Caroline Mair calls it a summer

Trinidad

Caroline at Corner Bar

Trinidadian Songbird, