningham performs have not been recorded definitively. Though people can disagree about what constitutes a definitive recording, at least two of the tunes Cunningham chose to release strike me as not having been surpassed since Basie recorded them in the 1950s: “Li’l Darlin’” from Basie and “Cute” from the follow-up album, Basie Plays Hefti. If one believes that Basie’s recordings of these compositions are iconic (perhaps Friedwald does not so consider them), then, according to Friedwald, later versions—such as Cunningham’s—might reasonably be compared with them.
The original “Li’l Darlin’” is probably one of the slowest big band recordings: it creeps along, with the beat sustained primarily by the light, almost unnoticeable guitar strumming of Freddie Green and bass plucking of Eddie Jones. Cunningham’s tempo is a little faster than Basie’s, but the beat on Cunningham’s is heavy, not subtle. Further, Cunningham (here, on tenor saxophone) is joined by trombonist Wycliffe Gordon. The two men do as well as could be expected in creating harmonies reminiscent of those Basie produced with an entire band. However, Gordon’s gutbucket playing during his interjections seems inappropriate on a tune of such delicacy. Within the context of Friedwald’s comment, Cunningham should not have released this recording of “Li’l Darlin’,” unless he did not mind having it compared with Basie’s version.
Basie first recorded “Cute” as a feature for flautist Frank Wess and drummer Sonny Payne, on brushes. This skittish performance is all surface, precisely as suggested by the nature of the composition and implied by the title. There are several differences between Basie’s and Cunningham’s treatments of it. Cunningham’s tempo is slower than Basie’s. Though Cunningham is an able flautist, here he plays tenor saxophone; drummer Chuck Redd uses sticks, not brushes. After the melodic statement, Cunningham’s recording turns into a typical jazz performance, with solos by the leader and the pianist before Cunningham and Redd interact toward the end. This selection concludes without restating the theme. That is, Basie honors the composition while Cunningham uses it as a means of getting to blowing. Cunningham’s version is valid—using a composition as a taking-off point for improvisation—but it is exceptional only in the sense that it is different from any other interpretation of “Cute” of which I am aware.
Despite Cunningham’s and Basie’s different approaches to some of the tunes presented on this release, the playing of Cunningham and his sidemen is engaging. Perhaps this CD of Hefti tunes will help this able, inventive instrumentalist become better known than he is outside Australia, as he deserves to be.
Author = Benjamin Franklin V
I wasn’t familiar with Rachele Lynae until I listened to her self-titled debut album. When I started listening, I immediately headed over to her web site to read her bio, and find out a little more about her. She grew up in Kodiak, Alaska, and started singing at a very early age. By the time she was 10 years old she had already been singing in church for five years. She started writing songs when she was 12, and at age 17 she started doing live shows, and building a reputation as a ‘riveting live performer’.
She moved to Nashville to attend Belmont University. That is a great music school, and is also where Josh Turner, Trisha Yearwood and Brad Paisley went to school. Rachele has been performing at Nashville’s famous clubs, and recorded a five song EP, which shared with Jimmy Murphy – who shared it with his daughter, Jamie O’Neal. That was all it took.
Jamie and Rachele began working on the new album. Rachele co-wrote every song on the album, Jamie produced it. Four of the songs even had Jamie in that ‘co-writer’ seat.
“Done is Done” was written by Rachele and Luke Sheets. The title pretty much tells you what to expect from the song. Someone is about to get their heart broken. Someone is leaving. What is “Done is Done”. There aren’t any surprises with this song, and yet it was one of my favorites. Her vocals, which are so strong and so powerful in some of the faster songs, actually have a softer side. Even when Rachele slows things down, she still has perfect control, and perfect tone. And she still makes you want to see her on stage.
I jumped all the way down to the 10th track (Done is Done) there – let me list them all for you, in order, with their writers, and tell you a little about some of the rest of them. Here is what you are going to get on this new album: Touch the Stars, Rachele Lynae, Danick Dupelle, Patricia Conroy; Words in Red, Rachele Lynae, Kyle Stallons; Cigarette, Rachele Lynae, Katelynn Beckett; Sometimes You Fly, Rachele Lynae, Luke Sheets; Party Til the Cows Come Home, Rachele Lynae, Jamie O’Neal, Stephanie Bentley, Jimmy Murphy; Fishin for Something, Rachele Lynae, Hannah Bethel; Clean, Rachele Lynae, Justin Halpin; Out On the Floor, Rachele Lynae, Jimmy Murphy, Jamie O’Neal; Sticky Summer Lovin, Rachele Lynae, Jamie O’Neal, Hannah Bethel; Done is Done, Rachele Lynae, Luke Sheets; Two for One Special, Rachele Lynae, Jamie O’Neal, Shaye Smith; Old Fashioned Love, Rachele Lynae, Josh Holiday.
By the time I got to the end of the album, I realized I had a lot of favorite songs. Leading the pack for me are “Done is Done” and “Sometimes You Fly,” but if they don’t end up being your favorites, no need to worry! You are definitely going to find a lot you like among the 12 songs on this CD. The first song very much falls into the category of ‘country/pop’, and is very much like a lot of the songs you hear on today’s Top 40 stations. It is an upbeat song, and I can’t imagine Rachele being able to stand still and sing that one.
The second song, “Words in Red” gave her a great opportunity to showcase her vocals. With a title like “Cigarette” I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this song. But it’s a great song. I think we will all understand the lyrics, and I think most of us have probably been there at one time or another. The song is about regret.
I don’t know what Rachele plans on releasing as a single, but if I were asked, I would to point to “Clean”. This song made me think about growing up’’; about my family; getting hurt as a kid; Mom always being ready with warm, soapy washcloth; church; leaving home; and, coming back. All that in addition to the fact that it is a beautiful song, being sung by an artist with a beautiful voice. This song, more than any of the others on this album, sounds ‘country’ to me. It isn’t country/rock, or country/pop, or country/soul, or country/blues, or country/jazz … it is country.
“Old Fashioned Love” is another great ballad. I like songs that have memorable lyrics. After listening to the album three times, I found myself singing along with this one – and actually waiting for it to come around again.
Regardless of your taste, you are going to find music on this CD that you like, and you will find music that will make you want to sing, dance, tap your feet, close your eyes and relax, think back, and play again.
To learn more about Rachele, visit her web site at www.rachelelynae.com. You can also follow her on Twitter @Rachele Lynae. Keep up with all the latest country music news at www.countryschatter.com, and follow us on Twitter @countryschatter.
Music Charts Magazine Country music CD Review of Dolly Parton - Blue Smoke - by Donna Rea /of the website we all know and love: www.CountrysChatter.com
Date = 3 July 2014
Artists’ names = Jeff Colella and Putter Smith; Jeff Denson and Joshua White
Genre = Jazz
Title = Lotus Blossom; I’ll Fly Away
Record companies = American Jazz Institute; pfMENTUM
Review =
Though I cannot identify the first recorded piano-bass duet, Duke Ellington and Jimmy Blanton recorded four duets in 1940. Oscar Pettiford (later to be Ellington’s bassist) recorded two with pianist Clyde Hart in 1944, one dedicated to Blanton, though this music is not known to exist. Bassist Red Mitchell recorded two albums of duets with pianists, one with Guido Manusardi (1974) and another with Kenny Barron (1986). Bassist Ray Brown recorded three such albums, two with Jimmy Rowles in the late 1970s and, early that decade, one with Ellington titled This One’s for Blanton. Beginning with a session with Hampton Hawes in 1976, bassist Charlie Haden might have been involved in more duet recordings than anyone, having also participated in sessions at least with Chris Anderson, Kenny Barron, Egberto Gismanto, and Hank Jones. Piano-bass duets continue being performed, as two recent CDs illustrate.
Pianist Jeff Colella and bassist Putter Smith recorded together initially in the 1990s. They recently reunited for an album of duets linked by mood, which is mainly subdued, introspective. As a result of the deliberate tempos, one can hear every note and appreciate the interplay between the two men. Colella states the melodies and Smith supports him, always playing pizzicato. While they both solo attractively and together do justice to the compositions, I am most smitten by their conception.
Consider Miles Davis’s “All Blues.” During Smith’s introduction, Colella announces his presence with five spaced dissonant chords. The pianist strikes similar chords at the end of the second blues chorus and a few bars into the third, but also at the conclusion of the performance, which otherwise ends without resolution. That is, his chording constitutes a unifying device, a motif.
Daringly, the musicians draw attention to the briefest selection (3:28) by titling the CD Lotus Blossom. Why daringly? 
This lovely, simple tune was written by Billy Strayhorn, Ellington’s songwriting associate. While musicians were packing at the conclusion of a recording session three months after the composer’s death in 1967, Ellington sat at a piano and played “Lotus Blossom” unaccompanied, with Strayhorn obviously in mind. Fortunately, the tape kept running so the music was preserved. Probably the most moving performance of Ellington’s long career, “Lotus Blossom” is pure emotion. Because it is, any recording of Strayhorn’s composition will likely be compared with Ellington’s and risk being deemed inferior. Possibly as a result—or because of the inherent nature of the composition--musicians performing “Lotus Blossom” follow Ellington’s example by treating it respectfully, ruminatively. With Smith discreetly in the background, this is precisely what Colella does in his interpretation that, though less deep than Ellington’s, is beautiful nonetheless. It succeeds on its own terms.
While mood characterizes Colella and Smith’s CD, bassist Jeff Denson and pianist Joshua White’s is unified by the nature of the tunes, which are religious in nature. Their CD gets off to a rousing start and concludes with a bang with different versions of “I’ll Fly Away.” (A third version is more restrained.) Raucous and dissonant, these two selections are, with “Just As I Am,” the most extroverted pieces on this release, though other ones have passionate moments. Yet Denson and White also demonstrate an ability to sustain a performance at a slow tempo. For example, their deliberate treatment of “What a Friend We Have in Jesus,” the longest selection, permits the natural beauty of the composition to emerge. Played not quite so slowly, “In the Garden” is similarly attractive, and moving. On all nine tunes the instrumentalists play together, they interact engagingly. Though Denson solos, he is most important when keeping the beat during White’s adventuresome solos. White’s playing sometimes reminds me of Don Pullen’s.
Denson performs two tunes unaccompanied, “Crying in the Chapel” (pizzicato) and “Amazing Grace” (arco). Played slowly, the latter is more impressive than the former. On “Amazing Grace” he makes multiphonic sounds that lead one to wonder if they result from overdubbing. (They do not.) This technique creates great interest in his version of this revered song that, at least for me, long ago entered the realm of cliché, possibly because I have heard it at so many funerals.
Though different in almost every way other than instrumentation and a high level of musicianship, these two CDs delight. With varied selections, the first is similar in mood throughout. With unified selections, the second has a wide range of moods. Both duos make meaningful contributions to the tradition of piano-bass duets possibly initiated by Duke Ellington and Jimmy Blanton in 1940.
Author = Benjamin Franklin V
Date = 21 June 2014
Artist name = The Fat Babies
Genre = Jazz
Title = 18th & Racine
Record company = Delmark
Review =
Why is it that some established forms of improvised music are more valued than others? Though bebop developed in the early 1940s, for example, it is possibly the form of jazz played most frequently. Traditional jazz, however defined, is less highly regarded. One reason for this disparity might be that the more modern music is complex and therefore demanding while the older is sometimes simple and presumably easy to play. Bebop is still capable of yielding surprises; traditional jazz, less so. On “High Society,” can any traditional clarinetist escape the influence of Alphonse Picou’s solo from the distant past?
Whatever the answer(s) to the question, traditional jazz continues being performed by serious musicians. Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks is probably the most notable traditional group; bassist Beau Sample’s Fat Babies is another one. Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Chicago, this septet plays compositions mainly from the 1920s and early 1930s. Its music is vital partly because most of its repertoire, as represented on 18th & Racine, is not overly familiar. Yes, “Stardust” is one of the most popular tunes in all of American music and anyone interested in traditional jazz doubtless is aware of “Nobody’s Sweetheart,” but the remaining thirteen selections are less well known. Among them are creations by such stellar musicians as Fletcher Henderson, James P. Johnson, Jabbo Smith, and Clarence Williams.
So what does the band bring to these more-or-less neglected compositions from long ago? At least two things: First, it plays well and energetically; second, it performs some tunes in a manner consistent with the original recordings of them while refashioning others. Consider the second point. Despite being twenty seconds longer than Jabbo Smith’s recording of “Till Times Get Better,” the septet’s version follows the structure of Smith’s. Both begin with a piano introduction (including three identical opening notes). Then, the cornet states the melody, a musician sings, the clarinet solos, and the cornet concludes the piece. The group takes liberties with Fletcher Henderson’s “The Stampede,” giving the opening melodic statement to the cornet rather than the ensemble and otherwise redistributing the solos among the horns; the new recording is over a minute longer than Henderson’s. In other words, the band’s approach to its material is not predictable.
Two selections require special comment. The corny vocal on “I’ll Fly to Hawaii,” recorded initially by Brad Gowans in 1926, makes it irredeemable. This might be the first recording of the tune since the second recording of it--by Julian Fuhs in 1927. The reason for its neglect is obvious. With many old songs worthy of reconsideration, I wonder why leader Sample chose “I’ll Fly to Hawaii” for inclusion on this CD. James P. Johnson’s “Blueberry Rhyme” is a piano solo by Paul Asaro, backed only by drummer Alex Hall on brushes. The composer recorded it twice (1939, 1943), both times as an unaccompanied piano solo. It became something of a favorite of Asaro, who recorded it at least four times as leader, all in 2004. That his and Hall’s version is polished therefore comes as no surprise.
The music on 18th & Racine shows that in the hands of spirited instrumentalists, traditional jazz played unpredictably is still viable.
