Kurt Elling Quintet live at Leverkusener Jazztage 2011

Kurt Elling, Vocals
John McLean, Guitar
Laurence Hobgood, Piano
Clark Sommers, Bass
Ulysses Owens, Drums
Recorded live at Forum Leverkusen, November 2011

1. Stepping Out
2. Dedicated To You (Saul Chaplin/Sammy Cahn/Hyman Zaret)
3. Samurai Cowboy (Mark Johnson/Kurt Elling)
4. Norwegian Wood (John Lennon/Paul McCartney)
5. After the love has gone (David Foster/Jay Graydon/Bill Champlin)
6. The Waking (Rob Amster/Kurt Elling /Theodore Roethke)
7. Golden Lady (Stevie Wonder)

I already introduced Kurt´s latest CD "The Gate" to you earlier on this blog. On Nightmoves, his brilliant debut for Concord Records and seventh outing overall, Elling artfully blends his rich baritone voice with signature scatting and virtuosic vocalese in a wide-ranging repertoire of tunes associated with such greats as Frank Sinatra, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Irving Berlin, Betty Carter, Duke Ellington, Dexter Gordon and Keith Jarrett. His most ambitious undertaking to date, it features his working trio of bassist Rob Amster, drummer Willie Jones III and longtime creative partner, pianist-arranger Laurence Hobgood, along with such special guests as The Escher String Quartet, bassist Christian McBride, Yellowjackets tenor saxophonist Bob Mintzer, guitarist Guilherme Monterio, keyboardist Rob Mounsey and harmonica virtuosos Howard Levy and Gregoire Maret.

Kurt Elling live in Burghausen 2011 - UPDATE!

Kurt Elling, Vocals
John McLean, Guitar
Laurence Hobgood, Piano
Harish Raghavan, Bass
Ulysses Owens, Drums

Recorded live at Wackerhalle Burghausen, March 26, 2011


1. Stepping Out
2. Dedicated to you (Saul Chaplin/Sammy Cahn/Hyman Zaret)
3. Samurai Cowboy (Mark Johnson/Kurt Elling)
4. Norwegian Wood (John Lennon/Paul McCartney)
5. Matte Kudasai (Adrian Belew/Bill Bruford/Robert Fripp/Tony Levin)
6. The Waking (Rob Amster/Kurt Elling /Theodore Roethke)
7. After the love has gone (David Foster/Jay Graydon/Bill Champlin)
8. Golden lady (Stevie Wonder)
9. Nicht wandle, mein Licht (Johannes Brahms)

The New York Times is one of numerous publications to declare that Kurt Elling is the “standout male vocalist of our time,” and The Gate, Elling’s follow-up to his Grammy-winning Dedicated to You, is among his strongest albums—and perhaps the finest of his career.
Produced by Don Was (Rolling Stones, Bonnie Raitt, Bob Dylan), The Gate is a musical collection in which boundaries cease to exist, a sensibility enhanced by producer Don Was, who had expressed the desire to work with Elling—an opportunity which Elling found irresistible.
“I first heard Kurt on the local jazz station and was knocked out by his exotic blend of soul, technique, intelligence and charismatic hipness,” Was recalls. “He made this diverse collection of songs his own—and we had a blast.”
"What Don brought to this project," said Elling, "was his love of music and musicians, and a confidence that liberated us from all concern. He is the consummate producer and this was an extraordinary experience—my favorite in a studio.”
The Gate points Elling in a new and satisfyingly emotional direction. He has somehow found a way to make a deeply personal statement out of the music of King Crimson, Joe Jackson, Stevie Wonder and the Beatles—in addition to providing a new and vibrant understanding of Miles Davis, Bill Evans and Herbie Hancock.