jazz2love

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:  Pathways Artists:  Dave Anderson and Mike Wingo Label:  Self-Released Website:  https://daveandersonmusic.com/home Pathways, the sophomore release from the team of pianist Dave Anderson and percussionist Mike Wingo  is laden with contemporary jazz passages.  Anderson's flights on the keys travel into ethereal planes as the flexing rhythmic patterns of Wingo's percussion provide a warmth berth for the euphoric jaunts.  They produce a spellbinding harmony through a steady flow of improvisations and structured motifs.    Their track "The Leprechaun's Jam" is a melodic fusion of bongo-style beats and chamber music-inspired phrasing.  The pairing of these two voices is deeply magnetic and charmingly compatible.  The dialogue formed between Anderson and Wingo through "Lament" has a natural fluidity, part sobbing and part elevating.  The prismatic facets of Anderson's keys illuminating "Perspective" have a calming flicker tha...

Album:  Intimate Journey Artist:  Michael C. Lewis Label: Cybervision websites:  www.michaelclewis.com                  www.karigaffney.com Creamy jazz isn't technically a genre on the music spectrum but listeners know it when they hear it, and it is indisputable that trumpet player/vocalist Michael C. Lewis has made a mold for it on his sophomore offering Intimate Journey .  A fusion of soul, soft funk, R&B, adult contemporary pop, and cool jazz, the recording finds diversity in the simple pleasure of staying within the confines of its single mission.  A mission to make music that soothes the soul, caresses the body's rattled nerves, and relaxes the overactive mind. The music is richer than the style of smooth jazz that is heard over the intercoms of coffee houses, shopping malls, casino rooms, or cabarets.  It is music that is conducive to intimate moments, being alone with a spe...