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Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis featuring Paco de Lucia ‘Vitoria Suite’ (Emarcy/Universal) 4/5

Wynton Marsalis has occasionally departed from his retro trips to the evolution of jazz and blues and explored the Spanish tinge to some extent on the excellent ‘Citi Movement’ album from the 1990s. This latest project is similarly progressive, with the trumpeter largely in composer and conductor mode, and is devoted to Spain and the Basque country, inspired by the musician’s travels there and in particular to a festival in Vitoria where he has played for some twenty years. The friendship cultivated with the festival organiser, Basque Iñaki Añua, has resulted in this double CD album recorded in the Basque country with among guests the renowned flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucia and the supremely talented pianist Chano Dominguez. The pieces are divided into twelve separate movements and of these movements four and eight are most obviously a fusion of Spanish music and jazz. The former, ‘Buleria el Portalon’, features an Ellingtonesque use of horns with Dominguez playing some delicious blues licks while the flamenco accompaniment is provided by palmas drumming and handclapping, both characteristic of flamenco. Paco de Lucia enters part way through and this music sits comfortably alongside the Pedro Iturralde ‘Jazz meets flamenco’ albums for a successful fusion of the two. For the latter piece, ‘Deep blue (from the foam)’, this has more of a feel of Miles’ ‘Flamenco sketches’ with luscious alto saxophone playing, wholly appropriate rim drumming from Ali Jackson and an exquisite solo from Paco de Lucia. Elsewhere there is an evocative ensemble big band performance on the sixth movement, ‘Iñaki’s decision’, with nice Latin-tinged vamps on piano from Dan Nimmer and Marsalis himself finally soloing to great effect on trumpet. In a more reflective vein is ‘Basque song’ with a lovely baritone saxophone solo from Joe Temperley and the brisk, uptempo number that is ‘Mendizorrota’s swing’.

Overall as a musical fresco ‘Vitoria Suite’ is not altogether dissimilar form Ellington’s ‘Far East Suite’ in outlook. Ideally one would have liked local musicians to feature to a greater extent on proceedings and even Dominguez and de Lucia to be present on more pieces. The suite’s conception coincides with the thirtieth anniversary of the annual Vitoria festival and was first played in a live context in New York in April 2008 when Chano Dominguez was an invited guest. The orchestra along with Marsalis have been touring throughout Europe including the UK during this summer.  Tim Stenhouse

Guitarist Lee Ritenour is best known for his fusion flavours take on jazz with the occasional dabble into Latin-fusion, but here has gone out of his comfort zone with an album devoted to the guitar in all its myriad forms. An all-star line up of guitarists are present from jazz, blues and rock genres as well as some upcoming talent too. The question needs to be asked of whether such disparate styles are compatible on a single CD. It might have made for a cohesive whole had there been one CD of jazz guitar and another separate one of blues and rock. As far as the jazz content is concerned, the pairing of Ritenour and Pat Martino is an extremely relaxed and fruitful one with Joey DeFrancesco adding hammond organ licks on the mid-tempo, ‘L.P. (For Les Paul)’. It is a great pity this line up did not record any more numbers. There are two pieces between Ritenour and George Benson with ‘My one and only love’, a lyrical guitar only duet while the real bonus is a fresh, invigorating take on ‘Moon river’ which transforms into an organ groover in a style that Benson used to play on for Prestige and Columbia back in the 1960s. The blues-jazz connection is investigated on the opener, ‘Lay it down’, which is a duet between Ritenour and John Scofield. Maybe this link could have been examined in greater depth. Blues is present in good measure on Keb Mo and Taj Mahal’s, ‘Am I wrong’, with both featuring on vocals while another guitar-vocal duet is to be found with Robert Cray and Joe Bonamassa. A whole host of guitarists and vocalists feature on the B.B. King cover of ‘Why I sing the blues’ with the great bluesman sharing vocals duties here. It has to be state that some of the songs are simply outside the sphere of black music with ‘68’ an all-out rock guitar jam with Steve Lukather and Neil Schon and even the jazz-fusion number, ‘Shape of my heart’ with Ritenour, Lukather and Andy McKee is on the margins of jazz, though highly melodic for all that. Of the new talent, Australian youngster Joe Robinson impresses with his solo technique on ‘Daddy longlicks’.

