drum Archive

Horace Andy – Straight To Hell – Fe True Records – 45 rpm

Horace Andy – Straight To Hell – Fe True Records – 45 rpm

Horace Andy – Straight To Hell – Fe True Records – 45 r.p.m. stereo vinyl (20 min.) ****: Jamaican homage to The Clash remains topical. (Featuring Horace Andy and Big Youth; The Welders; Eric Blowtorch – guitar; Michael Dr. “Bassie” Bell – bass; Cecelia Negron Jr. – drums; Robin Pluer – organ) When the Clash burst on the scene, punk rock was shoving nearly every other pop music form aside. In addition to the social anger, political resentment was being voiced. At the same time, reggae music was influencing both British and American bands. Despite the joyful grooves, a darker political message was being transmitted by the likes of Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Third World. Jamaican singer Horace Andy started out as a hit maker with songs like “Skylarking”, “You Are my Angel” and “Money Is The Root Of All Evil”. Years later, he recorded with “trip-hop” purveyor, Massive Attack. On a global scale reggae, punk rock and hip-hop was fused. Fe True Records has released a four-song 45 r.p.m., Straight To Hell. Horace Andy had previously collaborated with Joe Strummer in 1999, The two musicians shared a mutual admiration that dated back even further. Thirty-four years after its […]

The Budapest String Quartet plays BRAHMS Quartets & Quintets – Praga Digitals

The Budapest String Quartet plays BRAHMS Quartets & Quintets – Praga Digitals

The five major Brahms string works receive vivid, boldly evocative readings in classic performances. BRAHMS: String Quartet No. 2 in a, Op. 51, No. 2; String Quartet No. 3 in B-flat Major, Op. 67; String Quartet No. 1 in c, OP. 51, No. 1; String Quintet No. 1 in F Major, Op. 88; String Quintet No. 2 in G Major, Op. 111 – The Budapest String Q./ Walter Trampler, viola – Praga Digitals PRD 250 348 (2 CDs), TT: 2:28:29 (2/24/17) [Distr. by Harmonia mundi/PIAS] For many collectors of chamber music recordings, the Brahms String Quartets, as played by The Budapest String Quartet for CBS (LP, SL 225) from November and December 1963, represented a milestone for their store of great music.  Generally, the level of execution of the group – originally founded in 1917 – still glowed with amber power, but weaknesses infected the intonation of Joseph Roisman, first violin. The ensemble would disband at last in 1967. The set opens with the Brahms a minor Quartet, Op. 51, No. 2 (1873), a melancholy paean to Schubert, whose own quartet in the same key holds an ethereal, doomed atmosphere. Brahms utilizes in the second violin (Sascha Schneider) the patented […]

Mike LeDonne, B-3, & The Groover Quartet – That Feelin’ – Savant

Mike LeDonne, B-3, & The Groover Quartet – That Feelin’ – Savant

Keeping the classic organ/sax quartet format vibrant… Mike LeDonne & The Groover Quartet – That Feelin’ – Savant SCD 2159, 59:38 ****: (Mike LeDonne – Hammond organ; Eric Alexander – tenor sax; Peter Bernstein – guitar; Joe Farnsworth – drums. With special guest, Vincent Herring –  alto sax on # 1, 5, & 6) Living in New York City with its unique seven-day-a-week jazz scene, provides the opportunity for Hammond B-3 organist, Mike LeDonne, to keep his Groover Quartet tight. Fellow band members Eric Alexander (tenor sax), Peter Bernstein (guitar), and Joe Farnsworth (drums) are all active with various projects and recording dates. Yet they can play with LeDonne often, usually at the jazz club Smoke. Mike has kept the soul jazz sax/organ/guitar front line format alive and kicking on his new CD, That Feelin’. It is a grouping that can re-conceptualize pop and soul charts like “La La Means I Love You” and “This Will Be an Everlasting Love” as well as the Broadway tune, “A Lot of Living to Do.” Straight-ahead jazz is covered by Donald Byrd’s “Fly Little Bird, Fly” and the standard, “At Last.” The quartet expands to a dual sax quintet with altoist, Vincent Herring, […]

