Sarah McKenzie Paris in the Rain

Sarah McKenzie
Paris in the Rain
Impulse! Records

Born in Australia, schooled at Berklee and recently moved to Paris, pianist-singer-songwriter and arranger will delight listeners on this new release, her second for Impulse! Records. The backing musicians include vibraphonist Warren Wolf, guitarist Mark Whitfield, bassist Reuben Rogers, drummer Gregory Hutchinson, trumpeter Dominick Farinacci, flutist Jamie Baum, alto saxophonist Scott Robinson, tenor saxophonist Ralph Moore, and guitarist Romero Lubambo in various combinations. While the press materials suggest this album be viewed as sort of a travelogue with performances including her original title track, Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh's "When in Rome," and her closing "Road Chops," the pleasures of this recording do not depend on such thematic considerations.

What is evident from the opening "Tea For Two," is the clarity and freshness of her arrangement provides as well as her lyrical piano and her delightful vocals on a bright, breezy performance. The horns sit out the title track, a celebration of the city of lights with her wonderful singing in French and English. Her vocals standout with her clean articulation, sense of timing, and her nuanced phrasing whether singing in an intimate or coquettish fashion. On the bluesy "One Jealous Moon," Ralph Moore takes a strong tenor solo and then at the close exchanges fours with McKenzie.

The moody Rogers and Hart ballad "Little Girl Blue," is followed by the perky rendition of Kern & Mercer's "I'm Old Fashioned," with a choice Scott Robinson solo. A rendition of Jobim's "Trieste," with Romero Lubambo's guitar, lovely flute from Baum and some jaunty scatting, is followed by an enchanting "Embraceable You," with McKenzie's lovely vocal backed only by Whitfield's guitar played in a spare manner. Kenny Rankin's "In the Name of Love," is another lively Brazilian flavored performance with Lubambo taking a solo against the nicely laid down rhythm, followed by a pensive rendition of her ballad, "Don't Be a Fool" with some lovely vibes by Wolf accompanying the vocal as well as in his solo.

A spirited instrumental "Road Chops," with controlled fire from Farinacci and Moore before McKenzie takes a blues-inflected solo closes this recording in a wonderful fashion. Sarah McKenzie impresses with this lyrical and enchanting performances on a terrific album.

I received  a download for review from a publicist. Here is a video for "Paris in the Rain."

Joseph Daley The Tuba Trio Chronicles

Joseph Daley
The Tuba Trio Chronicles
Joda Music

Joseph Daley dedicates "The Tuba Trio Chronicles" to the memory of his good friend and mentor, Sam Rivers, with whom he played in the Rivbea Tuba Trio along with Barry Altschul. Daley is heard on this on tuba and euphonium and joined by Warren Smith, heard on a drum set, bass marimba, marimba and a variety of percussion instruments, and Scott Robinson on a variety of reeds including tenor sax, bass sax, a jazzophone, contra alto clarinet and theremin.

As evident from the opening "Interplay" which Daley describes as "An exploration into the intervallic melodic concepts of Sam Rivers …" which underlies improvisations by Daley on Euphonium (and he displays remarkable facility on this) and Robinson on tenor. "Modality" is centered on a modal line as a theme for the three with Daley on tuba, Robinson on bass sax and Smith adding bass marimba accents with remarkable interaction between Daley and Robinson. For "Emergence," Smith is on tympani, gongs, bass drum and Chinese cymbal, Daley on Euphonium while Robinson is on the sour sounding contrabass sarrusophone and the jazzphone (the latter a trumpet sounding instrument) and the feel of the performance is akin to some Art Ensemble of Chicago performances. "Sonorous" is a similar open improvisation vehicle with Robinson's bass sax replacing the sarrusophone and Daley on tuba including playing it with a mute. These performances are like abstract painting with sound as opposed to colors with bit of melody mixing with the tuba's bass lines and the rhythmic accents of gongs and other percussion.

Daley prepared sound textures for 'Terrarium," the longest performance with Smith's marimba adding to his instruments while Robinson in on bass flute, theremin, waterphone and contra alto clarinet on a performance that sounds like a soundtrack to an experimental film and at other times a spellbinding musical kaleidoscope. A lovely rendition of Sam Rivers' "Beatrice" is the only composition that Daley did not write with Smith's vibraphone adding a nice flavor here. The closing "Proclamation" is similar in concept to the opening "Interplay," allowing for some remarkable improvisational segments on tuba and bass sax along with the counterpoint they exhibit at times. Daley, who is exceptional throughout, is remarkable on tuba here.

"The Tuba Trio Chronicles" is an exceptional release of challenging jazz that may not be for those with traditional tastes.

I received a review copy from a publicist. This review originally appeared in the January-February Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 364).

Dave Gross' Varied Crawling the Walls

Singer-guitarist Dave Gross’ new disc Crawling the Walls on the VizzTone group’s SwingNation Records, should solidify his reputation. Only 24 he shows he has listened and absorbed a lot in this disc that provides a wide palette of sounds ranging from gypsy jazz to storming Chicago blues. He certainly is worthy of some of the praise that Bob Margolin lays on him in the liner notes, especially his marvelous musicianship. His vocals perhaps come off at times as flat and other times a bit over-the-top, but sounds better than his last disc. This aspect of his music should mature along with him. one might expect him to grow as a singer.