Lee Ritenour is to be commended for going outside his recognised musical field and seeking commonality /approaches with other guitarists. Open-minded guitar fans who like rock as well as blues and jazz will certainly find their own notion of musical nirvana here. For jazz fans, though, this is a somewhat mixed blessing and one that brings with it some degree of frustration. A missed opportunity in part, but if other more specialised projects were to emanate from this intial foray, then it may well have been worth all the effort assembling the guitarists in the first place. Detailed sleeve notes on the guitars used as well as the rationale behind the whole endeavour will appeal to guitar fans. Tim Stenhouse

This is by some distance Carmen Lundy’s most personal album thus far and in addtion to composing all but one of the songs, she also plays all the instruments. It is equally the most intimate and varied of her recordings and the pared down sound gives the album something of a 1970s feel, especially with the use of fender rhodes. The moody, jazzy hues of ‘Lay low’ impress’ with the emphasis on catchy keyboard riffs. In contrast ‘Fire in the rhythm’ occupies nu-soul territory and is the sort of tune that Erykah Badu might have recorded on one of her two concept albums devoted to the US way of life. 

Contemporary grooves are also present on ‘Move on’, a minor theme song with Carmen in reflective mood on the downside to life in the States. This social commentary is new territory for Carmen Lundy and one that she would, perhaps, like to explore further. Directly following on from the previous and a clever ploy at that is a cover of ‘America the beautiful’, extolling the virtues of her home country, here delivering a moody fender-driven reworking that is quite different from say the Ray Charles interpretation. The title of a Maya Angelou book, ‘I know why the caged bird sings’, serves as the pretext for a shuffling samba intro that develops into a subtle and refined jazzy number with double bass and keyboards reinforcing the atmosphere.  Breezy jazz is the only way to describe ‘The out crowd Pt. 1’ which is an uplifiting song and the ideal vehicle for Carmen’s vocals to shine through. Part two has a looser feel, with an almost spoken delivery.
Blues-inflected piano and vocals are expertly delivered on ‘Without your love’ while ‘Free as a child’ is a tribute to all child, their energy and fresh as a daisy mindset. This is a positive and uplifting message. Overall another winner of an album from Carmen Lundy that will reinforce the qualities that her long-term fans already admired and possibly attract a few new fans into the bargain. Tim Stenhouse

British-based band the Root Source are the brainchild of band leader, composer, arranger and keyboardist Andy Fairclough and on the live circuit the band have been garnering critical acclaim from some of the foremost Jazz-dance DJs. The group specialise in driving 1970s style jazz that takes in funky hammond organist Lonnie Smith and multi-keyboardist Lonnie Liston Smith with even the innovations of flautist Roland Kirk getting a mention. What distinguishes this group from a host of others is the attention to detail. Lovely use of saxophone and flute arrangements with plenty of space for individual band members to improvise makes for some enthralling music. The title track, weighing in at a mamouth eleven minutes and twenty seconds, has a vaguely Eastern theme with a gorgeous flute solo, pumping bass and shuffling percussion. Another danceflor winner is ‘Moon juice’, featuring organ solo and a fiery rhythm section throughout. The tempo varies on a fascinating interpretation of all things the Charley and the Chocolate soundtrack, transformed here into a three piece suite. Most impressive is the band’s take on the ‘Oompa loumpa song’. A slow burner of a number that builds in intensity is ‘Echoes of your past’ which develops into a brass-led piece with hammond organ and flute solo. Another side to the Root Source is to be found on ‘Streams’ which has a subtle Latin feel that Lonnie Smith might have conjured up. Root Source have a very promising future ahead of them if this album is anything to go by. One to watch out for in a live context. Tim Stenhouse

Phuture Motion are very much a dancefloor grooves outfit and three DJs are at the core of their sound: Danny Mager, Levi Bussue and Chris Welch. The music overall is a twenty-first century hybrid of Hispanic beats that oscillates between rap and reggaeton (dub step and Latin sub-genres included) with hard-hitting street lyrics in Spanish. The mood is typfied by songs such as ‘Dimelo ya’ with Columbian singer Liliana Saumet from Bomba Estereo guesting, or the moody ‘Lluvia’ (’Rain’) with Spanish-tinged trumpet and Latin piano vamp. A single has been released, the catchy rap with Latin drum ‘n’ bass that is ‘Carne negra’. Most interesting of all is ‘The devil’s hand’’ that hints at a left-field take on Manu Chao and is a mainly instrumental track with odd voiceover in Spanish and elements of dub and reggaeton thrown into the mix. An interesting take on the slower bolero format on the appropriately titled, ‘Bolero’, includes a hammond organ and
psychadelic guitar while ‘Tu ne sabes nada’ (’You know nothing’) features Spanglish lyrics over reggaeton beats.