Miroslav Vitous – Infinite Search – Embryo/Warner Music/ PurePleasure – vinyl

Miroslav Vitous – Infinite Search – Embryo/Warner Music/ PurePleasure – vinyl

Jazz-rock fusion of distinction… Miroslav Vitous – Infinite Search – Embryo/Warner Music/ PurePleasure PPAN SD 524 – stereo vinyl (1969-2016) ***1/2: (Miroslav Vitous – bass; Joe Henderson – tenor sax; John McLaughlin – electric guitar; Herbie Hancock – piano; Jack DeJohnette – drums; (Joe Chambers replaces DeJohnette on “Epilogue”)) Bassist Miroslav Vitous was only 22 years old when he recorded his debut album for Herbie Mann’s label, Embryo. Vitous was a part of Mann’s band at the time, and Herbie handled the production duties. Miroslav was a major young talent on the bass and was awarded a scholarship to the Berklee School of Music after being raised in what is now the Czech Republic. He immediately made a scene in New York working with major names including Freddie Hubbard, Clark Terry and Art Farmer. Infinite Search made such a strong impression on the burgeoning jazz rock fusion community that Vitous was asked to be an original member of Weather Report. Quite the accomplishment for such a young player. Infinite Search was an easy choice for an audiophile upgrade from PurePleasure on 180 gm vinyl. As an early jazz fusion issue from 1969, it featured a dream line-up of Joe Henderson, […]

Lauren Bush, vocals – All My Treasures – Self-produced

Lauren Bush, vocals – All My Treasures – Self-produced

Lauren Bush – All My Treasures – Self-produced, 52:17 ***: (Available as an MP3 download on Amazon) An uneven effort but shows promise.  (Lauren Bush – vocals; Brandon Allen – sax; Miguel Gorodi – trumpet; Kieran McLeod – trombone; Liam Dunachie – piano; Andrew Rodd – bass; David Ingamelis – drums) Lauren Bush (no relation to the other Bush clan) is a vocalist who presently resides in the UK, but has Canadian roots. In this self-produced release entitled All My Treasures, she tries to do what has eluded many other hopefuls (especially without the support of a recognized record label): make a breakthrough in the tough world of jazz/pop music. As Bush outlined in the self-written liner notes (which by the way were printed in mice type and were very difficult to read) said each tune chosen is “like a little jewel to me” which she hoped to share with a wider audience. Starting with the Bob Dorough ditty “I’ve Got Just About Everything I Need”. The arrangement is by the highly regarded Canadian bassist Don Thompson and snaps along at a brisk pace. While Bush bristles with energy she has a voice that is somewhat thin in tone, and […]

Baden Powell, guitar – Images On Guitar – MPS vinyl

Baden Powell, guitar – Images On Guitar – MPS vinyl

Baden Powell – Images On Guitar – MPS 0210990MSW (1971/2016) stereo vinyl, 41:02 ****: Brazil’s legendary guitarist shines on this vinyl re-mastering! (Baden Powell – guitar, vocals; Janine de Walleye – vocal; Ernesto Gonsalves – bass; Alfredo Bessa – atabaque, percussion; Joaquim Paes Henriques – drums) Baden Powell was an influential guitarist. The Brazilian native (and yes, he was named after Boy Scout founder Robert Baden-Powell) was renowned for his embrace of the emerging bossa nova movement. His influence on music was attributed to the connection of Latin jazz to classical music. He eschewed the electric guitar that permeated music in the ‘50s and ‘60s to concentrate on acoustic. His career took hold when his composition, “Samba Triste” was covered by Stan Getz. Powell was a force in popularizing the 2/4 samba meter, and he started recording as a solo artist in 1961. But it was his early seventies catalog with MPS that globalized his popularity. Images On Guitar was initially released by MPS in 1971. The album featured a quartet with guest vocalist Janine de Walleye. Now there is a 180-gram re-mastered vinyl available. The improved technology translates the artistic vision of Powell. Throughout the recording, he expresses a […]

Noah Preminger, sax – Some Other Time – Newvelle vinyl

Noah Preminger, sax – Some Other Time – Newvelle vinyl

Saxist Noah Preminger explores the blues on winning Newvelle Records LP issue… Noah Preminger – Some Other Time – Newvelle NV003LP – 180gm audiophile vinyl ****: (Noah Preminger – tenor sax; Ben Monder – guitar; John Patitucci – bass; Billy Hart – drums) Newvelle Record’s latest release in their LP subscription series continues their winning streak in issuing state of the art LP recordings. Following in the foot steps of Frank Kimbrough’s Meantime and Jack DeJohnette’s Return, Noah Preminger’s Some Other Time boasts impeccable acoustics and a moody tenderness in an exploration of largely blues ballads. The interplay between the quartet is striking. Ben Monder’s guitar is a perfect foil for Noah’s breathy tenor explorations. It has both a warm and inviting presence that floats over and under themes presented. John Patitucci’s bass is muscular and sympathetic, similar to how Charlie Haden supported both Hank Jones and Pat Metheny. Billy Hart’s drumming is made to order for this group as his stick work is equally at home in straight ahead and free settings. On “Melancholia” and “Porcelain” he guides with care, and when a forceful hand is needed on Noah’s “Semenzato” his cymbals lead the way. Their shimmering presence in […]