Enjoy "Red Garland - You're My Everything" on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/4WjgDoWK-QQ

The right stuff for a releaxed and peacful summer.

Please stay well.

We are happy to inform that the nagel heyer records channel on YouTube has been officially launched! Please have a look and enjoy the music:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0E9BYQ25PJiKvKFIH5SHew/

“Marty Elkins is a throwback as she sounds very much like a jazz singer from the 1950s… Well worth the wait.”

MARTY ELKINS is a throwback as she sounds very much like a jazz singer from the 1950s. On FAT DADDY [nagel heyer records CD 124] she is wonderfully backed by a group [Jon-Erik Kellso - tpt, James Chirillo - gtr, Joel Diamond - keys / as, Steve Ash - p, Lee Hudson -b,Taro Okamoto - drm, Leopoldo Fleming - perc] that accompanies her in the vernacular of the era. Special note of Kellso’s work, his tender Louis-like obligatos behind Elkins are thoughtful and controlled.

The 14 tracks [55:24] here include “On Revival Day”, “Cow Cow Boogie”, ”Fat Daddy” and ”It’s Too Hot For Words” and others that are well chosen for the occasion of this non-campy outing.

My only complaint is the use of organ which often sounds too heavy. Elkins recorded this date on August 9 & 10, 2017. This is her 4th release and she is averaging one recording every 10 years. Well worth the wait.

Cadence Magazine by Robert Rusch

MARTY ELKINS/Walkin’ By the River: You might be tempted to pick this up because of the 50s gal vibe that hosts the cover of this jazz set. Surprise, the set card might be full of oldies but Marty is the gal on the cover exercising the vibe. Totally giving it the thrush rush, Elkins delivers these tunes as if she reached into a wormhole in time and pulled them back here for today. The oldies album Maria Muldaur should have made in the mid 70s, this is the bomb by real vocal bombshell. Tasty stuff throughout that really makes you grin merrily.
(NAGEL HEYER 119)

http://www.midwestrecord.com/MWR1070.html

Vocalist MARTY ELKINS has a terrific new album, Walkin’ By the River (Nagel Heyer – 119). She hails from New Jersey, and has been active on the New York/New Jersey scene for a few decades, but this is only her third album, all of them released on the German record label Nagel Heyer. When you listen to her sing the 13 songs on this disc, you will wonder why she has so few recordings, and why no domestic label has added her to their roster. This says a lot about the state of the music business in this day and age. She has assembled a top-notch roster of musicians to accompany her, including Jon-Erik Kellso on trumpet, Howard Alden on guitar, Joel Diamond on organ, Steve Ash on piano, Lee Hudson on bass and Taro Okamoto on drums. The songs are well suited to her jazz infused vocalizing. It is fitting that “Down in Steamboat Tennessee” is included. This song is associated with the legendary Lee Wiley, a singer whose influence is detectible when you listen to Elkins. Among the other songs on the program are “If I Could Be with You,” “Runnin’ Wild,” “Comes Love,” “I’ll Never Be the Same, and the title tune, “Walkin’ By the River.” This is a new recording, but has the feeling of a session from the 1930s, and that is a good thing!

Joe Lang, Jersey Jazz

Jazz on the highest level. Don’t miss this fine combination live in concert:

13.5. Bocholt / Kinodrom
14.5. Köln / Altes Pfandhaus
15.5. Viersen / Webernhaus
18.5. Wiesbaden / Camera
19.5. Frankfurt / Jazzkeller
20.5. Lüttich / Jaques Pelzers Jazzclub (B)
21.5. Düsseldorf / Jazzrally
22.5. Lustenau / Jazzhuus (AU)
23.5. Diersbach (Inntöne Festival) (AU)
24.5. Diersbach (Inntöne Festival) (AU)
26.5. Basel / Bird’s Eye (CH)
28.5. Marseille / Jazzclub (F)
29.5. Paris / Sunset (F)
30.5. Paris / Sunset (F)

For more information please look at:
www.martinsasse.de

Even if the new year is still young we already have produced some great new recordings for a digital only release. So please have a look at iTunes, amazon, DEEZER or Spotify etc. for the following albums:

Alex Welsh - For the Glory Of Love (nh 245)
Ruby Braff - Dream Dancin’ (nh 246)
Jimmy Witherspoon - Tryin’ Not To Fall (nh 247)
Clark Terry - Once Upon a Dream, Vol. 2 (nh 248)
Dick Wellstood - Your Skies Of Blue (nh 249)
Curtis Fuller - The Good And The Ugly (nh 250)
Jimmy Smith - That Lucky Old Sun (nh 251)
Nancy Wilson - Someday You’ll Want Me To Want You (nh 252)
Booker Little - Save Your Love For Me (nh 253)

Enjoy the music!

Das JazzKorea Festival
vom 1. bis 7. Dezember 2014

Mo  01.12.2014    
MosaiKOREA - Berlin, Tempodrom (Kleine Arena)

Di  02.12.2014   
Black String - Berlin, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum
Yun Seok Cheol Trio (Set 1) - Hamburg, Golem
Lee Ji young Trio (Set 2) - Hamburg, Golem
Lee Jumi Quartet - Frankfurt am Main, Jazzkeller

Mi  03.12.2014    
Yu Jong Hyeon & Shin Hyunpill - Frankfurt am Main, Jazzkeller
Yun Seok Cheol Trio (Set 1) - München, Unterfahrt
Lee Jumi Quartet (Set 2) - München, Unterfahrt

Do  04.12.2014
Shin Hyunpill Quartet - Frankfurt am Main, Jazzkeller
Yun Seok Cheol Trio (Set 1) - Ebersberg, Altes Kino
Lee Jumi Quartet (Set 2) - Ebersberg, Altes Kino
Lee Ji young Trio - Warschau, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum
Yu Jong Hyeon Quartet - Berlin, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum

Fr  05.12.2014
Yun Seok Cheol Trio (Set 1) - Berlin, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum
Shin Hyunpill Quartet Berlin (Set 2) - Berlin, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum
Yu Jong Hyeon Quartet - Warschau, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum
Lee Ji young Trio (Set 1) - Reutlingen, World Of Basses
Lee Jumi Quartet (Set 2) - Reutlingen, World Of Basses

Sa  06.12.2014
Lee Ji young Trio - Berlin, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum
Lim Min Jung Trio feat. Lee Jumi (Set 1) - Warschau, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum
Shin Hyunpill Quartet (Set 2) - Warschau, Koreanisches Kulturzentrum

Viel Spaß!

