Overtone Quartet feat. Dave Holland, Jason Moran, Chris Potter, Eric Harland live at Jazzfest Berlin 2009 -UPDATE No.2!!!

Chris Potter · tenor + alto saxophone

Jason Moran · piano, Fender Rhodes
Dave Holland · bass
Eric Harland · drums

Recorded live at Haus der Berliner Festspiele, Main Stage, November 6, 2009

1. Step To It (Holland)
2. Gummy Moon (Moran)
3. Treachery (Harland)
4. Veil of Tears (Holland)
5. Ask Me Why (Potter) (New!)
6. Blue Blocks (Moran)

For more than four decades, three-time Grammy winner Dave Holland “has defined the best in jazz” (JazzTimes), commanding attention as few bassists ever have. A musician of profound imagination and sophistication, he brings together an extraordinary quartet, collaborating with acknowledged masters of the next generation, each an innovator, respecting a legacy of creative freedom. Grammy-nominated saxophone impresario Chris Potter, 39, is characterized by limitless creativity, a vibrant sense of swing, and a full awareness of past, present, and future. Genre-bending pianist Jason Moran, 34 –influenced by opera, classical and world music, and even rap– performs music that's “serious and directed, and some of the best live jazz around now” (The New York Times). Virtuosic drummer Eric Harland, 33, is one of the most in-demand and praised jazz drummers in the world, with more than 30 albums under his belt.
Dave Holland´s latest record called "Pass It On" was released on Dare2Records.

Reut Regev R*Time feat. Jean-Paul Bourelly live at Jazzfest Berlin 2009 - UPDATE!

Reut Regev (tb)
Jean-Paul Bourelly (g)
Sean Conly (b)
Igal Foni (dr)

recorded live at A-Trane, Berlin, November 5, 2009

1. Faradise (Reut Regev)
2. Balibalaila (Reut Regev)
3. Nutcase scenario (Igal Foni)
4. Swill (Reut Regev/ Igal Foni)
5. Hula Hula
6. Clean dirt (Reut Regev)
7. Elephant steps (Reut Regev/ Igal Foni)
8. True Story

“...This is R*Time is a stunning debut record from an upcoming artist. Regev combines the expressivity of the avant garde and the technical precision of bop with the farsightedness of a musician in step with her own time. As one of the jazz idiom's oldest, most versatile instruments, the trombone provides both a connection to the past and a link to the future, a place Regev is prepared to take us.” (Troy Collins, All About Jazz)
Born and raised in Israel, Reut Regev started shaping her impressive reputation on the Jazz scene at a young age. After serving in Israel’s army band, Reut made her way to NYC and started performing in popular Jazz clubs. She has since taken part in various musical projects in the genres of Jazz, Latin, Improvised, Contemporary Classical, Klezmer, Rock music and more. She has worked with various artists including Anthony Braxton, Butch Morris and Frank London, the Klezmer All-stars, and many others.
Please be sure to buy Reut´s really great album "This is R time", released on Ropeadope.

Susanna & the Magical Orchestra live at Jazzfest Berlin 2009 - UPDATE!

Susanna Wallumrød · vocals

Morten Qvenild · keyboards, piano

recorded live at Haus der Berliner Festspiele, Seitenbühne, Berlin, November 5, 2009

1. Recall
2. Jolene
3. Guiding Star
4. Sweet Devil
5. Love Will Tear Us Apart
6. Someday

Susanna & the Magical Orchestra is in fact a duo. Their debut-album was released in Norway in February 2004, and some time later in Europe and in Japan, and received very good critics around the world. List of Lights and Buoys contains songs that show a suprising degree of maturity, especially considering the writers’ young age and the fact that they operate in a landscape that requires a good deal of songwriting skills to hold your attention.
Susanna & the Magical Orchestra combines the availability of the traditional popmusic, the strictness of the electronica and the improvisation in the jazzmusic. Singer Susanna Wallumrød has a unique way of making a song her own, and to fill the lyrics and melodies with the emotional content they require. This was made very clear with her stunning interpretation of Dolly Parton's classic Jolene or Joy Division’s Love Will Tear Us Apart.
„Beautiful, spare, hypnotic. Her voice is extraordinary.“ (Mojo)
Their latest album called "3" was released this September on Rune Grammofon.

