jazz2love

Album:  The Sound of Love Artist:  Tania Grubbs Quintet Label:  Travlin Music Website:  Taniagrubbs.com Facebook.com/taniagrubbsjazzvocalist Taniagrubbsquintet.bandcamp.com/album/the-sound-of-love YouTube: @taniagrubbsjazzvocalist7356 Threads: @taniagrubbs IG: @taniagrubbs Soulful and expressive, vocalist Tania Grubbs serves audiences an engaging delivery of classic pop favorites, jazz standards, and a handful of original work on her 2024 release The Sound of Love .  The entire album was recorded in one day, supported by her band mates that includes pianist David Budway, guitarist Ron Affif, drummer James Johnson III, and her husband Jeff Grubbs on bass. The program opens with “But Not For Me," as Grubbs's nuanced vocals indulge in a playful interplay with the bopping drums and keys.  The cheerful mischief and frolicking exchanges will remind audiences of stage performances at lounge rooms across the Las Vegas strip.  The organic interactions are remin...

Album:  The Venetian Artist:  Vin Venezia Label:  Innervision Records Website:  www.vincentvenezia.com Guitarist Vin Venezia's latest release, The Venetian , features 13 tracks consisting of vintage jazz standards, contemporary works, and original material by Venezia.  Supporting Venezia are Richie Morales on drums, Harvie S on bass, David Budway on piano, Danny Walsh on tenor saxophone, and special guest Bob Magnuson, who plays tenor sax on Miles Davis's gem "Solar" with a fervor reminiscent of Davis himself. Venezia mesmerizes the audience with his interpretation of Victor Young and Ned Washington's tune "Stella By Starlight," stroking his guitar strings with a tenderness that ignites waves of soothing emanations. Another vintage standard "Alone Together," penned by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz, is treated with a funky flare in Harvie S's grooving bass line as Walsh's tenor sax intersperses twirling toots along the rollicking prog...

Album:  Blues To Be There, A Salute To Duke Ellington Artist:  Planet D Nonet Label:  Eastlawn Records Website:  rjspangler.com/pd9.php Paying homage to the works of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, the Planet D Nonet focuses on the works of these artists in their later years of the 1950's on the Nonet's recording Blues To Be There, A Salute To Duke Ellington .  Led by percussionist RJ Spangler and trumpet player James O'Donnell, the Nonet hones their fluency in swing, hard bop, and blues, with each musician "finding themselves" in Ellington's scores, as Spangler paraphrases in a press release. The Nonet's alterations on the original arrangements show a perceptive slant in their interpretations, spotlighting the elegant nuances of each track.  The squiggly furls of James O'Donnell's trumpet are verbose and voluminous, ruminating smoothly along "Blues To Be There" while tindered by the jaunty toots of clarinet player Christopher Tabaczy...

Album:  Stories From Solitude Artist:  Domi Edson Trio Label Name: Self-Released Website: www.domiedson.com A musician and leader well beyond her years, bassist Domi Edson shows melodic sensibilities comparable to the best swing and bebop players around the world.  Her interplay with her trio, comprised of pianist Spencer Zweifel and drummer Bobby Wiens, on her latest release Stories from Solitude , displays a simpatico repartee where the players mingle freely as each participates in the conversation while keeping a swing-inspired continuity.  Made up of several original compositions penned by Edson alongside a few jazz standards, the recording is multi-faceted. The harmonious consistency fashioned from Zweifel's trotting keys and Edson's percolating beats, with Wiens' drum palpitations seamed along Edson's original work "Domi’s New Blues," has a rich bebop luster.  The trickling keys scampering briskly across "In Waltzed Minnie" have a playful cante...