JD Allen CD Release : Bloom

JD Allen " Bloom" Available April 22, 2014 Pre-Order NOW Come see JD Allen and his band at Smoke April 11 & 12, 2014.   Order tickets here Keep up with JD Allen on Facebook! gailboyd@gailboyd.com

Jane Bunnett And Chihiro Yamanaka At The Kennedy Center - NPR

Jane Bunnett aand Candido Camero

Chihiro Yamanaka and Jane Bunnett come to the Kennedy Center from Japan and Canada, respectively, and each has a compelling story.

Jane Bunnett is from Toronto, yet for more than 30 years, she's championed Cuban music and musicians. She's made dozens of trips to the island, studying and working, bringing instruments to schoolchildren, and inviting players to return to Canada with her and her husband, trumpeter Larry Cramer.

In 1991, Cuban pianist Hilario Duran joined Bunnett's band for Spirits of Havana. Duran already had a high profile in Cuba. He had replacedChucho Valdes in the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, toured with trumpeter Arturo Sandoval for a decade, and co-led Grupo Prospectiva. In 1998, Duran moved to Toronto, where he's currently a professor in the thriving jazz department at Humber College.

Bunnett (on flute and soprano) and Duran invite a Cuban-born guest to join them. He's a 91-year-old NEA Jazz Master. In the 1950s, congueroCandido Camero made his first U.S. recording, "Mambo Inn," with theBilly Taylor Trio. Candido knows a thing or two about show business. Making their entrances together, he tickled Jane Bunnett with the line, "As Jackie Gleason says, 'Here we go!'"

Bunnett and Duran have an album out called Cuban Rhapsody.

Both Yamanaka and her drummer, John Davis, are alumni of Betty Carter's Jazz Ahead training for young musicians at the Kennedy Center, and Yamanaka has performed here with the big band Diva as well. She's someone to see.

In JazzTimes, Giovanni Russonello reviewed Yamanaka's performance at the Umbria Jazz Festival in Italy: "Opening for the Tribute to Miles band with her trio, the Japanese pianist tore into two originals at the top of her set. Right and left, jaws were dropping." As Bridgewater says from the stage at the end of Yamanaka's set, "I was sitting on the side and just watching how she combines her classical technique with the jazz, and I thought she was going to fly off the stool, didn't you? I've never seen such footwork."

Yamanaka centers her set on an original piece for the people of Fukushima, Japan, where she grew up. Fukushima was the site of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in 2011. Yamanaka's composition, "It Was a Beautiful Eight Minutes of My Life," begins quietly and builds disquietingly; it will move you. Yamanaka's album, Reminiscence, won the Nissan Presents Jazz Japan Award in 2011.

Chihiro Yamanaka Personnel

• Chihiro Yamanaka, piano
• Yoshi Waki, bass
• John Davis, drums

Chihiro Yamanaka Set List

• "Take Five" (Paul Desmond)
• "It Was A Beautiful Eight Minutes Of My Life" (Yamanaka)
• "Close To You" (Burt Bacharach)

Jane Bunnett Set List

• "Almendra/Almonds"
• "Rosa Mae" (Mary Lou Williams, on-the-spot arrangement)
• "Sherezada" (Frank Emilio)
• "Conga Jam"

Becca Pulliam

New CD: Janice Borla Group "Promises to Burn"

New CD: Janice Borla Group "Promises to Burn" Featuring Janice Borla-voice Scott Robinson -tenor saxophone/flute Art Davis-trumpet/flugelhorn John McLean-guitars Bob Bowman-bass Jack Mouse-drums (Tall Grass Records TG 8281) Street Date March 4, 2014

