2008 Best of Review

Featuring the Smooth Groove of Today's Jazz!
This Week at CaféJazz.ca

February 1st, 2009
Edition #512 Previously

This Week @ Cafe Jazz.ca: 2008 Best of Review - Part 3:
... the 3rd & concluding chapter in our Best of 2008 Review features Warren Hill, Paul Jackson Jr., and The Sax Pack as well as Vibes Alive and Nate Harasim. In addition we have our break-thru artist for the year that being Chris Geith - all in a collection with some of the absolute finest that '08 had to offer!

Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards!
Yours truly is in the running for Broadcaster of the Year, my second nod in the past 3 years!

In This Issue:

HIGHLIGHTS
Love's Taken Over - Nate Harasim
Groove - Present Tense
Morning Starlight - Chris Geith
After Hours - Vibes Alive
Run Away With Me - Omar Akram
La Dolce Vita - Warren Hill

AFTER HOURS : Best/Epilogue
SPINLIST:

ONE YEAR AGO:

Highlights Hour One
Love's Taken Over - Nate Harasim:
Our #1 break-thru artist from a coupple of years back, broke thru again in a big way in 2008! After nailing down the #5 spot with his debut, Nate Harasim clawed his way one notch higher to #4 with Love's Taken Over his stellar sophomore follow-up. Additionally, Harasim asserted himself as the #5 artist overall for 2008. Meanwhile, love did indeed take over the airwaves as the album's title track settled in comfortably as the #11 selection for the year!

CD: Love's Taken Over (2008)

Label: NuGroove Records
Site: Nate Harasim ; Nate/Space ; Nate/NuGroove

Groove - Present Tense:
It's the groove that makes you want to move! Some 6 years after their debut, 2008 saw Richard Frank and Ronnie Kaufman issue Smooth Talkin', as creative a follow-up effort as we've seen, and a musical package that fell nowhere short of sensational! Supported by an all-star cast, the project featured tight real-time interaction between the musicians and a style that combined the seemingly disparate elements of swing & groove. Ultra-polished and yet packed with punch, Messrs Frank & Kaufman delivered the Café Jazz #12 album for the year and from it we have an intricate but delicate melody in the track Groove!

CD: Smooth Talkin' (2008)

Label: PT Records
Site: Present Tense ; PT/Space(1) ; PT/Space(2)

Morning Starlight - Chris Geith:
Although we here at The Café were well aware of Chris Geith's masterful talents thru the original mp3.com, the amazing keyboardist had been biding his time in making a broader impact! The 2008 issue of Timeless World saw that all change in a major way as, in addition to other accolades, the disc provided no less than eight tracks deemed worthy of airplay consideration on our own humble show. In the process, Geith catapulted to the forefront as our absolute top break thru artist for the year with Timeless World capturing honours as the #2 cd. From that effort, we present Morning Starlight - highly upbeat and our second most played selection in the entire year!

CD: Timeless World (2008)

Label: Nuance Music Group
Site: Chris Geith ; Geith/Space(1) ; Geith/Space(2)

Highlights Hour Two
	After Hours - Vibes Alive: Although eleven years between collaborations, the team of Dirk Richter and Randall Crissman re-surfaced in 2008 with their buoyant After Hours release! The two worked together on the 1997 Vibes Alive record, a project 'featuring Dirk Richter'. Following the re-issue of that cd in 2007, they borrowed the album title as the band name for their After Hours sophomore follow-up. Packed with plenty of serious grooves, the project proved not only one of the more pleasant surprises but one of the finer releases for 2008 narrowly missing our top 10 as it vaulted to the #11 spot for the year - from that effort we have the mood-drenched title track! CD: After Hours (2008) Label: Swingding Records Site: Vibes/Swing ; Vibes/Space
	Run Away With Me - Omar Akram: Although born in New York, Omar Akram grew up a child of the world as the son of a UN diplomat. He began taking piano lessons at six from one of the top teachers in the Czech Republic and while living in Cuba, he developed a deep love for Latin rhythms. Upon returning to the US, Omar discovered the music of Jean Michel Jarre, Kitaro, and Vangelis, who became highly important in Akram's developing musical identity. A few years later, the music of George Winston and David Lanz brought Akram full circle and back to the sound of the acoustic piano. These influences are now neatly interwoven as musical tapestries of sweeping scope and exacting detail! From his Secret Journey release, we're presenting Run Away With Me, a selection upon which Akram attains unparalleled levels of artistry! CD: Secret Journey (2007) Label: Real Music Site: Omar Akram ; Akram/Space
	La Dolce Vita - Warren Hill: Perennially recognized at the CSJA for his ongoing contributions to the smooth scene, Warren Hill has perhaps more importantly been a standard-bearer for the 'Canadian vibe', if you will. With the 2008 issue of La Dolce Vita, Hill is once again virtually guaranteed a lock on that consideration! From soaring to heartfelt, the project contains some of Hill's prettiest creations ever and from it, we've selected a tune, which could very well be a soundtrack for "the sweet life" in La Dolce Vita the title track, and our #1 selection by a Canadian! CD: La Dolce Vita (2008) Label: Koch Records Sites: Warren Hill ; Hill/Space ; Hill/Koch

After Hours ~ Exclusive to our Web Site and Select Affiliates:

Best of 2008 - Epilogue: ... one final hour to cap off 9 full hours devoted exclusively to the sounds of '08. We have Jeanne Ricks and follow that with Kenny G, Walter Duda, and Jesse Cook. Our second set has The JWB, Patrick Bradley, the German group De Phazz, bassist Darryl Williams, and Al DiGregoris. While in the end, wrapping things up is a 5-pack of selections headed by Dave Sereny while also including David Crawford, Kim Waters, Phillip Brooks, and Wayman Tisdale!

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