Showcase CD
The Window - Patrick Yandall:
Born
and raised the son of a jazz musician, it was only natural that
Patrick Yandall would gravitate to that idiom. A native of Bay City
Michigan, Yandall tried trumpet and guitar but the latter won out
with George Benson and Wes Montgomery becoming major influences.
By his early teens, Patrick was playing underage clubs and in the
late 70s, he toured with the fusion group Clockwork. Following a
summer symposium at Berklee, in the early 80s Yandall relocated
to San Diego where he soon became entrenched on the SoCal session
circuit. Launching his solo career in 1994, Yandall has enjoyed
a string of well-received cds and in the last few recent years,
his output has become nothing short of prolific. All the while he's
shown many flashes of brilliance along the way. Well versed in a
wide variety of styles, diversity has always been a strong suit.
These past years, not only has Yandall pursued a career as a front
man, but his compositions have been licensed for various media outlets
while his studio and live performance schedule includes work with
Michael Paulo, Scott Wilkie, J. Michael Verta, and others.
|
|
|
Patrick Yandall - KiFM Event
|
The
Window is his latest and 13th overall, and a project upon which
the veteran musician ably demonstrates the maturity of his craft.
With richly layered grooves, and textures of jazz and blues, Yandall
moves easily between funky grooves, cool tropicality, and retro
jazzy-soul thus offering a unique view of the musical passion that
comes from within - thus The Window is a rather fitting moniker
for the disc. Therefore it's with singular pleasure that we have
Patrick Yandall's The Window as the spotlight release. And within
that framework, Jersey Shore is the tune to launch the showcase
feature. Love is in the air at the start of hour 2 with the pretty
love ballad You and I. Finally, we have La Jolla, a breezy tune
that shares its name with the trendy seaside resort community within
San Diego's northern limits. So it is, that 16 years after breaking
onto the scene, the multi-dimensional Patrick Yandall remains as
dynamic and as committed as ever as to exploring a musical vision
that is further revealed thru The Window!
CD: The Window (2010)
Label: Innervision Records
Links: 
|
|
| Fresh Trax: Part One |
|
|
Caribbean Woman - Butch Thomas:
Born
and raised in St Louis, Missouri, Conrad "Butch" Thomas graduated with
a Bachelor's in Music from Webster University in 1983. Soon after, Thomas
relocated to NYC and in short order he connected with bassist Jaco Pastorius
appearing live and on record with the late legend from 1983 thru until
1987. This led to a series of high profile gigs and over the course of
a near 30-year career Butch has backed the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Aretha
Franklin, and Sting. Thomas debuted as a front man in 2008 with a self-titled
release for which he was earned a Gold Artist Winner from the Radio Indy
Awards. Now after a couple of years, Thomas has issued Caribbean Woman,
released on iTunes and Amazon.com, and we're offering the highly danceable
title track!
CD: Caribbean Woman (2010)
Label: Spectra Records
Links:
|
|
|
Cocktail
- Synthpathic:
Irfan
Davazli and Onur Ozman represent a new generation of Turkish musician.
Ozman is well-known for his house music tunes - with nearly 30 EPs plus
many appearances on various compilations, he is considered one of its
most talented producers. In contrast, Davazli's technique is deeper and
more underground exploring a range from Latin beats to Eastern influences.
Drawing from these opposing backgrounds, they team as Synthpathic creating
an amazing crossover sound that is redefining the downtempo style. From
Waiting in Lounge, their debut we present a great example of this hybrid
strain of NuJazz/House in a tune called Cocktail!
