Smokey Robinson - Time Flies When You're Having Fun (2009)

...and we're closing a frenetic month right here on Twisted Jazz blog with the return of a living legend...Welcome back Smokey!!!

At nearly 70 years old, Smokey Robinson is still one of the world’s greatest writers of popular song. Take any one of this set’s 12, beautifully-crafted vignettes that deal with just about every aspect of love – lost, found, enjoyed, unrequited and so on – telling stories in a way that will mean something to just about anybody. And the music’s as meticulous too, shifting tempos to change the aural scenery, always maintaining exactly the right mood – so many of those on today’s RnB production lines could listen and learn from the man who once bossed Motown, soul music’s original production line.

But given Smokey’s age, it’s unsurprising that the tracks that work best are the two where he has help: You’re the One for Me and You’re Just My Life, featuring Joss Stone and India.Arie respectively. Not that he can’t cut it any more, as half a dozen songs here are classic solo Smokey Robinson. Although his voice matured and mellowed post-Miracles, as he croons through easy-rocking masterpieces like That Place and Whatcha Gonna Do, the years fall away. That said, they’re written well within his slightly reduced range, and then wrap things up in arrangements of enough depth to cut him slack. Noticeably, the couple of tunes that perhaps should have been given to somebody else – Don’t Know Why and the title track – are those with the most modern, minimalist backing as they leave him most exposed. That’s the one drawback with writing of this calibre: it leaves little room for faltering.

The real joy of Time Flies… though is the hidden track, a supremely sultry and grown up reading of the Jackson Five’s first hit, I Want You Back. Arranged as kind of lounge jazz (in a good way!) with plenty of space and featuring a trumpet and a piano, it’s a not so much a cover version as a reinvention, giving the lyric a whole new sense of purpose. It’s great that after 50 years in the business Smokey can deliver exactly what you’d expect, but still have the capacity to surprise.

by Lloyd Bradley (BBC-Music)

Official Site - Smokey @ AMG - Smokey & Joss Stone & Jay Leno Show -

Jukka Eskola - Walkover (2009)

Wonderful work from trumpeter Jukka Eskola -- a set that's every bit as hip and jazzy as his work with the Five Corners Quintet! The sound here is different, though, as the core group features some sweet Fender Rhodes alongside Jukka's soulful trumpet lines, a blend that's somewhere in the territory of Freddie Hubbard in the 70s on CTI, and which is a wonderful setting for Jukka's talents! The tunes are nice and lean, lots of rhythmic energy, sometimes modal, sometimes funky, and the Rhodes makes for some occasional spacey moments that are a nice change from usual, proof that Eskola can handle other styles than just the tight modal jazz and soulbop that he's usually known for. Some tracks feature occasional added instrumentation too, baritone and flute from Timo Lassy, plus tenor, trombone, and even some occasional strings. Teddy Rok produced, so you know the sound is great, and titles include "First Time", "Jova", "Dark Corner", "Double Time", "Teddy's Stretch", "El Aedaps", and "Chip N Charge"

http://www.myspace.com/jukkaeskola

Discover the wonderful soundworld of Ricky-Tik records right here!!!

Gilles Peterson presents: Havana Cultura, New Cuba Sound (2009)

Featuring the work of over 20 musicians and artists recorded across 28 tracks, this double CD album is a celebration of Cuba’s freshest musical talent from Latin, Afro jazz and fusion to hip hop, funk, reggaeton and R&B. CD1 consists of brand new recordings produced by Gilles Peterson jointly with Roberto Fonseca and Vince Vella. Fans of Cuban music will also recognise a handful of traditional Cuban classics such as ‘Chekere Son’, which have been carefully re-imagined and re-recorded. CD2 features tracks from Gilles’ favourite new discoveries. New talent such as vocalist Danay (described by Gilles as “Cuba’s Jill Scott”) and Doble Filo, in addition to international award-winning artists such as rapper Kumar and pianist Roberto Fonseca.