Author = Benjamin Franklin V
Date = 18 Jun 2014
Artist Name = Lena Bloch
Genre = Jazz
Title = Feathery
Record Company = Thirteenth Note
Review =
Among the jazz musicians born in Russia are Buzzy Drootin, Valery Ponomarev, Alexei Kuznetsov, members of the Ganelin Trio (Vladimir Chekasin, Vyacheslav Ganelin, and Vladimir Tarasov), and possibly Charlie Spivak. To this list may be added Lena Bloch, hitherto unknown to me. Born in Moscow, the tenor saxophonist has led, since 1989, a peripatetic life: Israel, Holland, Germany, United States, Germany again, Canada, Germany yet again, and finally United States, this time initially in Boston but then in Brooklyn, where she currently resides. Along the way she received a degree from the Cologne Conservatory and attended graduate school at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. In Europe around 1991 she began playing professionally, including with the rock group Embryo and as leader of her own quartet. Soon thereafter she met alto saxophonist Lee Konitz, who introduced her to music that would inspire her from then until now. This is the music of pianist-composer-theorist-teacher Lennie Tristano (1919-1978) and his associates Ted Brown and Warne Marsh, both tenor saxophonists; himself a Tristano student and colleague, Konitz is the best known musician of what might be called the Tristano School. As Feathery demonstrates, Bloch is, apparently, the most recent instrumentalist influenced by Tristano and dedicated to keeping alive his precepts, as practiced by his acolytes. She creates music well worth hearing and taking seriously.
Bloch is possibly most indebted to Marsh and Brown in matters of tone: like theirs, hers is dry, with little vibrato. She plays cleanly by articulating individual notes and avoiding flurries of sixteenth notes. Each note matters. This tendency is perhaps most obvious on “Baby Suite” and “Starry-Eyed.” On the former, she plays strings of single notes, each note followed by a rest; on the latter, which is really the standard “Star Eyes,” she usually pauses between the notes that correspond to the words “star” and “eyes,” “eyes” and “are,” and “skies” and “are” when sung. This separation of notes creates an airiness that parallels the tone she gets from her horn. Especially at slow tempo, her technique has the effect of forcing the listener (this listener, anyway) to focus intently on her playing. (Altering aspects of a popular tune and renaming it is part of the Tristano tradition. His “Lennie’s Pennies,” for example, is a reworking of “Pennies from Heaven.”)
Bloch drew on Marsh and Brown for two of the tunes included on Feathery. Though not flagwavers, they are the most
Lena Block - Feathery - Music Charts Magazine Jazz CD Review by Benjamin Franklin V
sprightly performances on the CD. Marsh’s “Marshmallow” is based on the chords of “Cherokee”; Brown’s “Featherbed,” on those of “You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To.” She acknowledges Konitz with an original tune titled “Hi-Lee,” which alludes to his composition “Hi Beck.”
If the Marsh and Brown compositions are up-tempo, guitarist Dave Miller’s “Rubato” is the opposite. Though it contains a section of relatively energetic playing, that section is framed by music performed at a dirge-like tempo. Amazingly, the group, a quartet, engages in effective collective improvisation at this tempo. Billy Mintz’s drum solo is so slow that it barely moves. As with Bloch’s own playing, though, this deliberateness—almost stasis—forces the listener to focus on the sounds Mintz creates. Bassist Cameron Brown—a major presence throughout the CD and the composer of “Baby Suite”—plays arco, while Miller provides chords and joins the leader in unison passages. “Rubato” is an impressive performance.
Yet all the music on this release is impressive. Feathery signals the arrival of a significant musician, Lena Bloch. Not only does she help keep alive the Tristano tradition, but her music is among the most stimulating I have heard recently.
Author = Benjamin Franklin V
Dolly Parton has done just about everything a person can do in one lifetime, and it doesn’t appear that she’s about to slow down. She still tours, the U.S. and the world. She’s still working behind the scenes at her theme parks, and she is very involved in the Imagination Library, where children are provided a free book every month through the age of five. She has an honorary doctorate, she’s worked with Girl Scouts, she has been in movies, written songs, and been nominated for at least one Tony Award, Emmy Award, Grammy Award…the list goes on Dolly recently released her 42nd studio album. I listened to the review copy for several weeks before it was officially released on May 13. She always has something different to offer her fans. We’re talking about Dolly Parton here. A unique, recognizable voice that can sing any kind of song out there. And, the new album definitely shows us that. The album includes the song “You Can’t Make Old Friends,” which features Kenny Rogers, and “From Here to the Moon and Back,” with Willie Nelson. The album has an old Bob Dylan song, “Don’t Think Twice”. And, the album has nine songs that Dolly wrote. Dolly actually started recording in 1959. She became a huge success in the mid 1960s, putting out hit after hit. When the sound of country music changed, Dolly changed with it. But somehow, she never left the sound of real country music behind. She has the ability to let us hear her gospel sound, her folksy sound, her country sound, and for certain a little of that bluegrass side. You can dance to Dolly’s music, you can sing along with it, you can cry with it. But, whatever reaction each song generates, you are for sure going to enjoy it. Here are the songs you are going to get on this new album: Blue Smoke, Unlikely Angel, Don’t Think Twice, You Can’t Make Old Friends, Home, Banks of the Ohio, Lay Your Hands on Me, Miss You-Miss Me, If I Had Wings, Lover Du Jour, From Here to the Moon and Back and Try. First time through the album, I had a few favorites. Second time through, I changed my mind, and picked different favorites. But by the third time I listened, I realized there is something to like about each and every one of the songs on the CD. This is one of those albums that will find you are really listening to the lyrics. “Try” and “Unlikely Angel” remained two of my favorites, no matter how many times I listened. Dolly is very convincing when she tells the listener, “And if you fail at first just keep on trying, ‘Cause you are not a failure in God’s eyes, So spread your wings and let the magic happen, ‘Cause you’ll never really know if you don’t try”.
