With Joe Joe Harriott!
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Tidal stream
Listening to this right now for the first time.
It’s been on a few best of lists and thanks also to @AlanP
Only a few tracks in and its superb, some swinging traditional playing and some nice soul Jazz like grooves.
Good SQ too
Deffo one for the to buy list
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**Christian McBride solidifies his role as the champion of the past, present and future of jazz with his GRAMMY® Award-winning Big Band’s new album in tribute to Jimmy Smith, Wes Montgomery and Oliver Nelson. Featuring special guests Joey DeFrancesco and Mark Whitfield, “For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver” honors the historical legacy of the jazz legends who shaped the soul of music for generations to come.
Also Available on 2-LP 180gm in deluxe gatefold package
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Christian McBride has recorded 2 or 3 excellent big band albums.
Duos, trio’s, small groups, big bands his talent seems to know no bounds. This is the duos album…
AllMusic Review by Ken Dryden [-]
Conversations with Christian is an unusual release, as it features the veteran bassist playing duets with a number of good friends. The vocal meetings include Angélique Kidjo, Sting, and Dee Dee Bridgewater (the latter with a hilarious, funky cover of the Isley Brothers’ signature song “It’s Your Thing”). The pairings with musicians of McBride’s generation (trumpeter Roy Hargrove, tenor saxophonist Ron Blake, and guitarist Russell Malone) all exceed expectations. There are several enjoyable duets with pianists, one featuring Latin jazz master Eddie Palmieri, a duo improvised tango by Chick Corea and the leader, plus an all too rare acoustic outing by the talented George Duke (who tears up the keyboard with his hard-charging “McDukey Blues”). But McBride’s meetings with Dr. Billy Taylor (playing his beautiful “Spiritual” with some potent arco playing by the bassist) and the elegant, swinging meeting with the gifted jazz master Hank Jones (“Alone Together”) remain moments to savor, as they are among the final recordings by the two jazz greats, both of whom died in 2010. The last track is a funky blues just for laughs, with actress Gina Gershon joining the bassist by playing a Jew’s harp, and featuring lots of comic spoken exchanges between the two. Throughout it all, Christian McBride plays with the chameleon-like adaptability of a Milt Hinton or Ray Brown. In the two-plus decades since arriving on the jazz scene, Christian McBride has demonstrated that he is a jazz master in the making, and this is easily one of his most compelling sets.
Dave
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My problem with a lot of contemporary Jazz is that it lacks any real soul, it may be technically elegant and new in a beard stroking way but it hardly ever touches me on an emotional level in the way that Bill Evans or Art Pepper could.
Matthew Halsall is one ‘modern’ Jazz artist who can do that to me and Ashley Henry’s debut from last year is very good although both their styles are quite retro but the likes of Kamasi Washington and all the other Coltrane tribute acts leave me cold.
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Not trying to be defensive here Bob, just interested, which artists would you cite as lacking soul?
I agree about Kamasi Washington, tried but couldnt get into him, very hyped and over rated imo
Another first listen and the other Christian McBride album featured on Best Of lists from the last year.
A Jazz and spoken word tribute to the Civil Rights Movement and its hero’s, still worryingly relevant given the continuing struggle & BLM
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Binker and Moses, Sons of Kemet, Ambrose Akinmusire and Eliot Galvin to name a few and to be honest I’m not an expert by any means these are just a few artists that I’ve come across whilst researching on youtube just bland plink plonk music.
There are some new jazz artists who though I’m not a huge fan of I can see their appeal and do occasionally play the likes of Theon Cross, Nubya Garcia and Joel Ross.
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I agree. Just listened to it via Tidal. Very good recording indeed.
So nice to being here and getting so many good music suggestions. 
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Ashley Henry, thanks for the tip!
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Plonk plonk music! 
well I guess I was asking for it!
Obviously I disagree and if your basing your view on a few youtube clips maybe a bit unfair.
Binker and Moses debut LP on Gearbox for example could hardly be described as plink plonk to my ears, for a start it’s only Saxophone & Drums.
I dont think Sons Of Kemet would have been signed to the Naim label if they were purveyors of plink plonk. Incidentally, I know you appreciate Reggae, on their Naim debut Burn SOK do an interpretation of The Melodians Rivers Of Babylon that needs to be heard.
Both Binker and Moses and Sons of Kemet I have heard more than a bit of including the track you mention above and I have to say they encapsulate perfectly everything I dislike in this type of Jazz. I have to say of Binker and Moses it’s quite some achievement to make that much racket with just two instruments I get that they appeal to the trendy set with their ‘street’ song titles ‘No Long Tings’ and ‘Man Like GP’ because it was that, that drew me to listen to them being very trendy myself but like I said no soul.