The album was recorded in the world famous Egrem Studios in Havana, where all the major figures of the Cuban music scene have recorded including Beny Moré, Arsenio Rodriguez and the Buena Vista Social Club. It is the latest in a series of cultural projects from Havana Cultura, which has been designed to give artists in Havana a global voice via the Havana Cultura website.

You can get your mitts on the album at the following spots:

Brownswood Record Store

Amazon

Nostalgia 77 - Quiet Dawn

The New Mastersounds - Ten Years On (2009)

in their own words...
"As with previous records, Ten Years On presents an impressive range of grooves and styles, all sheltering from the grey English drizzle under a big jazz-funk umbrella. There’s the familiar vintage-sounding production, courtesy of guitarist and bandleader Eddie Roberts. The core of the band is the same as on 2008’s Plug & Play, with Simon Allen on drums, Pete Shand on Fender P-bass, and Joe Tatton on organ, piano and various other vintage keyboards.

The album has guests aplenty, some of them sending in their performances by email from distant shores. JD73 plays Rhodes on Dusty Groove, lending it a distinctly Headhuntersish sound. Seattle-based sax experimentalist Skerik adds dark, lush textures to the eight-minute soundtrack opus OOOM. Fellow Leeds luminary Sam Bell brings the percussion to Eddie’s Benson-eque disco-jazz on Cielo while Madrid-based Chip Wickham toots a mean flute on Chocolate Chip.

The CD version features a very special bonus track with a vocal contribution from Grace Potter, the 24-year-old ascendant rock-star and friend of the Mastersounds from the US festival scene. Nothing But the Water (II) is an NMS cover version of one of Grace’s own original tunes. Eddie came up with a new arrangement and the band recorded it in Leeds without Grace, who was busy writing her new album in L.A. We contacted Breakestra’s Miles Tackett who kindly agreed to record Grace’s vocal in his studio. Grace sang along to the backing-track, Miles sent back the vocal part over the ether, and Eddie mixed the finished tune – hey presto, and it’s funky as hell! "

Official Site - MySpace page - 'San Frantico' session live on studio -

Jaga Jazzist - One Armed Bandit (2010)

OUT TODAY ON NINJA TUNE RECORDS

The nine piece Norwegian jazz-rock-experimental behemoth that is Jaga Jazzist return to the fray with their stunning new album, “One Armed Bandit”. All galloping rhythms, and grandiloquent reach, main man Lars Horntveth describes the new sound, tongue-a-little-in-cheek, as “Wagner meets Fela Kuti!” Certainly we find it harder to imagine a better soundtrack being written for the first Nollywood Viking epic.

Jaga Jazzist have become something of a musical phenomenon in Norway since they started out fifteen years ago. Not only is this instrumental band regarded as one of the most exciting and innovative in Norway, the members are all involved in other musical projects and have in one way or another contributed to almost every significant recording to come out of that part of the world in the last few years. Their albums sell huge quantities in their own country and massive crowds come to their shows. Their international acclaim is signalled by the fact that the new album was mixed in Chicago by John McEntire of Tortoise.

Lars Horntveth began writing the music for “One-Armed Bandit” early in 2008. Looking for a way between and beyond the band’s previous albums, “What We Must” and “The Stix,” Hornveth decided that everything would be charted and written out, noth more focussed and layered than ever before. One night, while listening to Fela Kuti, he came up with title-track “One Armed Bandit” and everything fell into place – a kinf of ride of the polyrhythmic acid-addled valkyries that scarecely lets up acorss the 53 minutes of the final album.

Having taken on two new members, Øystein Moen and Stian Westerhus, the band rented a house in the Swedish forest to rehearse “this new Zappa-esque, more humorous prog-rock music.” On their return they rehearsed endlessly, a new tune each week, until in December 2008 the band went to Cabin Recorders to put down the album with Jørgen Træen, their producer since the early days of the group. Unfortunately, through no fault of the band’s, Træen got tinnitus after three weeks, so the mixing was completed in Chicago by the band and none other than John McEntire.