"Among the best, boldest and most innovative vocalists around…Working exclusively with Borla's arrangements, the sextet exercises its fervent cohesion across a marvelously wide-ranging playlist…vocal-based jazz symbiosis rarely reaches such splendor."   Christopher Loudon, Jazz Times "…Her voice is an instrument to be reckoned with.  She is a force of nature." Jack Goodstein, BlogCritics "Superb!  The voice of Janice is a jewel, her group shows that it's a pleasure to play with her."  Serge Warin, Radio Grand Brive, France "…Round and polished performances geared toward showing off Borla's impressive scat and vocalese capabilities…Borla has chops to spare."   C. Michael Bailey, All About Jazz "Superb album...One of the best singers in the Chicago area… Her scat singing is quite inventive, revealing a deep knowledge of jazz harmony."   Tom Cunniffe, Jazz History Online "Janice makes clear with her full, rich vocal sound and her superb musicianship that jazz singing is in more than  capable hands."   Bruce Crowther, Jazz Mostly  "While the music challenges preconceptions about this music (and vocal jazz in general), Borla's presentation is quite accessible, and easy to appreciate by any open-minded listeners.  (Her) scatting…is irresistible.  The entire album is wonderful!  Great arrangements." Randy Morse, The Best of Brazil "…Always hipster-cool, literati inventive, and friendly while dancing on the outskirts of traditional forms."   Mark Tucker, AcousticMusic.com "What a quandary…Which track to play from a CD that is perfect?" Tony Soley, 10Radio, United Kingdom There is often a certain element of debate as to what makes someone a jazz singer.  But in the case of the outstanding vocalist Janice Borla that debate will never take place.  From the opening bars of her remarkable new album Promises to Burn on Tall Grass Records, there is no doubt that this is jazz at its purest.             Eschewing the vocalist with accompaniment approach for that of a fully integrated instrumental ensemble, Janice takes on eight challenging compositions, many of which would be unexpected material for a vocalist.  To accomplish this successfully, a clear vision of structure is demanded, and Janice’s formidable arranging artistry is fully up to the task.             Composers like Lennie Tristano, Jack DeJohnette, Bob Mintzer and Bill Evans are generally not names that show up on vocalists’ albums, but they’re all represented here alongside Leonard Bernstein, Tadd Dameron and Joey Calderazzo.  Janice has also assembled an exceptional ensemble of musicians for the project, all of whom play in the conversational style that is ideal for telling the stories that are told in this extraordinary album.  The rapport of all of the musicians is exemplary.  Art Davis on trumpet and flugelhorn, bassist Bob Bowman and Janice’s husband and drummer Jack Mouse have all performed on Janice’s three previous albums.  Guitarist John McLean was on one, and Scott Robinson on tenor sax and flute is recording with Janice for the first time here. The arrangements provide a broad palette of textures and contexts for interaction – harmonized, contrapuntal and improvisational, and with plenty of room for blowing.             Janice’s beautiful, rounded voice and flawless intonation is often in scat mode here, with her wordless lyrics shaped to sound more like a horn.  And like an instrumentalist, when she sings written lyrics, she does so in a manner that states the melodic line to create the framework from which the solo will emerge.             Two beautiful ballads are an exception to this approach, and are offered in a more straightforward and traditional manner.  Bernstein’s Some Other Time – with lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green – is given a most tender treatment, dreamlike and serene.  