This will appeal most to a young urban audience that is not all phased by the cosmpolitan fusing of disaprate genres and is equally at ease in Latin music as they are in the latest sounds of Jamaican music.  Tim Stenhouse

With its mock retro Blue Note cover and inner sleeve, this has all the feel of a timeless releasse and quality product and the music within fully stands up to the test. This is a carefully selected choice of connoisseurs jazz and Latin music and by no means exclusively for jazz dancers. Listeners will find several tracks they will want to hear time and time again. One of the joys of this collection is that it avoids the ususal pitfall of choosing already available on CD tracks in order to court commercial sales, though the music is very accessible and will appeal to a wider audience. People here will be attracted rather by the quality of the pieces and by their sheer obscurity and in some cases rarity. Just one of the highlights on offer is a delicious big band plus vocals take on the standard ‘Cherokee’, here the vocals being none other than the wonderful Dianne Reeves who sings the tune inside out. Peter Herbolzheimer is the band leader of Rhythm comb and brass and they compliment Reeves’ singing to great effect. Another great discovery is French West Indian (from Martinique to be precise) pianist (who incidentally features as an actor and pianist in French cult director Claire Denis’ last film ‘Thirty-five shots of Rum’) and the gorgeous Latin-fusion track’ Kon djab djigidi’ which has a 1970s Afro-Cuban feel to it. Even rarer still is the samba jazz of Brazilian Marcos Ariel on ‘Samba torto’. This is a no holds barred samba batucada outing featuring an all-star cast. By no means all the tracks are golden oldies and in fact the oldest track on the compilation dates from 1974. In fact quite a few are very recent releases, no more so than the big band grooves of the Colman Brothers, Matt and Andrew. Their ‘sem amor’ cuts across musical boundaries and incorporates latin fusion, big band, be bop and vocalese with fine female vocals and their album due out this year promises to be a musical event. From 2008 comes an unusual jazz vocal number from a Japanese 45, ‘A child runs free’ by Primo and the Groupe that even Mark Murphy in his prime would be proud of. Probably the best known artist on the CD is Eddie Palmieri who collaborated with ihs long-time trumpeter Brian Lynch on the scintillating Latin-Jazz of ‘Free hands’. Both are currently on Eddie’s all too brief select UK tour dates. All round this is a musical and visual treat. Presentation and incisive sleeve notes illuminate the musicians contained within and DJ Adrian Gibson has come up with an impeccable selection of tunes. By some distance the most compelling and adventurous various artists jazz compilation of the year thus far.  Tim Stenhouse

Virtuoso bassist Dave Holland, in additon to leading his long-time band, has occasionally led a parallel career collaborating with other musicans outside his usual field of interest. The trio album with oud player Anouar Brahem and John Surman immediately springs to mind. For his latest project, however, he has gone some way outside his comfort zone to take on board the music of flamenco and record with one of the present day greats of the guitar in this genre, Pepe Habichuela. They were in fact first teamed together as the result of an initiative at a festival in Seville in 2007 and this whetted Holland’s appettite for a fully-fledged duet album recording. The result is a triumph and one where it is the dynamic sound of flamenco that wins the day over the jazzier side of Holland’s playing. The title track has echoes of a 1970s Paco de Lucia classic recently heard as the soundtrack to a Woody Allen film in Barcelona and is a wonderfully evocative piece. Equally intoxicating is the mid-paced and melodic ‘Whirling dervish’ which is a bright, percussive number with outstanding solo work from Habichuela. Here Holland is content to accompany. There is possibly a tribute to the flamenco singing legend Camaron de la Isla on ‘Camaron’ which is a memorable duet between the two leaders while ‘El ritmo me llama’ is quite simply a delightful rumba that displays a subtle groove, yet has the ability to hit the listener right in the heart. Pepe’s son Josemi strums nicely on accompanying guitar and there is the usual percussive cajón drum and feverish handclapping that one would expect of a top flamenco group. The band played at the prestigious San Sebastian festival in the Basque county on the weekend of 24-25 July and were rightly granted a two page spread in the influential daily El Pais in their weekend edition. The music contained within this excellent CD is definitely worthy of your attention. Tim Stenhouse