Junko Onishi Trio live at Jazzfest Berlin 2009

Junko Onishi · piano
Ugonna Okegwo · bass
Gene Jackson · drums


recorded live at Jewish Museum Berlin, Glass Courtyard, November 6, 2009

1. So long Eric (Charles Mingus)
2. Number Six (Junko Onishi)
3. Eulogia (Junko Onishi)
4. Portrait in Blue (Junko Onishi)

Born in Kyoto in 1967, Junko Onishi learned to play the piano and soon developed an interest in jazz. After continuing her piano studies for three years at Berklee (Boston), she moved to New York City, where she was taken up enthusiastically by the jazz scene, and where she worked together with Joe Henderson, Betty Carter, Kenny Garrett, and the Mingus Dynasty, among others. Junko Onishi has also collaborated with Jackie McLean, Holly Cole, Billy Higgins, and Joe Lovano. She cites Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, and Ornette Coleman among her main influences.
Her most recent CD Musical Moments was released in July of this year a couple of weeks after this year’s festivalprogramme deadline. The album has been celebrated as a comeback for Onishi, whose last CD came out 10 years ago (Fragile, Blue Note 1999). By chance a special “Berlin-tinged” aspect is added to her album and performance which centers around compositions of reedplayer Eric Dolphy who died in Berlin (1964) under tragical circumstances.

Brad Mehldau Trio live at JazzBaltica 2006

Brad Mehldau, piano
Larry Grenadier, bass
Jeff Ballard, drums

recorded live at Große Konzertscheune, Salzau, July , 2006

1. Granada
2. 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover
3. Secret Beach
4. Untitled
5. Knives Out
6. The Very Thought Of You
7. She´s Leaving Home

In 2005 the renewed Brad Mehldau Trio released Day Is Done on Nonesuch.
"Day is Done marks the debut of new trio member Jeff Ballard on drums, joining Mehldau on piano and Larry Grenadier on bass. “After ten very rewarding years with Jorge Rossy, I’m really pleased Jeff has decided to play with me,” Mehldau says. “Jeff is an all around musician, but he’s also a real drummer’s drummer. He’s absorbed a lot of rhythms from different parts of the world that are fresh to my ears. Jeff also has a real refined ear and sensitivity to his approach in the trio setting that comes from years of experience as a sideman. He’s able to bring something completely new to the table on any given tune that we’re playing, yet he finds a way to blend his ideas with my existing musical identity at the same time. Already, Jeff’s been inspiring me in my own approach as I play with him.”

Vijay Iyer Trio live at Jazzfest Berlin 2009 - UPDATE!!!!

Photo of Vijay Iyer © by Prashant Bhargava

Vijay Iyer · piano
Stephan Crump · bass
Justin Brown · drums

recorded live at Jazzclub Quasimodo, Berlin, November 5, 2009

1. Alaska/ Historicity
2. Inertia
3. Big brother
4. Dogon A.D.
5. Somewhere
6. Smoke Stack
7. Helix
8. Cardio
9. Questions Of Agency
10. Desiring
11. Trident
12. Our Lives

“By now, there can be no doubt that pianist-composer Iyer stands among the most daringly original jazz artists of the under-40 generation,” writes Howard Reich in the Chicago Tribune. The American-born son of Indian immigrants, Vijay Iyer is a self-taught creative musician grounded in American jazz and popular forms, and drawing from a wide range of Western and non-Western traditions. He was described by The Village Voice as “the most commanding pianist and composer to emerge in recent years,” by The New Yorker as one of “today's most important pianists... extravagantly gifted,” and by the L.A. Weekly as “a boundless and deeply important young star.” In the recent International Critics' Poll of the Downbeat Magazine Vijay Iyer is the winner in the category “Rising Star Pianist”, his trio was honoured #2 in the category “Rising Star Jazz Group” and in the categories “Rising Star Jazz Artist” and “Rising Star Composer” Vijay reached a notable third place.
The trio´s latest album "Historicity" was released this fall on ACT Music.