Janice’s lovely understated vocal and a delicate, genteel tenor solo by Robinson slips into a freewheeling guitar/vocal/sax improv with a rubato feel before a lyrical bass solo leads into the closing theme of this enchanting piece. Tadd Dameron’s If You Could See Me Now was composed for Sarah Vaughan and aptly demonstrates its composer’s “above all, it must be beautiful” approach. With just guitar and bass Janice gives Carl Sigman’s poignant lyrics a most sensitive portrayal expressing the essence of the piece in spare, undiluted form.             Another classic ballad receives a most imaginative transformation.  Don Raye and Gene DePaul’s You Don’t Know What Love Is – a song performed by countless jazz vocalists and instrumentalists of all styles – receives a delectable samba-ish treatment here with scintillating interplay between voice and guitar.  Soulful tenor, luminous scatting and lyrical bass solos lead into a closing where the samba feel is embraced and then released as the piece is taken to a powerful emotional climax.             Easy swing – so confident that it almost swaggers – is the mode for Joey Calderazzo’sMidnight Voyage.  Janice gives Christine Helferich’s lyrics a sinuously simmering treatment with strut-walking bass and horns that sound like a vocal chorus.   A mellifluous Art Famer-invoking flugelhorn solo, soul-tinged guitar and a delicious scat solo add to the captivating texture.             An evocative, highly atmospheric mood permeates Jack DeJohnette’s Silver Hollow.  A paean to the sound of Jack’s longtime label ECM Records, the melody is nicely layered with euphonious flute and flugelhorn voicings and infectious call and response with Janice.  Warmly embracing flugelhorn, full-bodied flute, a radiant flute/vocal duo and stirring guitar, all contribute mightily to the evolution of this piece’s richly expressed narrative.             Bill Evans’ Funkallero opens the album on a jaunty note with a wordless, playful bass/voice unison in bouncy syncopation before Janice sings Karen Gallinger’s wry lyrics.  Bowman’s nicely suspended woodiness and Mouse’s brilliant brushwork provides a Latin-ish feel under the guitar, tenor and harmon-muted trumpet solos before a delicious scat/drums duet takes the piece into the closing voice/bass unison theme.             Two scorchers complete this delightful album.  Bob Mintzer’s RunFerYerLife is a smoker with a staccato, heavily syncopated unison theme.  Vivid guitar comping and sprightly walking bass set the framework for a rollicking scat excursion, a highly articulate trumpet solo and an exciting turn on tenor, leading into an ensemble riff-peppered dynamically-charged drum solo by Mouse – whose playing throughout the album is absolutely perfect.             The legendary Lennie Tristano’s Lennie’s Pennies is given a stunning treatment.  His own take on Pennies From Heaven is offered with rapid-fire boppish vocal/guitar unison and closes out with spectacular three-part harmony on the challenging theme.  In between, supported by a deeply-wooded bass line in a briskly complex walk, is a dancing brightly-grooved scat solo, nimble guitar and a fluidly lyrical tenor solo that would make Warne Marsh smile.             Consummate musicianship, astonishing interplay, and a sense of joyfully unfettered creativity that permeates this entire album make Promises to Burn a truly uplifting experience. Upcoming performances April 4    "An Evening with Vocalist Janice Borla"         with Art Davis (trumpet/flugelhorn), John McLean (guitars), Jim Cox (bass) and Jack Mouse (drums)         featuring selections from her new CD Promises to Burn                  Madden Theatre         Wentz Fine Arts Center         North Central College         Naperville, ILL Aug 11-16    Janice Borla Vocal Jazz Camp & Concert Series         with Madeline Eastman & Kate McGarry (vocalists); also Art Davis (trumpet), Brad Stirtz (vibes), Dan Haerle (piano), Bob Bowman (bass) and Jack Mouse (drums)         Birch Creek Music Performance Center         Egg Harbor, WI         920-868-36763         mainoffice@birchcreek.org         http://www.birchcreek.org                 Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services          jim@jazzpromoservices.com