This is the second new album to come from Gilberto Gil this year, the first being a pared down live recording. The Minister of Culture in Brazil has well and truly returned to recording duties and this labum was actually recorded as recnetly as April of this year which must deserve some sort of prize for a quick turnaround. Here Gil is joined by his regular band and all but three of the compositions are his own, or at least co-written. Stylistically the album veers between MPB, and an updated take on forró from north-east Brazil with accordeon accompaniment, as evidenced by the title track. Of the forró numbers, the rootsy and uptempo ‘Marmundo’ impresses with its breakdown in the middle and tasty female vocals. Only slightly less enticing is ‘O livre-atinador e a pegadora’ with violin and female vocals combining to good effect. Overall the songs are indeed pleasant without delivering any knockout punches. However, Gil’s compositional creativity is very much intact and this album will appeal to those who favour a modernised take on the classic forró format. Tim Stenhouse

This is in fact the second album from Gyptian in recent months, though unlike the previous, ‘Revelations’, the new album does not feature any collaborations and is produced by Niel ‘Diamond’ Edwards. All compositions are original and veer between the softer, lovers side of Gyptians’ repertoire and the harder edged ragga. For the former, the melodicsm of ‘Beautiful lady’ will appeal with female background vocals as will ‘All in you’ and ‘Nah let go’ with programmed handclaps. Perhaps catchiest of all is ‘Hold you’ with nifty keyboard riff and vocals while on the dancehall front, ‘Call Gyptian’ provdes a different side to the singer. The programmed musical accompaniment can become a little tedious as on the gimmicky sound effects of ‘Tease me (haffi easy)’ and overall the album would benefit from some real musicians playing the instrumentation. Nonetheless, there is evidence of a skilled songwriter and one who, with the right accompaniment, can truly find his own individual style. Tim Stenhouse

Formerly known for his slack DJ-esque lyrics, Capleton has transformed his repertoire into far more conscious and socially aware reality lyrics. The artist’s zenith was reached with ‘Prophecy’, where serious commentary was accompanied by nyabinghi drumming and subsequently Capelton’s adeherence to the Rastafarian faith has resulted in more reflective lyrics. If Capleton has yet to fully win over an international audience, it is in part due to the fact that he has never openly courted this same audience and his unique delivery has always been aimed primarily at Jamaicans. That popularity may be about to widen, though, for the new album combines conscious wordsmith content with catchy rhythms and has been recorded at a variety of prime studios including Penthouse, Tuff Gong, Steven Stanley’s and Bobby Digital’s Digital B. This merely reflects the diverse array of producers on board for the project and he ends up duetting with both Luciano and Beres Hammond. A possible single contender and immediately attracting attention is ‘Acres’, with instantly catchy hook and surefire bass from one Glen Browne. Another winner is the soulful, ‘When I came to town’, produced by Clive Hunt and with vocals that bring to mind Bob Marley and the I-Threes, especially when the riddim is none other than ‘Them belly full’ from ‘Natty dread’. There is an almost preacher-like delivery to the intro on ‘Some day’ with a surprisingly melodic theme all using digitalised instrumentation. Overall these all original compositions work well together and ‘I-Ternal fire’ might just be the breakthrough album for a much larger appreciation that Capleton’s music so richly deserves. Tim Stenhouse

