Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify
“Torch Bearers” is the new recording from Grammy Award winning trumpeter-composer-arranger Brian Lynch, featuring legendary saxophonist Charles McPherson. Recorded at Van Gelder Studios with an all-star lineup, the album documents the first recorded collaboration between Lynch and McPherson since their initial meeting in1980, reflecting a shared artistic lineage shaped by direct experience with pianist and educator Barry Harris. Featuring original compositions alongside canonic bebop works by Harris and Dizzy Gillespie, the album showcases mutual intuition among musicians united by Mr. Harris’ influence.
On the heels of his acclaimed two-album collaboration with the late poet and activist Nikki Giovanni, tenor saxophonist Javon Jackson embarks on a new project paying tribute to one of America’s most revered songwriters, whose own work has been hailed for its intricate poetry and outspoken politics. With “Jackson Plays Dylan,” the reedman explores the music of the iconic singer-songwriter and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winner Bob Dylan. He delves into songs spanning more than three decades of Dylan’s career, from still-poignant folk anthems to incisive and timeless love songs.
Also this week, vocalist and composer Aubrey Johnson presents her second album, “The Lively Air,” marking her return to composing after several years focused primarily on interpreting other artists’ music; keyboard master Gary Versace’s new recording, “Three Track Mind,” is a collection of spontaneous interpretations of classic standards and original compositions; and “The Sorceress” is a vibrant fusion of jazz, electronica, swing, and pop—a sonic portrait that brings together the many influences that have shaped JUNO nominee trombonist Audrey Ochoa’s musical journey.