Surfin' = Ernest Ranglin & Monty Alexander= Reggae Jazz

For us the Reggae Jazz is part of the great family of Latin Jazz. Just as the Flamenco Jazz, ChaCha Jazz, Mambo Jazz, Bolero Jazz, Salsa Jazz.

Great Reggae performers this rate, the original large cultor Bob Marley, mixed with the Jazz are Mr. Monty Alexander and Ernest Ranglin. Them in their piano and guitar have made ​​multiple presentations and CDs.

Today we bring to enjoy "Surfin '" also with two important additions to give more pace as Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare.

In this blog -www.jazzglobalbeat.blogspot.com- dated September 23, 2013 we published "Jazz A with Jamaican Accent" where you will find more information on these two characters Reggae Jazz.

Now Your enjoy thing special!

¡¡Viva The Latin Jazz!!

Guitarist Perry Beekman with a show at The Metropolitan Room, next March 28, release "Bewitched" sings and plays Rodgers and Hart

Bewitched: Perry Beekman Sings and Plays Rodgers and Hart" @ The Metropolitan Room Friday, March 28th 9:30 PM Featuring Perry Beekman - Vocals & Guitar Peter Tomlinson – Piano Lou Pappas - Bass    T​he Metropolitan Room 3​4 West 22nd Street (Btw. 5th and 6th Aves.)  New York, NY 10010 212-206-0440

"As a vocalist, Perry Beekman can hold his own with any of his contemporaries. As a guitarist, Perry adds a bit of the New York panache that elevates these classics to a new rarefied level of excellence... Perry Beekman raises his game and with that moves to the very top of the pack in the traditional jazz setting. Bewitched is about as close to perfect as you can find." -Brent Black Critical Jazz Guitarist, vocalist Perry Beekman is pleased to announce his new project, "Bewitched: Perry Beekman Sings and Plays Rodgers and Hart" @ The Metropolitan Room Friday, March 28th 9:30 PM. "Bewitched" is the follow up to Perry’s 2013 debut release "So in Love: Perry Beekman  Sings And Plays Cole Porter." Here's what Perry has to say about his new project: The collaboration of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart was an unlikely one. Rodgers was organized and businesslike, while Hart was a notoriously unreliable alcoholic. Yet in spite of their divergent personalities, their collaboration produced some of the most beloved entries in the Great American Songbook. I leave it to their contemporaries to elaborate further: Tuneful and tasty, schmaltzy and smart. Music by Rodgers, lyrics by Hart.” – Irving Berlin It’s smooth! It’s smart! It’s Rodgers! It’s Hart!” – Cole Porter The meticulously crafted music of Rodgers combined with Hart’s dazzling lyrics to produce over five hundred songs, populating twenty-eight theatrical productions and nine movies. This recording contains fifteen of my favorites, and I hope some of yours too. The music on this CD is a combination of carefully planned, well-rehearsed arrangements, along with some good old fashioned “blowing.” (As we jazz folk like to call improvisation.) My goal has been to create a setting for each tune that helps express its essential nature. Here are some examples of what I mean: - The enormously clever lyrical phrases of “I Wish I Were in Love Again” come one after another at an alarming rate. They have a percussive quality that led me to the vamp style introduction and accompaniment of the arrangement. In the instrumental break, I tried to mimic the phrasing musically with the guitar and piano. - I find the melody of “Wait Till You See Her” to be extremely powerful in its simple beauty. So, for the instrumental section, I decided to showcase the melody with Lou’s artful bowing over a re-harmonized background provided by Peter and myself. - I selected the bare bones guitar/voice treatment of “It Never Entered My Mind” to enhance the quality of the song’s deeply personal reckoning of love gone wrong. - My semi-classical, instrumental treatment of “Blue Room” was inspired by the carefully measured intervallic steps of its melody. I envisioned the arrangement as collaboration between Richard Rodgers and J.S. Bach! As I continue to explore the guitar, piano, bass trio format, new possibilities manifest themselves. I’ve come to think of my trio as a little big band, and have been trying to expand the palette of musical textures and colors available to explore the great beauty of the timeless classics that we play. (Including, but not limited to using my guitar as a bongo drum!) Still, let there be no mistake; our goals here are to share the bountiful riches of the extraordinary Rodgers and Hart, swing hard, and to get you tapping your feet and smiling. Once again, I have the privilege of recording with my working trio, featuring Peter Tomlinson on piano and Lou Pappas on bass. As always, I am greatly indebted to them for their inestimable contributions and commitment. I am “Bewitched” with this music. I hope that you will be too. The Selections: 1     I Wish I were in Love Again (2:51) 2     Mountain Greenery (3:33) 3     Wait Till You See Her (2:42) 4     Have you Met Miss Jones (3:39) Instr. 5     Bewitched (5:08) 6     Thou Swell (3:30) 7     It Never Entered My Mind (4:35) Instr./Vocal 8     My Heart Stood Still (3:41) 9     There’s a Small Hotel (3:20) 10    Spring is Here (2:58) 11    This Can’t be Love (4:21) 12    Blue Room (3:13) Instr. 13    This Funny World (2:51) 14    Falling in Love with Love (3:33) 15    The Lady is a Tramp (5:00) Artist Website: www.perrybeekman.com Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services  jim@jazzpromoservices.com http://www.jazzpromoservices.com/

Saxophonist Tim Hegarty's "Tribute" with Kenny Barron, Mark Sherman, Rufus Reid and Carl Allen

Released January 21 via Miles High Records, Tribute showcases Hegarty's band in a set mixing originals with choice standards in a program of hard-driving, straight-ahead music that juxtaposes intense, spontaneous conversation with pensive introspection.

