Bob Stewart Hollis Monroe Ron Adkins Bob DeForest Saul Lubaroff
Bob Stewart: Monday-Friday 6 a.m. – 10 a.m.
1) Dave McMurray – Grateful Deadication (Blue Note)
It’s not every day one hears the rock band the Grateful Dead used as source material for a jazz artist. But that’s exactly what saxophonist Dave McMurray did on this groovy disc. He had worked with the Dead’s Bob Weir on a side project and was taken by the band’s odd measures, complex chords and great melodies. They became a wonderful vehicle for McMurray’s jazz expression.
2) Ethan Iverson – Bud Powell in the 21st Century (Sunnyside)
3) Kurt Elling Monk’estra – SuperBlue (Edition)
4) Julian Lage – Squint (Blue Note)
5) Helen Sung – Quartet+ (Sunnyside)
6) Band of Other Brothers – Look Up! (Ear Up)
7) Charles Lloyd & the Marvels – Tone Poem (Blue Note)
8) Damani Phillips – No More Apologies (OpenMInd)
9) Veronica Swift – This Bitter Earth (Mack Avenue)
10) The Dave Weckl Band Live in St. Louis (Autumn Hill)
Hollis Monroe: Monday-Friday 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
1) 3D Jazz Trio – Christmas in 3D (Diva Jazz)
2) Basie Orchestra – Live at Birdland (Candid)
3) Alan Broadbent – Trio in Motion (Savant)
4) Chick Corea – Plays (Concord)
5) Cunliffe/Patitucci/Colaita – Trio (Le Coq)
6) Eliane Elias – Mirror Mirror (Candid)
7) Jeff Hamilon – Merry & Bright (Capri)
8) Houston Person – Live in Paris (High Note)
9)Damani Phillips No More Apologies (Damani Phillips)
10) Diego Urcola – El Duelo (Sunnyside)
Ron Adkins: Monday-Friday 2-6 p.m.
1) Erroll Garner – Symphony Hall Concert.
It thrills me to no end when another treasure trove of lost recordings is uncovered. Just when we’ve closed the catalog, some forgotten album from Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Sheila Jordan, or John Coltrane is unearthed. Languishing in a vault somewhere, or on some collector’s shelf, this new addition to the canon can either be a diamond or coal. But whether musicologists deem it “good” or “bad,” every new discovery offers a snapshot of the artist at a certain creative period, or with a certain band, or it was a live show where someone had the presence of mind to roll tape. Erroll Garner’s January, 1959 gig at Boston’s Symphony Hall is one of those shows. Someone, thank goodness, had the sense to record it. This album finds the Garner trio (Eddie Calhoun on bass and drummer Kelly Martin) playing as a solid unit. Garner on piano sounds like he was ready to make an impact. He could have merely run through such standards as “But Not For Me” and “Misty” and the audience would have been delighted. But there’s a sense of innovation to every piece he played that night. One not only hears exceptional playing, but also tastes of the gospel, blues, and stride that Garner held so dear. One can’t listen and not take the hint that Garner is reminding his audience that jazz is rooted firmly in Black America. The Symphony Hall Concert is a remarkable listen back to a trio at the height of its powers. Jazz lovers, and Erroll Garner’s discography, are much richer for its rediscovery.
2) Yellowjackets & WDR Big Band – Jackets XL
3) Chick Corea Akoustic Band – Live
4) Alexa Tarantino – Firefly
5) Damani Phillips – No More Apologies
6) Jennifer Wharton’s Bonegasm – Not a Novelty
7) Behn Gillece – Still Doing Our Thing
8) Lorraine Feather – My Own Particular Life
9) Bob Mintzer & WDR Big Band – Soundscapes
10) Jeff Lorber Fusion – Space-Time
Saul Lubaroff: Saturday 8 a.m. – Noon, Sunday 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
1) Anibal Rojas – Cachai.
Anibal is a long time friend and college buddy. I have played with him many times and was able to interview him last year. The album is brilliant.
2) Damani Philips – No More Apologies
3) Pat Metheny – Side -Eye NYC V1.VI
4) Jiyhe Lee Orchestra – Daring Mind
5) Jennifer Wharton’s Bonegasm – Not a Novelty
6) Bob Mintzer & the WDR Big Band – Soundscapes
7) Eliane Elias – Mirror Mirror
8) Joey DeFrancesco – More Music
9) Michael Dease – Give It All You Got
10) Ulysses Owens, Jr Big Band – Soul Conversation