For everything you want to know about Dolly, visit her web site at dollyparton.com. You can follow her on Twitter, too, @DollyParton. Country music news and reviews are always available at www.countryschatter.com, and you will find us on Twitter @countryschatter.
Music Charts Magazine Country music CD Review of Dolly Parton - Blue Smoke - by Donna Rea /of the website we all know and love: www.CountrysChatter.com
Date = 21 June 2014
Artist Name = Sonny Rollins
Genre = Jazz
Title = Road Shows, Volume 3
Record Company = OKeh
Review =
Some superior Sonny Rollins performances have been made available in recent years as a result of his decision to release selections from concerts on his own label, Doxy. The first CD appeared in 2008, and the second three years later; the third has just been issued on OKeh, sixty-five years after his initial recording (with Babs Gonzales) in 1949. His desire to circulate this worthwhile music as he ages (he was born in 1930) is understandable; it is also cause for celebration.
Recorded in France, Japan, and St. Louis, the six selections come from 2001, 2006, 2007, 2009, and 2012 (two). At over fifteen and twenty-three minutes, respectively, the standards “Someday I’ll Find You” and “Why Was I Born?” are the longest ones. (Could some of the former, a Noel Coward composition, have influenced Thelonious Monk when he was writing “Ask Me Now”?) Two Rollins originals are familiar (“Biji” and “Don’t Stop the Carnival”), while he wrote “Pantanjali” only recently. A curiosity, “Solo Sonny” is more a melange than a unified whole.
Though all of Rollins’s recordings are worth hearing, even the least inspired ones, the music on Road Shows, Volume 3, which is of almost uniformly high quality, supports the view that Rollins usually plays better in live performances than on studio recordings. Aided by effective rhythm sections, his rhythmic drive is impressive on “Biji,” “Don’t Stop the Carnival,” “Pantanjali,” and “Why Was I Born?” He plays only “Someday I’ll Find You” relatively slowly. His tone is as full bodied and attractive as ever. His inventiveness never flags. Though the other soloists (trombonist Clifford Anderson, pianist Stephen Scott, and guitarists Bobby Broom and Peter Bernstein) are adequate, they are largely of incidental interest; they mostly fill time as the high-energy leader rests and recharges. He is the main attraction.
I find two aspects of this release irritating. One is “Solo Sonny.” Played without accompaniment, it consists entirely of quotations from familiar tunes that lack any obvious connection. Its presence on this CD indicates Rollins’s approval of it, and many listeners will probably consider it a highlight, going so far as to attempt to identify all the compositions from which Rollins quotes. Yet it strikes me as a stunt, an exercise appropriate for a practice session, not a concert. I wonder why Rollins values “Solo Sonny” and decided to release it instead of something else from among the hours of unissued concert performances to which he doubtless has access.
That these performances deserved enthusiastic audience response is obvious, but too much of it is retained on this CD. The applause totals five minutes, time that could have been given to the inclusion of another musical selection. People listening to this release more than once at a single sitting will have to endure two full minutes of applause between the end of the final selection and the beginning of the music on the first one. Around forty seconds of clapping typically separate tunes, applause that, in linking one piece to another, creates the impression that the selections were played in sequence at the same concert. Nothing would have been lost, and something would have been gained, from significantly reducing the amount of audience response to Rollins’s playing. This sublime music does not need the validation implied by excessive applause.
These reservations aside, the third volume of Road Shows is a major addition to the rich recorded legacy of Sonny Rollins. I hope he will release, or permit others to release, additional concert material of similar quality.
Author = Benjamin Franklin V
Just about every country music fan remembers Matt Stillwell for his hit single, “Shine”. But there is a lot more to this artist than one hit song. If you are one of the many fans who have lost touch with him over the past few years, it is definitely time to reconnect with this very talented vocalist and musician.
