It's International Jazz Month
by Kevin Wierzbicki
Every April the world celebrates International Jazz Month, the time to appreciate all things jazz from bebop to fusion to jazz singers to smooth jazz. Here we shine a spotlight on some of the fine jazz releases we've received lately.
Michael Lington - On the Scene
If you listen to Smooth Jazz radio you're well aware of Lington's big hit "South Bay;" it was one of the longest-running #1 hits ever on Billboard's Smooth Jazz Airplay Chart. Now Lington is back with this five-song EP, his 14th effort overall, and it is packed with more fun grooves and joyous saxophone playing, like on opening cut "Dreamy Night" where Lington's buoyant sax work leads a peppy dance groove straight into the heart of the evening, instilling a sense that it is indeed going to be a dreamy night. Lington's interpretation of David Sanborn's somewhat obscure "Goodbye" is more sedate; Lington conjures a sublime mood on the cut that is a tribute to the man who highly-influenced him. "Hold Me Tight" is slinky and sassy; complete with finger snapping percussion, it leans towards R&B. "Just Sayin'" is a bright groove with a horn section and a sound that will be familiar to fans of great bands like Earth, Wind & Fire. Title cut "On the Scene" is funkified too; it's the perfect groove to get dressed to the nines to and then hit the town with a sly grin. Speaking of being on the scene, Lington will be sailing with pal Dave Koz on both of the Dave Koz and Friends at Sea 2025 cruises to and from Iceland coming up in June.
Arun Ramamurthy Trio - New Moon
Violinist Ramamurthy works here with electric bass player Damon Banks and drummer Sameer Gupta and opening cut "Walk as One" very much reflects the sounds of India, where Ramamurthy's roots lie in Bangalore, entirely from the inflections he coaxes out of his violin. Even though there is no guitar on the album fans of great records like The Mahavishnu Orchestra's
Birds of Fire will find plenty to love here, both on sedate tunes like "Mirrors" and especially on album highlight, the lengthy "Amavasya" where Ramamurthy's violin, overdubbed and played through various effects, mesmerizes with an exotic swirl of sound, at least at song's beginning. Partway through Banks takes the lead momentarily on bass while Gupta plays fills and Ramamurthy plays in a more traditional style.
Marian McPartland - At the Peninsula Library 1972
Here's a vintage live set from McPartland, the revered jazz pianist who died in 2013. Her career saw her record more than 40 albums and host the NPR radio show "Piano Jazz" where she interviewed and performed with the likes of Elvis Costello, Linda Ronstadt, Tony Bennett and Stephen Sondheim. This release presents an intimate performance for fans and students at the Peninsula Public Library in Long Island, New York and sees her running through a batch of classics including "Stella by Starlight," "Willow Weep for Me," Dizzy Gillespie's "A Night in Tunisia" and the Miles Davis chestnut "Milestones." In deference to the younger folks in attendance McPartland plays a few contemporary (at the time) songs that she hopes might be more familiar to them including the James Taylor smash hit "Fire and Rain" and "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head." Regardless of what era she draws her material from here it is easy to enjoy her sublime piano work. This fine set of instrumental jazz finishes with an interpretation of Thelonious Monk's "Straight, No Chaser" and a version of Sonny Rollins' "Oleo." This show has never been released before until now.
Jazz World - (Various Artists)
Here's the first ever jazz-centric release from Putumayo Discovery. As the album title indicates, the artists contributing songs to the compilation hail from many different countries and present jazz in many different styles. Nai Porttela represents Brazil with the sweet and breezy vocal number "Eu Vim Da Bahia" while her fellow Brazilian checks in with a male perspective on the equally-sublime "Das Matas;" Victoria Sur, from Colombia, offers the extremely dreamy "Se Dice por Ahi." Ricardo Lemvo and Makina Loca present a sensual melding of Cuban and African sounds on "Bolero Medley VF" and German jazz singer Dotschy Reinhart wraps up the 10 song offering with the delicate "Sinto."
Also available:
Geoff Mann - Underground
Geoff reimagines his late father's classic 1969 adventure in fusion,
Memphis Underground. Special guest players include David Axelrod, Domenica Fassati, Marcos Garcia and J.P. Maramba.
Tony Paeleman - Wise Animals
Working in a trio format, keyboard player and composer Paeleman presents a set inspired by his fascination with and respect for the animal kingdom; his "Noah's Ark" of songs include "Dolphins," "Wild Goose," "Elephants," "Wolf" and "Octopus" with guest J. Medeiros.