[AltSounds.com]

Official page - MySpace page - BBC review of 'Bandit' - The Times review -

Laura Vane & The Vipertones - Roof Off

Tom Waits - The Heart of Saturday Night (1974)

If Closing Time, Tom Waits' debut album, consisted of love songs set in a late-night world of bars and neon signs, its follow-up, The Heart of Saturday Night, largely dispenses with the romance in favor of poetic depictions of the same setting. On "Diamonds on My Windshield" and "The Ghosts of Saturday Night," Waits doesn't even sing, instead reciting his verse rhythmically against bass and drums like a Beat hipster. Musically, the album contains the same mixture of folk, blues, and jazz as its predecessor, with producer Bones Howes occasionally bringing in an orchestra to underscore the loping melodies. Waits' songs are sometimes sketchier in addition to being more impersonal, but "(Looking For) The Heart of Saturday Night" and "Semi Suite" are the equal of anything on Closing time. Still, with lines such as "...the clouds are like headlines/Upon a new front page sky" and references to "a 24-hour moon" and "champagne stars," Waits' imagery is beginning to get florid, and in material this stylized, the danger of self-parody is always present.

www.allmusic.com

Smoove + Turrell - Antique Soul (2009)

Antique: valuable because of its beauty or rarity; out of fashion and belonging to or lasting from times long ago

Soul: deep feeling or emotion; the human embodiment of something

Raw and retro with a rich deep story-telling vein Smoove & Turrell release their emotional debut album, “Antique Soul”. Opening a different musical door, its “old dusty feel mixed with fresh contemporary edges” delivers eleven songs that grow on the listener with every play. This unpretentious debut is already bending the ears of Radio 6’s funk afficionado and occasional hellraiser, Craig Charles, who has written the album’s sleevenotes.

From the home of label mates Kraak & Smaak, geordie partnership Smoove & Turrell combine live music with the latest technology to create a set that’s timeless in its appeal. From fat funk rippling over ace beats and breaks, Northern soul to stomping 60’s sounding jams, this picturesque album plugs in 2009 for another great year of new music. Great songs swinging over a new funk breeze; there’s shades of Mark Ronson, soul loving Modfather Paul Weller and early story-telling Bowie circa “London Boys” mixed up with the last four decades of breaks and beats.

'Sure to be one of the best albums of 2009 - This should be the future of Soul music in my book!' - DJ Andy Smith

S+T page on Jalapeno records - MySpace page - Review on MonkeyBoxing - Official S+T Page

The Bahama Soul Club - Rhythm is what Makes Jazz Jazz (2009)

Following the smashing success of ´The JuJu Orchestra´, the creative team around Oliver Belz has come up with the next step ... A delicious clash of SOUL, JAZZ and BOSSA NOVA with that unique vintage feel. So what do you expect from one of the brains behind the Juju’s brilliant ‘Bossa Nova Is Not A Crime’? … ´Right´, you’ll get an impressive demonstration of the latest defining of superb dancefloor-jazz which makes this music welcome to DJ’s worldwide.

MySpace page - FB group - on Last.fm - Amazon

HOWIE B FEAT ROBBIE ROBERTSON Take Your Partner By The Hand

Madvillain - Shadows of Tomorrow

Chris Joss - Sticks (2009)

Already having dropped a stellar pair of albums on ESL Music, international producer and instrumentalist Chris Joss returns with his third effort entitled Sticks! Where You’ve Been Spiked explored dirty blaxploitation funk and Teraphonic Overdubs explored quirky game-show themes, Sticks is a smoky sonic journey through the Asian sub-continent. Filled out by a lush tapestry of ethereal sitars, rubber-funk bass, cheeky organ riffs, snappy drum kicks and smoky atmospherics Sticks captures a deep vintage groove that defies categorization. Light up, kick back, and envelope yourself in the purely irresistible sounds of Chris Joss’ Sticks!

Joss page @ ESL music - @ MySpace - Discography -

Thom Yorke & Gilles go Worldwide

Thom Yorke joins Gilles to co-host the show, joining the musical dots - soul, hip hop, house, Afro, Latin, dubstep, jazz and beyond. Listen here...

feat. Christoph De Babalon, Floating Points, Pangaea, Darkstar, Gil Scott-Heron, Charles Mingus, Sun Ra, MF Doom, Jay Eletronica, Los Silvertones, Clinic, Milton Nascimento, Joao Gilbero, CAN, Alex Cortex, Rockwell, Dam-Funk, South Rakkas Crew, Brad Mehldau

Mark Isham - Romeo is Bleeding OST (1993)

Mark Isham's score for this thriller features low-key traditional jazz (which gets more intense and electronic as it goes along) led by his trumpet and flugelhorn, mostly muted. Echoes of Miles Davis are everywhere, and the album works as a mood piece separate from the film. Abbey Lincoln and A.J. Croce each contribute one vocal track.

by William Ruhlman (AMG)

Mark Isham official site - On SoundtrackNet - MySpace page - Amazon -

Auteur Jazz - Aphorisms (2009)

Joyously romping grooves from Auteur Jazz -- a combo who take the modal style of the 60s European scene, and infuse it with a few contemporary touches of their own! The group are a bit more open-ended than some of the other club jazz combos on the Ricky Tick label -- willing to stretch out in some occasional exploratory modes or mellower moments, then step back with a hard-hitting groove to round things in place -- often getting a surprisingly rich sound from their relatively small lineup, which is mostly based around reeds and piano from Antti Hynninen, but also features occasional other saxes, strings, keyboards, and percussion. Sara Sayaed sings on the tracks "Kill You Alive" and "Tomorrow Knows" -- and other instrumental tracks include "Two Jaguars In Warsaw", "Marbles", "Who Struck John", "Gris Gris", "Uruguayo", and "Najgo".

© 1996-2010, Dusty Groove America, Inc.

MySpace page - On UTube/ Kill You Alive feat. Sara Sayed

Madeleine Peyroux - Bare Bones (2009)

By Sid Smith - BBC Music

If they ever make a biopic about Madeliene Peyroux there'll be no shortage of key moments to for them to illustrate; busking around Europe as a teenager; 2004's Careless Love selling over a million; record company-hired private detectives trying to track her down after she goes AWOL.

It'll all make great Hollywood for sure. However, it's likely that the most important scene will be the making of this, her fourth album since 1996. Despite occasionally tossing a tune of her own into an appealing though often undemanding best-selling blend of jazz and blues, for the bulk of her career she's been praised as an interpreter rather than a writer of songs.Now collaborating with producer Larry Klein, Julian Coryell (son of jazz guitar legend Larry) and Steely Dan's Walter Becker amongst others, she's begun to delve deeper into her own experiences.

Damn The Circumstances and Love And Treachery capture the moment when anyone who's ever been in love, wakes up at 3 a.m. to be haunted or taunted by what's got them to that particular point in their life.

Klein's production tenderly embraces Peyroux's brooding muse, whilst pianist Jim Beard's understated eloquence is often the album's quiet star.

There was a time when if someone said that Ms.Peyroux had a great voice, the smart reply was ''yes, but it's a pity it belongs to Billie Holiday''. With Bare Bones she's finally finding her own. The really interesting part of the Madeleine Peyroux story starts here.

Official Site - MySpace page - Bare Bones on UTube

Patricia Barber - Monday Night, Live at the Green Mill, Chicago (2009)

Patricia Barber's unique style and unusual voice made her an easy target for critics in the early days of her career. Her piano playing and singing, while inventive, never ventured close enough to the avant-garde to earn her artistic license, and her insistence on writing her own material and adapting songs from the pop world made her difficult to categorize. A tireless performer who refused to conform to more conventional vocal jazz idioms, she worked her way up through the Chicago jazz scene slowly, almost reluctantly, after having spent several years in Iowa attending college and performing with local groups.

Bio by Stacia Proefrock (AMG)

Monday Night - Live at the Green Mill is a download only release and you can buy it directly from Patricia's official website here

Patricia on UTube - Patricia @ MySpace -

Havana Jam 1979

Havana Jam was a three-day music festival that took place at the Karl Marx Theater, in Havana, Cuba, on 2-4 March, 1979. It was sponsored by Bruce Lundvall, the president of Columbia Records, Jerry Masucci, the president of Fania Records, and the Cuban Ministry of Culture.