On March 11, he released his sophomore album, “Right On Time”. The album has 12 songs, five of which Matt co-wrote. Each song on the album is better than good, and several of them had me asking myself, ‘why haven’t I heard this on the radio?’
The title track, written by Matt Stillwell, Sherrie Austin and Will Rambeaux, is my favorite. “Right On Time” is a slow song, great melody, great lyrics, and basically great country music. Not the country/rock, country/pop or country/rap we’ve been hearing on the radio lately. This song will remind every country music fan why it is they fell in love with country music.
Matt’s new CD is definitely worthy of a raving review. I hope all of his fans who don’t have a copy yet will get over to iTunes and pick one up. When I first got this album, I found myself listening to “Right On Time” over and over. It wasn’t too long before I knew every word, and could sing with it from the first word to the last.
While that title track will probably remain my favorite, there are 11 more on this CD that are every bit as good. I think “Enough” is another great song. And, I’m really sure most of our country music listeners will agree with me on this one. There is not one song on the CD that you will want to skip over when you see it coming up next on the play list. Here is what you are going to get on this awesome album: “Cold Beer” (Dean Dillon, Phil O’Donnell, Matt Stillwell), “Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em” (Mickey Jack Cones, Matt Stillwell, Lynn Hutton), “Ignition” (Sherrie Austin, William Rambeaux, Paul Duncan), “I Do What I Do” (Wil Nance, Jim “Moose” Brown ), “Enough” (Justin Moore, Ashe Underwood, Jamie Paulin), “I’m A Sinner” (Lynn Hutton, Matt Stillwell), “The Way You Make Me Feel” (Michael Jackson), “Make Love For A Livin’” (Brad Crisler, Craig Wiseman, Gary Nichols), “Rough Draft” (Johnny Bulford, Phil Barton), “Sunshine” (Lynn Hutton, Rodney Clawson), “Remember Where You Come From” (Lynn Hutton, Matt Stillwell, Jon Henderson), and “Right On Time” (Matt Stillwell, Sherrie Austin, Will Rambeaux).
Matt is a great entertainer. I have seen him work with a full band, and also at several acoustic shows. His performances usually include his songs, as well as songs made famous by George Jones, Keith Whitley, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, and many others. He is putting the country back in country music, and I am sure I’m not the only one ready for that.
You can keep up with new about Matt, as well as his show schedule, at mattstillwell.com, and follow him on Twitter @mattstillwell. For all the latest country music news and reviews, visit countryschatter.com, and follow us on Twitter @countryschatter.
Music Charts Magazine® Country music CD Review of Matt Stillwell - Right On Time - by Donna Rea /of the website we all know and love: www.CountrysChatter.com
Date = 18 June 2014
Author = Terry Teachout
Genre = Jazz
Title = Duke: A Life of Duke Ellington
Publisher = Gotham Books
Review =
Duke Ellington is arguably the most important person in jazz history. Without question the major jazz composer, he would almost certainly be enshrined in any pantheon of American composers. He led a band from the 1920s until 1974, the year he died, partly so he could hear his creations played by superior players, whose individuality inspired him to write tunes with them in mind, such as “Concerto for Cootie” for trumpeter Cootie Williams. If he did not always acknowledge their contributions to compositions credited only to him, he paid them well and abided their idiosyncrasies and indiscretions to the degree that his major players stayed with him for decades. Harry Carney, for example, was the baritone saxophonist from 1927 until after the leader’s death. When a star soloist resigned, it was news, as when Williams departed for Benny Goodman’s group in 1940: the jazz press noted it, and Raymond Scott even wrote a tune titled “When Cootie Left the Duke.” In time the defectors, including Williams, returned, partly because they were unsuccessful away from the band, partly because of the security Ellington offered, and partly because he provided a context for them to perform to best advantage. He worked tirelessly, distracted from music seemingly only by sex, for which he would walk, as he once said, past money to attain. Even though he accurately presented himself as dignified and sophisticated--cultured, refined, and elegant--so he and by extension his music would reflect well on his race, he was impenetrable. He kept people at charm’s length, seldom revealing much about himself, even in Music Is My Mistress, his 1973 autobiography. In Duke, Terry Teachout concludes that “everyone knows him—yet no one knows him. That was the way he wanted it” (361).
