ContemporaryJazz.com » smooth jazz

Contemporary Jazz on Twitter in July

John Hilderbrand — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 16:31:07 +0000

I’ve posted over 500 tweets of contemporary jazz news, release dates, and site information on Twitter in the last few months. It’s how I communicate quick contemporary jazz items of interest. In today’s quick-moving world, this is how I get most of my information – through brief, one-sentence notifications. Later, I can go back and read more about something or compose a blog post. Follow my tomorrowjazz tweets on Twitter!

I keep a list of my most recent tweets here on the site, but here are some items you might have missed.

Smooth jazz takes another blow as The Weather Channel replaces it with classic rock for Weather on the 8′s.
Miroslav Vitous’ new CD honors Weather Report http://is.gd/1oYMf
New release from jazz pianist Eldar coming August 25. Called Virtue, it has guests Nicholas Payton and Joshua Redman.
Pandora and three others might be ok but that doesn’t mean it’s smooth sailing Internet radio. http://is.gd/1sYhv
Mike Stern’s Big Neighborhood out 8/11 w/ Dave Weckl, MMW, Steve Vai, Esperanza Spalding, Eric Johnson, Terri Lyne Carrington, and more.
B.B. King calls George Benson “the best guitarist in the world in all kinds of music.” http://is.gd/1yQhp
One of today’s greatest jazz composers, Terence Blanchard, releases Choices on August 18th. Recorded in New Orleans. http://is.gd/1zHt7
Chuck Owen & The Jazz Surge release The Comet’s Tail: Playing The Compositions of Michael Brecker on 8/11 w/guest stars. http://is.gd/1AYmC
Pat Metheny writes about his upcoming “orchestrionics” recording. It’s going to be interesting. http://is.gd/1L7tI
Far Out Recordings-Brazilian Music Sampler Free at Amazon MP3 Store. With Marcos Valle, Joyce, Azymuth, Sabrina Malheiros. http://bacn.me/9ja
Didn’t know Larry Carlton was joining Steely Dan on six dates during their current tour.

New CDs and DVDs In May

John Hilderbrand — Mon, 04 May 2009 01:50:09 +0000

Here is a list of new CDs and DVDs coming in May that I’m aware of. Click to order the CD from Amazon.com, or to download MP3s. Your purchases through these links help the site!

May 5
Poogie Bell Band – Get on the Kit |
Jim Beard w/ Vince Mendoza – Revolutions
Incognito – Live in Jakarta DVD

May 12
Return To Forever – Live at Montreux 2008 DVD / Blu-ray
Stanley Clarke Trio w/ Hiromi and Lenny White – Jazz in the Garden |
Candy Dulfer – Funked Up! |
Charnett Moffett (feat. Will Calhoun) – The Art of Improvisation

May 19
Richard Elliot – Rock Steady |
Nicola Conte – Rituals |
Terri Lyne Carrington – More To Say… (Real Life Story: NextGen) |

May 26
Gary Burton, Pat Metheny, Steve Swallow & Antonio Sanchez – Quartet Live!
Diana Krall – Live In Rio DVD / Blu-ray

Paul Brown & Marc Antoine Tickets and CDs Giveaway

John Hilderbrand — Sun, 03 May 2009 16:02:09 +0000

Contemporary jazz guitar collaborations between label mates have resulted in some memorable recordings over the history of the genre. The first ones that pop in my head are George Benson and Earl Klugh (Collaboration on Warner Bros.) and Lee Ritenour and Larry Carlton (Larry & Lee on GRP). Peak Records joins in on the tradition with Paul Brown and Marc Antoine. Their new release is ForeignXchange. Brown was the go-to producer for smooth jazz for a long time before starting a solo career. Antoine has had a notable smooth jazz career for over 15 years. I’ve heard his beautiful “Storytime” (from Urban Gypsy, one of his first releases) on a PBS Kids sponsor message a number of times.

The recording has guest performances from Philippe Saisse, Gregg Karukas, and Jessy J. The more noteworthy tracks I heard had the horn section of Jerry Hey, “Bill Richenback” (though I think the liner notes mean Bill Reichenbach), and Dan Higgins. If I programmed a Sunday Brunch show, I’d be playing “Foreign Exchange.” Worth mentioning is that Brown and Antoine are both listed as writers of each of the ten songs on ForeignXchange.

You can experience Brown and Antoine live. They’ll be on tour and I’m happy to be able to give away to one lucky person a pair of tickets to the KIFM festival in San Diego on May 23 where Marc and Paul will be performing. The winner will also get a signed copy of ForeignXchange. I’m also giving away a couple of copies of the CD.

To win the ticket and autographed CD, just respond to this post with your favorite Paul Brown or Marc Antoine (or other smooth jazz) song, concert experience, etc. Make sure you include a valid email address so I can contact you with details.

