Highlights
Hour One
You & I - Brian Hughes:
With Fast Train
to A Quiet Place, guitarist Brian Hughes marks a return to the studio
with his first project of all new material in nearly a decade. However,
Brian has not been inactive, in fact far from it. Although it's not well-publicized,
the native of Vegreville Alberta leads a double life as a musician. There
is of course his jazz persona, which is the side that we here at the Café
are most familiar with - in that regard, in the past few years Hughes
has issued both a Live cd as well as a DVD. Even so, back in the 80s,
Hughes connected with a fellow product of the prairies in Manitoba's Loreena
McKennitt after both had relocated to the Toronto area. With Brian handling
many of Loreena's production duties, he's also contributed instrumentally,
handling a variety of strings from acoustic and electric guitars to the
more exotic balalaika, bouzouki, oud, and sitar. There is a trade-off
of course as even though Hughes gets to stretch himself in a variety of
musical directions, the accompanying touring has to be demanding. With
a welcome break in that hectic schedule, it's no wonder then that Brian
named this latest effort Fast Train to A Quiet Place! From that release,
we present Brian with the Latin flavoured romance of You & I !
CD: Fast Train to a Quiet Place
(2011)
Label: Sylvan House Music
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Meander - Nish:
Originally from
Vancouver Canada, saxman Kim Nishikawara is a 30-plus year veteran who
studied arranging and composition at the Berklee College of Music. Over
the years Kim has worked the likes of The Powder Blues Band, Downchild
Blues Band, Long John Baldry, and Michael Bublé among others. A few years
back, he relocated to Manchester, England and since then he's expanded
his horizons with several diverse projects from live theatre to touring
with the likes of Chris Farlowe as well as playing with & arranging for
Jim Bamber and others. However, just before that move Kim recorded a cd
as Nish and from that effort there's a leisurely affair of the heart entitled
Meander!
CD: Intuition, The Essence
of Romance (2000)
Label: Independent
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Red Giants and White Dwarfs - James Gabriano:
Guitarist James
Gabriano started playing at the age of 12 and took classical lessons for
several years before his family moved from Toronto to Dallas, Texas. Shortly
thereafter, Gabriano enrolled at UNT where his focus broadened to include
jazz studies. After forming his own band in late 80s, Gabriano became
well known in and around the 'Big D'. Initially grounded in Latin jazz
and flamenco, over the years Gabriano's musical purview grew to embrace
a blend smooth and other styles. He debuted in 1992 with 2004's Riviera
Sunrise was his fourth and likely most accomplished effort to date. From
an effort that featured the likes of Wayman Tisdale, Steve Reid, and Alex
Al, we have the acoustic gem Red Giants and White Dwarfs!
CD: Riviera Sunrise (2004)
Label: Gabriano Productions
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Obsession - Robert Michaels:
Roberto Michele
Buttarazzi, aka Robert Michaels, is a Juno winner and considered one of
Canada's most accomplished Latin Jazz guitarists. In spite of the fact
that Michaels was Toronto born, he came by his Latin credentials quite
honestly as he was raised in a mountainside town about 95 kilometers outside
of Rome. When he was two, Roberto's Italian parents moved there and that
was where he developed his love for the music that would later inspire
him! Buttarazzi's was an accordionist, but even so Michaels didn't feel
moved to play music until he was a teen in the 60s and his family had
moved back to Toronto - his first guitar proved totally makeshift, just
a piece of wood with strings nailed to it and some drawn-on frets.
Drawn to the complexities of jazz and classical music, Michaels auditioned
for and was accepted to Humber College where he honed many of his writing
and arranging skills. After graduating he played bass in a short-lived
trio and then later he performed traditional pieces as Roberto. The name
change to Robert Michaels followed the demand for music from his show
so he went with his middle name and that eventually evolved to Michaels.
Impressive sales for a 1994 debut and a Juno nomination for the follow-up
caught the attention of Warner Music, who ultimately released Utopia in
1998. His fourth album, Allegro, went on to win a Juno, but on this occasion
we have a superb track from Michaels and what was his major label debut!
CD: Utopia (1998)
Label: WEA
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| Highlights
Hour Two |
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Same City Different World - Stuart Steinhart:
For many years Toronto
native Stuart Steinhart performed, wrote and recorded for other artists
whose projects frequently received various forms of recognition. Then
a few years back, Steinhart shifted focus to include producing more of
his own work. Initially he collaborated with Nura for her self-titled
debut, and a project that allowed Steinhart the opportunity to stretch
out in new and exciting ways. Then after a gap of a few years, Steinhart
returned with Edification, his own solo debut that gave him the further
freedom to explore a penchant for experimentation while combining that
many aspects of his technological expertise. Featuring an all-star cast
with the likes of Don Grusin on piano, Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, Luis
Conté on percussion, and with David Blamires & Nura on vocals, the cd
traversed many facets of jazz while documenting Steinhart's musical journey
to that point in his career. From an effort that will satisfy even the
most discerning palette, we present the epic grooves of Same City Different
World with Tom Scott on sax!
CD: Edification (2008)
Label: Start Music Productions
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Love Is
- Vince Mai:
A stalwart on the
west coast music scene, Vince Mai has been serving up a unique blend of
smooth, Latin, and straight ahead jazz for many years. In addition to
developing a reputation as a dynamic soloist, Vince is well known as a
top call studio player with credits that include The Powder Blues Band,
Natalie Cole, and Tom Jones. Additionally Mai has been featured on commercials,
film & TV in both Canada and the USA while over the last decade he's also
started to emerge as a front man. After a 2000 debut that primarily featured
his take on a few jazz standards, Mai has incorporated diverse world elements
while drawing inspiration from his travels. From That's the Way of the
World and his fifth project overall, our choice is Love Is and another
fabulous Mai original!
CD: That's the Way of the World
(2011)
Label: Independent
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| After Hours ~ Exclusive
to our Site and Select Affiliates : |
On this edition, we're featuring more great grooves
from the great white north as we continue with our all Canadian review.
Included are a few long time favourites by Shikandaza and Amarosa plus
a couple of others that are done by Joni Mitchell and Darren Rahn. Also
appearing is a segment we're calling A to the Zed featuring Alexander
Zonjic, Alex Zografov, and Alfie Zappacosta. Those and all the selection
we're playing are 100% Canadian this being part and parcel of our yearly
Canada Day celebrations. In the meantime, the first sparkler for this
show is from Mark Bracken!
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