Ellington might have been inscrutable, but Teachout’s admirable narrative conveys much of what is known about him, though most of the information, by far, concerns his professional life, as it should. While interesting, his little-known personal life—the never-divorced wife who once slashed his face; the discarded lovers who married his sidemen, including trombonist Lawrence Brown—is mostly irrelevant to what makes him important: his music. On this topic, the author is compelling. Though he details aspects of numerous recordings (recordings constitute the proof of Ellington’s greatness), he does not mention every session, or every tune from the sessions he does discuss. Mainly, he treats highlights. When focusing on “Ko-Ko” (1940), for example, he comments on the opening riff and the dissonant piano in the fourth chorus before concluding that this performance is “a relentless procession of musical events that contains not a wasted gesture. Every bar surges inexorably toward the final catastrophe, after which no response is possible but awed silence.” He terms this “the greatest of Ellington’s three-minute masterpieces” (208). As this statement indicates, he has beliefs--and provides reasons for them. Generally, though, he agrees with the critical consensus, as when valuing most highly the band that was active circa 1940, the one now known as the Blanton-Webster band for two of the most important sidemen, bassist Jimmy Blanton and tenor saxophonist Ben Webster. Agreement with the majority view is inevitable because Ellington has been taken seriously for a long time and has been written about voluminously. Men of strong opinions, James Lincoln Collier and Gunther Schuller are just two of the writers who have addressed Ellington and influenced opinion about him. Further, the music speaks for itself: The qualitative difference is obvious between such early classics as “Creole Love Call” (1927) and “The Mooche” (1928) and such late albums as Paris Blues (1961) and Hits of the 60’s This Time by Ellington, which is also known as Ellington 65 (1964). To his book, Teachout appends a list of fifty key recordings arranged chronologically, though he does not indicate what he means by “key.” Does he mean that these recordings are, to him, Ellington’s best? The most important in the development of the leader’s career? Something else? No matter what he means, he intends to commend them. In doing so, he provides guidance to readers unfamiliar with Ellington’s music; the list will also possibly inspire debate among initiates who will doubtless agree that most of the recordings the author mentions are significant. Most of the recordings, but not all of them: I, for one, do not value the 1968 Second Sacred Concert. I also think the album Money Jungle (1962) is effective as a whole, not just for “Fleurette Africaine.”
Despite being unable to detail much personal information about the adult Ellington, Teachout treats his relationships with professional associates, including two who operated largely behind the scenes: his manager and major collaborator. He explains Irving Mills’s importance by demonstrating how the manager helped establish the leader’s image and promoted Ellington by, among other things, getting him good bookings and arranging for the band to appear in movies. Teachout also explains why Mills is identified as co-composer of tunes written by his employer, such as “Mood Indigo.”
Though some members of the Ellington organization despised the leader (Lawrence Brown is one who did), others idolized him. Paramount among the latter group was composer and pianist Billy Strayhorn, who auditioned for Ellington in late 1938 by playing two Ellington tunes plus two of his own compositions, “Lush Life” (written at eighteen) and “Something to Live For.” Ellington soon hired him. Strayhorn wrote numerous pieces for the band, including “Take the A Train,” which became its theme, and “Chelsea Bridge”; he collaborated on others, such as “Rocks in My Bed.” In time resenting Ellington’s paternalism and co-opting of his compositions, Strayhorn left his mentor in the early 1950s and began writing on his own. Later, the relationship was renewed; they collaborated on the suite Such Sweet Thunder (1957) and the popularly successful The Nutcracker Suite (1960). Despite their differences, Ellington was devastated by his associate’s death (1967). Distraught, he thought himself incapable of delivering the elegy he wrote, so he “sat in stony silence as his heartfelt words were read out loud to the mourners” (334). Soon thereafter, Ellington recorded an album (. . . And His Mother Called Him Bill) devoted to Strayhorn’s compositions. On it, he plays “Lotus Blossom” so movingly that it stands as one of the most emotional performances of his long career.
Teachout makes many astute observations. One concerns how Ellington’s compositions differ from those of all other big-band leaders: “instrumental color” (213). Another explains how Ellington attained this coloring: while arrangements performed by other bands kept the various sections (trumpet, trombone, woodwind) separate, Ellington “mixed the sections of his band together” (213). The author also observes that Ellington was not a natural melodist and that he could not grasp the necessity of writing musicals that are driven by the songs. Jump for Joy is an example of this failure. He explains how Ellington deftly solved problems caused by the 1941 creation of Broadcast Music Incorporated to compete in the licensing of songs with the established American Society of Composers and Publishers. (Ellington was a member of ASCAP.) Additionally, he gives some inside information about Ellington’s musicians: the hiring of Rex Stewart angered Cootie Williams, Barney Bigard was a prankster, and Tricky Sam Nanton was an intellectual. He explains why Ellington valued the valve trombone, and notes that he wore a girdle.
