New Release: Planet D Nonet presents Doctor Professor Leonard King in Tribute to Joe Williams

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New Release:  Planet D Nonet presents Doctor Professor Leonard King in Tribute to Joe Williams
Release Date: April 19, 2025
Label: Eastlawn Records
Website: https://rjspangler.com/

The late Big Band vocalist Joe Williams, who sang with the Count Basie Orchestra through the 1950's and later enjoyed being a solo artist, is treated with reverence on Planet D Nonet's latest recording Planet D Nonet Presents Doctor Professor Leonard King in Tribute to Joe Williams.  King's vocals take the listener down memory lane, when jazz combos filled ballrooms with rhapsodic romps, swinging scat, bluesy candlelight vibes, and smoldering bebop.  The scores may stem from the 20th century but King's arrangements are contemporary, sowing meaningful interpretations that lure the listener in from his catchy vocal inflections to Michael Zaporski's percolating keys and the impromptu raptures of the horns.  The interaction is emblematic of the spontaneity audiences recall that made jazz combos iconic, filling rooms with a kinetic energy that remains lodged in listeners minds long after the listening experience.  The music is performed to invoke a positive response from the listener.  Planet D Nonet and King bask in the exchange, feeding the listener with enthusiasm and feeding off of the listener's fervor.

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