Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify
Singer and lyricist Mark Winkler and pianist and composer David Benoit have teamed up to record an album that pays homage to their 37 years of friendship. “Old Friends” is a collection of some of the artists’ favorite songs by some of their favorite composers, as well as three original tunes. Winkler and Benoit are seasoned artists in the music business, and the new disc is imbued with warmth and camaraderie. As Benoit puts it, “I think this is Mark’s best work. He is restrained and heartfelt. He never overdoes it, but always stays true to the melody, respecting the composer but adding his own imprimatur when needed. This could be a happy result of Covid-19 giving us all the time we needed to make it right.”
It is only natural that Jeremy Pelt’s voracious curiosity would lead him to investigate the West African Griot tradition, where stories, reminiscences and accomplishments from times past are handed down as oral histories. Past researchers have preserved interviews with older jazzmen, but for this Griot odyssey, Pelt turns to his own peer group to record their thoughts on creating jazz, followed by a composition by Pelt which perfectly captures the sentiments and emotions of its spoken-word prelude. To help him bring his vision to life on “Griot: This is Important!,” Pelt assembled a hand-picked group of colleagues, including vibraphonist Chien Chien Lu, pianist Victor Gould, bassist Vicente Archer, harpist Brandee Younger and others.
Also this week, pianist and composer Greg Murphy is joined by drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts, keyboardist David Kikoski, flutist T.K. Blue, vibraphonist Bill Ware and others for “Cool Water”;
bassist John Lang, more recognized in New York City as an upright player, is proud to release “Now Ear This,” his first electric project, produced by jazz legend John Patitucci;
and 94-year-old composer and altoist Vinnie Riccitelli releases his first recording in 60 years, “For The Record,” revisiting some of his unrecorded compositions and arrangements from his earlier career.