The CD has climbed to #9 on the jazz radio charts and is earning great reviews:

"Hegarty is a fine player who delivers solo statements that are clear, precise, concise and always to the point of the music. You'll hear a lot of technical fluidity here and not an ounce of aimless searching for powerful musical ideas that will never come... He calls it the easiest flowing date he's ever done. With a band like this, of course it was." - The Buffalo News, Jeff Simon

"Hegarty is one of those players who come up on you from left field and leave you saying, 'Where have you been all my life?' This is class tenor (and soprano) playing in the best Dexter early Trane tradition..." - Lance Liddle, Bebop Spoken Here.

With the first month of 2014 barely in the books, Tim Hegarty has dropped a truly old school recording with a blues infused riff on what improvisational music is all about, the blues of course. Sounds like? Tim Hegarty of course but artistic comparisons are inevitable so think Dexter Gordon meets Stanley Turrentine and you may be getting close. There is a hard lyrical edge to the swing of Hegarty complimented by two masters of harmony subtly in pianist Kenny Barron and Bassist Rufus Reid. Toss in vibraphone player Mark Sherman and drummer Carl Allen and You have as solid quintet as one could hope for.

Dr. Luis Raul Montell, President of Jazz Global Beat and Jazz Caribe with Kenny Barron

Jimmy Heath tunes such as "A New Blue" and "Ineffable" dominate the session while the Thelonius Monk tune "Panonica" (see "Monk in Paris '69" in this Blog-October 19, 2013) and Joe Henderson tune "Inner Edge" keep harmonic direction fresh and vibrant. The classic sound of los years '70. Being all that hard these days these five gentlemen achieved a great deal.

Hegarty put dynamics in his CD "Tribute" and this will be a great year for him and his friends ... let's hear it!!

Ann Braithwaite
Braithwaite & Katz Communications
ann@bkmusicpr.com

Dave Stryker "Eight Track" CD Release Party @ Trumpets Sat Apr 12 – 8:00 and 10:00 p.m.

Dave Stryker Quartet w/ special guest Steve Nelson "Eight Track" CD Release Party Sat Apr 12 – 8:00 and 10:00pm @ Trumpets 6 Depot Square, Montclair, NJ (973) 744-2600 Featuring Dave Stryker –guitar Steve Nelson – vibraphone Jared Gold – organ Adam Nussbaum – drums New CD #10 Jazz Week Radio Lookout For DownBeat Feature Story June 2014 (Strikezone Records 8809) Street Date: March 4, 2014 "Stryker's recordings are always hardy and reliable projects, but all of the stars line up for Eight Track. It has a perfect appeal to the middle to late Baby Boomers who came of age listening to this music. And we all know that is the best music ever produced." C. Michael Bailey / All About Jazz "A sure fingered, behind the scenes MVP, Stryker should connect here with jazz stations looking to broaden their audiences who will subsequently spread the word.  Tasty stuff that avoids every pitfall imaginable, even when backing up Bread with Pink Floyd.  Solid, jumping stuff throughout." Chris Spector - Midwest Record "No pretense or posturing on this one. Stryker's Eight Track is just straight up fun." Dan Bilawsky / All About Jazz available at www.davestryker.com and CDBaby

