American folk music legend Odetta dies at 77

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African American, Black Folk Music, Odetta

Odetta

NEW YORK — Odetta, the folk singer with the powerful voice who moved audiences and influenced fellow musicians for a half-century, has died. She was 77.

Odetta died Tuesday of heart disease at Lenox Hill Hospital, said her manager of 12 years, Doug Yeager. She was admitted to the hospital with kidney failure about three weeks ago, he said.

In spite of failing health that caused her to use a wheelchair, Odetta performed 60 concerts in the last two years, singing for 90 minutes at a time. Her singing ability never diminished, Yeager said.

“The power would just come out of her like people wouldn’t believe,” he said.

Upchurch/Tennyson | Self-Titled

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African American, Guitar, Jazz, Keyboards, Male Vocalist, Soul Music

Upchurch and Tennyson

Upchurch/Tennyson | Self-Titled [Classic CTI/Music Review]

As we know, the Internet it contains a plethora of music that’s sometimes familiar, forgotten and occasionally we meet pleasantly cool and stimulating sounds in our journey. Just think, with access to this powerful tool we’ve been blessed this time to rediscovered a provocative collaboration between guitarist Phil Upchurch and singer/keyboardist Tennyson Stephens.

On their self-titled effort on Kudu/CTI Records, [1974] the duo collectively embraces a sobering blend of sophisticated soul, smooth R&B, groovy rhythms and jazz to unveil a fresh and hip sound. You’ll find top notch artist like Sanborn, Eric Gale, H. Laws, Bob James and a host of others on this to bridge the gap between jazz and pop. That said, this recording is definitely on the smooth edge compared to the catalog of other recordings from CTI. – The Urban Flux

For more details, do check out the insightful writings of Doug Payne.

Time President Obama: The Path to the White House

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American American, Barack Obama, Books, Politics

Barack Obama, The Path

Time | President Obama: The Path to the White House [Book]

Barack Obama’s path from Hawaii to Indonesia to the White House represents one of the most unlikely and fascinating journeys in U.S. political history. With this special publication that is sure to become an instant collector’s item, “Time” will mark Obama’s rise with an illustrated 96-page book. “Time Obama” will contain original “Time” magazine reporting and analysis from the magazine’s political experts. The book will showcase the unrivalled, intimate behind-the-scenes photography of campaign photographer Callie Shell, who has been visually documenting Obama’s journey since he began his run for President. And it will provide readers with a colourful and concise account of how Obama rose to power – from his early days to his Chicago years to the moment when he became a political phenomenon. ~ Amazon.com

Release Date: December 23, 2008

Dave Holland | Pass It On

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Bass, DAve Holland, Jazz

Dave Holland

Dave Holland | Pass It On [Nu-Jazz]

Pass It On features newly-realized arrangements of some potent Holland compositions from past recordings, including “Lazy Snake” and “Equality” (from 1995’s Dream of the Elders), the uptempo burner “Double Vision” (from 1984’s Seeds of Time), the dynamic, mood-shifting suite “Rivers Run” (written for Dave’s former duets partner from the mid-’70s, saxophonist Sam Rivers, and originally appearing on 1988’s Triplicate), “Processional” (from 1989’s Extensions) and “Modern Times” (from the 1995 Gateway recording, Homecoming). “Some of the compositions that I’ve written in the past evolve in my mind a little bit over time,” says Holland, who is perhaps the most prolific bassist-composer since Charles Mingus. “When we first recorded some of these pieces, they were done in more stripped-down versions with different instrumentation, and I was starting to hear them as being possible for a larger ensemble. – Amazon.com