Mehr Infos unter: jazzkorea.kulturkorea.org

7 Bands, 7 Tage, 7 Städte – vom 1. bis 7. Dezember 2014

Nach der überaus erfolgreichen Premiere 2013 geht das JazzKorea Festival jetzt in die zweite Runde – insgesamt sieben außergewöhnliche Bands, darunter junge Nachwuchstalente, etablierte Größen und mit MosaiKorea ein großes Ensemble spielen während der sieben Festivaltage.
Im Lineup von JazzKorea 2014 finden sich die Pianistin Lim Mi Jung, die Sängerin Lee Jumi, die Saxophonisten Kim Jeeseok und Hyunpill Shin, der Pianist Yun Seok Cheol und ihre mit koreanischen und internationalen Musikern besetzten Bands. Sie spielen Konzerte in Jazzclubs und Institutionen in sieben deutschen Städten: Berlin, Hamburg, München, Frankfurt/M., Pforzheim, Reutlingen und Ebersberg.
Neu in diesem Jahr: JazzKorea gastiert am 02.12.2014 für einen Abend in Hamburg und erstmals führt das Festival die Musiker/innen an fünf Abenden nach Polen – in die Hauptstadt Warschau. Möglich wird das durch die Unterstützung und Organisation des Koreanischen Kulturzentrums und des Festivaldirektors Jong Seok Yun, Leiter des Koreanischen Kulturzentrums. In Zusammenarbeit mit dem künstlerischen Leiter Martin Zenker und Pressesprecher Nabil Atassi wurde diese zweite Runde von JazzKorea möglich gemacht.
(Nabil Atassi)

http://jazzkorea.kulturkorea.org

37 years ago today Sonny left this world… Still missed, never to be forgotten.

"…without a doubt my biggest influence has been Sonny Criss. In 1977 I headed down to Los Angeles to meet Sonny. I was very fortunate to become his student for the next eight months. Then, suddenly and tragically, on November 19, 1977, Sonny Criss committed suicide, and, while the jazz world lost one of its most phenomenal players, I lost an idol, a brother, and a friend."
Dylan Cramer

http://www.dylancramer.com

FREE! FREE! FREE!

Martin Sasse Trio
feat. Steve Grossman
Take the "D" Train

Coming soon.

Get it now for free:
http://we.tl/1oVEol3l20

Enjoy!

Offer ends: 1. October 2014

FREE! FREE! FREE!

Enjoy these fine recordings as a digital only release. So please have a look at iTunes, amazon or Spotify etc. for the following albums:

Shelly Manne - Daydreamer (nh 165)
Anita O‘Day - Careless Love (nh 166)
Dizzy Gillespie - Me And The Boys (nh 167)
Gene Krupa - The Way It Was (nh 168)
Sidney Bechet - Only A Moment Ago (nh169)
Sir Charles Thompson - Hey There (nh 170)
Bob Scobey - My Little Universe (nh 171)
Charlie Ventura - All That‘s Mine (nh 172)
Al Sears - Boom (nh 173)
Erroll Garner - Only Because (nh 174)
Lester Young - Fire With Fire (nh 175)
Jay McShann - If You Need Me (nh 176)
Joe Newman - My Star (nh 177)

More and more swinging highlights are coming soon! Don’t miss them!

We have produced a bunch of great new recordings for a digital only release. So please have a look at iTunes, amazon or Spotify etc. for the following albums:

Bobby Hackett - Missing You (nh 151)
Spike Robinson - Once In a While (nh 152)
Billy Butterfield - Only Because Of You (nh 153)
Gerry Mulligan - Home Thoughts From Abroad (nh 154)
Benny Goodman - Heavy Load (nh 155)
Clark Terry - My Gal (nh 156)
Red Norvo - Shades Of Red (nh 157)
Edmond Hall - Happy Man (nh 158)
Bix Beiderbecke - Made In Heaven (nh 159)
Henry “Red“ Allen - If I Saw You Tomorrow (nh 159)
Oscar Peterson - Ways and Means (nh 160)
Bing Crosby - Elegantly Wasted (nh 161)
Wild Bill Davison - Welcome Tomorrow (nh 162)

Watch out! More swinging highlights are coming soon!

Korean German Jazz Exchange with Jin Pureum (and many others...)
The JazzKorea Festival / Nov 28th - Dec 8th 2013:

28.11.2013  Grafing/Jazz Grafing with Supersax Korea
29.11.2013  Diessen/Musiksalon with Supersax Korea
30.11.2013  Diessen/Musiksalon with Supersax Korea
01.12.2013  Reutlingen/WOB with Supersax Korea
01.12.2013  Frankfurt/Jewish Museum with Supersax Korea
02.12.2013  Pforzheim/Domicile with Supersax Korea
03.12.2013  Frankfurt/Jazzkeller with Jin Pureum Quartet
04.12.2013  Unterfahrt/Munich with Supersax Korea
05.12.2013  Unterfahrt/Munich with Jin Pureum Quartet
06.12.2013  Reutlingen/WOB with Jin Pureum Quartet
07.12.2013  Korean Culture Center/Berlin with Jin Pureum Quartet
08.12.2013  Korean Culture Center/Berlin with Supersax Korea

Supersax Korea: Jin Pureum (as) | Im Dalkyun (ts) | Kim Jeeseok (as) | Michael Lutzeier (bts) | Paul Kirby (p) | Martin Zenker (b) | Kim Minchan (dr)

Erleben Sie Martin Sasse live im Herbst 2013. Aktuell auf Tour mit dem Bert Boeren - Scott Hamilton Quintett:

30.10. 's-Hertogenbosch (NL)
31.10. Westoverledingen
01.11. Heerde (NL)
02.11. Maastricht (NL)
03.11. Castrop-Rauxel

Jazzstars aus Korea zum ersten Mal in Deutschland
Termin: 28.11. bis 08.12.2013
Mit dabei die nagel heyer records Künstlerin Jin Pureum. Ihr Debüt "Live in Euope" (nh 2101) erscheint in Kürze.

