Brother Jack McDuff, Candido, Donald Byrd, Elvin Jones, Jimmy McGriff, John Patton, Larry Young, Reuben Wilson, Richard ''Groove'' Holmes, Stanley Turrentine.
Touted as a the most recorded drummer in history, Bernard “Pretty” Purdie, has preformed on over 3000 albums to date. His current release, “Cool Down” on Sugar Road Records has him teaming up with Brian Jay (Pimps of Joytime) & Pete Shand (New Mastersounds) to bring a collection of original material touching in soul, jazz and funk. Featuring Ivan Neville on keys and vocals and special guest appearances by Cyril Neville (The Meters), Anthony Cole (Nat King Cole’s great grandson) and Mayteana Morales (Pimps of Joytime), the hit maker, brings these songs to live with his unique style.
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Considerado el batería con más grabaciones de la historia, Bernard "Pretty" Purdie ha participado en más de 3.000 álbumes hasta la fecha. Su actual lanzamiento, "Cool Down", en Sugar Road Records, cuenta con la colaboración de Brian Jay (Pimps of Joytime) y Pete Shand (New Mastersounds) para ofrecer una colección de material original con toques de soul, jazz y funk. Con Ivan Neville a las teclas y a la voz, y con la participación especial de Cyril Neville (The Meters), Anthony Cole (bisnieto de Nat King Cole) y Mayteana Morales (Pimps of Joytime), el creador de éxitos lleva estas canciones al directo con su estilo único.
www.bernardprettypurdie.com ...
Hank Mobley, Duke Pearson, Horace Silver, Grant
Green, Donald Byrd, Lou Donaldson, John Patton, Stanley Turrentine, Art Blakey,
Kenny Burrell, Dexter Gordon, Ike Quebec, Don Wilkerson,
Review by Scott Yanow
There was virtually no prior planning for this meeting between organist Jimmy McGriff and altoist Hank Crawford, but none was needed. The veterans had already recorded four prior albums together, so they simply jammed through blues, ballads and a few basic originals without any difficulty; Crawford could play this material blindfolded. McGriff sets the grooves expertly with his foot-pedal basswork, with assistance from guitarist Rodney Jones and drummer Jesse Hameen. The overall result is an enthusiastic session of foot-tapping music. No real surprises occur, but lovers of hard-swinging organ combos have nothing to complain about.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/right-turn-on-blues-mw0000113487
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Reseña de Scott Yanow
No había prácticamente ningún plan previo para esta reunión entre el organista Jimmy McGriff y el contralto Hank Crawford, pero no era necesario. Los veteranos ya habían grabado cuatro álbumes anteriores juntos, así que simplemente improvisaron blues, baladas y algunos originales básicos sin ninguna dificultad; Crawford podía tocar este material con los ojos vendados. McGriff ajustaba los ritmos de forma experta con su pedal de bajo, con la ayuda del guitarrista Rodney Jones y el batería Jesse Hameen. El resultado general es una sesión entusiasta de música de pedaleo. No hay sorpresas reales, pero los amantes de los combos de órgano no tienen nada de qué quejarse.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/right-turn-on-blues-mw0000113487
Even
in these trying and uncertain times, there are some professional
creative artists who recognize the need to "carry on" and make the best
of a bad situation. Saxophonist Cory Weeds is one of those individuals.
He is releasing O Sole Mio! Music From The Motherland on his own label,
CellarMusic. Weeds has merged his talents as an alto saxophonist with
Mike LeDonne's Groover Quartet featuring LeDonne on Hammond B3 organ,
Eric Alexander on tenor saxophone, Peter Bernstein on guitar and Joe
Farnsworth on drums. Each of these participants is a highly regarded
jazz virtuoso in his own right, and has bee, or is, a leader of his own
group. Support for this Italian-themed session (great Italian music
and/or Italian-American composers such as Henry Mancini, Chick Corea and
Pat Martino came from Guilio Recchioni of the Italian Cultural Center
in Vancouver B.C.
The first two tracks in this release are both
burners. The title track was comes from Naples, where it was written in
1898, and was covered by operatic tenors such as Enrico Caruso and
Luciano Pavarotti. The band shows how serious they are about swinging
with all the members having solos that are both juicy and individual.
Mancini's well known theme "Mr.Lucky" gives this smart aggregation a
chance to demonstrate their unscripted interplay, which is based on
their considerable talent and vast experience. Another well-known number
is "Speak Softly Love," easily recognized as the background music from
the movie The Godfather. Built around Farnsworth's Latin beat, Weeds'
alto opens the offering by stating the theme, after which Alexander's
fluid tenor saxophone weaves and darts around the melody in exquisite
fashion. Guitarist Bernstein then comes in with some crisp riffs, after
which LeDonne's B3 shows off a burly yet fervent tone. This is a
terrific take on the number.