Arild Andersen Trio live at Jazzfest Berlin 2009

Tommy Smith · saxophone
Arild Andersen · bass
Patrice Heral · drums

recorded live at Haus der Berliner Festspiele, Main Stage, November 8, 2009

1. Ilama Ilama
2. Backe
3. Out House
4. Dream Horse

When George Russell put together a band of completely unknown young Norwegian musicians in the late sixties, bassist Arild Andersen was one of them. The others were Jan Garbarek, Terje Rypdal and Jon Christensen. Soon the quartet was gaining confidence and wider acclaim and released their first album Afric Pepperbird on the ECM label – a landmark of Norwegian jazz.
Arild Andersen has been one of Europe's leading bass players ever since, also playing the local Oslo rhythm section for visiting Americans like Don Cherry, George Russell and Sam Rivers. He recorded 16 albums in his own name for ECM. Bill Frisell, Ralph Towner, Nana Vasconcelos, Paul Motian, Alphonze Mouzon, Kenny Wheeler and John Taylor are among the great musicians that can be heard on some of these albums.
His recent trio features Scottish saxophone player Tommy Smith and Italian expatriate Paolo Vinaccia on drums. Since Vinaccia was ill last November, French drummer Patrice Heral sat in with his old friend Arild Andersen.
One of his recent recordings is "Electra", released of course on ECM

Sheila Jordan live at Hot Club Lisbon 2008

Sheila Jordan, voc
Filipe Melo, p
Bernardo Moreira, b
Bruno Pedroso, dr
João Moreira, tp

recorded live at Hot Club, Lisbon/ Portugal, August 10, 2008

1. Hum Drum Blues (Oscar Brown Jr.)
2. How Deep is the Ocean (Irving Berlin)
3. Bird Alone (Abbey Lincoln)
4. Falling in Love with Love (Richard Rodgers/ Lorenz Hart)
5. Autumn in New York (Vernon Duke)
6. Dat dere (Bobby Timmons)
7. The Touch of Your Lips (Ray Nobles)
8. Lady Be Good (George Gershwin)
9. Pent-up House (Sonny Rollins)
10. Ballad for Miles / It Never Entered My Mind (Sheila Jordan/ Richard Rodgers)
11. Black Bird / Reel Time (Paul McCartney/ Chris Lee)
12. Confirmation (Charlie Parker)
13. Sheila's Blues (Sheila Jordan)
14. The Crossing (Sheila Jordan)

In 2008 Sheila Jordan released the live album "Winter Sunshine" on Justin Time Records.

Tower of Power live at AVO Session Basel 2009

Emilio Castillo, ts, voc

Stephen ("Doc") Kupka, bs
Francis Rocco Prestia, b
David Garibaldi, dr
Larry Braggs, voc
Roger Smith, keys
Tom E. Politzer, ts
Adolfo Acosta, tp, flh
Mic Gillete, tp, tb
Mark Harper, gt
Special Guest: Stefanie Heinzmann, voc

recorded live at AVO Session November 8, 2009

1. We Came To Play/ Soul With a Capital "S"
2. You Met Your Match
3. Loveland/ (To Say the Least) You're the Most
4. Only So Much Oil In The Ground
5. How Could This Happen to Me
6. So I Got To Groove
7. Me And Mrs. Jones
8. What Is Hip?/ Soul Power
9. Souled Out

For over 40 years, Tower of Power has been creating their own kind of soul music. Since 1968, Tower of Power has delivered their unique brand of music to their fans, appearing before sold out crowds as they tour the world each year. Tower’s sound can be hard to categorize, but the band's leader and founding member, Emilio Castillo, has labeled their sound as "Urban Soul Music."
Tower's rhythm section lays down a groove like no other band. The band’s horn driven sound is unique, and the way they approach everything, from writing and arranging to mixing and performing, is totally their own. Combine all of that with an outstanding lead vocalist and you have one of the most dynamic groups of musicians to ever hit the stage.
In 2009 They released their latest album "Great American Soulbook".

