… The weekend spin, features the Yellowjackets -][- Blue Hats

Tags

Jazz, Russell Ferrante, Yellowjackets

Regardless of genre, style or sound I would be hard pressed to do without the Yellowjackets infectious groove. In fact, from what I’ve witness the Jackets probably ranks well within the top of most contemporary jazz enthusiasts lists of favs that I personally know. “Blue Hats,” their 1997 album just happens to be in close proximity to my desk. Of course, this allows me to indulge in a sample their timeless and vivacious antics anytime I get ready. —Rob Young | The Urban Flux

Yellowjackets - Blue Hats

Yellowjackets -][- Blue Hats – [WEA, 1997]

In typical yellowjackets fashion, Blue Hats takes the listener on a surprise journey of what seems like mainstream pop/jazz, but what is really much more well-crafted than the usual fare. The album mixes relatively easy-listening tunes with a few hard-driving ones where both Ferrante and Mintzer are able to branch out. Russell Ferrante’s piano improvisations are at once sparse and lucid-his use of space allows his melodic genius to be appreciated by the attentive listener. Bob Mintzer is a marvelously talented reed man. His playing ranges from the mellowest of tones in a ballad-like setting to the power and intensity of his tenor and bass clarinet improvisations, showcasing his dynamic range and harmonic cleverness. Kennedy and Haslip are two talented players that create the undercurrent without which the group could not shine.

Just when you think Yellowjackets have gone to a cheezy commercial sound, they completely surprise you with a power piece in the tradition of Coltrane or McCoy Tyner. For diversity of musical ideas, Yellowjackets continue to delight not just with the first listening, but with repeated ones when one hears more and different aspects of their total sound. Blue Hats is a very tight and not over-produced album, and though their style must fit under the jazz umbrella, it is really much broader and more diverse in its musicality, making Yellowjackets a more creative and eclectic group than most can appreciate. —Peter Oberg /Amazon.com

Gail Pettis -][- Here In The Moment [AO2]

Tags

African American, Female Vocalist, Gail Pettis, Jazz

Gail Pettis - Here in the Moment

Gail Pettis -//- Here In The Moment – [AO2, 2010]

With an exquisitely subtle three-and-a-half-octave approach to the Great American Songbook, Gail Pettis developed a loyal following as her debut recording “May I Come In?” received international play throughout 2007. Now she returns with “Here in the Moment,” a collection of 11 songs including a 5/4 arrangement of “Who Can I Turn To,” a rousing Latin treatment of “I Could Have Danced All Night,” and a duo with bass on the Nashville hit “Snap Your Fingers.”

With a recent award of “Northwest Vocalist of the Year” from Earshot Jazz, “Here In The Moment” reflects an exciting period in this singular vocalist’s musical career.

-–Don Heckman, International Review of Music

..:: Source: OA2 ::..

Gwilym Simcock -][- BLUES VIGNETTE [Review]

Tags

Gwilym Simcock, Jazz, Piano

Gwilyn Simcock - BLUE VIGNETTE

Gwilym Simcock -\\- BLUES VIGNETTE – [Basho Records, 2009]

Until the arrival of “Blues Vignette,” was placed in my hands I had no earthly idea who this twenty-eight year old British pianist named Gwilym Simcock was.

“Little People” the opener, is lyrically fascinating and elegantly expressed by the imaginative play of pianist Gwilym Simcock. His imposing presence, style and arrangements are brilliantly executed on the impending suite titled “Improvisation I, II, & III.” The lush tempo of this trilogy is perfectly matched to the exquisite nuances of “Caldera” followed by the energetic “Jaco and Joe” will indeed amaze music enthusiasts globally.

By the end of the Disc 1, Simcock calls upon the gifted and classically trained cellist Cara Berridge to expand her transcending voice on the stimulating yet dramatic underlying theme of “Suite for Cello and Piano.” For a moment, while listening it occurred to me how I was forced to endure classical music “101” during my school days while in middle and high school. Funny thing, after all these years the remnants of this music finally manifested in away I can comfortably embrace what was once thought boring is now a revelation of classical and jazz infused into one unforgettable silhouette of sounds.

Patrick Yandall -][- The Window [Innervisions Records]

Tags

Guitar, Patrick Yandall

Patrick Yandall - The Window

Patrick Yandall -][- The Window – [Innervisions Records, 2010]

Bringing the same kind of emotional depth and stylistic diversity to contemporary jazz as his heroes and chief influences Lee Ritenour and Larry Carlton, guitarist/composer Patrick Yandall has blazed creative and commercial trails that have inspired a new generation of independent instrumental musicians to pursue their dreams without compromise. Sixteen years after breaking onto the scene with his first national recording That Feels Nice—a sentiment shared by thousands of fans who still have that seminal work in their collections—the multi-talented San Diego based performer is as dynamic, passionate and inventive as ever on his Innervisions Records debut The Window, which marks his incredible 11th release to date.

On the heels of Going For One and One Hour Blues, extraordinary, hard-hitting 2010 projects that explored Yandall’s lifelong loves of hard-rock and blues-rock, respectively, the artist brings a fiery edge, intense funk grooves and tastes of cool tropicality and retro jazz-soul to the self-produced 12 track collection that, true to its title, offers a unique window to Yandall’s ever-evolving musical soul. Its diversity has its roots in the Yandall’s many compositions these past years for numerous top music libraries, which license his prolific work in many genres for television, film and numerous corporations. His compositions have been heard everywhere from The Weather Channel to “War, Inc.,” the 2008 film starring John Cusack, Marisa Tomei and Hilary Duff which featured “Who’s The Bossa.”