Chick Corea, whose heritage is from
Southern Italy, wrote "Chick's Tune," which is based on the chord
changes from the popular song "You Stepped Out Of A Dream." The band
keeps the pace at a high energy level with Weeds' alto leading the way.
There is some stellar guitar work from Bernstein and Eric Alexander then
takes his tenor sax on a euphoric run. LeDonne's B3 charges out of the
gate with soulful depth followed by an extensive drum kit workout from
Farnsworth. The band then takes the number out with a repeat of the
theme. The final track is "Capricci Di Camere" which originated as
bassist Paul Chambers' composition "Whims Of Chambers," which was also
the title of his 1957 album from Blue Note. Originally structured by
Chambers as a walking bass line for a blues in F, the group restates
this same line to open the tune and uses it as a frame from which to
explore the number. Each of the players takes a piece of the action with
LeDonne at his ebullient best. At this point all one can say is
"arrivederci."
Pierre Giroux By PIERRE GIROUX
February 8, 2021
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/o-sole-mio-music-from-the-motherland-cory-weeds-cellarmusic
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Incluso
en estos tiempos difíciles e inciertos, hay algunos artistas creativos
profesionales que reconocen la necesidad de "seguir adelante" y sacar lo
mejor de una mala situación. El saxofonista Cory Weeds es uno de ellos.
¡Ha publicado O Sole Mio! Music From The Motherland en su propio sello,
CellarMusic. Weeds ha unido su talento como saxofonista alto con el
Groover Quartet de Mike LeDonne, que cuenta con LeDonne al órgano
Hammond B3, Eric Alexander al saxo tenor, Peter Bernstein a la guitarra y
Joe Farnsworth a la batería. Cada uno de estos participantes es un
virtuoso del jazz muy apreciado por derecho propio, y ha sido, o es,
líder de su propio grupo. El apoyo a esta sesión de temática italiana
(gran música italiana y/o compositores italoamericanos como Henry
Mancini, Chick Corea y Pat Martino) vino de Guilio Recchioni, del Centro
Cultural Italiano de Vancouver B.C.
Los dos primeros temas de
esta publicación son excelentes. El tema que da título al disco procede
de Nápoles, donde fue escrito en 1898, y fue versionado por tenores de
ópera como Enrico Caruso y Luciano Pavarotti. La banda demuestra la
seriedad con la que se toman el swing, con todos los miembros con solos
tan jugosos como individuales. El conocido tema de Mancini "Mr.Lucky" da
a esta inteligente agrupación la oportunidad de demostrar su
interacción sin guión, que se basa en su considerable talento y amplia
experiencia. Otro número muy conocido es "Speak Softly Love", fácilmente
reconocible como la música de fondo de la película El Padrino.
Construida en torno al ritmo latino de Farnsworth, el contralto de Weeds
abre el tema, tras lo cual el fluido saxofón tenor de Alexander teje y
se lanza en torno a la melodía de forma exquisita. El guitarrista
Bernstein entra entonces con algunos riffs nítidos, tras lo cual el B3
de LeDonne muestra un tono fornido pero ferviente. Se trata de una
versión excelente de este número.
Chick Corea, cuya herencia es
del sur de Italia, escribió "Chick's Tune", que se basa en los cambios
de acordes de la popular canción "You Stepped Out Of A Dream". La banda
mantiene el ritmo con un alto nivel de energía con el alto de Weeds
liderando el camino. Hay un trabajo estelar de guitarra de Bernstein y
Eric Alexander luego lleva su saxo tenor en una carrera eufórica. El B3
de LeDonne sale con una profundidad conmovedora, seguido por un extenso
trabajo de batería de Farnsworth. A continuación, la banda cierra el
número con una repetición del tema. El tema final es "Capricci Di
Camere" que se originó como la composición del bajista Paul Chambers
"Whims Of Chambers", que también fue el título de su álbum de 1957 de
Blue Note. Originalmente estructurada por Chambers como una línea de
bajo andante para un blues en Fa, el grupo replantea esta misma línea
para abrir la melodía y la utiliza como marco desde el que explorar el
número. Cada uno de los intérpretes toma parte en la acción, con LeDonne
en su mejor momento. En este punto sólo se puede decir "arrivederci".