Upcoming Live Appearances Fri/Sat Mar 14-15 – 8:30 and 11:00pm Kevin Mahogany Band • Kevin Mahogany – vocals • Dave Stryker – guitar • Pat Bianchi – organ • McClenty Hunter – drums Birdland 315 West 44th St New York, NY Sat Mar 22 – 8:00 and 10:00 pm Don Braden / Dave Stryker Organic Quartet • Don Braden – tenor sax • Dave Stryker – guitar • Jared Gold – organ • Cecil Brooks III – drums Chris’ Jazz Cafe 1421 Sansom St‎ Philadelphia, PA 19102 215-568-3131 Sat Mar 29 – 7:00 and 9:00pm Dave Stryker Trio – Dave’s Birthday Gig! • Jared Gold – organ • Dave Stryker – guitar • Adam Nussbaum – drums Shanghai Jazz Club 24 Main Street, Madison, NJ Tel: 973.822.2899 April 17 8 & 10 pm Dave Stryker Quartet  • Mike Pellera - piano • James Singleton - bass • Paul Thibodeaux - drums  Snug Harbor 626 Frenchman New Orleans LA 70116 504-949-0696 Dave Stryker's new CD "8 Track" A celebration of classic pop tunes from the  70's reimagined by his working trio and very special guest Stefon Harris. (Strikezone Records 8809) Street Date: March 4, 2014 featuring Dave Stryker –guitar Stefon Harris – vibraphone Jared Gold – organ McClenty Hunter – drums Watch Dave Stryker: Making of new CD "8 Track"  On YouTube I'll Be Around  Track Listing: 1. I’ll Be Around (Bell/Hurtt) 4:55 2. Pusherman / Superfly (Mayfield) 7:16 3. Wichita Lineman (Webb) (6:04 4. Aquarius (Rado/Ragni/MacDermott) 7:18 5. Never My Love (Addrisi/Addrisi) 6:10 6. Superwoman (Wonder) 6:06 7. Never Can Say Goodbye (Davis) 5:50 8. Make It With You (Gates) 5:06 9. Money (Waters) 6:50 10. That’s The Way Of The World (White, Stepney, White) 4:52 Media Contact Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services Ph: 845-986-1677 / jim@jazzpromoservices.com  National Radio Campaign KATE SMITH PROMOTIONS of CHICAGO       katesmithpromotions.kate@gmail.com

saxophonist Tyrone Birkett | Emancipation 3/25/14 7pm @ MIST Harlem - Postmodern Spirituals: The Promised Land

Tyrone Birkett | Emancipation 3/25/14 7pm @ MIST Harlem 46 West 116th Street  between Fifth and Lenox Avenue (Malcolm X Blvd) New York NY 10026 212.828.6478 Free Admission until Day of the Event. $10 at the door Featuring Tyrone Birkett-Saxophone Paula Ralph-Birkett-Vocalist Greg Royals-Piano Reggie Young-Electric Bass Jason Patterson-Drums Performing Music From Their New CD Preview "Postmodern Spirituals: The Promised Land"  HERE Tyrone Birkett | Emancipation "The Promised Land” (Araminta Music 111562-02) Street Date March 25, 2014 Tyrone Birkett (saxophones, keyboards); Paula Ralph Birkett (vocals); Gregory Royals (piano, organ); Reggie Young (electric Bass); Jason Patterson (drums) Except on: Strength - Pablo Vergara (electric keyboards); Camille Gainer Jones (drums) The Promise - Pablo Vergara (piano); John Benitez (acoustic Bass); Camille Gainer Jones (drums)

Saxophonist Tyrone Birkett has synthesized his mentorship by jazz greats Frank Foster and Budd Johnson, years toiling in black church sanctuaries and 70s soul-jazz into a distinctive fusion. An “outsider” artist not common to the jazz scene, not considering himself a jazz musician in the strictest sense, he has nonetheless developed a powerful lyrical sound with shades of post-Coltraneisms, jazz sensibilities and an idiosyncratic but musical melodic sense. A composer and conceptualist as well, he has created “Postmodern Spirituals”, a retelling of the Negro freedom song. Created as a voice for freedom in contemporary times, by re-imagining and reviving the Negro spiritual. Postmodern Spirituals: The Promised Land is the first presentation of the Postmodern Spiritual concept, featuring saxophonist Tyrone Birkett with vivid compositions that vary from the funk-driven epic “The Departure”, commencing with a bold declaration, an overture of sorts for the project. Vocalist Paula Ralph-Birkett gives the statement of purpose which flows into a sax solo that "preaches the message". Other selections range from a re-imagining of the Negro Spiritual "Motherless Child' revived by a soulful vocal rendition, funky underpinning and new arrangement, "Strength" with a determined vocal delivery by Paula Ralph-Birkett and a unyielding sax solo by Tyrone Birkett. Then a modern re-creation of a slave’s sorrow song, the heartfelt ballad “Deep River”, (which is heard in the 1929 film version of "Showboat"); the impressionistic “Freedom Dreaming” ; ending with the haunting “The Promise” with a melody inspired by Wayne Shorter featuring a passionate solo by bassist John Benitez, round out the album. Together these songs suggest a revitalizing of the classic “CTI” sound with its blending of soulful sophistication, added by a rich and imaginative harmonic palette and curious usage of form. The message of the music is translated through the lyrics and melody that can be described as “neo-folk” in its character underpinned at times by modernistic harmonic structures. Presented with a versatile and able cast of musicians, this recording promotes the notion of freedom in word and deed, style and substance. “Postmodern Spirituals: The Promised Land”, Freedom Music for the 21st century.