Herbie Hancock Quartet live in Hamburg 1988

Herbie Hancock, p
Greg Osby, as & ss
Buster Williams, b
Al Foster, dr

recorded live at Fabrik, Hamburg, October 23, 1988

1. Stella By Starlight
2. Footprints
3. Maiden Voyage

Somewhere in the early'80's, Herbie formed a trio of himself, Buster and Al Foster on drums. For certain summer tours, Branford Marsalis, Michael Brecker, or Greg Osby were added. The trio continued working together until 1995.
Last week Herbie celebrated his 70th birthday. Happy Anniversary!

Rebekka Bakken & Band live at MusicHall Worpswede 2010

Rebekka Bakken, vocals
Christer Karlsson, keys
Sebastian Nylund, guitar
Sven Lindvall, bass
Per Lindvall, drums

recorded live at MusicHall, Worpswede, January 21, 2010

1. Like Cologne (Rebekka Bakken)
2. Sometimes (Rebekka Bakken)
3. Ghost In This House (Hugh Prestwood)
4. Powder Room Collapse (Rebekka Bakken)
5. Nothing For You (Rebekka Bakken)
6. In The Early Morning Hours (Rebekka Bakken)
7. Is That You (Rebekka Bakken)
8. Hard To Be A Loser (Rebekka Bakken)
9. I Can Always Forget (Rebekka Bakken)
10. To Be Your Lover (Rebekka Bakken)
11. Not A Woman (Rebekka Bakken)
12. No Easy Way (Rebekka Bakken)
13. Say Goodbye To What Is Gone (Rebekka Bakken)
14. Why Do All The Good Guys Get The Dragons (Rebekka Bakken)
15. Forever Young (Marian Gold, Frank Merteen, Bernhard Lloyd)
16. Starlight Of My Heart (Rebekka Bakken)

Rebekka Bakken, vocals
Jesper Nordenström, keys
Stefan Astner, guitar
Lars Danielsson, bass
Per Lindvall, drums

recorded live at Kulturzentrum Schlachthof, Bremen, April 15, 2005

17. Didn't I
18. Mitt Hjerte Alltid Vanker/ So Ro (Trad., Hans Adolph Brorson/ Rebekka Bakken)

The fact that the Norwegian artist lived quite a long time in New York City and Vienna adds some charming and contrasting colours to her works. The music of her native country is still associated with notorious clichés. Rebekka, however, does not consider herself a musical landscape painter. “I never had the impression that my surroundings - neither at home nor abroad - contributed much to my inspiration.” Still - listeners who are bound to do so will discover the long winters, the crystal clear mountain air, and the mystic fjord landscapes in her former records. “Such images are only created in the eye of the beholder,” reflects Rebekka. “As musicians we shouldn’t be afraid of these clichés, of images others associate with our music. Our listeners notice things that musicians are not aware of. When I listen to Brazilian music, certain images come to my mind which no Brazilian would ever think of because it is their everyday music. So I have no problem with it if somebody recognizes Norway in my songs. That’s fine with me.”
On her latest album called “Morning Hours” she leaves her songs a lot of room to enfold. “All this space is important for me,” says Rebekka Bakken,“it is like a long, deep breath, like the instinct of life per se. In this space you deal with the things that really matter in life.” Her fourth album sounds different from its predecessors, more mysteriously and yet closer to reality. And it is her most romantic work to date. “I actually did not realize that at first. I really love the album because the songs sound like I wrote them. There’s nothing that stands between me and them. I did not have to elaborate much because I immediately felt comfortable with them.”

Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express live at Jazz Open Stuttgart 2009

Brian Auger (B3), Karma D. Auger (dr),
Andreas Geck (b), Savannah Auger (voc)

recorded live at Jazz Open Stuttgart 2009

1. Freedom Jazz Dance
2. Truth
3. Straight Ahead
4. Season Of The Witch
5. Indian Rope Man
6. Bumpin´On Sunset
7. Whenever You´re Ready
8. Light My Fire

