Abbey Lincoln, Jazz Singer and Writer, Dies at 80

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Abbey Lincoln, African American, Female Jazz vocalist, Jazz

Abbey Lincoln - RIP 8/14/2010

Abbey Lincoln, a singer whose dramatic vocal command and tersely poetic songs made her a singular figure in jazz, died on Saturday in Manhattan. She was 80 and lived on the Upper West Side.

Her death was announced by her brother David Wooldridge.

Ms. Lincoln’s career encompassed outspoken civil rights advocacy in the 1960s and fearless introspection in more recent years, and for a time in the 1960s she acted in films with Sidney Poitier.

Long recognized as one of jazz’s most arresting and uncompromising singers, Ms. Lincoln gained similar stature as a songwriter only over the last two decades. Her songs, rich in metaphor and philosophical reflection, provide the substance of “Abbey Sings Abbey,” an album released on Verve in 2007. As a body of work, the songs formed the basis of a three-concert retrospective presented by Jazz at Lincoln Center in 2002. —NATE CHINEN

..:: Source: NYTimes.com ::..

The Jazz Tribe -][- Next Step [Red Records]

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African American, Bobby Watson, Jazz, Ronnie Matthews, Saxophone, The Jazz Tribe

If you dig hard hitting straight ahead jazz with heavy Latin Jazz vibes woven throughout, then this joint featuring saxophonist Bobby Watson and pianist Ronnie Matthews is absolutely perfect for you! —Rob Young

The Jazz Tribe - Next Step (Red Records, 2000)

The Jazz Tribe -][- Next Step – [Red Records, 2000]

Spirited bebop-flavored jazz with a strong dose of Latin percussion needn’t sound like a museum piece. These jazz veterans–led by alto saxophonist Bobby Watson, trumpeter Jack Walrath, and percussionist Ray Mantilla–play with a loose-limbed ease and an infectious joy that make their youthful compatriots sound stiff and overly reverent. Though there’s nothing here that challenges the jazz canon–it’s all straightahead, Latin-charged bop–one senses that the bebop revolution penetrated deep into these musicians’ bones. They play with a fire and intensity that indicate they’ve lived this music and truly believe in it, rather than having merely learned it or adopted it like a new suit.

Pianist Ronnie Matthews and drummer Victor Lewis push the music forward with a relentless drive that the soloists, particularly the fluent Watson, respond to with verve. Bop from the 1950s and ’60s needn’t sound resurrected because, when it’s in the right hands, one realizes that Bird does, in fact, live. —Wally Shoup | Amazon.com

..:: Source: Amazon.com ::..

Jane Monheit -][- Home [Emarcy, September 21, 2010]

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Female Vocalist, Jane Monheit, Jazz, Pop Music

“I wanted to return “Home” to doing what I love best,” says Jane, “Getting back to my roots. For me, there’s nothing like singing a jazz standard and giving it new life through one’s own interpretation; bringing it to a new audience in a whole new and different light.” –Jane Monheit

Jane Monheit - Home (Emarcy, 2010)

Jane Monheit -//- Home [Emarcy/Universal Records, 2010]

Los Angeles, California. “Home,” Jane Monheit’s eagerly anticipated new CD, is set for release by Emarcy/Universal Records on September 21st, 2010. An ode to the golden age of the jazz standard – the genre which Jane identifies with most – “Home” celebrates the treasured tracks of songwriters and lyricists past and present whom Monheit greatly admires including Rodgers and Hart and Schwartz & Dietz. A sumptuously sung passionate song cycle of 12 tunes self-produced by the modern-day jazz diva, “Home” is Monheit’s tenth CD and will be accompanied by a world tour beginning in the Fall.

Accompanying Monheit on “Home” are long-time Monheit band-members Michael Kanan (piano), Neal Miner on bass and Rick Montalbano on drums, who were joined on the CD by guest artists John Pizzarelli (vocals and guitar), Peter Eldridge (vocals), Frank Vignola (guitar), Joe Magnarelli (trumpet and flugelhorn), Mark O’Connor (violin) and Larry Goldings (piano).

..:: Source: Amazon.com ::..