In addition to providing a comprehensive view of Ellington and his music, Duke is well written and easy to read, even by those unfamiliar with musical terminology and who cannot read music. “Ostinato” (162) is probably the most demanding musical term Teachout uses; nowhere is there musical notation. He explains the method he used when writing the book: It “is not so much a work of scholarship as an act of synthesis, a narrative biography that is substantially based on the work of academic scholars and other researchers” (363), though he acknowledges his responsibility for interpreting this material. His indebtedness to the work of others is evident in eighty pages of notes, so anyone wishing to confirm the author’s statements may do so. A reader may easily evaluate Teachout’s interpretations of Ellington’s music by accessing much of it on youtube.com, and for this reason I recommend reading the book while seated near a computer. Want to hear Bing Crosby singing “St. Louis Blues” (1932) with Ellington? It is on YouTube, as is “Old Man Blues” (1930), of which Teachout makes much. What about Ellington’s presence on film? The obscure Symphony in Black (1934) is there, as are two movies from 1937, The Hit Parade and Record Making with Duke Ellington and His Orchestra.
Teachout concludes his narrative perfectly. Returning to the impossibility of knowing many facts about Ellington, the author notes that Ellington actually revealed himself: “He left behind his music, the only mistress to whom he told everything and was always true” (361).
Author = Benjamin Franklin V
It is always exciting find local talent with a national future. I found that in Marcus Boyd. The Richlands, Va., resident recently released his debut CD, titled The Bird. In addition to singing all of the songs on this CD, Marcus also wrote all 11 songs, and produced the album.
Marcus started playing guitar when he was 8 years old. While growing up in Virginia, he played and sang at church. In addition to guitar, he plays banjo, piano, mandolin and bass. Over the years, he found himself playing just about every kind of music. While his favorite has remained country, he also plays bluegrass, gospel, and even a little rock and classical. The songs on his album prove that country is the right genre for him.
The CD cover shows us that Marcus has a great sense of humor. The cover art says "The Bird...music from the warped mind of Marcus Boyd". I'm not sure where that came from, since the music doesn't really reflect that. I asked him why he chose The Bird for the album title, and he said, "I named this CD after the song on track six. Really, I could have named it after a number of songs on the CD, but I chose The Bird because it’s a fun song. I write mostly serious songs about all facets of life, and there’s nothing really that I wouldn’t touch. I wanted to keep some “fun” in the album, though. I am not one to take myself too seriously, and I get requests to play this song when I play live. So, I went with it when naming the album”.
The 11 songs you are going to hear are, Gonna Love You, I Gotta Go, Real Man, Leavin’ Virginia, Ain’t Met Her Yet, The Bird, Tuesday Sunset, Pucker UP, Girlfriends and Ex Wives, Little Church Girl and End of Our Song. Every song is country. Every song is well-written, and it goes without saying that Marcus did a great job singing every song, too. He has the kind of voice that you could fall asleep to, but at the same time, he is such a good entertainer, that you wouldn’t want to sleep through one of his performances.
Somehow, Marcus Boyd manages to make country music sound the way it did 50 years ago, and still makes it sound like we should be hearing it on country radio today. He lists his influences as Gary Allan, Tom Petty, Garth Brooks, Vince Gill, Leo Kottke, Counting Crows – I hear those influences in his music, but I hear some that go back a lot farther, too.
I never review a CD without picking a favorite song – this time, I can’t pick just one. My absolute favorite is “I Gotta Go”. ‘….It’s never quite what it seems, you spend your life chasing dreams, but I gotta go; I can’t let my life pass me by, you gotta know, I’ve begged, I’ve pleaded, I’ve tried; I’m not one to say I told you so, but I gotta go….’ Those are a few of the lyrics, now wait until you hear this melody. If you like a ballad, sung from the heart – this is your ballad.
“Gonna Love You” is another one of my favorites. It’s a a mid-tempo song, with great lyrics. If Marcus wasn’t a singer/songwriter, I think he would have made a great storyteller. But, I suppose that’s what he is doing through his music. And, he does it well. I am sure that if I were in position to select tunes ready for the radio, “Tuesday Sunset” and “Pucker Up” would be on my playlist.
While they can’t all be favorites, I will say there is not one song on this entire album that isn’t good. “Girlfriends and Ex Wives” should be getting played in every honky tonk in the country. I can just hear the entire bar singing along to that one. Then again, I think a lot of the songs Marcus sings would have that same affect on the people listening. They would want to sing along. Marcus produced this album, and he did a great job with it. It is an album I will play a lot, and I think everyone who buys a copy will be playing it a lot, too. The album is available on iTunes.
Marcus plays a lot of shows in Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia. To keep up with his show schedule, please visit marcusboydmusic.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @MarcusBoydMusic. Remember, for all the latest country music news and reviews head over to countryschatter.com, and follow us on Twitter @countryschatter.
Music Charts Magazine® Country music CD Review of Marcus Boyd - The Bird - by Donna Rea /of the website we all know and love: www.CountrysChatter.com