This Week at CafeJazz.ca:
... taking
center stage for this edition is the band Mezzoforte. Volcanic is
the new one and we're featuring a nice sampling of tracks, all as
part of the showcase segment. Hour 2 brings a time-travelling adventure
with the newly renamed Vintage Collection (formerly Back Trax).
This installment features the late Bob Berg as well as a project
by Open Door. Also appearing are Colour Club and Hiroko Kokubu;
while teaming up are Don Grusin & Bill Sharpe to round out the set.
Then following Vintage Collection are Nicholas Cole and Brad Rambur
plus there's something by The Rippingtons; while filling out the
remainder of the show are Patrick Yandall, Norman Brown, and Alan
Hewitt. A great beginning makes for a great program and starting
this one is a super tune from Marc Antoine - from the new one called
My Classical Way we have Marc with a nice read on a Claude Debussy
composition written over a century ago!
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Showcase CD
Volcanic - Mezzoforte:
Hailing
from the island nation of Iceland, the band Mezzoforte released
their self-titled debut in 1979. A few years later, in 1983, they
became the first Icelandic group to score an international hit
with the track Garden Party. In the years since, they've continued
to record and to tour regularly. Now over 30 years later, the
group has issued over a dozen albums and has performed in over
40 countries around the world - and, on occasion, the original
members sometimes all appear as part of a 6 to 10 piece unit.
Even so, it would appear the best is yet to come!
As fate would have it, Iceland experienced a mammoth volcanic
eruption in 2010. But prior to that in the spring of 2008, Mezzoforte
spent a few days in a summer house in the southern part of the
country near Hekla, Iceland's best known volcano. Writing music
for the current album in the shadow of Hekla sparked a song called
Sleeping Volcano. Little did the group suspect the irony in that
title until a few months later an earthquake triggered eruptions
in Eyjafjallajökull that would affect the lives of millions.
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Nonetheless,
that event now seems to have only been foreshadowing the far-reaching
effect of Mezzoforte's latest, the recently released Volcanic cd.
The project is the band's first since the 2007 deluxe package Live
in Reykjavik and first studio album for over seven years. With founding
members Eythor Gunnarsson on keys, Gulli Briem on drums and Johann
Asmundsson on bass, guitar duties are split between Bruno Mueller
and Fridrik Karlsson. Filling out the combo are: reed-man Oskar
Gudjonsson; on trumpet & keys is Sebastian Studnitzky, considered
by many as one of Germany's most engaged Jazz musicians; while the
power on percussion is Thomas Dyani. Listen to album and read the
reviews and you'll get the sense that there's something special
going on - and that thru the convergence of several factors, Volcanic
may prove to be the group's most active album to date!
The cd has been called a masterpiece and many fans consider Mezzoforte
as the greatest funk/jazz/pop/fusion band in history. After repeated
listens to the disc, there's little if anything that would cause
me to question the validity of these glowing phrases - in fact,
I'm even more apt to simply add to the praise! There is no doubt
this project will be among our elite in 2011! |
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L to R: Sebastian Studnitzky, Bruno
Mueller,
Oskar Gudjonsson, Eythor Gunnarsson, Gulli Briem
& Johann Asmundsson
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So
it is that we're now featuring Mezzoforte and Volcanic, all with
the hope that Iceland will once be in the headlines with far reaching
but positive global impact! And to initiate the segment, we have
a tune that nicely shows the polish of the veteran ensemble and
it's called Down on Sunset! With a groove that's relaxing and smooth,
the very pretty Sea Breeze gently carries into the second half of
the show; while in the end we're set to party on with the funky
vibe of Berlin Boogie. So for the second time in as many years,
there's some shaking going on in Iceland and an eruption of epic
proportions - this time it's with the sounds of Mezzoforte and their
Volcanic release!
CD: Volcanic (2010)
Label: Mashhad Music
Links: 
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| Vintage Collection: Part One |
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Freedom Words - Colour Club:
The
combo Colour Club emerged in the mid 90s led by the duo of Skipper Wise
and Les Pierce. A veteran producer of some repute, Pierce had worked with
Take 6, Herb Alpert, Patti LaBelle, and many others. Skipper had, thru
the 80s and early 90s, headed up the group known as Windows that delivered
eleven albums over the course of about a dozen years. He had also released
two solo vocal records yielding a few top 40 hits in the European market
including the song "Standing Outside in the Rain" co written by Peter
White whose first two records Skipper produced . Windows frequently featured
players such as Peter White and Richard Elliot who were then rising commodities
in the world of smooth jazz. Wise left music in the late 90s to head up
the high-end technology company Blue Microphones.
Together Wise and Pierce came up with the Colour Club concept as a mix
of smooth jazz with hip-hop rhythms, in the early 90s. They set aside
a variety of individual projects and for their second and third albums
they recruited vocalist Lisa Taylor along with jazz musicians such as
Gary Meek and Rick Braun. Their self-tilted debut in 1994 featured the
single Freedom Words with the video being nominated for an AMA (American
Music Award). Released simultaneously with the album was an EP with 5
different takes on the track Freedom Words and from it we have the instrumental
mix that received favorable play back in the day!
Note: Expect the re-launch of Skipper's site
later this year with stories, albums, and pictures as he documents his
25 or so years in music!