The legendary Brian Auger's Oblivion Express has returned. The famed B3 and keyboard player, has created a distinct voice that combines jazz, rock, soul and funk, that is clearly recognizable to his millions of fans. With over 20 albums to his name and lengthy stints on the RCA and Warner Bros. labels, Brian Auger has accumulated Grammy Nominations, 10 albums charting in Billboards Hot 100, a #1 single, and the title of "The Godfather of Acid Jazz". Brian's bands over the years have featured Rod Stewart, Long John Baldry, Julie Driscoll and even Jimi Hendrix. In addition, Brian has recorded with great luminaries as The Yardbirds, Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, Eric Burdon and Down To The Bone. The new incarnation of the Oblivion Express is a family affair featuring Karma Auger on drums and Savannah Auger on vocals, who live up to the Auger name and make the Oblivion Express smoke. Rave reviews and demands for return engagements follow this artist wherever he goes.
In 2005 they released the double CD "Live at the Baked Potato"

Don Byron New Gospel Quintet live at NDR Hamburg 2009

photo by Till Krautkraemer

DK Dyson - voc
Don Byron - ts, cl, voc
Frank Wilkins - p
Brad Jones - b
Pheeroan AkLaaf – dr

recorded live at Rolf-Liebermann-Studio/ NDR, Hamburg, May 15, 2009

1. Boogie Woogie Bossa Nova (Eddie Harris)
2. Hide Me In Thy Bosom (Thomas A. Dorsey)
3. My Desire (Thomas A. Dorsey)
4. Precious Lord, Take My Hand (Thomas A. Dorsey)
5. On Time God (Peoples)

From the start of his career as a bandleader in the early 1990s, Don Byron has reveled in interpreting music of a wildly diverse range of styles and artists, including Duke Ellington, Igor Stravinsky, Mickey Katz, Raymond Scott, John Kirby, Sly Stone, Henry Mancini, Sugar Hill Records’ early hip-hop, Earth Wind & Fire, Herb Alpert, and most recently, R&B icon Junior Walker.
Don Byron’s newest project grows out of his in-depth studies of gospel music. Gospel pioneer Thomas A. Dorsey is a major inspiration, and Byron revisits some of the master songwriter’s works alongside other classics as well as lesser-known gems of the genre.
“In the past few years I have listened more intensively to black religious music than ever before. Examining the specific blues styles peculiar to country, R&B, and rock led me to thorough studies of the blues based religious music of White and Black Southern Gospel. I am combining my own compositions with traditional Gospel pieces in a way I have not attempted before. This project coincides with a growth in my own faith and is for me a religious expression.” –Don Byron.
The Don Byron New Gospel Quintet was launched in the spring of 2009 and had its New York premiere during a four-night run at the Jazz Standard. The band went on to tour Europe for three weeks and was received enthusiastically by audiences and critics alike.
My favourite Don Byron album is still "Romance with the Unseen", released 1999 on Blue Note

Enrico Rava & Stefano Bollani: Art of the Duo - live at NDR 2003

Photo © Roberto Masotti/ ECM Records

Enrico Rava,tp
Stefano Bollani,p

recorded live at NDR Studios 2003

1. Tango for Vasquez y Pepita (Rava)
2. Le Solite Cose (Rava)
3. Drops (Rava)
4. Happiness is to win a Big Price (Rava)
5. Le Tue Mani (Montano, Spotti)
6. The Way You Look Tonight (Jerome Kern)

Here´s another great live recording of this incredible duo I recommended earlier on this blog.
In 2008 they extended the duo format together with US-boys Mark Turner, Larry Grenadier and drumlegend Paul Motain on the ECM release "New York Days"

Bobo Stenson Trio live at NDR Hamburg 2009

Bobo Stenson - p
Anders Jormin - b
Jon Fält – dr
recorded live at Rolf-Liebermann-Studio/ NDR, Hamburg, June 12, 2009

1. El Mayor (Silvio Rodriguez)
2. Olivia (Silvio Rodriguez)
3. A Fixed Goal (Ornette Coleman)
4. M (Anders Jormin)
5. Music For A While (Henry Purcell)
6. Una Muy Bonita (Ornette Coleman)
7. Don’s Kora Song (Don Cherry)

The reconfigured Bobo Stenson Trio in a performance of characteristically wide arc. Material this time includes original compositions, group improvising and pieces by Henry Purcell, Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, and Silvio Rodriguez. Their latest effort on ECM is the 2008 album "Cantando":