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Showing posts from August, 2021

Album Review: BASSic Instinct from David Finck

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  Album:   BASSic Instinct Artist:   David Finck Label:   Burton Avenue Music Website:   burtonavenuemusic.com   Jazz bassist and bandleader David Finck presents a new collection of contemporary jazz tunes and original compositions entitled BASSic Instinct .   Accompanying Finck is a bevy of talented collaborators that include saxophonist Andy Snitzer, keyboardist Quinn Johnson, guitarist Bob Mann, trombonist Mike Davis, and pianist Meg Ruby, to name a handful.   Vocalists featured on the recording are Melissa Errico, Kelly Mittleman, Téka Penteriche and Trist Curless.   Together, Finck leads a big band orchestra through a cavalcade of playful tunes combining American swing and Latin jazz flavors. For starters, "Dearly Beloved" is adorned in the swirling toots of Snitzer's saxophone as the rhythm section layers the track in frothy ruffles and splashing effects.   The exuberance in the music shimmers with a multi-dimensional quality.   The warm and sunny ambien

Album Review: Clique from Patricia Barber

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Album:   Clique Artist:   Patricia Barber   Label:   Impex Records   Website:   https://www.patriciabarber.com   Pianist-vocalist-composer Patricia Barber emerges with her latest CD Clique , a bluesy smooth jazz endeavor groomed in smokey, cabaret-esque atmospherics.   Barber creates an intimacy with her audience that projects a personalized listening experience.   Produced by Barber and Jim Anderson, the release has a mix of jazz standards and a single original number written by Barber.   She travels from emoting brooding feelings to soaring on heavenly wings with lyrics describing sensations of sheer elation.   Like voyaging around the world, Barber journeys through a wide array of human emotions with the acumen of a seasoned traveler. The funky beats of Patrick Mulcahy's bass garb the track "The In Crowd," penned by Billy Page with jolts of electric streaks, putting a thrust in the lyrics as Barber shines light on the ego, "I'm in with the in crowd / I g