The festival included, on the American side, Weather Report, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, the Trio of Doom, Fania All-Stars, Stephen Stills, Billy Swan, Bonnie Bramlett, Mike Finnegan, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge and Billy Joel. The Cuban acts included Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Zaida Arrate, Elena Burke, Orquesta de Santiago de Cuba, Conjunto Yaguarimú, Frank Emilio, Juan Pablo Torres, Los Papines, Tata Güines, Cuban Percussion Ensemble, Sara González, Pablo Milanés, Manguaré, and Orquesta Aragón.

In 1977, US President Jimmy Carter and Cuban President Fidel Castro started to loose the political tension between the two countries and opened Interest Sections both in Havana and Washington. It was the first time in almost two decades after Castro’s rise to power that there was a real interest in establishing a normalization of diplomatic relations and the lifting of the United States embargo against Cuba.

With a real crisis in the music industry in the United States and the start of the salsa boom, in April 1978, CBS Records director, Bruce Lundvall, saw an open door to probe Cuban music and together with a group of the company’s music enthusiasts made a four-day trip to Havana, where they were overwhelmed by the sound of Cuban music, but especially by Afro-Cuban jazz band Irakere, one of Cuba’s most highly regarded and virtuoso musical acts. (wikipedia)

Roy Ayers - He's Coming

Roy Ayers Ubiquity - He's Coming (1971)

One of the rarest and greatest Roy Ayers albums of all time -- the sly, funky and spiritual masterpiece He's Coming from 1971 -- really the beginning of the funk years from Roy Ayers Ubiquity! This one's a totally solid mix of soulful jazz, jazzy soul and righteous funk -- and it's straight up wonderful all the way through -- with a groove that's hugely influential to say the least! Includes the amazing track "We Live In Brooklyn Baby", which has a slow sample bassline in the intro that's just incredible -- plus groovy cuts like the spiritual funk classic Jesus Christ Superstar "He's a Superstar", "He's Coming", and "Sweet Tears". The lineup includes Sonny Fortune on soprano sax and flute and Billy Cobham drums and percussion, and the record's co-arranged by Harry Whitaker, who's also on keys and vocals -- with other tracks include "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", "Ain't Got Time", "I Don't Know How To Love Him", "Sweet Butterfly Of Love" and "Fire Weaver". Amazing stuff, really a beautiful encapsulation of Roy Ayers in peak form!
© 1996-2010, Dusty Groove America, Inc.

Roy @ MySpace - Roy @ AMG - "He's Coming" on UTube

The Five Corners Quintet & Kerkko Koskinen - Othello (ep, 2009)

The Five Corners Quintet and composer Kerkko Koskinen recently got together to produce the score of "Othello", a hit Shakespeare play at the Finnish National Theatre in Helsinki. Ricky-Tick released an exclusive 10" vinyl of selected tracks that were recorded for the play. The "Othello" ten-inch will navigate along the signposts set by the wealth of historically relevant soundtrack jazz around, materialising itself as high-octane 21st century dancefloor jazz with a distinct old school library/soundtrack flava. The release is strictly limited to 1000 copies.

MySpacePage - Kerkko Koskinen - The 5 Corners Quintet Official site

Lorenzo Tucci - Touch (2009)

Lorenzo Tucci, one of the most valued drummers in the international jazz scene, distinguishes himself for his expressive pathos and capability of spreading to the new generations the teachings of the great masters of the past (Art Blakey, Philly Jo Jones, Elvin Jones, Tony Williams, Max Roach), using a personal style which underlines all of his versatility.

Personnel: Lorenzo Tucci (drums); Alice Ricciardi, Walter Ricci (vocals); Nicola Conte (guitar); Paolo Recchia (alto saxophone); Daniele Scannapieco, Max Ionata (tenor saxophone); Fabrizio Bosso (trumpet, flugelhorn); Gianfranco Marchesi, Gianluca Petrella (trombone); Pietro Lussu, Luca Mannutza (piano); Pietro Ciancaglini (double bass); Luca Florian (percussion).

