CD Reviews

Embracing the Unexpected

Theoretically, surprise should be part of every jazz performance, but this month’s instrumental CDs offer plenty. Thomas Cunniffe and Ben Markley offer reviews of a Harry Allen/Scott Hamilton tenor duets that eschews the fever pitch of other such efforts, a rhythmically rich album by Joe Lovano’s Us Five and an understated interactive album by Ron Miles, Bill Frisell and Brian Blade.

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For Our Jazz Heroes

This month’s instrumental CD reviews are all (in one form or another) tributes to jazz giants. Thomas Cunniffe reviews Marc Cary’s salute to his former boss, Abbey Lincoln, Eli Yamin and Evan Christopher’s homage to a wealth of jazz heroes, Eddie Daniels and Roger Kellaway’s live performances of Ellington and Hush Point’s debut CD which examines the continuum between cool and free jazz.

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Four Jazz Masters

It’s been about six years since pianist Renee Rosnes and saxophonist Lew Tabackin released albums under their own names, but each of them has a new disc out, and as Thomas Cunniffe notes in his reviews, both albums were worth the wait. Also reviewed is a collection of 2005 duets by trumpeter Kenny Wheeler and pianist John Taylor. The album was originally issued as a memorial to Wheeler, but by the time of its release, Taylor had also passed away.

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Fred Hersch Trio: “Sunday Night at the Vanguard” (Palmetto 2183)

The live recording sessions for the new Fred Hersch Trio CD Sunday Night at the Vanguard were nearly canceled, until Hersch changed his mind at the group’s initial sound check earlier in the week. It’s a good thing that he did. The album features the astounding music primarily created during a single set at the storied Greenwich Village club. Thomas Cunniffe’s feature review focuses on the ensemble work of this extraordinary trio.

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Friends and Family

This month–without planning it–all of our featured CDs share the theme of family and community. Thomas Cunniffe and Amy Duncan review five albums by the Clayton Brothers, Brandi Disterheft, Diego Figueiredo, Eric Person and Houston Person that feature or salute family members, reunite longtime friends, or share the communion of faith.

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From 1 to 11

The above title is not a reference to Spinal Tap’s amplifiers. Rather, it designates the size of the ensembles featured in this month’s Instrumental CD Reviews. Thomas Cunniffe reviews these fine new albums by Fred Hersch, Bill Charlap, Annie Booth, and Josh Nelson.

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Genre Blenders

The mixing of jazz with other genres is nothing new. Louis Armstrong’s majestic solo finales have been linked to Italian opera, Django Reinhardt freely borrowed from gypsy music, and the entire movements of Third Stream and fusion were based on the combination of styles. This month, Thomas Cunniffe reviews the latest recordings of three vocalists who create new composites of existing genres.

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Global Singing

This month’s vocal CDs cover music from far and wide. L’Estranges in the Night are a married duet from England whose album features music of French composer Michel Legrand; Austrian singer Elisabeth Lohninger treats Czech audiences to a wide-ranging repertoire on her live album, and Hispanic jazz vocalist Jackie Ryan covers a multitude of genres on her latest recording. Thomas Cunniffe provides his reactions.

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