Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify.
It was late June 2007 that NEA Jazz Master Dave Liebman received a call to produce a show for theBBC 3’s popular program, “Jazz on 3.” Noting that July 17, 2007 marked the 40th anniversary of John Coltrane’s passing, he was asked to bring in Saxophone Summit, Liebman’s outfit co-led with Grammy Award-winner Joe Lovano, to record an all-Coltrane program for the show. Liebman managed to assemble regular members Lovano, Phil Markowitz and Billy Hart along with Ron McClure as a substitute for the unavailable Cecil McBee. Recorded almost forty years to the day of Coltrane’s death, the quintet laid down 50+ fascinating minutes of music that showcased the breadth his relatively short but momentous legacy. Now, a decade later, the recording is being brought to light.
Ensemble Novo is the brainchild of writer and musician Tom Moon, who plays tenor sax and flute. Following the publication of his New York Times bestseller “100 Recordings to Hear Before You Die,” Moon resumed active work as a musician and devoted specific attention to Brazilian music. He convinced several prominent members of Philadelphia’s diverse music community—vibraphonist Behn Gillece, guitarist Ryan McNeely, percussionist Jim Hamilton and bassist Mark Przybylowski—to join in an exploration of samba, bossa nova and MPB. Just seven months after the release of their debut disc comes “Who Saw You Then, Who Sees You Now,” featuring little-heard gems from the late 1960s and early ‘70s,the period after Brazilian bossa nova took the world by storm.
Also this week, pianist and singer Ariel Pocock, who performed at KCCK’s Taste of Jazz a few months back, unveils her sophomore disc, “Living in Twilight”.
Award-winning guitarist and composer Alex Goodman releases his quintet CD, “Second Act”.
Bassist and composer Ben Allison gathers up his Think Free band, featuring trumpeter Jeremy Pelt, pianist Frank Kimbrough and guitarist Steve Cardenas, for “Layers of the City.”