Official Site - MySpace - JazzItalia (in italian language) -

Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens - What Have You Done, My Brother ? (2009)

Naomi Shelton is no ordinary gospel singer. Though she, like many others, grew up singing with her sisters in their Alabama church, she has also spent much of her life in the soul clubs around New York, and her 45s, “41st St. Breakdown” and “Wind Your Clock” b/w “Talking ‘Bout a Good Thing,” have long been revered and prized by funk DJs around the globe. Now, t’s clear that her singing is equally influenced by both facets of her life. This is soul music – informed by the church, perhaps, but soul music nonetheless, relatable to all. Which means that What Have You Done, My Brother?, an uplifting record that conveys Naomi’s energy, her excitement, her love of music, her compassion, is no ordinary album.

Text from Daptone Records

Naomi @ MySpace - Naomi @ UTube - Facebook group

Quartetto Trevi feat. Max Ionata - Pressmission - Night Walk (DejaVù Records 2009)

Mario Biondi - If (2009)

Italian jazz-soul vocalist Mario Biondi was born of artistic stock in the Sicilian city of Catania. His great grandfather was a respected painter, his grandmother a singer, and his father a popular songwriter. Biondi sang throughout his childhood, first performing in public at age 12 in church, and soon singing in public squares before hundreds of people. Biondi's musical pursuits earned him the opportunity to perform alongside such Italian vocal greats as Califano, Bongusto, and Fiorello, as well as American legend Ray Charles. As word of his talent and skill got out, Biondi found himself collaborating with groups like the Change, Mario Brothers, and Funky Company on recordings and tours. Given his powerful and unique voice, it was not long before Biondi was encouraged to pursue a solo career. Featuring material inspired by American R&B artists like Lou Rawls, Luther Vandross, and Donny Hathaway, Biondi's debut record was released in 2006 on the boutique label Family Affair. Handful of Soul featured the single "This Is What You Are," which went immediately into heavy rotation throughout Italy and the U.K. A year later Biondi performed the song at the important Sanremo Festival in Italy, bolstering the record's popularity and helping to push it into Billboard's European Top 100 chart.

~ Evan C. Gutierrez, All Music Guide

His new album IF was released on November 6th and has already gone platinum selling more 75.000 copies in his native country alone!

Official site - MySpace - Be lonely @ RAI Tv

Alessandro Magnanini - Someway Still I Do (2009)

This is the debut album by Alessandro Magnanini which is the songwriter of the most successful songs This Is What You Are and No Mercy For Me appeared on the album "Handful of Soul" by Mario Biondi.....The main sources of inspiration are the great adult pop productions of the past, where the melodies prominently easy listing are here filtered through a jazz approach and a more cultured language. The melodies are identified with the arrangements by excellent artists such as Claus Ogerman, referring in particularly to those ones produced for the performances of Astrud Gilberto, the orchestral atmospheres proper to the Shirley Bassey’s repertory, and the “playful” evocative ability of Henry Mancini.
With the participation of three dreamy voices by Liam McKahey (Cousteau), Jenny B, Stefania Rava and Renata Tosi this album just includes original versions of songs in order to create an imaginary soundtrack.

OUT NOW ON SCHEMA RECORDS

Samples from the record - Alessandro on UTube - Alessandro's MySpace page

Rosalia De Souza - D' Improvviso (2009)

Appeal and magic, sensuality and mysticism. These are just some of the feelings expressed in the new album by the Brazilian artist Rosalia De Souza, who relied upon Luciano Cantone’s artistic production, co-founder of the Schema Records and producer of the multi prize winner album “Handful Of Soul” by Mario Biondi. “D’Improvviso” recalls places and tastes connected to the Brazilian music of the past and in particular to the sixties. A genuine album touched by a singular Afro-Jazz sound, whose compositions show several aspects expressed by the different essences of the huge Brazilian music tradition. Slavery, politics, cultural movements of the 50’s-60’s, shanty-towns and the importance of the mixture rhythm/harmony where the Brazilian music is more intensified than the other ones. Bossa nova, afro, jazz, pop. We are in front of a multiform project where valued instrumentalists like Fabrizio Bosso, Lorenzo Tucci, Pietro Ciancaglini e Luca Mannutza took part.