Jazz aus Korea. Vor einigen Jahren sprach kein Mensch darüber. Mehr noch: Kaum einer konnte sich vorstellen, dass es so etwas überhaupt geben sollte. Heute ist Südkorea einer der Marker auf der globalen Landkarte des Jazz: In Südkorea und insbesondere in der Hauptstadt Seoul entwickelt sich seit einigen Jahren eine vielseitige und hochinteressante Jazzszene. In den Clubs und Bars der Hauptstadt wimmelt es geradezu von koreanischen Jazz- und Nachwuchsmusikern. Immer mehr internationale Musiker kommen in das Land, um dort Jazz zu spielen und an den Musikhochschulen im Land zu unterrichten. In den südkoreanischen Medien wird Jazzmusik immer präsenter. Vor allem die jungen Koreanerinnen und Koreaner feiern den Jazz in den Clubs und bevölkern zahlreich die Konzerte — Jazz ist cool in Korea! Das Jarasum-Jazzfestival ist mit über 150.000 Besuchern eines der größten Jazzfestivals der Welt — und es findet auf koreanischem Boden statt.

In diesem Jahr, zum 130-jährigen Jubiläum offizieller deutschkoreanischer Beziehungen, ist es soweit: Mit Unterstützung der Kulturabteilung der Botschaft der Republik Korea holen wir den Jazz aus Korea in über 30 Konzerten in insgesamt neun deutsche Städte. Vom 28. November bis 8. Dezember 2013 spielen sieben südkoreanische Bandleader, darunter die Sängerin Maria Kim, die Saxophonistin Jin Pureum, der Saxophonist Kim Jeeseok und ihre mit koreanischen und internationalen Musikern besetzten Bands, Konzerte in Jazzclubs, Museen und Institutionen in neun deutschen Städten: Berlin, Frankfurt, München, Pfaffenhofen, Dießen, Grafing, Ettlingen, Pforzheim und Reutlingen.

Neun Bands in neun Städten: das JazzKorea Festival 2013.

Be part of the 25th Anniversary Tour:

11.10.20 Brüssel (B) - Candelaershuys  
13.10.20 Erkheim - Werkstatt Zirnbauer  
15.10.20 Karlsruhe - Jazzclub  
16.10.20 Redange (L) - L‘Inoui  
17.10.20 Leoni - Bootswerft Simmerding  
18.10.20 Zagreb (HR) - Jazzfestival
19.10.20 Lustenau (A) - Jazzhuus  
20.10.20 Neuburg Donau - Birdland  
21.10.20 Stade - Seminarturnhalle  
22.10.20 Bremen - Lür-Kropp-Hof  
23.10.20 Berlin - A-Trane  
24.10.20 Kopenhagen (DK) - Montmartre
25.10.20 Kopenhagen (DK) - Montmartre  
26.10.20 München - Forum 2 Olympiadorf  
27.10.20 Villingen - Jazzclub  
28.10.20 Saarbrücken - Cafe am Schoss (Matinee)  
30.10.20 Zürich (CH) - Widderbar   
01.11.20 Torhout (B) - El Gato Nero  
02.11.20 Hamburg - Birdland  
03.11.20 Braunschweig - Bassgeige

The world famous Brazilian trumpet player Claudio Roditi, the German pianist Klaus Ignatzek, who is one of the leading of his kind in Europe, and the international renowned Belgian bass player Jean-Louis Rassinfosse have been playing together for 25 consecutive years now. This is excellent Chamber Jazz from a top-notch trumpet-piano-bass trio.

The three musicians, who understand each other blindly, form a unity in which musical equality goes without saying. The three of them are always able to lead the audience into their world of sound without being obtrusive but intensive and border-crossing. The trio reveals its unmistakable class as a chamber ensemble.

All their CDs produced and published on the nagel heyer label did not only receive excellent critics worldwide, their music was also at the top of the American charts and on the US radio for several weeks.

The trio's music consists of specially arranged standards and mainly their own compositions in the jazz & Latin jazz genre. Countless concerts throughout Europe and four joint CDs stand as impressive documents of their long term collaboration in the trio format.

Street date for our fabulous new release 'Johannes Ludwig Quartet feat. Johannes Enders - The Druid's Song' is May 25, 2012.

Watch out for the Johannes Ludwig Quintett live over Germany:

26.05. Gleis 1 Waldenburg
01.06. Kiste Stuttgart
01.07. Festival Jazztwoday Trostberg
19.07. Kühlungsborn
20.07. B-flat
30.09. E-Werk Erlangen
01.10. Jazzclub Abensberg
02.10. Cafè Ludwigs, Nürnberg
26.10. Jazzclub Bamberg
27.10. Kulturbahnhof Kalchreuth

For further live dates please visit: www.johannesludwig.com

Martin Sasse - Still Still Still

By Derrick Bang • Originally published in The Davis Enterprise, 14.12.2011

Our world tour continues with Still Still Still (Nagel Heyer Records CD 2090), a gorgeous trio album from German-based musicians Martin Sasse (piano), Henning Gailing (bass) and Hans Dekker (drums). This is exquisitely tasty jazz, mostly in a soft vein, with Sasse adding wonderful keyboard improvs to a blend of English and German carols.

The slow, exquisitely solemn title track is typical of the album, which continues in a similarly gentle vein for “Silent Night,” “The Christmas Song,” “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing,” “In Dulci Jublio (In Sweet Rejoicing)” and a particularly haunting arrangement of “A Child Is Born.”

Gailing shines in two of the faster tracks: a finger-snapping rendition of “Let It Snow” and a feisty reading of “Winter Wonderland,” which features a bowed bass solo. Dekker lays down a strong beat for an unusually percussive arrangement of “Mary’s Boychild,” and he gives “Jingle Bells” a peppy two-beat.

The album concludes with a Sasse original: a sultry blues number dubbed “Christmas Comes But Once a Year,” which grants another smooth bass solo to Gailing.

This is another must-have recording, well worth the slight premium it commands as an import.

www.jazzscan.com/2011/12/holiday-jazz-2011-santa-still-has.html

"Soundtrack for the soul"

"These recordings are about Sonny — because of Sonny and for Sonny" says Dylan Cramer about his recently released album. He [Cramer] is referring to Sonny Criss, one of the best alto saxophonists in history, less well-known by his "civilian/original" name of William Mansfield Turner. Although the tracks on the album "Remembering Sonny Criss 1927-1977" were actually recorded in 1997, they sound as fresh now as they ever have.

