Down Where The Bluebonnets Grow from The Joymakers
Album: Down Where The Bluebonnets Grow
Artist: The Joymakers
Label: Turtle Bay Records
Website: https://www.facebook.com/colin.hancock2101
IG: @ch2101
Label: https://www.turtlebayrecords.com/our-albums/down-where-the-bluebonnets-grow
YouTube: @turtlebayrecords9686
Down Where The Bluebonnets Grow, the debut release from the Joymakers, led by brass player Colin Hancock, unveiling their exhilarating arrangements of jazz standards from the Prohibition Era of the late 1920's and early 1930's. Uniting New Orleans Louisiana (NOLA) ragtime with Dixieland jazz, riverboat bluegrass, boogie woogie, tinpan alley/showtunes blues, hot jazz, and jazz age lawn party rhythms like the Lindy hop, the Charleston, and jive, the Joymakers bridge vintage idioms with contemporary appeal.
Hancock is the third-generation in his family to be weaned on Bix Beiderbecke's music, having been deeply inspired by the pianist and cornet player and Beiderbecke's band, the Wolverines. Hancock's parents and grandparents played Beiderbecke's records, and the influence has never waned.
The opening track, "Papa's Gone," belts out a rip-roaring ragtime romp. Hancock leads and solos on cornet at the beginning and end of the track. His bluesy vocals shine on the track, complimented by a searing solo on baritone sax. Lauryn Gould's sultry vocals sway with a slow burlesque drag along "I'm A Good Gal," supported by David Jellema's sleek and lingering clarinet trot, chassis-ed by a leisurely riverboat-inflused bluegrass groove.
A jamboree vibe fills the air across "Crazy Quilt," driven by Hancock's blazing cornet, as Shane Dickens plays a springy ragtime vamp. Angling towards a jazz age lawn party celebration, the Charleston coils are laden in merriment and infectious liveliness as Jellema plays choruses on C-melody sax and clarinet, followed by a short interlude by Dylan Blackthorn on accordion.
"That's A Serious Thing" is buckled in a boogie woogie saddle with a burlesque swagger in the horns, as Hancock's soulful vocals are partnered with sizzling stride keys parlaying a New Orleans Louisiana-style succulency. "Everybody Stomp" is a hot jazz jamboree with jive-like propulsion generated from Westen Borghesi's banjo thrumming. The Joymakers create a jazz age lawn party atmosphere with music that flappers and dandies donned in straw hats gravitated to in the days of yore.
Playful keys frolic across "Goofy Dust" fuming a ragtime sonorous, while the title track has a swinging tempo, suspending Hancock's ambling cornet glinting brightly along the melodic progessions. "Tia Juana," as it was spelled on the original Gennett label, a Bix Beiderbecke/Wolverines classic, brandishes a fun and energizing boogie woogie strut, gilded in twinkling keys, flaring horns, and jangling cymbals.
Speaking of Beiderbecke's band the Wolverines, the Joymakers remake the nostalgic "Wolverine Blues," giving the tune a tinpan alley finish, garbed in twirling horns, steamy banjo thrumming, smoking saloon-style piano rolls, and hot jazz fervor. Lauryn Gould returns to lead vocals on "I Ain't Thinkin' About You" embossing the track with a cool, flirtatious swagger.
The recording follows with "Hot Air," straddled in a Charleston-style rhythm, whisking up trembling bass lines and jangling banjo strings. Hancock sings "Kiss Me Sweet" with verve as he serenades, "I want you to kiss me sweet and be my inspiration / Honey, when you press your loving lips to mine / I get a funny feeling creeping down my spine... My love is complete / Honey, when you kiss me sweet." The slow ragtime strut has a "Mr. Cellophane" vibe, a signature melody from 1975's Broadway production Chicago with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb.
The disc comes to a hot jazz roar with "Tiger Rag," closing the recording with rippling horns, jutting bass lines and frenzied keys. The Joymakers live up to their moniker on this track, impelling Nick Larocca's vintage track with contemporary zeal.
Although Hancock had studied City Planning and Law at Cornell and Columbia Universities, he found his calling as a brass player and bandleader. His music makes a positive impression on listeners. It is more than a homage to Prohibition Era's hot jazz, the arrangements step into the modern age with contemporary sensibilities and a renewal of tinpan alley/territory band favorites.
Musicians:
Colin Hancock - cornet, baritone saxophone, alto saxophone, trombone, and vocals
David Jellema - clarinet, c-melody saxophone, cornet, and vocals
Lauryn Gould - alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, and vocals
Dylan Blackthorn - piano and accordion
Westen Borghesi - tenor banjo
Shane Dickens - piano
Ryan Gould - string bass
Ryan Neubauer - drums
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