I understand that just because I don’t like it doesn’t mean it’s not good I’ve probably got some truly terrible music that I think is great so we will just have agree to disagree but if you want a very good version of Rivers of Babylon then try Don Carlos from his LP Pure Gold.
Maybe @Bobthebuilder you will like that one. A bit in a Coltrane spirit, but different and from 2019. Sound quality is very good too.
https://youtu.be/MS89YUFnU7A
“Hamid Drake, Brad Jones, and Dave Liebman are each masters of conjuring mystical states through music,” Saft enthuses. “The re-arrangement of notes, tones, sounds, textures, timbres – each musician here has the power to transport the… afficher plus
crédits
paru le 28 juin 2019
Jamie Saft Quartet
Jamie Saft - piano
Dave Liebman - tenor & soprano saxophone, flute
Bradley Christopher Jones - acoustic bass
Hamid Drake – drums
I’ll check it out later thank you.
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Is Kamasi Washington really considered to be a Coltrane tribute act? I only have his Heaven and Hell album, but scarcely ever (=don’t) play it as, like you, I find it relatively sterile and lacking any emotion. At least you could always rely on Coltrane for emotion and excitement.
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Drifting off Topic but yes I have it
I am certainly no “trendy” (from someone who claims to be a mod revivalist that’s a charge that might reflect ) but have to say in my opinion it’s exactly that sort of pompous attitude that holds great young talent back.
Look back at the history of the music and every new “trend” in the music has been dismissed and railed against by the less inclusive and open minded, from Parker and Gillespie, through the “racket” of free Jazz Ornette Coleman etc, electric Miles ,Jazz Fusion, Soul Jazz etc etc to the current new British Jazz talent.
Of course you dont have to like it, theres a lot that’s not to my taste, but don’t dismiss it as having no merit because in your view its “trendy” and uses “street” slang as it potentially disrespects those struggling young musicians. Of course Black American Jazz past masters never dressed in slick trendy fashion or used street slang, hip talk, or patois did they?
And if young British musicians are making great Jazz that speaks to them, informed and influenced by both the rich Jazz history and fusing it with other broader “Black Music” influences and beyond thus making it wonderfully accessible, inclusive and above all non elitist, has got to be a good thing.
Atb
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That division was always and will always be, unfortunately. For most , and I hear that since 30 years, the real jazz is Charlie Parker, Monk , Art Blakey or Sonny Rollins. Some even say that Jazz is dead after Coltrane death ( 1967).
It’s sad to listen or read such closed mind opinions, but it’s the reality.
You can look at the Blue note or other labels reissues for jazz music, like Speakers Corners, Classic records, MOFI and others. 99% of the catalog is jazz from the 50’s and 60’s.
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Of course generally speaking there probably will always be musical and cultural bigots, self appointed Jazz police etc. I dont believe though that means we should just accept it and not try to change those attitudes.
The last time I saw Courtney Pine, who is perhaps these days accepted as relatively mainstream, commented from the stage about some issue he was having with the “Jazz Police”
However, I believe that the newer, particularly young British artists are breaking down those barriers, for example Jazz Re:freshed as I’ve already mentioned has a policy of being broad minded, inclusive and non elitist
From Jazz Re:freshed;
Most people tend to accept the definitions of jazz given to them by the media or popular press which tend to define jazz music as an easy listening, stuck-in-the-past music form – this couldn’t be further from the truth.
The truth is, jazz has evolved as many definitions as there are people listening to it. Borne out of oppression, revolution and a need to express the black experience, jazz has always been a progressive, boundary pushing and relevant artform, cutting paths for all popular music forms.
The brainchild of Justin McKenzie & Adam Moses, Jazz re:freshed as a music movement started with a humble vision in early summer 2003. Its intention, to challenge the elitism and prejudice within the jazz community that had kept jazz on the sidelines far too long, whilst bringing the incredibly diverse, colourful, expressive and creative world that is jazz to the people – live, fun and affordable. Perhaps the most important aim was and still is, to promote underexposed music and artists deserving of the widest recognition.
Although music is undoubtedly the nucleus of the movement, art and visuality are intrinsically important to the philosophy and identity of Jazz re:freshed, not to mention the culture we represent. This is expressed through our promotional art, films, exhibitions & curations, apparel and collaborations
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Jazz with soul?
How about this meeting of Courtney Pine with UK Soul singer Omar…
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