A great deal of luck was needed for a schoolboy to be allowed to study under one of the very great jazz musicians. The Canadian, Vancouver-based, alto saxophonist Dylan Cramer had that luck. Sadly, he had the opportunity to benefit from his mentor's skills for only a very short time, before Sonny Criss tragically committed suicide in 1977. "I lost an idol, brother, and a friend" explains Cramer today. "Sonny Criss was a brilliant saxophonist and a proud, honest man who I will never forget."

Twenty years after Criss' death, Cramer gathered a group of first-class musicians in the studio — Cramer on sax, Ron Johnston on piano, Leroy Vinnegar on bass, and John Nolan on drums — to pay homage to his mentor, producing an appropriate musical memorial: a selection of compositions that Criss had recorded through the course of his career. The Canadian produced, in this album, a work of timeless art. The 10 titles are a soundtrack for the soul. The authenticity of the quartet's high energy improvisations is spell-binding. Cramer is not so much a virtuoso as a story-teller, who focuses on short-stories in particular. Fans will be able to lose themselves in this music. An unclassifiable album of jazz in its most classy form.

Jazz Podium, December 2011
Translation: Eric Semlacher

Ray Porter aka the Jazz Rep's CD of the Month

"Remembering Sonny Criss" by alto saxophonist Dylan Cramer.

This is one of those albums that can send a chill down your spine. Dylan studied with Sonny for eight months before his suicide. The love of the mans music and style is bubbling through this album. The tone and sound pull at your heart strings even before you hear those wonderful tunes and compositions associated with Sonny Criss. Dylan says if you like this album then please look to Sonny Criss recordings.
This is not copycat or imitation, there is plenty of Dylan in there. A really nice quartet and have a look at the bass player.
Alto = Dylan Cramer,
Piano = Ron Johnston,
Drums = John Nolan,
Bass = Leroy Vinnegar.
Release 2011 on nagel heyer.

Ray Porter

http://www.ukjazzradio.com/reviews-cdofmonth-ray.html

Das aktuelle Album der Woche ist Four Tenors von Henning Sieverts
Von Thomas Haak

„Henning Sieverts ist der Jazzbassist der Stunde“ - schrieb die Wochenzeitung DIE ZEIT anlässlich der Veröffentlichung seines Quintett-Albums „Blackbird“, das im Mai 2010 mit einem „Echo Jazz“ ausgezeichnet wurde. Für sein neues Projekt hat sich der überaus kreative, virtuose und spielfreudige Musiker vier Brüder im Geiste aus der Münchner Szene eingeladen: Till Martin, Jason Seizer, Hugo Siegmeth und Uli Wangenheim – vier Tenorsaxofonisten also, die ihn normalerweise für ihre Bands als Bassisten oder Cellisten buchen und für „Four Tenors“ ihre instrumentalen Ausdrucks-mittel um Sopransaxofon, Flöten und Klarinetten erweitert haben. Zusammen mit dem Pianisten Christian Elsässer und dem Schlagzeuger Bastian Jütte erweisen sich Henning Sieverts und seine vier Tenöre als Septett, das den Klangfarbenreichtum eines Orchesters mit der Beweglichkeit einer Jazzband verbindet.

Vielfältige Originalität

Nachzuhören im Ellington-Klassiker „The Mooche“ sowie zehn Kompositionen des Bandleaders, die sich als wahres Füllhorn an Originalität und Ideenvielfalt erweisen: So wird beispielsweise ein 12-taktiger Blues mit einer 12-Tonreihe verbunden („Twelve By Four“). Eine lyrische Bossa Nova-Referenz verweigert sich einem potentiellen Hotel-Lobby-Dasein in Gestalt eines 5/4 bzw. 6/4-Takts („Fivesix“). Eine zarte Meditation streichelt den Ton „G“ („Gentle G“) – und ein kräftiger, vierstimmiger Tenorbläsersatz verbeugt sich vor Nelson Mandela („Rolihlahla“). Das Ergebnis ist eine Mischung aus Klangfarbenreichtum und spielerischem Pioniergeist, deren Beschreibung sich den Mitteln des geschriebenen Wortes entzieht. Versucht man es trotzdem, dann am ehesten mit Formulierungen, wie sie in der Süddeutschen Zeitung zu lesen waren: „Phänomenale Eigenkompositionen: ob wild und ausgelassen, schwebend atmosphärisch oder einfach wunderbar herzergreifend, ohne die geringste Spur von Banalität oder Kitsch.“

www.ndr.de/kultur/jazz/cd_tipps/jazzadwhenningsieverts101.html

2gether

(Nagel Heyer/rough trade)

Gut zehn Jahre alt sind diese Aufnahmen bereits. An zwei Dezembertagen im Jahre 2000 trafen sich der der Kornettist und Flügelhornist Warren Vaché und der Pianist Bill Charlap in Old Greenwich, Connecticut, um ein paar alte nette Stücke Musik einzuspielen. Nummern wie „You And The Night And The Music“, das hier wie eine muntere Unterhaltung zweier Freunde klingt. „Darn That Dream“ verströmt eine ungeheure Eleganz, ebenso wie Ellingtons „Prelude To A Kiss“. Die im letzten Jahr in Hamburg von Ben Ahrens re-masterten Aufnahmen brillieren durch ihre Schlichtheit. Das kongeniale Duo setzt ganz auf die Essenz der gehaltvollen Songs, auf interaktives Spiel und Kommunikation, auf Ausdruck. Effekthascherei ist hier in keiner Note zu hören. Dafür aber elf Stücke, die fast ein wenig selbstvergessen und behutsam das Ohr des Zuhörers erreichen.

--
Christoph Giese

Artist:     Janice Harrington
Label:    Nagel Heyer

This is a fine, straight-ahead tribute to the great Dinah Washington, delivered by an excellent singer who is clearly influenced by Washington but no slavish imitator. The program includes several saucy blues numbers in addition to standards long associated with Washington ("I Thought About You," "Makin' Whoopee," "I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart"). An A-list piano trio accompanies Harrington and is augmented on several tracks by horn players including legendary cornetist Nat Adderley. The recording was made in 1988, but it was not mastered until 2009 and this seems to be its first issue.