To win a copy of the CD, follow me on Twitter! I’ll direct message two random winners to ask for a mailing address. I love Twitter because I can convey quick information much faster than blogging. That’s my primary method for announcing contemporary jazz news.

This contest ended on Friday, May 1. The winner was notified on Sunday.

Hear “Foreign Exchange” – Quicktime | Windows Media

Thanks, Carol Archer

John Hilderbrand — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 02:57:36 +0000

Radio & Records, an industry staple, has ceased publishing its smooth jazz chart. It had been published for 15 years. Carol Archer, the only editor for the format for its entire tenure, posted a fond farewell. Carol was one of the first to write about jazz on the web back in the mid-90s. She mentioned my site which was a huge boost. I’m sure I still have that cut out in my files somewhere. I thanked her then and do so again. Thanks, Carol, and best wishes!

Try It Out Tuesdays – The Rippingtons

John Hilderbrand — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 12:41:08 +0000

The new Rippingtons recording, Modern Art, is out today. The Rippingtons is a Russ Freeman project that I very much enjoyed in the 80s and 90s. Freeman has kept it going for over 20 years with above-average pop-jazz compositions and a changing roster of musicians. Modern Art marks some changes in the group: a new bassist and no percussionist. Long-time Ripps saxman Jeff Kashiwa returns as a “special guest.”

Check out a couple of tracks from it (Windows Media Player required):

> Paris Groove
> Modern Art

Buy it at Amazon.com!
CD | MP3

New Music DVDs

John Hilderbrand — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 14:08:48 +0000

Here are some new DVDs you might be interested in. Some are already available and the rest will be out by the end of the month. Clicking through and buying these through Amazon.com earns the site a commission.

Try It Out Tuesdays – Hart Ramsey

John Hilderbrand — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 04:01:19 +0000

Try It Out Tuesdays offers a free full MP3 of an artist. Today’s artist is producer/keyboardist/composer/engineer Hart Ramsey. Click the play button for the song “What About Love” from Charge It To My Heart. If you like what you hear, hit the Shopping Cart icon to buy it.

Hart Ramsey – Charge It To My Heart – “What About Love”

2009 Contemporary Jazz Preview

John Hilderbrand — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 21:08:07 +0000

One constant in the contemporary jazz world is the planning and reliable execution of Heads Up recordings. I just got the list for 2009 and it’s another winner for contemporary jazz fans. I’ll elaborate more in later posts but here’s what’s on the schedule:

January
Incognito – More Tales Remixed – remixes of songs from the latest Incognito release;
Ladysmith Black Mambazo – Live;
Walter Beasley – Free Your Mind

February
Joe Zawinul – 75 – two-disc live set;
Pieces of a Dream – Soul Intent;
Mike Stern – New Morning The Paris Concert;
The Bad Plus Joined by Wendy Lewis – For All I Care

March
Marion Meadows – TBD;
Chuck Loeb – Between 2 Worlds;
Yellowjackets – New Morning The Paris Concert

April
Candy Dulfer; Hiroshima

May
Spyro Gyra; Zap Mama; Stanley Clarke/Hiromi/Lenny White

June
Alexander Zonjic, Andy Narell

August
Najee; Mike Stern; Joe Zawinul DVD

September
Take 6 – a new holiday recording

Mushroom Jazz 6 Out Today

John Hilderbrand — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 12:10:05 +0000

It’s very rare that I buy entire recordings these days. After checking out the samples of this latest Mark Farina compilation, I will be buying Mushroom Jazz 6. Twenty tracks for $9.99 and I liked all but five of these acid jazzy/nu jazzy works.

Marcus Johnson – FLO Series Includes Acid Jazzy Chill, Romance, and Standards

John Hilderbrand — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:14:15 +0000

Marcus Johnson is presenting three new recordings under the brand FLO – For the Love Of.

FLO: Standards covers classics like “On Green Dolphin Street,” “Body and Soul,” “My Funny Valentine,” and “Goodbye Port Pie Hat” and features Johnson, Bobby Lyle, Michael Price, and drummer Lenny Robinson.

Like FLO: Standards, the title of FLO: Romance speaks for itself. It includes a number of Johnson compositions and performances by Johnson and vocal stylings of Frank McComb, Keith Ailer, Alyson Williams, Stoney Ellis, and YahZarah.

The subtitle for FLO: Chill is “lounge vibes and dance grooves with the right touch of jazz.” That got my attention. Johnson adds electronica elements to his music creating some interesting sounds. Some of it falls in the acid jazz category. I’ve already added “Another Planet” to the ContemporaryJazz.com Radio playlist and it won’t be the last cut I pull from this release.

Get more information on the FLO recordings on MySpace. Discs are available only at Circuit City but you can sample and buy digital versions at iTunes:

FLO: Chill | FLO: Romance | FLO: Standards