www.newfreedomsongs.com

Media Contact Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services 272 State Route 94 South #1 Warwick, NY 10990-3363 Ph: 845-986-1677 / Fax: 845-986-1699 Cell / text: 917-755-8960 Skype: jazzpromo jim@jazzpromoservices.com www.jazzpromoservices.com

Pianist Mike Bardash with friends release "Polygon" in Trumpets March 27, 2014 and 28 in Somethin Jazz Club, New York

Pianist Mike Bardash New CD "Polygon" and Upcoming CD Release Events NEW CD "Polygon" Featuring Mike Bardash-Piano/Electric Piano Gene Torres-Bass Tony Lewis-Drums Deji Coker-Sax and Flute Kenyatta Beasley-Trumpet Bongo Bruno -Percussion (Kenny’s Klave) (Rhombus 7120) Street Date March 4, 2014) CD Release Events / Live Appearances March 12 , 2014 Set Times: 7:30 and 9:00 PM Mike Bardash Greenwich Mean Time Trumpets 6 Depot Square, Monclair NJ 07042  (973) 744-2600 $10 Music Charge   $7 Minimum http://www.trumpetsjazz.com featuring Mike Bardash-Piano Tony Lewis-Drums Gene Torres-Electric Bass March 27, 2014 Set Times: 7:30 and 9:00 PM Rhonda Denet Quartet Trumpets $10 Music Charge   $7 Minimum Featuring Rhonda Denet –vocals Mike Bardash-Piano Charles Batton-Drums Derek Buchanen-Electric Bass NYC CD Release Event The Mike Bardash Quintet March 28 , 2014 Set Times: 11:00 PM Somethin’ Jazz Club 212 E 52nd  St.  between 2nd and 3rd Ave New York NY 10022  (212) 371-7657 Featuring Mike Bardash-Piano Tony Lewis-Drums Gene Torres-Electric Bass Deji Coker-Sax and Flute Kenyatta Beazley-Trumpet