Rick Anderson
March issue of CD HotList: New
Releases for Libraries

http://cdhotlist.btol.com/cddetail.cfm?yy=2011&mm=3

The Association of German Record Critics

honors

Martin Sasse Trio plus Charlie Mariano
Good Times
Nagel Heyer Records NH 2093 (Rough Trade / Good to Go)

with the

«German Record Critics’ Award»

as a Recording of Exceptional Artistry
and selects it as one of the

«Quarterly Best»
of New Releases for the Fourth Quarter 2010

Bonn, 15th November 2010  On Behalf of The Jury:
Prof. Dr. Lothar Prox, President
Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik e.V.  Haus der Kultur
Weberstraße 59a  D-5311 Bonn

http://www.schallplattenkritik.de/bestenlisten/438-bestenliste-4-2010

07.10.2010 Landshut Wintergarten
08.10.2010 Bühl Jazztival 2010
09.10.2010 Melk (A) Kulturwerkstatt
10.10.2010 Passau tba
11.10.2010 Baden (CH) Isebähnli
12.10.2010 Leoni Bootswerft Simmerding
13.10.2010 Rottenburg (Neckar) tba
14.10.2010 Lier (B) Jazzclub
15.10.2010 Gouvy (B) Jazzclub
16.10.2010 Brüssel (B) Music Village
19.10.2010 Redange (L) L´Inoui
20.10.2010 Liege (B) J.P. Jazzclub
21.10.2010 Leverkusen Topos
22.10.2010 Bad Bederkesa Burg
23.10.2010 Hamburg Birdland
24.10.2010 Wilstedt tba
26.10.2010 Paris (F) Duc des Lombards
27.10.2010 Köln Bogen 2
28.10.2010 München geschlossene Gesellschaft
29.10.2010 München Olympiapark Forum 2
30.10.2010 Eschen (FL) Tangente
31.10.2010 Luzern (CH) Casino

Claudio Roditi - trumpet
Klaus Ignatzek - piano
Jean-Louis Rassinfosse - bass

For more information visit: www.klausignatzek.de

Find us on Facebook: click here

Listen to some music on MySpace: click here

“Glad to see you getting into the 21st century!
Facebook, MySpace, iTunes are all neccessary evils in this day and age!“
Roy Powell

Nagel Heyer CD 114

Ms Elkins has at least five other albums but until now I have to confess to not knowing of her singing. Her voice is pleasant and she emotes the lyrics very well. Mytrouble, and that’s perhaps just mine, is that she somehow doesn’t quite get across, and here I won’t trot out a few names, sufficiently to give me goose bumps with the ballads. On Pigfoot she gets stuck in and really relishes the idea of washing down the grub with a swig of beer!

Another problem here is asking why there is so little listening time; there’s room for just about doubling what there is. Doubtless the Nagel Heyer folk could give us the answer but, too bad, it’s now too late. The inclusion of alternate takes and the bonus track tells us much. According to the insert, the former are different by one second apiece and nothing in them makes me say that the first versions are the prime ones. Then there’s Fuse Blues which is obviously
from a quite another session and I’d hazard that the pianist is different from who we’ve been hearing. That’s before noting there’s a trumpet, tenor sax, guitar, bass and drums and nowhere, insert or press note, indication of who they are and why this was used.

Dave McKenna’s – no, I hadn’t forgotten him – accompaniments and occasional solos are splendid and all you would expect from him. He gets Marty swinging everywhere and I can round this off by saying that the album will be filed alongside the other McKennas.

Bert Whyatt, Jazz Journal International Vol 62 No 10

Nagel Heyer CD 110, 2009

This CD will be released at the end of this month. It was recorded in Sweden in 1988. Janice was accompanied by Lloyd Mayers, piano, Keter Betts, bass, and Jimmy Cobb, drums. Special guests had been Hans Malte Witte, tenor sax (tracks 5 and 9), Nat Adderley, cornet (track 13), Billy Mitchell, tenor sax (track 13), and Mike Hennessy, piano (track 13).

Janice Harrington is singing Dinah Washington standards in her own voice and without any imitation of Dinah’s. I like Janice’s powerful voice and she sounds true and being herself. It is a great tribute to a great singer, before Diana Ross did the same. And it’s just a pity that this CD wasn’t released before.

Here are the tracks:

- I Thought About You
- Makin’ Whoopee
- New Blowtop Blues
- My Old Flame
- Salty Papa Blues
- Love Walked In
- I Wanna Be Around
- I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart
- Teach Me Tonight
- Lean Baby
- Bye Bye Blues
- Olé
- Willow Weep For Me

The tracks “Olé” and “Willow Weep For Me” have been released on “Remembering Dinah – A Salute To Dinah Washington”, Hot Shot Records HSR 8313-2 before.

The CD is playing for 42 minutes.

Well, I love listening to this CD and I think others also will enjoy it. The musical accompaniment is discreet and fine, just the way I like. Being a fan of the Adderley Brothers, I enjoy her co-work with Nat. It’s a track - life recorded - and Nat is singing in “scat vocals”. He sounds great and so, his singing makes an interesting contrast to Janice’s.

This is a fine CD and I would recommend it to everyone, interested in Dinah Washington and beyond. Not blues but just pleasant.

Hope, you'll enjoy it, too.

Bernd Grimmel, Blindman's Blues Forum

Die New Yorker Sängerin Marty Elkins ist es wert, endlich entdeckt zu werden. Mit dem Pianisten Dave McKenna, dem Mann mit den 100 Fingern, stand ihr praktisch ein Ein-Mann-Orchester zur Verfügung.

Marty Elkins röhrt nicht auftrumpfend, um zu imponieren. Sie ist auch kein hauchendes Seelchen. Sie hat keine Masche. Jede Art von Exhibitionismus ist ihr fremd. Sie erweckt den Eindruck, eine geborene Sängerin zu sein. Relaxt, fast cool, aber eben doch mit natürlicher Wärme und einer Haltung, in der Bescheidenheit und Ungezwungenheit Hand in Hand gehen, tritt sie swingend singend hinter die Songs zurück, stellt sich rückhaltlos in deren Dienst. Diese lässt sie so sehr in ihrer natürlichen Wirkung erstrahlen, dass man sich ertappt beim Gedanken: „Was ist das nur für ein großartiger Song!“ Da man das aber auch bei Songs denkt, die sattsam bekannt sind, erkennt man erst im zweiten Schritt, daß diese Frau eine großartige Interpretin ist. Anspieltip: Man sollte schon den 3. und 4. Titel hintereinander hören, „Gimme A Pigfoot And A Bottle Of Beer“ (was ja kaum etwas anderes meint als "Bring ma a Schweinshaxn und a Hoibe“) und das so oft zu Tode gesungene „Summertime“, um eine Ahnung von der Bandbreite der Dame zu bekommen. Sie singt nicht, was sie gestern erst aus dem Real Book gepickt hat, sondern wie eine Sängerin, die in der Tradition verwurzelt ist, diese gut kennt und trotzdem nicht das Abziehbild einer Bessie oder Billie gib. Vielmehr lässt sie die eigene Stimme zu ihrem Recht kommen.