EP: Freedom Words (1994)
Label: JVC
Links:
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Travellin' Man - Bob Berg:
A
student from the hard bop school of jazz, Bob Berg enjoyed a 30-year career
that included stints with Horace Silver, Miles Davis, and Chick Corea.
Born and raised in Brooklyn NY, Berg began classical piano at the age
of 6. He took up the alto sax at 13 and at about the same time he started
listening to jazz. He tried free jazz in the mid-60s, but gradually developed
a greater interest in earlier styles with John Coltrane becoming a major
influence. After dropping out of the High School for the Performing Arts
when he was 18, Berg enlisted at Juilliard for a special curriculum devoted
entirely to music. While at Juilliard, Berg toured with organist Jack
McDuff and then thru the 70s he served his apprenticeship with Horace
Silver and Cedar Walton, before gaining wider notice as a member of Miles
Davis's band.
Berg went on to lead and co-lead his own groups while working with many
top names including fellow Davis-alumnus Chick Corea. In his day, Berg
was considered one of most expressive improvisers in the contemporary
movement and was regarded as a major figure. Tragically, he perished in
a traffic accident in 2002 during a snow storm. On this occasion we're
checking out Back Roads from 1991. From that release, there's the track
Travellin' Man featuring Jim Beard on piano trading off with Berg's inspired
work on the tenor!
CD: Back Roads (1991)
Label: Denon Records
Links: 
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| Vintage Collection: Part Two |
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Battery Park - Open Door:
Having
studied music at the Interlochen Center for the Arts, the Berklee College
of Music, the New England Conservatory, and the University of Maryland,
Michael Whalen is likely one of the most accomplished musicians we've
ever played on this show. He's a two-time Emmy winner who has composed
over 550 TV and film scores, thousands of ads and numerous TV themes.
Included in this latter grouping are credits for The Oprah Winfrey Show
and Good Morning America. Over a period of about 6 years in the early
90s, Whalen took time wherever he could to write a series of jazz/pop/world
songs. Issuing the collection under the group name of Open Door, Whalen
was aided in the project by Steve Khan, Marc Egan, Danny Gottlieb, Chris
Botti, and a few other noted session players. From that release, we have
Bob Magnuson on sax and Michael himself on piano, keys, and synth steel
drum on the track Battery Park, Whalen's ode to the reserve located at
the southern tip of Manhattan Island!
CD: North From Riverside (1997)
Label: Helicon Records
Links: 
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Lettin' Go
- Hiroko Kokubu:
The
comparisons between Hiroko Kokubu and Keiko Matsui are inevitable. Both
hail from Japan and both excel as jazz pianists in a genre dominated by
men. And although not quite as well known as her counterpart, Ms Kokubu
is nonetheless an accomplished and well-respected performer in her own
right. Born in Tokyo, Hiroko excelled at classical piano but after graduating
from the Kunitachi Music College, she journeyed to New York in order to
study jazz. Her first album recorded in 1987, was highly acclaimed in
Japan and well received in both Canada & the US. Since then, she has had
9 albums released in Japan and 4 in the US, some of which have also been
issued in Europe and other parts of Asia. With a world-wide fan base,
Hiroko has played at jazz festivals from Jakarta to Catalina. In 1997,
she lived in LA for the better part of a year and in addition to playing
with some great musicians, she recorded the cd Bridge. From an album sporting
some high caliber talent in the likes of Tom Coster, Gary Herbig, Abe
Laboriel and others, we have the pretty piece Lettin' Go with Greg Adams
guesting!
CD: Bridge (1997)
Label: JVC
Links:
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The Bomba Shack - Don Grusin & Bill Sharpe :
Although
separated by over 5000 miles, in 2006 Don Grusin and Bill Sharpe set about
to record an album. The two had met 10 years earlier in Japan through
their consultancy work for Technics keyboards and they became good friends.
The following year Sharpe enlisted Grusin to co-produce State of the Heart,
his second solo album, which met with a fair bit of critical acclaim world-wide.
In time, they decided upon a full blown collaboration that came to known
as Geography. Well-named it was, as a good portion of the project was
done long-distance by way of sending files thru the internet. Similarly,
the scheme utilized the talents of some of their favourite players and
singers, among them Till Brönner, Fridrik Karlsson, Charlie Bisharat,
and Nelson Rangell to name a few. With a great mix of flavours from the
US, Brazil, Europe, and Africa, the album has spurred a follow-up that
is due for release later this year; but we seem to be getting just a bit
ahead of ourselves. From that initial joint effort, we have the island
rhythms of The Bomba Shack and perhaps a bit of a nod to the notorious
surfside beach bar in the British Virgin Islands!
CD: Geography (2006)
Label: Don Grusin Music/JVC
Links: Grusin:
Sharpe:
Geography: 
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| After Hours ~ Exclusive to our
Site and Select Affiliates : |
... the 2nd in our series of 'after track shows'
We've dubbed this one After All This Time for a tune by Four80East and,
we'll be playing selections like Miles After Dark, The Sunday After, and
After the Rain. But lest you think we're too stiff to be hip - we've loosened
things a bit by including a track called Your Place and Mine - and that's
from the band Aftertouch (as once again we make the rules and then we
break them) Now the entire session starts with Ronny Jordan and a classic
track - After Hours from his debut The Antidote!  |
