Apr 2, 2024 12:59 PM
Saxophonist, Sonic Explorer Casey Benjamin Dies at 45
Casey Benjamin, the alto saxophonist, vocalist, keyboardist and producer who stamped his distinctive sounds on the…
A plethora of new vinyl releases have come out in recent months.
(Photo: Courtesy of Artists)With Record Store Day landing on April 23, it’s time for another installment of We Love Vinyl! Here are just a few selections the DownBeat crew looks forward to digging into — be they RSD Drops, or other great, new sounds on wax from the realms of jazz, blues and beyond. To check out DownBeat’s We Love Vinyl Digital Section, click here.
• José Roberto Bertami, Os Tatuís & José Roberto Trio (Far Out)
The late Brazilian keyboardist and bandleader José Roberto Bertami, best known for his work with the trio Azymuth, played with a host of jazz greats like Sarah Vaughan, George Duke and Eddie Palmieri. But here we find his 19-year-old self cutting his first record, Os Tatuís, in 1965, then following it up as an audacious 20-year-old with José Roberto Trio. Both records are now back out on the Far Out label, bringing back some delightful jazz with that serious Latin tinge. And, let’s just say he was mature beyond his musical years. (faroutrecordings.com)
• Jeremiah Chiu & Marta Sofia Honer, Recordings From The Åland Islands (International Anthem)
Jeremiah Chiu and Marta Sofia Honer combine Chiu’s analog synthesizers with Honer’s viola — and it’s stunning. The two traveled to the Åland Islands in the Baltic Sea to help a friend. Once they got there, the landscapes and seascapes inspired music that was as unusual as the topography. The recordings have a down-home, hand-made sensibility. Nothing is rushed. It’s remarkably peaceful art. (intlanthem.com)
• Natalie Cole, Unforgettable With Love (Craft)
It couldn’t have been easy for Natalie Cole to join the family business. Her father, the great Nat “King” Cole, had one of the most “unforgettable” voices ever. Through the marvels of technology, she delivered the title track as a duet with her late father. Seven Grammys and 30 years later, it can be heard on 180-gram vinyl as a two-LP set. (craftrecordings.com)
• Chris Dingman, Journeys Vol. 1 (Independent Release)
These beautifully atmospheric solo vibraphone pieces bring an air of calm while maintaining incredible artistic integrity. It’s an extension of Dingman’s 2020 release Peace, where he collected hours of solo improvisation he played while his father was in hospice. When his father passed, Dingman took time away, but has made his way back with a deep sense of self. (chrisdingman.bandcamp.com)
• Ron Jackson, Standards And My Songs (Independent Release)
Ron Jackson is a master of the seven-string jazz guitar, learning it at the suggestion of the great Bucky Pizzarelli. He has a loose, easy way that puts a smile in your heart. He’s here in a trio setting with drummer Willie Jones III and bassist Ben Wolfe with guest spots from Brian Ho on the Hammond B-3. “Brandy (You’re A Fine Girl)” is a swinging pick hit from the set. (ronjacksonmusic.com)
• Bob James, Feel Like Making LIVE! (Evolution)
The composer/keyboardist brings his artistry to a trio setting with bassist Michael Palazzolo and drummer Billy Kilson, delivering an eclectic mix of music from his own catalog, plus some surprising covers like Elton John’s “Rocket Man.” For vinyl lovers, he’s delivering a limited run of signed, 180-gram, orange-colored double LPs. (evosound.com)
• Jim O’Rourke & Mats Gustafssonm, Xylophonen Virtuosen (Trost)
Put the free-wheeling saxophonist Mats Gustafsson and former Sonic Youth guitarist Jim O’Rourke into a studio and hit record. It’s a pretty magical blend of bending time and space with folky-avant jazz overtones. Some of the tracks were released on CD in 2020 on Incus Records, but have been newly remastered by O’Rourke for a two-LP set along with a number of previously unreleased tracks. Their foray into duet improvisation opens up amazing twists and turns. For those who like music on the edge, this is a great listening experience. (trost.at)
• Ziad Rahbani, Houdou Nisbi (We Want Sounds)
Recorded in Lebanon in 1985, this cult hit has never been on vinyl before. A major star of Arabic music, Rahbani cross-pollinates Middle Eastern sounds with jazz, pop and film soundtrack overtones. Houdu Nisbi translates to “relatively calm” and was a term used by Lebanese news anchors to describe the ceasefires during the civil war of 1975–’90. While the music sizzles, even the cover has political overtones with a woman slipping on her shoe while a machine gun rests against the wall. The album has been remastered for vinyl from the original tapes by David Hachour at Coloursound Studio in Paris. (wewantsounds.com)
• Dave Rempis & Avreeayl Ra, Bennu (Aerophonic)