Nun hat sie das Glück (vielleicht auch ein klein wenig das Pech), auf diesem Album mit einem Giganten der schwarzen und weißen Tasten zu musizieren, mit dem sie eng befreundet war: Dave McKenna. Hand aufs Herz: Ich habe die Neuerscheinung zunächst wegen McKenna aufgelegt und manch einer, gar einer, der mit McKenna noch nicht so vertraut ist, wird erst einmal in den Bann des Begleiters gezogen. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt seiner Laufbahn spielte er noch, als hätte er gleich einem indischen Gott mehrere Hände. Schwieriges klang von ihm damals wie das Leichteste von der Welt. Alles, was wir an den Solo-Aufnahmen des Hünen mit den großen kräftigen, aber auch sensiblen Händen lieben - die rollenden Bässe, sein zügiges Stride-Piano, die Virtuosität - all das ist da, nur eben verhaltener, stärker zurückgenommen. Mit Geschmackssicherheit stellt sich McKenna wie gewohnt und wie seine singende Freundin voll in den Dienst der Songs. „Ich bin eher ein Songspieler als ein Jazzspieler. Ich bin ein Saloonspieler, ein Cocktailspieler.“ – welch Untertreibung, ist McKennas doch als „Ein-Mann-Orchester" in die Jazzgeschichte eingegangen. Nein, er verdeckt Marty Elkins nicht, stiehlt ihr nicht die Show. Aber: Hätte er sein Licht unter den Scheffel stellen sollen? Nicht doch. So ist das Resultat eben gerade nicht das Album einer Sängerin mit Begleitung, sondern das Duett eines Weltklassepianisten und eines großen Gesangstalents, die sich auf (fast) gleicher „Ohrenhöhe“ begegnen. Dave McKenna erlebte die Veröffentlichung dieser CD leider nicht mehr: Am 18. Oktober 2008 ist der laut Whitney Balliett „swingendste Pianist aller Zeiten“ von uns gegangen.

Warum dieses Album über 20 Jahre unveröffentlicht blieb und Elkins erst 2000 mit „Fuse Blues“ ihren Erstling vorlegte, darüber lässt sich nur spekulieren. Mit 26 Minuten, denn so kurz ist das Album ohne die Alternate Takes und ohne den Bonus Track, war die Spielzeit für ein Album auch im ausgehenden 20. Jahrhundert schon recht bescheiden. Vielleicht war die Aufnahm ursprünglich auch nur als Demo gedacht. Tatsache ist, daß sie erst jetzt gemastert und gemixt - die Audioqualität ist einwandfrei - und durch die Alternate Takes und den Titelsong ihres Erstlings „Fuese Blues“ gestreckt wurde, damit das Album wenigstens annähernd die Länge früherer LPs erreicht.

Ob diese Frau, die nett aussieht, aber nicht wie ein Model, diese Sängerin, die geschmackvoll singt, aber keine Blenderin oder Gesangsakrobatin ist, nach diesem ihrem vermutlich dritten Album (das Beiheft enthält praktisch keine Informationen über sie!) endlich bekannt wird, sei dahingestellt. Dem Jazz tun solche unprätentiösen Erscheinungen jedenfalls sehr gut.

Autor: Marcus A. Woelfle [07-2009]

Interpretation: 80%
Diskographischer Wert: 80%

Woodstore Quintet feat. Tim Hagans

Oh My Goodness...This Album Cooks!

By J. Rich

Tim Hagans is a name I have only recently become aware of through the work of pianist Marc Copland (who's definitely worth checking out). I did some research on him and have discovered that he has been around for quite some time playing with Stan Kenton, Woody Herman, Gil Evans, etc. There's no doubt that he's one of the finest trumpeters of his recent times along with Carl Saunders, Roy Hargrove, Nicholas Payton, and Tom Harrell.

The musicians featured on this recording are all Italian and I've never heard of any of them, but this doesn't mean that they aren't excellent, because they certainly are. This group swings so hard that it will make your head spin like a top. High quality jazz.

Woodstore Quintet:

Tim Hagans - trumpet
Maria Pia De Vito - vocals on one track
Massimo Carboni - tenor saxophone
Mariano Tedde - piano
Paolo Spanu - bass
Gianni Filindeu - drums

5.0 out of 5 stars

link to amazon

Jazz Lives
June 19, 2009

When I get new jazz compact discs to review, a good percentage feature women jazz singers. I am sure that they are wonderful people who love the music, but many of them have odd ideas of forming a style. Some have ingested every syllable Billie Holiday ever recorded; some rely on huge voices with gospel trimmings to get them through; some meow and growl their way through a lyric, suggesting an undiagnosed hairball problem. Almost all of the new singers emote in capital letters, their voices rich with imagined melodrama. None of these tricks works, but the singers press on.

For me, there are perhaps a dozen women singing jazz today — if you’ve been reading my posts, you can count them off. Now it’s time to increase that number. May I introduce (or re-introduce) Marty Elkins?

I first met Marty perhaps a year ago when she and I ended up sharing a table at the crowded Ear Inn. We chatted pleasantly, and I really had no idea of her talents until Jon-Erik Kellso asked her to sit in and she sang a few choruses of YOU TOOK ADVANTAGE OF ME with the band. The Ear Inn is more conducive to trumpets and trombones than to unamplified singers, but I could hear that Marty swung, knew the harmonic ins and outs of the song, could improvise neatly, and was expressive without being melodramatic. She used her quiet talents to make the material sound good rather than asking Rodgers and Hart to step aside so that she could shine. When she was through, I asked her if she had recorded CDs that I could hear her better and at greater length. She casually mentioned that she had done a duet session with Dave McKenna years back, and that it would be issued some day.

Now we can all stop holding our breath: it’s here. And it’s splendid.