CD: Waiting in Lounge (2010)
Label: Lemongrass Music
Links:
|
| Fresh Trax: Part Two |
|
|
When Will I Know For Sure - Dave Koz:
In a
2-decade career, Dave Koz has distinguished himself as a platinum-selling
artist and a six-time Grammy nominee who has played with luminaries such
as Burt Bacharach and Ray Charles. Additionally, Koz is a well-respected
radio show, an entrepreneur, and a philanthropist. For 17 years, Koz has
served as global ambassador for the Starlight Children's Foundation. For
his accomplishments, Koz was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk
of Fame in 2009. But more recently, Dave was a two-time winner as entertainer
of the year and broadcaster of the year at the American Smooth Jazz Awards
held in Chicago. Now with the issue of Hello Tomorrow, his 10th release
overall, we'll be singing more of Dave's praises in the weeks ahead. From
that cd we have When Will I Know For Sure. With Boney James playing tenor
in perfect concert with 'The Koz', this represents one of Dave's prettiest
selections ever!
CD: Hello Tomorrow (2010)
Label: Concord Music Group
Links: 
|
|
|
Encantadora - Blake Aaron:
In the
early days of his career, Blake Aaron played as an LA studio musician
and as sideman and over the course of his career he's backed artists from
The Drifters and Carlos Santana to Hiroshima and Marion Meadows. Additionally,
Blake has played for film & TV having appeared as the guitarist on Mad
TV for 14 years along with a wide variety of other gigs. In 2001, he issued
With Every Touch, his debut release. The project drew a fair bit of media
attention with 3 charting singles and included guest appearances by Eric
Marienthal and David Benoit. Aaron built on that momentum with Bringin'
It Back in 2004 and with Desire in 2007; the later release lingered among
the R&R Top 20 for 15 weeks and maintained the #1 spot on the Indie Charts
for an astonishing 20 week period. Since 2008, Aaron has been hosting
the internationally syndicated Blake Aaron Radio Show specializing in
an artist to artist format. Nonetheless, the wheels are already turning
in anticipation of Blake's next album entitled Soul Stories. From that
cd due to be issued in 2011, we have Encantadora the enlivening lead single!
Single: Encantadora (2010) /
CD: Soul Stories (2011)
Label: Innervision Records & Entertainment
Links:
|
|
|
Open Up Your Eyes - Alessandro Magnanini:
Magnanini
grew up in Reggio Emilia in northern Italy and from an early age he showed
a keen interest in music. With a focus on jazz greats such as Ellington,
Davis, and Jobim, he became enthralled by the evolution of the genre.
Initially self-taught as a guitarist, composer and producer, Magnanini
gained experience thru a variety of club activity and recording sessions.
The year 2006 proved pivotal, when upon the suggestion of a friend, Magnanini
contacted Mario Biondi. Their resulting collaboration as Was-a-bee gained
wide-reaching recognition. Using this success as a springboard, Alessandro
assumed the directorship for the 25-piece Duke Orchestra and it was during
this period that he hatched the idea for a solo project. Taking his inspiration
from the great adult pop productions of the past, Magnanini released Someway
Still I Do, his debut, in 2009. Creating orchestral atmospheres reminiscent
of a bygone era, but filtered thru a jazz lens, here's as bold and dynamic
a statement as we've heard in some time! From that effort, we have the
opening number with vocalist Jenny B sounding like a re-incarnation of
the great Shirley Bassey!
CD: Someway Still I Do (2009)
Label: Schema Records
Links: 
|
| After Hours ~ Exclusive to our
Site and Select Affiliates : |
| The second in our current series … we're takin' it to the roads,
the streets, and the byways. On tap is a 12-track set wherein each selection
is named for or connected to some form of roadway or thoroughfare - be
it the likes of Michael Lington's Ocean Drive or the Boney James / Rick
Braun collaboration Central Avenue. We've dubbed the feature Crossroads
after a tune by Dan Siegel. So stay with us if you will for tunes such
as Reflections on the Highway by Briza, Acoustic Alchemy's Road Dogs,
Coastal Route from Beatifik, and Kilauea with Midnight on the Boulevard.
Meanwhile, playing it a bit free and easy, we adjusted the parameters
for inclusion in this set with the opening track - Always There by Avenue
Blue - yes-sir-ee - first we make the rules and then we break them!
|
