jazz2love

  Album:   Alice Blue Artist:   Ravita Jazz Label:   Ravita Music Website:   https://www.baltimorebass.com/   Ravita Jazz is a jazz sextet led by bass player Phil Ravita and includes: percussionist Mark Leppo, saxophonist Paul Carr, pianist Greg Small, drummer Nucleo Vega, and vocalist Deidre Jennings.  Their 2025 release Alice Blue canvasses a wide breadth across the adult contemporary jazz spectrum, intersecting swaying bossa nova swells with bebop trimmings, torchlight atmospheres, and straight-ahead jazz harmonies.  Ravita Jazz's sonic representations are reflective of the adult contemporary jazz culture, featuring five originals by Ravita, two compositions by Small and three covers. Diving in, the dreamy atmosphere of "Almost Blue" is blanketed in ruminating keys, traveling along plush rhythmic beats, creating a tranquilizing vibe. The soothing timbres of Jennings's vocals caress the lyrics tenderly with a deep reverence in "From the Start," ...

Album:  No More Excuses Artist:  Danette McMahon Label:  Self-Released Website:  https://danettemcmahon.com/bio/ Having received a scholarship to attend Houston Baptist University for music and drama, vocalist Danette McMahon blends the essence of R&B/soul with facets of torchlight jazz, Latin swing, and adult pop on her latest release No More Excuses .  Containing two cover tunes and twelve originals songs written by McMahon, the recording is laden in lyrics with adult themes, finding hope and strength amidst life's trials, losses, and heartbreaks.  She woos her audience into a comfy respite with the starry, dream-like escapes sewn across "Life Goes On" and "Come Dance with Me," as she intimates the lingering sentiment of a sorrowful past while in the next breath embraces love and strength of a positive outlook for the future. The music swings harmoniously like a tender caress that works as a balm on the listener.  Such smooth swing also surfaces ...

Album:  Con Moto Artists:  Bill DiCosimo and Edgar Pagán Label:  SubCat Records Website:  https://www.edgarpagan.com Latin flavors compliment R&B/soul driven melodies on songwriter/organist Bill DiCosimo and songwriter/bass player/vocalist Edgar Pagán s latest endeavor Con Moto .  Produced by multi-Grammy winner Jimmy Haslip, the recording is powered by a unrelenting spirit to pursue happiness with a tendency to heighten audience's sensitivity to be open to joyful vibrations. The reggae grooves piping “Show the World” is a prime sample of a universally uplifting melody that touches the masses, transcending human differences and man-made conflicts.  Featuring Ceili Rain's frontman Bob Halligan Jr on vocals, the cruising melody is motored by Jeff Lorber's poetic musings on the keyboards as the lyrics inspire peace, love, and unity among listeners.  Halligan prophesizes, "Come together people / Show your love somehow / So turn to each other / Just rea...

Album:  ISH Artist:  Mad Love Label:  Gladitude Records Website:  https://soundcloud.com/kathleen-hollingsworth/tracks R&B/soul meets cabaret jazz on Mad Love's latest release ISH .  Led by vocalist Kathleen Hollingsworth, Mad Love hones easy-listening melodies that hitch lounge room jazz with adult pop finesse.  Mad Love venture into flights of pleasing hues, crafting calming escapes and lithesome jaunts.  Joined by bassist Dave Captien and drummer Brent Follis, the trio's music shimmers, swings, and soothes keeping the listener entangled in its warm resonance. The chattering beats elevating "Hey There, Rider" thrust a country-spun emission as the trio's contributions are augmented by the flapping gusts of guest bassist Ross Garlow and guitarist Dominic Castillo.  "Easy Rider" drifts into the funk-imbued moans of Wil Blades's organ, as Hollingsworth showcases a feisty edge in her vocal inflections, moving into the smooth soul glides of ...

Album:  The Art of Life Artist:  Norman Johnson Label:  Self-Released Website:  http://normanjohnsonguitar.com Guitar fusion, R&B/soul, and dance funk come together on guitarist Norman Johnson's third solo effort The Art of Life .   Johnson demonstrates his intuitive nature to play to the grooving beat, cultivating a symbiotic rapport that engulfs the listener in harmonious rhapsodies.  Johnson's performance crosses over the music spectrum from smooth jazz to dance pop, adding to each genre. The mid-tempo grooves of "Sing On" are modulated with a touch of reggae, complementing the bopping chord movements of Johnson's guitar.  The tune is further layered in intervals of lobbing splashes from the tooting horns.  The smooth sensations emitting from Johnson's guitar infuse light rivulets along the title track, producing a succor effect on the listener.  Conversely, "Old School" is seared by a dance funk groove laced in the light trem...