After more than a decade recording for the Blue Note label, pianist Jacky Terrason makes his debut for Concord and this is very much a return to some of his best trio outings for the former, with extended horns used only on a selection of numbers. The new trio comprises Ben Williams on drums and Jamire Williams (unrelated to the former) on drums and Terrason seems to have soaked up a plethora of musical influences that he is willing to share with thelistener on this album. The majority of pieces are originals, but there are a trio of interesting standards with a fascinating trio take on a medley of Michael Jackson’s ‘Beat it’ with ‘Body and soul’ that not only works, but actually breathes new life into both. In fact the version of the former is barely recognisable from the Jackson original. Uplifiting and optimistic is the only way to describe ‘O café, o soleil’, the one title in French, while the pianist tackles the kind of territory Abdullah Ibrahim has perfected on ‘Ganx girl’ which starts off with a South African flavour in the introduction before morphing into something quite different as the track progresses. In a more reflective vein is ‘My church’, possibly the finest performance from the new trio on the set, and one looks forward to hearing them in a live setting. On arguably the most recorded and played jazz standard of all, ‘Round midnight’, the trio offer a somewhat sedate version with blues-inflected piano licks from Terrason that recall Gene Harris from his time at the helm of the Three Sounds, while the other Monk piece, ‘Ruby my dear’, hints at Herbie Hancock with great economy in the use of notes and this matches the mood perfectly. The cosmpolitan vision espoused by Jacky Terrason on this recording is merely a reflection of his own multi-national and diverse upbringing, being Berlin born, Paris raised and now New York resident. This is a fine album and one that could ultimately prove to be the start of an exciting new chapter in an already distinguished career. Tim Stenhouse

Ghanaian band Hedzoleh Sounds first came to prominence when South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela visited Fela Kuti’s Kalakuta commune in Lagos and stayed with him there during the summer of 1973. While attending an evening performance by Fela’s own band, Masekela caught the opening act, Hedzoleh Sounds, and was so impressed that he wanted to play with them. Fela enabled this to happen and the result was an album, ‘Hugh Masekela introducing Hedzoleh Sounds’, that came out on Blue Thumb in the States and was a critical and commercial hit. That being said, none of the band’s albums on their own ever surfaced internationally until now. Hedzoleh Sounds were a group formed in 1972, with charismatic bassist Stanley Todd, the standout musician, and fused Afro-funk and rock not dissimilar to Blo in Nigeria, another group that has recently been re-discovered. For their eponymously titled album, four of the songs were re-recorded for the Masekela album, but these are the originals and as a whole the album is extremely rootsy, taking in highlife, afro-beat and even disco and funk influences. Perhaps closest to a western groove is the discofied intro to ‘Rekpete’ with polyrhythmic percussion, minimalist guitars and gorgeous collective vocal harmonies. The instrumentals are of a high standard and of these the flute-driven ‘Mee bee (when)’ impresses with rhythm guitar and an electric solo à la Santana. A frantic percussive work is found on ‘Omusu da fe’ while ‘M’musu’ has a pared-down Afro-beat feel with Fela-esque vocals. Not everything is uptempo and the laid back song, ‘Yei baa gee’, is a fine example of the group in melodic mood. With a beautifully illustrated gatefold sleeve in green, red and yellow, this album truly captures the modern sound of West African music is both a visual and audio treat. Hedzoleh Sounds would record a further two albums with Masekela and even tour with him. However, this album remains their finest hour and provides a fascinating departure from the traditional highlife sounds for which Ghana is rightly famed.  Tim Stenhouse

This releases ties in with the seventieth year celebration of one of the all-time great musicians of any genre, Chicago-born pianist and keyboard extraordinaire Herbie Hancock. Hancock has for over forty-five years played with some of the greatest musicians of the late twentieth century and early twenty-first century. His vision is truly panoramic and he has never wanted to be pigeion-holed into any neat categorisation. Thus with his latest album, the broadest of musical canvasses is attempted with numerous invited guests from a plethora of genres and by and large it is a successful endeavour with a few qualified caveats. The album works best with some of the younger singers.  India Irie and her soulful vocals are ideally suited to a sensitive accompanist such as Hancock and one wishes that a larger contribution on her part could have been made beyond her impeccable vocie on ‘Imagine’. Hailing from Chicago, the blues runs through Herbie Hancock’s veins and it is of little surprise, then, that the collaboration with the vastly underrated UK vocalist James Morrison is a triumph on the Sam Cooke classic, A change is gonna come’. Morrison deserves a big break and his contribution here might just do the trick.  Brazilian music has only occasionally featured in Herbie’s extensive repertoire and yet one wonders why when listening to the empathy he so obviously displays for the country’s music on the Vinicius de Moraes song, ‘Tempo de amor’, expertly delivered by new songstress Céu. In a similar Latin vein, the collaboration with Columbian singer Juanes on ‘La tierra’ is excellent and surely a whole album of Latin numbers would make a fascinating future project.  Still in a world roots meets jazz register, ‘The song goes on’ is an inter-twisting piece that features Chaka Khan on vocals and Anoushka Shankar on sitar. This listener would have liked to have heard more of the trio.  So much for the good. What of the rest? Inevitably not everything works and Dylan’s ‘Times they are a changin’ is a misguided attempt while Oumou Sangare surely deserves a whole song rather than a last bit piece on the title track. The question needs to be asked of who this album is aimed at? Jazzers may balk at the listing. Pop fans may not necessarily be attracted by the world and jazz elements. Nevertheless there is enough qualiity on offer for radio stations to pick up on diverse songs and this may eventually result in the album appealing to diverse audiences.  Tim Stenhouse