From the opening strains of Polygon, pianist/composer Mike Bardash’s remarkable new Rhombus Records CD, the listener will be fully aware that an exciting and unpredictable journey lies ahead.  A pianist of consummate artistry, Bardash’s playing is placed totally within the context of the music, which showcases his extraordinarily imaginative vision as a composer.  Ten of the eleven compositions are Bardash originals and contain a broad palette of modern jazz expression within each highly distinctive piece.  Funky and straight ahead hard bop, soul jazz, structured avant-garde, and solid blowing are all flavors in this magical stew of creativity and adventure.             Although rooted in that progressive hard bop and beyond mode of the tradition that has made the Blue Note sound so timeless, the music on Polygon is fully of the moment and never allows looking back to stand in the way of looking forward.  Mike’s compositions are in constant motion - changing textures, shifting time signatures and altering moods in an organically evolving structure that tells vivid stories and creates an ideal canvas for the soloists.             Bardash has assembled an exemplary group of musicians for this music, locking the framework in place with a longtime collaborator, the brilliant bassist Gene Torres, along with the dynamic rhythms of drummer Tony Lewis. The powerful frontline consists of trumpeter Kenyatta Beasley and another longtime Bardash colleague, Deji Coker on tenor sax and flute.  All of the musicians are fully informed in the various stylistic elements and totally in command as they traverse the challenging music, telling compelling stories as they take the journey.  The full-bodied sounds of both hornmen and the no-nonsense dynamism of Mike’s piano playing create a huge sound that often makes the quintet sound like a larger ensemble – ideally suited to this music.  And while the music unquestionably stretches boundaries and pursues the adventurous, it never abandons the essence of musicality that is always front and center.             Seven of the highly imaginative Bardash originals are woven together into ThePolygon Suite that comprises more than half of the album.   But the four pieces that precede it set the tone perfectly.  These include the one non-Bardash item, D’s Blues, written by Coker. A hard-boppish blues over a sprightly walking bass, it has a jocular, lopsided feel that is downright Monkish.  Fluidly swinging piano, tenor and trumpet solos highlight this short and sweet foray.             Fiery exuberance is the key to Impulse, an explosive take-no-prisoners excursion of tension-filled arcing lines in an upward spiral.  The scintillating rhythm section play sets off virile tenor and trumpet solos and a vigorous piano solo of cascading runs and thunderous block chords, then closes with an exceptionally musical drum solo.                     An easier, but no less emphatic mood is created on the funk-fest Brass Tacks, which opens the album – strikingly syncopated and darkly luminous in the manner reminiscent of Andrew Hill’s approach to funky hard bop.  Fueled by Torres’ throbbing electric bass and Lewis’s infectious backbeat, there are soul-drenched solos by Torres, a Lee Morgan-ish Beasley and Coker’s raunchy tenor that lead into an unexpectedly rubato turn by Bardash that still manages to evoke the spirit of Bobby Timmons within its free context.             An entirely different vibration is achieved with Late in the Game, an atmospheric, dramatic piece rooted by deep wood bass, freely punctuating piano, shimmering cymbals and dulcet malletry.  There is a distinct cinematic feeling as the musicians paint a portrait that shifts between serenity and turbulence, but always focused on beauty.             The Polygon Suite is launched with Kenny’s Klave, full of surprises and unpredictable twists and turns, with the fervently inventive percussion of Bongo Bruno adding special color on this track.  Primarily veering between free-bop and unabashedly Latin rhythms, the context shifts, twists, flows and dissolves in an ever changing narrative.  An arresting trumpet solo and rollicking tenor adds to the mix.10 to 12 follows with its rapid-fire, boldly sinuous theme fueled by a perfectly unified rhythm section.  Punchy tenor, fluid trumpet and an edgy, rhythmic and adventurous piano solo are highlights.  A highly dramatic shift kicks in with the third movement,And then What (arranged by Coker).  A poignant ballad, the probing piece is layered over a sumptuous pillow provided by the rhythm section.  Exquisitely crafted and impeccably delivered, what could have been solemn is transformed into a message of hope and uplifting substance, posing important questions and seeking enlightened answers.  Leading Edge, a brief gentle rubato electric piano aperitif introducesAround the Edges. Also arranged by Coker, this is a jaunty smoldering groover built on an ostinato electric piano/bass vamp and playful backbeat, and features trumpet and flute in the unison lines.  A sprightly piano turn leads into Coker’s full-bodied flute solo that occasionally evokes Rahsaan.  Trailing Edge, a very short electric piano romp melds into Sugar High Rondo, which closes the suite.  A briskly punctuated theme stoked by nicely syncopated rhythms throughout provide the structure for a muscular, confrontational tenor solo that leads into a spectacular collective improv climax and the closing theme that brings this marvelous album to its conclusion.             For those who feel that contemporary jazz has lost the fire, urgency, jubilation and innovation of the earlier traditions, Polygon will be a delightful reminder that those classic traditions of this great art form are still alive and well.

For Interviews, photos and preview copies of the new CD Contact: Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services 272 State Route 94 South #1 Warwick, NY 10990-3363 Ph: 845-986-1677 / Fax: 845-986-1699 Cell / text: 917-755-8960 Skype: jazzpromo jim@jazzpromoservices.com www.jazzpromoservices.com