The disc is called IN ANOTHER LIFE, and it’s issued on the splendidly reliable Nagel-Heyer label (CD 114). It captures Marty and Dave in an informal session with good sound, in 1988 — when Dave was still in full command. The songs suggest a shared affection for solid melodies and a deep knowledge of the great jazz repertoire: WILLOW WEEP FOR ME / DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO MISS NEW ORLEANS? / JIM / GIMME A PIGFOOT AND A BOTTLE OF BEER / UNTIL THE REAL THING COMES ALONG / I LET A SONG GO OUT OF MY HEART / WHEN YOUR LOVER HAS GONE / I WISHED ON THE MOON / WILLOW WEEP FOR ME (alternate ) / DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO MISS NEW ORLEANS? (alternate) / FUSE BLUES (bonus).

The first thing that must be said will seem tactless, but this CD is not the combination of a young, untried singer with a master pianist. Not at all. The Elkins – McKenna pairing is a meeting of convivial equals. From the very first notes of this session, she shows off her relaxed, expert naturalness. Her naturalness comes from loving the lyrics — that is, knowing what the words mean! — and admiring the composer’s original lines. She has a sweet, earnest phrase-ending vibrato, reminiscent of a great trumpet player, and she holds her notes beautifully. Marty’s delivery is full of feeling and warmth, but she doesn’t shout, grind, or act self-consciously hip. Her voice is also attractive wholly on its own terms — it has a yearning, plaintive quality that fits the material, but that never overwhelms the song or the listener.

On JIM, for instance, a rather masochistic song, Marty embraces and entrances the lyrics without ever suggesting that things are so dire that she needs therapy or an intervention. It’s a performance I found myself going back to several times. And she’s equally home with the somewhat archaic enthusiams of GIMME A PIGFOOT — she sings the song rather than singing at it from an ironic distance. (And, as a sidelight, her diction is razor-sharp, enabling me to hear a phrase in the lyrics that has always mystified me in Bessie Smith’s version.) On a number of the other selections, she avoids the perils of over-dramatization (I’m thinking especially of SUMMERTIME, which has attained the status of National Monument, making it almost impossible to sing it plainly without histrionics) by lifting the tempo just a touch — what Billie and Mildred did in the Thirties. It works. I was able to hear the most famous and well-worn songs on this disc without thinking of their more famous progenitors. On her second choruses, she improvises, subtly and effectively; her voice takes delicate little turns up or down, which seem both new and natural. And she knows the verse to WHEN YOUR LOVER IS GONE! What more could we ask for?

For his part, McKenna is in especially empathetic form: he doesn’t put on his locomotive-roaring-down-the-tracks self, but you always know he’s there. And at times his accompaniment sounds so delicately shaped that I would have sworn Ellis Larkins had slid onto the piano bench.

The alternate takes are revealing — for both Marty’s subtle reshapings of her first inspirations, and for Dave’s inventiveness and drive. The CD’s last track, FUSE BLUES, comes from a 1999 Nagel-Heyer session Marty did with Houston Person, Tardo Hammer, Herb Pomeroy, Greg Skaff, Dennis Irwin, Mark Taylor, and it’s a thoroughly naughty composition of Marty’s that will make you look at your electrician in a whole new way. I think it should be Consolidated Edison’s theme song, but doubt that they’ll take me up on it.

As an afterthought, because the liner notes are very spare, I asked Marty to comment on the session, which she did:

The original recording was just for a demo for me, and Dave really did it as a favor for very little bread as he was an old friend from my days in Boston. I went to Boston U and just kind of stayed up there, hanging around with musicians for about ten years after college. I met Dave at the Copley Plaza hotel, where he was a regular performer, and he let me sing with him and was pretty much my first accompanist. The funny story I always tell is that he said, “When you go out there and sing with other musicians, don’t expect them to play in the key of B…” because he would say “Just start singing, baby, I’ll follow you.” I guess that really was starting at the top! Everyone loved Dave – he was the most accessible guy and not even aware of his own genius. He leaves a lot of broken hearted pals. We did the recording at Jimmy Madison’s (the great drummer) studio on the Upper West Side. I think Dave was in town for a gig at the old Hanratty’s, because by then I was living in New York. The Nagel-Heyers did the remastering, and it really sounds good now. I hear new things in Dave’s playing every time I listen to it. I had hoped it would come out before Dave left us, but it was not to be.

Marty is planning a late-summer CD release party at Smalls — with, among others, Jon-Erik Kellso — and she has promised to let me know the details so that I can alert all of you. Until then, this CD is winning music.

By Michael Stienman

http://jazzlives.wordpress.com/2009/06/19/marty-elkins-in-another-life/

Ken Peplowski / Jesper Thilo

By Andrew Velez

Ken Peplowski and Jesper Thilo have much more in common than the solid expertise of each on both tenor saxophone and clarinet as demonstrated here. The two effortlessly and authentically bring the Swing Era to vibrant life anew. With "Peps," who began his professional career with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, one has only to hear the first few notes from his clarinet on "I Want to Be Happy" to appreciate how great an influence Benny Goodman had on him. Thilo's thrilling trilling, as he races up and down the scales on "The World is Waiting for the Sunrise," is more straight-ahead and euphoric Swing Era jazz. This number is also an opportunity for some friendly dueling of clarinets that understandably evokes excited roars from the audience on this live set.

Don't misunderstand. This is no mere nostalgic or imitative nod to a bygone era. On the '40s classic, "Polka Dots and Moonbeams," Peplowski weaves an alluring spell that is as intricate as it is delicately dreamy. On this tune and throughout the set, Thilo Wagner's piano offers accompaniment that is subtle and quiet so that at times it almost seems on the verge of disappearing. Yet somehow it doesn't and the effect is to lend a constant underpinning of melodic strength.

Everyone gets time to swing easy on the wrap-up number, an extended take on Edison/Hendricks' "Centerpiece." Both Peplowski and Thilo give out with unhurried tenor sax sweetness on this one, Thilo especially, with a warmth that for this listener recalled shades of the great Ben Webster.

Hey fellas, bring on Volume Two!

Track listing: Vignette; I Want to Be Happy; Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You; The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise; Polka Dots and Moonbeams; In Your Own Sweet Way; Centerpiece.

Personnel: Ken Pelowski: tenor saxophone (1, 7), clarinet (2, 4, 5); Jesper Thilo: tenor saxophone (1, 2, 3, 7), clarinet (4) and vocals; Thilo Wagner: piano; Isla Eckinger: bass; Gregor Beck: drums.