Whatever the achievements and merits of the current Brazilian team in the 2010 World Cup, football will always be synonymous with the Brazilian people and their way of life as Alex Bellos so eloquently dissected the Brazilian psyche in his book examining the history of the game in Brazil. It should come as little surprise, then, that the nation’s superstars should be eulogised in musical form and this handy compilation plays the inestimable role of assembling just some of the many musical tributes to the sport known affectionately by Brazilians as ‘futebol’. Interspersed between the music are brief commentary vignettes in Brazilian Portugese of the nation’s greatest triumphs, the zenith of which will always be the glorious team of 1970. Music-wise the cream of MPB are present with Jorge Ben delivering a delicious ‘Take is easy my brother Charles’ (ably assisted by Trio Mocoto), Caetano Veloso doing likewise on ‘Hino de Bahia’ and legendary singer Elis Regina, arguably Brazil’s greatest ever female vocalist, outdoing everyone by dueting with none other than Pelé himself on ‘Perdao nao tem’, which was a hit 45 in 1970 for the pair. The rootsier side of Brazilian music comes in the shape of north-easter forró and its prinicipal exponent was one Jackson do Pandeiro who here contributes a homage to the most famous wearer of the number ten shirt with ‘O rei Pelé’. Advertising gurus have lost little time in exploiting the Brazilian team’s reputation and brand image and during the 2002 World Cup ‘Mas que Nada’ was rejuvinated for Sergio Mendes. Here an earlier version by Tamba is a scintillating bossa-jazz take on the song. In a similar vein with a samba-jazz bent, though slightly later chronologically, is Cesar Camargo Mariano’s eclectic ‘Futebol de bar’ that begins as an acoustic piano solo before being transformed into a frantic instrumental piece. Mariano was in fact Elis Regina’s musical director, arranger and equally husband. It has often been stated that Brazilian footballers like Brazilians in general move differently from other nationalities and more specifically to the lilting beat of the samba. Percussive mania is supplied in ample measure here by three of the all-time great percussionists with Ney de Castro on the infectous ‘Ba-tu-ca-da’ while Dom Um Romeo and Jadir de Castro enthrall the listener on ‘Repimar’. With the next World Cup in 2014 to be hosted in Brazil for the first time since 1950, expect the next generation of musicians to be already preparing their homage to the beautiful game. In the meantime the generously timed ‘Ginga’ will equip you with everything you need to understand the symbiotic relationship between football and music in Brazil.  Tim Stenhouse

Decidely left of centre in the sphere of Brazilian music, this obscure and extremely rare album of music from Pernambuco in north-east Brazil dates from 1974 and is a concept album loosely based around the primal elements of air, earth, fire and water. On the original vinyl which was a double album, each side was devoted to one of the themes. Of the musicians on board, Geraldo Azvêdo and Alceu Valença are best known, while Côrtes himself is a percussionist, arranger and composer, and partner Zé Ramalho is a multi-instrumentalist on bass, guitar and percussion. The album as whole has a very earthy ambiance, attributable in part to the basic recording technique which was four-track. Nonetheless, it is perfectly acceptable now it has been re-mastered. Highlights include ‘Harpa dos ares’ with delightful guitar work by Zé Ramalho and a beautiful, relaxed feel as well as the etheral flute-driven number ‘Trila de sumé’ which is both folksy and psychadelic in parts. An astonishing array of percussion and even occasional baritone saxophone lends an esoteric air to proceedings. Excellent translated sleeves notes thirty years later from Côrtes place both the ablum and the musician in their rightful historical context. If rootsy Brazilian music with a slightly psychadelic feel is your cup of tea (think of Tom Zé and then give it a folksier flavour), this album is probably for you.  Tim Stenhouse