The album opens with his remake of an early Bobby Bland recording, It’s My Life Baby, channeling the Clarence Holliman in his work. Its followed by Rock in My Shoe, a piece of rock’n’roll that echoes some mid-fifties’ Specialty rock recordings with a blistering solo. Ike Turner’s Cubano Jump, offers him more chance to showcase his driving guitar. The title track is an original in the vein of twenties and thirties era speakeasy blues with some nice growling trumpet from Jon-Erik Kellso and clarinet by Gerry Niewood, although Mike Bram’s drums are way too prominent.

Inspiration Blues, is a spirited take on T-Bone Walker's recording with Niewood blasting on tenor and Gross sounding strong playing in a Walker-inspired vein. It is followed by his own midnight blues-ballad, You’re Not the One, with Kellso growling before Gross starts off as Pee Wee Crayton reborn before taking the solo in his own direction. Margolin’s point in the liner notes that Gross “always adds a creative trick or twist to classic licks and tones,” is nowhere better illustrated than here. Back to the twenties with Clarence Williams’ Baby Won’t You Please Come Home, with drums replaced by banjo and Scott Robinson on bass sax with Kellso blasting playing with out mute but adding some bluesy smears, followed by Gross, on acoustic guitar, taking a nice solo with tinges of Eddie Lang, before pianist Canal Fowkes takes the lead with some stride before Robinson struts on the bass sax on a nice classic Chicago jazz performance.

Don’t Take Too Long, with Dennis Gruenling on harmonica conjures up the sound of the classic Willie Dixon produced Cobra recordings of Otis Rush, while Find Yourself Another Man, is a pastiche of classic Muddy Waters band, again with Gruenling wailing on harmonica. This performance reminds me of some of Bob Margolin’s recordings in the same vein. Gross, like Margolin is not as convincing vocally. It Was Born in the 20’s, is a stunning acoustic guitar feature with Gross paying tribute to Django Reinhardt (and Matt Munisteri providing crisp rhythm in this delightful small group jazz performance as well taking a nice solo as well) with Kellso’s trumpet and Niewood’s clarinet providing atmospheric support. Gross’ acoustic guitar solo, A Little Love, A Little Kiss, revives an Eddie Lang guitar solo from the twenties, and like he does throughout this recording, honors those who inspired him by not imitating and replicating his influences, but rather extending them and displaying his own musical personality.

While his vocals may not be Dave Gross’ strength, they do not detract from the overall high level of the music that makes Climbing the Walls, a welcome release.

I received my review copy from either a publicist or VizzTone. I wrote this review for Jazz & Blues Report but I do not believe this review ran. Here is Dave performing with Dennis Gruenling on harmonica.

Lauren Hooker's vocals are the "Life of the Music"

Husky voiced Lauren Hooker is a multi-talented jazz vocalist, composer, lyricist, pianist and educator. Based in the New York area, she has just issued her second recording Life of the Music (Miles High Records), in which bassist Rufus Reid contributes the liner notes. Reid observes about Ms. Hooker that, “Her voice is mature, rich and robust, and full of emotion that only experience can bring.” On this session, which she co-produced she has a nice group of musicians including Jim Ridl on piano and Scott Robinson on reeds and brass while Mike Richmond guests on cello and bass on several selections. The program has four interpretations from the AMerican songbook, and seven originals for a diverse program that as Reid notes has “something here for everyone’s tastes.”

The title track was inspired by a poem an anonymous person left Hooker a few years back inspired by her performance which she evocatively delivers the lyric of “the jazz coming slow, crashing-blasting, … shattering on the wall before it stops,” as the rhythm swirls under her and poet Jeanette Curtis Rideau who recites “Your Music Brings Out the Poetry In Me.” Throughout Robinson soprano responds to the vocals and pianist Ridl taking a marvelous Tyner-esque solo. If That’s What You Feel, is a lovely vocal sung against a samba rhythm as Scott adding trumpet and flute with an assured trumpet solo before another masterful piano solo by Ridl. Reid in his notes observes the Blakey-ish opening for Love Me or Leave Me, before Hooker starts her vocal with a horn-like delivery over a rather narrow vocal range, but quite effective. While Robinson plays trumpet and tenor for the opening, he takes a fairly robust solo on this track. 

A lovely original ballad, I Am Doing Very Well. has some lovely trumpet from Robinson and followed by a dreamy interpretation of Joni Mitchell’s Song to a Seagull, with Mike Richmond adding cello while Tim Horton plays a lot of small instruments (including a rubbie duckie) as part of his percussion playing here,. Hooker exhibits a bit more vocal range here. Rogers & Hart’s Spring Is Here, is a delightful jazz waltz with Robinson flute fluttering and soaring with bassist Martin Wind taking a solo break before Robinson on flute. Countin’ On the Blues, is a straight-forward blues number with Robinson adding punchy horns while John Hart adds some jazzy blues guitar. The lyrics are fairly generic and her vocal sounds a bit too calculated although Ridl and Robinson take nice solos as she is countin’ on her blues, since she can’t count on her man. This track, and the funky Walkin’ on Down the Line, as she is walking away from her man do not come across as convincing and in tune with the lyrics and music as elsewhere on this disc. Much better is her intimate rendition of Leonard Bernstein’s Some Other Time, where her legato phrasing better displays her considerable strengths as a singer.

Lauren Hooker is has a way with crafting lyrics and music as well as is a marvelous singer. There are a couple of minor mishaps perhaps, but the performances on “Life of the Music” are generally on a very high level, and I suspect those seeing her live performances witness some superb music.

My review copy was provided by a publicist.