jazz2love

Artist: Carolyn Lee Jones CD Title: Christmas Time Is Here Label: Catn’round Sound Website: www.carolynleejones.com Merging swing, bossa nova, blues, and smooth jazz, vocalist Carolyn Lee Jones adds these rich flavors into a selection of Christmas tunes on her latest release Christmas Time Is Here from her label Catn’round Sound.  Ringing in the Yuletide, her performance shows reverence for the traditional singalongs while infusing her trademark sensitivity and tender vocal strokes. Shelley Carrol dabbles "I'd Like You for Christmas" with winsome saxophone trembles, jumping into the melodic progressions during Jones's vocal breaks, making for impromptu pivots along the track.  The bopping grooves lining "Merry Christmas Baby" are laden in good cheer as Mario Cruz's saxophone solo flashes a bright and bouncy blare while Jones lures listeners into the festive mood.   The sleek swagger of her vocal stride enshrouds "Red Christmas" in a vintage gl...

Album:  The Heart Wants Artist:  Jo Harrop Label:  Lateralize Website:  https://www.joharrop.com/about If the Beatles had a female band member, she would have been singer-songwriter Jo Harrop.  Of course, the Beatles would have needed to arrive 60 years later than they did to make that happen.  To everyone else's good fortune, Harrop has arrived, and her latest CD The Heart Wants features all original songs written by her and accompanied by sparse arrangements, placing her nuanced vocals in the forefront.  The smoky textures of her vocals give the tracks a misty veneer like she recently brushed off old memories and brought them up to the surface for reflection.  Her voicing is appealing like that of an old friend coming along and taking a trip down memory lane.  The audience isn't merely a spectator but is invited inside to remember along with Harrop those moments that earmarked chapters in one's life. Her voice turns sultry and flirtatious ...

Album:  Wonderful World Artist:  Chris Standring Label:  Lateralize Records Website:  http://www.chrisstandring.com Guitarist and improviser Chris Standring performs with a 19 piece orchestra on his 14th release as a leader, Wonderful World .  He puts his own unique spin on songs from the Great American Songbook as he reimagines an assortment of jazz standards, setting the listener at ease track after track.  His articulation of the verses beckons the listener to savor each musicians input, enticing one to be absorbed by the warm climate Standring creates with his guitar riffs. His treatment of Cole Porter's staple "Night and Day" highlights the ruminating mood of the track, transitioning into the soft billowy phrasing of "Autumn in New York," composed by Vernon Duke.  Vocalist Kathrin Shorr's performance on "What a Wonderful World" is spellbinding as her vocals caress the lyrics with warm, feminine tenderness.  The low-lit simmer in her timbres h...

Album:  The Still Point of the Turning World Artist: Paul Edis Label:  Lateralize Records Website:  https://www.pauledis.co.uk https://pauledis.bandcamp.com/album/the-still-point-of-the-turning-world Audiences are the captivated spectator while listening to pianist Paul Edis perform on his latest release The Still Point of the Turning World .  He plays with such total concentration that listeners feel like an intruder if they interrupt the recital.  His musings and meanderings on the keys are like poetry in motion, one thought leads into another, forming an expedition that consists of capricious turns, leisurely strolls, and meaningful flourishes.  Mixed and produced by Adam Sinclair, the compositions were written by Edis over the course of the 2021, and recorded in a day at Masterchord Studios in London. The microcosm that Edis creates is an insulated world influenced by the outside world.  The tracks are comprised solely of himself as Edis channels h...

Artist:  Render Sisters Label:  PCG Artist Development / Distro Kid Websites:  www.rendersisters.com https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxC6zNnv_JpPNCn1at7phTQ Making their debut in the country pop arena, the Render Sisters comprised of Mary Keaton Render and Stella Render play contemporary prairieland Americana with a pinch of coffeehouse folk and torchlight blues that shares qualities with supper club jazz.  Since their emergence in 2020, the sisters have been churning out singles and broadening their acumen at each outing. Their 2021 single "I Don't Wanna Know," an original melody written by the sisters and their producer Doug Kahan (Trick Pony, Clay Walker, Jon Pardi), brings out the clarion luster in the sisters vocal harmonies, supported by the shimmering tones and twittering vibrations of the guitar chords and keyboards.  The lyrics speak of seeking a simple life and accepting conditions as they are, as the sisters chime, "I don't wanna know / I just want t...

Album:  Essence Artist:  Ryan Daunt Trio Label:  Self-Released Website:  https://ryandaunt.bandcamp.com/album/essence Pairing the intensity of classical piano with the kinetic interplay and magnetic charm of improvised jazz, the Ryan Daunt Trio, led by drummer Ryan Daunt, bring audiences their latest offering Essence .  Laden in a variety of harmonic forms, pianist Tristan Wills and bassist Nick Abbey join Daunt on 11 tracks that illustrate their expressive leanings. The trio truly channel their thoughts and personalities into the music, showing a strong sense of what they want to say and how they want to portray their phrasing.  The title track especially gives audiences the impression that each musician performs independent of the others while also displaying a shared awareness of one another, forming a multi-faceted dialogue.  The cool jazz strut of the rhythmic beats trotting along "Lux" exhibit the playful side of the trio to audiences, keeping th...

Album:  Midnight Sun Artist:  Bryan Lubeck Label:  Vineyard Music Productions Website:  www.bryanlubeck.com Midnight Sun is the follow up to bandleader, composer and multi-instrumentalist Bryan Lubeck’s recording Tuscan Sky , featuring a potpourri of musicians who each infuse shards of elegance into the tracks. A confluence of scripted phrases and spontaneous flights, the release demonstrates Lubeck's keen sensibilities as a smooth jazz artist. Best known for injecting a flamenco tint into his music, Lubeck works with a diverse palette that acts as a elixir on the senses.  "If You Only Knew" is trellised in bopping grooves surrounded by fluttering horns and caressing guitar riffs, moving into the title track's succor-rich swells.  The storytelling phrasing of Lubeck's guitar chords ruminates gently across "Sun Dress," immersing the listener in a beachside landscape. Lubeck's meanderings on the guitar emblazon "Till I'm Found" with a re...

Album:  Passage Artist:  Bill Heller Album:  Billunatic Music Website:  https://www.billunaticmusic.com Composer-keyboardist-bandleader Bill Heller fuses contemporary jazz with easy listening melodies on his latest release Passage .  The uplifting spirit of the tracks is infectious, seething with elation in each phrasing.  The sleek stride of the saxophones paired with the pulsating beats of the rhythm section and the warm aesthetics of the guitar riffs make for a pleasing experience from beginning to end. Heller's original work "Viaggio" is a soft, simmering bossa nova melody twined in the silky glitters of Brandon Fields's alto sax, infusing a romantic glint in the soothing mood.  The recording switches to a festive ambience with the funky squiggles of Heller's keyboards braiding across "FT Shuffle," and shifting to a cheerful saunter along "Journeys End."  Following is a flowering bouquet of textures through "The Flow," gilded in t...