In recent years singer Nnenna Frelon has struggled to re-establish a distinct identity for her fine voice, but this recording is definitely a step back in the right direction and one on which the singer skilfully plays with established melodies in new and inventive ways. One of the most interesting covers is the Cole Porter standard ‘Get out of town’, accompanied in this version by a reggae-fied, quasi-dub instrumentation. This is a stroke of genius with the rolling rhythm blending beautifully. Cole Porter never sounded so contemporary and this is a truly inspired take. Another standard, ‘The lamp is low’, received a memorable version from Carmen Lundy, but Freelon’s interpretation is not far off that standard, here being a mid-tempo, blusey and breezy vehicle. Part of the reason for the refreshed feel to Freelon’s repertoire and indeed delivery is the line-up of fine young musicians on offer including Brandon McCone on piano, Wayne Batchelor on bass and Beverly Botsford on percusison. Echoes of Sarah Vaughan can be heard when the band take the tempo all the way down on ‘I feel pretty’, in contrast to the superb rendition by Sassy herself and there are tinges of gospel on ‘Life every voice and sing’ as well as on the ode to the US that is ‘America the beautiful’. In a more uptempo vein, there is a vaguely Latin flavour to the mid-tempo, ‘There from the valley of the dolls’ while the band really stretch out on the excellent ‘Smile’, which is taken at a brisk tempo and renders a decidely live feel to the number. Overall there are some interesting and unusual plays on the classic time signatures to the standards and excellent individual and ensemble playing that makes this album a triumphant return to those of Nnenna Frelon’s best performances. The late July tenure at Ronnie Scott’s promises to be a most memorable one.  Tim Stenhouse

The works contained within were specially commissioned pieces for individual organisations such as the trade union Unison in 1993, or by the then Governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten, to commemorate the handing over of the protectorate to China in 1997. However, they have all been revisited by a fine studio octet formed for the occasion and including regular members of Stan’s trio and other formations with a five piece brass section including Guy Barker on trumpet and Sammy Payne on alto saxophone. Two of the pieces, ‘Humberto’s dream’ and ‘The Cuban connection’ have been staples of the Tracey repertoire in live performance ever since they were first composed. The former has an Ellingtonian big band feel with two extended saxophone solos and a typically quixotic solo from Stan himself. The latter is a latin-tinged number with a gorgeous impassioned solo from Payne and fine ensemble brass playing.  On the reflective piece, ‘Lunar lanterns’, Tracey has the opportunity to stretch out with a solo and there is again fine brass peformances all round. In contrast ‘Moon cake’ has a Jazz Messengerish feel and the first tenor solo could just as easily have been the young Wayne Shorter. Even this number is dwarfed in terms of speed by the brisk ‘Crackers and banger’s’, a typically witty title where the horns state the theme with gusto. Performed at no less than the last official concert of then Governor Patten, ‘The Hong Kong Suite’ impresses with the breezy opener ‘Sweet lips’ which has a slightly latin feel in the rhythm section and some latinizations on drums from Clark Tracey. Again there is some fine soloing from the reed players. All in all a splendid set and one that long-time devotees of the pianist’s live repertoire will be glad to finally have recorded for posterity on CD.  Tim Stenhouse