Chicago saxophonist Dave Rempis has been putting out a prodigious amount of music on his Aerophonic label during the pandemic, the latest being Bennu, the first recorded document of Rempis with longtime collaborator Avreeayl Ra on drums and percussion. The two are in full free-jazz flight here, tackling sound in fascinating ways. Ra, a legend of the Chicago free-jazz scene who has toured with Sun Ra and the Art Ensemble of Chicago, is a swirling encyclopedia of rhythm. Rempis blows furious, fierce and fine. (aerophonicrecords.com)
• Irma Thomas, Full Time Woman: The Lost Cotillion Album (Real Gone)
After a string of successes in the mid-1960s, Irma Thomas, the Soul Queen of New Orleans, signed to Atlantic Records and produced music for its Cotillion imprint. Only one of the songs she recorded made it to the airwaves during that time period (“Full Time Woman” with a B-side of “She’s Taken My Part”). A few others showed up on a 2014 collection. But now, the folks at Real Gone Records bring all of that lost material into one package of 15 tracks, printed on light-blue vinyl and filling a hole in the Irma Thomas discography. They have that New Orleans soul and grit of the era and, oh, that voice! (realgonemusic.com)
• Various Artists, Black Lives: From Generation To Generation (Jammin’colorS)
This huge project hopes to help tackle continuing inequality and help musicians hurt by the pandemic. Stefano Calembert, the producer, manager and owner of Jammin’colorS, a Brussels-based music agency, put the idea together, and commissioned some 20 tracks by artists like Immanuel Wilkins, Jeremy Pelt, E.J. Strickland, Reggie Washington and numerous others. (jammincolors.com)
• Brodie West Quintet, Meadow Of Dreams (Ansible Editions/Astral Spirits)
Alto saxophonist Brodie West is a bandleader steeped in the creative music scene of Toronto, Canada. He studied at Amsterdam Music Conservatory with Misha Mengelberg, rubbed shoulders with the likes of percussionist Han Bennink and was a member of the Ex, an experimental punk band from Amsterdam. On Meadow Of Dreams, West has created a groove-driven, percussive web, one where complexity is derived from simplicity with plenty of twists. It’s an enchanting, avant-garde mix to dig into. (ansibleeditions.com)
• Frank Zappa, The Mothers 1971 (Zappa/UMe)
The beautiful thing about Zappa is doing Zappa to the absolute extreme. And that’s exactly what we have here with this motherlode of material from Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention live in 1971. This 100-tune, 10-hour set brings together so much from that time, including the entire run that closed the Fillmore East in New York, as well as the group’s outrageous final gig at the Rainbow Theatre in London. On vinyl, this collection will be packaged as two three-LP sets. The first is an expanded 50th anniversary edition of Fillmore East–1971. The second is the Rainbow Theatre concert. (zappa.com)
• Oscar Peterson, A Time For Love: The Oscar Peterson Quartet—Live In Helsinki, 1987 (Two Lions/Mack Avenue)
This album was one of the editorial staff’s picks for the DownBeat Gift Guide in the December issue, but now it’s available as a three-LP set on 180-gram, translucent vinyl. While the title of this album is A Time For Love, a more apt heading might be A Time To Burn because that’s exactly what the quartet does throughout this 12-tune blast of joy. The recording captures Peterson, guitarist Joe Pass, bassist Dave Young and drummer Martin Drew on the last show of the group’s 1987 fall tour. “There was no set list. Just get out there and play,” Young wrote in the liner notes. “Just by Oscar playing an intro, we’d know.”
Those notes also include an eloquent tribute to Peterson by pianist Benny Green, as well as some loving words from Oscar’s widow, Kelly Peterson. Packaging aside, the music is the star here. The pianist is at the height of his musical prowess. The same can be said for guitarist Pass with the two blistering runs through “Sushi.”
“Love” is in the title of this album, and there are certainly some wonderful ballads here such as the aptly named “Love Ballade,” as well as the title cut. The intro to the latter offers a nice glimpse of Peterson’s classy onstage persona as he introduces the band before drifting elegantly into his keyboard.
There is so much to love here. The sound of Peterson patting his foot along to the beat of “How High The Moon” gives this music an authenticity. “Waltz For Debbie” swings dreamlike; “When You Wish Upon A Star” gives goosebumps as Pass quietly picks the intro, then plays the tune solo. The “Duke Ellington Medley” is a joy, and the closer, Peterson’s own “Blues Etude,” serves as a full-out sprint, complete with Peterson’s solo stride break. This is jazz as good as it gets. (store.oscarpeterson.com) DB
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