View the article here:
http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=31622

Judit Pixner Quartett - Kein Weg Zu Weit

von Silvy Pommerenke

Wehmütige Jazzklänge eingehüllt in deutsche Texte, das ist das Geheimrezept des Judit Pixner Quartetts, und dank der musikalischen Kompositionen wird auch souverän der Gang ...

... des all zu Kitschigen vermieden.

Die zurückhaltende Sängerin Judit Pixner hätte wahrlich genug Möglichkeiten gehabt, in einer anderen Sprache zu singen, denn als Südtirolerin (St. Martin in Passeier) bieten sich ihr Italienisch, Ladinisch oder eben Deutsch an. Die ausgebildete Kindergärtnerin hat sich nun für letzteres entschieden und präsentiert mit ihren Musikerkollegen Roman Hinteregger (Drums), Michele Giro (Piano) und Fabrizio Larentis (Bass) ihr Debutalbum "Kein Weg zu weit". Dabei hat sich Pixner nicht immer nur dem Jazz zugewandt, sondern bereits vor zwei Jahren mit dem Gesangsquartett The Other, das seit mehr als fünfzehn Jahren besteht, eine CD mit Gospels und Spirituals eingespielt. Zwei Jahre zuvor, 2005, veröffentlichte Judit Pixner das Album "Vocal-Jazz", auf dem sie explizit Coverversionen von Jazz- und Popklassikern wie "My Funny Valentine" oder dem wunderschönen Song "Almaz" von Randy Crawford zum Besten gab. Auf dem aktuellen Album beschloss sie nun, durchgehend Eigenkompositionen aufzunehmen. Welch weise Entscheidung! Auch die erneute Hinwendung zum Jazz tut Pixner gut, vor allem, dass sie nicht die englische Sprache gewählt hat, dürfte sie aus einer großen Menge von Jazzsängerinnen hervorheben.

Die elf Songs von "Kein Weg zu weit" bieten eine große Bandbreite des Jazz: Neben klassischen Balladen ("Deine Nähe") finden sich auch Bossa-Nova-Stücke ("Kein Weg ist zu weit") flotte Bebop-Nummern ("Männer Sind Anders") oder spanisch angehauchte Stücke ("Ich Lieb Dich So Sehr") auf dem Debut des Quartetts wieder. Alles in allem ein buntes Potpourri von diversen Stilrichtungen des Jazz, das durch die filigrane, zurückhaltende und facettenreiche Stimme von Judit Pixner zusammengehalten wird. Mit Sicherheit ist es auch ein großer Genuss, die vier live auf der Bühne zu sehen. Wer weiß, vielleicht verschlägt es die ItalienerInnen ja tatsächlich einmal an die Spreemetropole?!
Und wenn Sie wissen wollen, wie die TirolerInnen einen Abend mit Judit Pixner empfinden, dann sei Ihnen hier ein Auszug aus dem Gästebuch ihrer Website genannt: "... muaß dir noamol sogn es wor wunderschian, olles, du, deine stimme, die liodor, dein kleid, die gruppe, es liocht und dor ton, die stimmung, olles."

Judit Pixner im Netz: www.juditpixner.com

Weiterhören: Nylon und Kitty Hoff

AVIVA-Tipp: Die Südtirolerin kann sich mit ihren deutschen Kolleginnen Kitty Hoff oder Lisa Bassenge durchaus messen: Klassische Jazzkompositionen, bei denen sich die deutschen Texten rund um das Herz-Schmerz-Thema von Liebenden dreht. Melancholisch, beschwingend und lässig.

http://www.aviva-berlin.de/aviva/content_Music_CDs.php?id=14621

Happy Together: Live at Birdland Volume 1 (Nagel-Heyer)

You might conclude that tenor, or clarinet, battles are brewing when producer Frank Nagel-Heyer brings Ken Peplowski and Jesper Thilo together, since both co-leaders double on the same two weapons. Peace prevails most of the time as Thilo cedes Peplowski the licorice on all except one uptempo swinger, “The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise.” Two tenor battles break out at this live session at Birdland Jazzclub in Hamburg, “Vignette” to start and “Centerpiece” to finish.

Between those bookend battles, we get Thilo blowing and vocalizing on “Gee Baby, Ain’t I Good to You,” Peplowski caressing “Polka Dots and Moonbeams,” and a complete cessation of hostilities as the rhythm section, spearheaded by Thilo Wagner, takes over the bandstand with Dave Brubeck’s “In Your Own Sweet Way.” Rest assured, the Turtles’ saccharine single, “Happy Together,” isn’t covered on the playlist. The CD title presumably derives from the quintet’s triumphant gallop through “I Want to Be Happy,” where Wagner, Peplowski on clarinet, and Thilo on tenor are all on their best form cracking the whip.

The result is so happy that one wishes that Peplowski and Thilo had squared off more often on their choice axes. Perhaps that will happen in Volume 2. Another treat would have been another taste of both leaders on clarinet, a rarer combo when you think about it. “Sunrise” not only conjures up the frenetic tempos of the Benny Goodman combos, it crests electrifyingly with both clarinets wailing simultaneously (remember Benny and Hamp screaming at each other?), a breathtaking collaboration rather than a war. As for the tenor battles, score Round One for Thilo: Despite his derivative style, a synthesis of Webster, Hawkins, and Lockjaw Davis, he’s the hungrier combatant. Primed for battle, or better yet, soft seduction, Peplowski evens the score on “Centerpiece.”

-Perry Tannenbaum, JazzTimes
CD Reviews from the January/February 2009 issue

http://www.jazztimes.com/reviews/cd_reviews/detail.cfm?article_id=19699§ion=CD%20Reviews&issue=200902

By Fred Bouchard

David Gibson plays and writes for a conservative (tightly reined, smoothly sandpapered) sextet on G-Rays, his third date for Nagel Heyer. Charts have fairly bright internal dynamics and nuanced pacing (witness "Lo Time" and the Freddie Redd-like "To Wisdom The Prize"), but could've used more rehearsal (some unintentional smears on the swift, angular "Reflection"). Gibson himself plays 'bone with an unobjectionably buttery tone and genial technique; he's eclipsed by his sidecats — tenorman Wayne Escoffery and tidy trumpeter Freddie Hendrix. Yet the trim LP-length date seems longer because the tunes themselves lack plausible hooks.

View the article here:
http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=31070