Pierre Giroux Por PIERRE GIROUX
8 de febrero de 2021
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/o-sole-mio-music-from-the-motherland-cory-weeds-cellarmusic
Biography by Richard S. Ginell
Simply
one of the greatest guitarists in jazz history, George Benson is an
amazingly versatile musician whose adept skills find him crossing easily
between straight-ahead jazz, smooth jazz, and contemporary R&B.
Blessed with supreme taste, a beautiful, rounded guitar tone, terrific
speed, a marvelous sense of logic in building solos, and, as always, an
unquenchable urge to swing, Benson's inspirations may have been Charlie
Christian and Wes Montgomery, but his style is completely his own. Not
only can he play lead brilliantly, he is also one of the best rhythm
guitarists around, supportive to soloists and a dangerous swinger,
particularly in a soul-jazz format; skills he first garnered attention
for as a member of Brother Jack McDuff's band in the early '60s. Benson
can also sing in a lush, soulful tenor with mannerisms similar to those
of Stevie Wonder and Donny Hathaway. In a sense, he is the
guitar-playing equivalent of Nat King Cole, a fantastic instrumentalist
whose smooth way with a pop vocal helped solidify his prowess in the
marketplace. It is this combination of singing and guitar playing that
has garnered him numerous accolades and chart success, including most
notably his 1976 breakthrough Breezin', which topped the pop, R&B,
and jazz charts and took home Grammy Awards for Best Pop Instrumental
Performance and Record of the Year. Benson has remained a chart and
awards season favorite, releasing more Top Ten jazz albums, including
1980's Grammy-winning Give Me the Night, 1993's Love Remembers, and
2006's Grammy-winning Givin' It Up with Al Jarreau. Along with his
original studio albums, Benson has paid tribute to his idols, releasing
2013's Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole and 2019's Fats Domino-
and Chuck Berry-inspired Walking to New Orleans.
Born in 1943 in
Pittsburgh, Benson actually started out professionally as a singer,
performing in nightclubs at the age of eight, recording four sides for
RCA's X label in 1954, and forming a rock band at 17 while using a
guitar that his stepfather made for him. Exposure to records by
Christian, Montgomery, and Charlie Parker got him interested in jazz,
and by 1962, the teenage Benson was playing in Brother Jack McDuff's
band. After forming his own group in 1965, Benson became another of
talent scout John Hammond's major discoveries, recording two highly
regarded albums of soul-jazz and hard bop for Columbia and turning up on
several records by others, including Miles Davis' Miles in the Sky. He
switched to Verve in 1967, and, shortly after the death of Montgomery in
June 1968, producer Creed Taylor began recording him with larger
ensembles on A&M (between 1968 and 1969) and big groups and all-star
combos on CTI (from 1971 to 1976).
While the A&M and CTI
albums certainly earned their keep and made Benson a guitar star in the
jazz world, he gained yet more commercial acclaim after signing with
Warner Bros. in 1976. His first album for Warner Bros., Breezin', became
a Top Ten hit on the strength of its sole vocal track, "This
Masquerade," and this led to a string of hit albums in an
R&B-flavored pop mode, culminating with the Quincy Jones-produced
Give Me the Night. However, jazz remained at the core of his sound, as
showcased on 1989's standards album Tenderly, as well as 1990's Big Boss
Band with the Basie band, the latter of which featured his guitar more
prominently. In 1993, he scored another number one contemporary jazz
album with Love Remembers, and followed with several more chart-topping
albums, including 1996's That's Right and 1998's Standing Together.
The
Latin-infused Absolute Benson arrived in 2000 debuting at number one on
the Billboard Jazz chart, and was followed by 2004's number
five-charting Irreplaceable. He then paired with vocalist Al Jarreau for
2006's Givin' It Up, which topped the contemporary jazz chart and took
home Grammy Awards for Best Pop Instrumental Performance and Best
Traditional R&B Vocal Performance.
In 2009, Benson signed to
Concord and released Songs and Stories for the label; he followed it
with his first primarily instrumental album in 35 years, Guitar Man, in
2011. Two years later, Benson released Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat
King Cole, featuring arrangements by Nelson Riddle and Randy Waldman. In
2019, he returned with a second tribute album, Walking to New Orleans:
Remembering Chuck Berry and Fats Domino. A concert album, Weekend in
London, arrived in 2020.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/george-benson-mn0000201760#biography
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Colaborador / Contributor: Pere
Easy Livin Organ Trio is a contemporary jazz trio dedicated to honoring the tradition of swing and blues while reaching out to a new generation of jazz audiences.
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Easy Livin Organ Trio es un trío de jazz contemporáneo dedicado a honrar la tradición del swing y el blues mientras llega a una nueva generación de público de jazz.