Defenders of dancefloor jazz with a distinctly avant-garde flavour, Japanese collective Soil and Pimp have carved out a career that takes on board myriad influences including German saxophonist Peter Brötzman and John Zorn among others. Recent performances in Birmingham and Womad have gone down a treat and all this on the back of a well received previous album, ‘Planet Pimp’. The latest offering is equally eclectic with largely self-penned compositions and a couple of surefire standards given the Soil and Pimp reworking. Perhaps the most immediate track is the mid-tempo and melodic ‘Quartz and chronometer’ with a driving rhythm, lovely use of brass ensemble and sensitive drum programming. Expect this to figure large on the airwaves.  Only marginally less appealing is ‘Parasio’, a bright and breezy number that has a slight latin feel in its vamps and collective chants. The breakneck speed intro to ‘Keizoku’ leads into a more bop-influenced piece with impassioned saxophone throughout while ‘Double trouble’ maintains the same brisk tempo. An interesting cover is that of early UK 1980s punk-funk band Pigbag’s underground hit, ‘Papa’s got a brand new pigbag’ that became a fine example of what is now termed ‘mutant disco’. In comparison with the original, greater emphasis here is placed on the drums, but the catchy bass riff is retained. A timbales solo and dubby echo give this the personalised Soul and Pimp feel. The other standard is the Oliver Nelson composition ‘Stolen moments’ with the lyrics added by Mark Murphy that graced the seminal ‘Rah’ album. Beating the original vocal version was always going to be a hard act, but Soil and Pimp have wisely come up with a minimalist take that kicks some punch with economy in the use of brass and the vocals of Jamie Cullum are surprisingly good. The reflective side to the band is demonstrated on ‘My foolish heart’ even though the song with vocals by guest singer Ringo Sheena is highly melodic. An excellent album as a whole and one the cements Soul and Pimps reputation as the left-field champions of the groove and the two elements are far from irreconcilable as this recording illustrates only too well.  Tim Stenhouse

Baritone saxophonists these days are a relatively rare phenomenon outside big bands and female practitioners even more so. French reed player Céline Bonacina has an unusual and in some ways fascinating portfolio. Haling from eastern France, she studied music before moving to Paris. Here experience in local big bands and with Cuban pianist Omar Sosa proved invaluable. It was at this point that her career took a curious twist in direction with a seven year stay on the French island of Reunion in the Indian ocean where she gained an insight into local folk music forms. Thereafter she returned to France, performing at the prestigious Vienne festival near Lyon in the summer of 2009 and being voted winner of a competiton for new emerging talent there. The prize was a recording contract and that album lies herein with a pared down line-up of bass, drums and occasional guitar. The album is surprisingly diverse and the compositions reveal a gifted writer. French guitarist Nguyên Lê is invited on a trio of numbers. African as well as Caribbean flavours are evident on ‘Ra’Bentr’ol’ with Lê soloing beautifully. Perhaps the most impressive piece is ‘Free woman’ which is a fine example of how the baritone saxophone can be played in a sensitive musical environment. The percussive fusion track, ‘Ekena’ hints at Weather Report among Bonacina’s influences and here she plays soprano saxohpone while freer form pieces unfold on ‘Wake up’ and ‘Travel story’. This is a promising debut on an international label, her previous recording having been on a small French independent, and augurs well for the future. Expect to hear Céline Bonacina in a variety of contexts in her developing career.  Tim Stenhouse

Young alto saxophonist Jon Irabagon was winner of the 2008 Thelonius Monk International Jazz competition and first prize won him a recording date with a dream trio of Kenny Barron’s regular rhythm section comprising Rufus Reid on bass, Victor Lewis on drums and Barron as steady ever on piano. Trumpeter Nicholas Payton is added on a couple of tracks. This is a highly accomplished debut recording and one that belies Irabagon’s relatively young years. First of all the compositions are excellent with seven of the ten pieces originals and even the standards are unusual choices that mark the altoist out as an individual of some talent. The waltz-like ‘Makai and Takoma’ is a lyrical number with latin-tinged drumming from Lewis. A sweet sounding outing would be an apt description of the lovely composition ‘Joy’s secret’ with latin vamps from Barron and Payton featuring on trumpet while the mid-paced opener ‘January dream’ sets the scene perfectly. Among influences Cannonball Adderely and Sonny Stitt alongside the omnipresent (for altoists that is) Charlie Parker are cited in the accopmanying literature, but surely Wayne Shorter is the more obvious in terms of the ability to craft a melodic tune. Inevitably the trio playing with a saxophonist conjurs up comparisons of their tenure with Stan Getz, yet Jon Irabagon is so at ease in this setting that the comparison bears up remarkably well and Getz himself would be impressed with this young turk’s performance. Definitely a name to watch out for in the future. Expect this album to figure on the end of year best of lists.  Tim Stenhouse