(Text by SoulSeduction)

Rosalia @ MySpace - Rosalia on UTube -

S-Tone Inc. - Lua e Xangô (feat. Rosalia de Souza, Kal dos Santos, Adi Souza)

S Tone Inc - Moon in Libra (2009)

Great grooves from S-Tone -- the best album so far from Stefano Tirone, thanks to a range of great singers and musicians on the set! There's a warmly acoustic vibe here -- one that's rooted in bossa, but which also has some of the club jazz elements you'd expect from Schema Records -- a mix of live instrumentation and a few rhythm programs -- blended together beautifully with impeccable production that gives the whole record an "instant classic" sort of feel! Horn parts bring in a depth of feeling that we've never heard before on an S-Tone record -- and the singers really open things up too -- adding layers of soul that further expand the warmth at the core of the compositions, taking the music into some really bold territory. Only about half the tracks have vocals -- from singers who include Angie Brown, Rosalia De Souza, Laura Fedele, Daniel Richards, Kai Dos Santos, and Adi Souza -- and titles include "Universe Of Love", "Ponta Da Pedra", "Lua E Xango", "Stormy (bossa mix)", "Copacabana Soul", "Queen Of The Night", "Better Than A Lie", "Dona Lua", and "My Only Man".

© 1996-2010, Dusty Groove America, Inc.

Official MySpace Page -

Kira Neris - A Frozen Second (2009)

"Long awaited second album from this french dreamer & following of his beautiful first installation "behind closed doors" which received HUGE feedbacks and worldwide airplays from Gilles Peterson, Jazzanova, Patrick Forge & many others...." 'Beautiful New Jazz album!' Gilles Peterson (BBC One - Worldwide - London) 'GR8 ALBUM !!! KIRA NERIS DELIVERS AGAIN FANTASTIC MUSIC !!!! LOVE DA DFFRNT MOODS, FULL RESPECT 2 THAT CAT'' Simbad (Raw Fusion - Worldwide - London)

My Space Page - Kira Neris on UTube

Sonny Clark - Cool Struttin' (1958)

Cool Struttin' is a 1958 album by jazz pianist Sonny Clark. Described as an "enduring hard-bop classic" by the New York Times, the album features alto saxophonist Jackie McLean, trumpeter Art Farmer and two members of the Miles Davis Quintet, drummer Philly Joe Jones and bassist Paul Chambers. According to The Stereo Times, the album enjoys "a nearly cult status among hardcore jazz followers",a reputation all music asserts it deserves "for its soul appeal alone". Originally released on LP in 1958 by Blue Note.(wikipedia)

Mayer Hawthorne - Maybe So Maybe No

Mayer Hawthorne - A Strange Arrangement (2009)

by Michael Kabran (popmatters.com)

According to the Stones Throw website, Hawthorne, the pseudonym for one Andrew Mayer Cohen, has few of the background experiences that most legendary soul singers seem to have. He never sang in the church choir; he didn’t play in his high school jazz band; he never performed as the lead singer in a high school rock ‘n’ roll band; and he has no formal musical training. In fact, the only thing—and perhaps the most important thing—he has in common with the Curtis Mayfields, Otis Reddings, and Smokey Robinsons of the world is a deep and abounding love for rhythm and blues music. That love comes across like a sharp thwack to the noggin on A Strange Arrangement, with its falsetto vocals, doo-wop background singing, percolating horns, and hook-laden blues riffs.
[...]It’s an odd coincidence that A Strange Arrangement, an album devoted to recreating Robinson’s early work, should be released within months of Robinson’s own return to form. With Time Flies When You’re Having Fun, the 69-year-old R&B god has made an album semi-evocative of his Motown roots after an extended foray into contemporary soul/jazz. The true irony here is that, comparing the two releases, Hawthorne seems to have nailed the classic Robinson sound better than Robinson himself. If anything, A Strange Arrangement will hopefully turn a new generation onto a truly remarkable time in music.

Mayer's page @ Stones Throw records - Mayer @ MySpace -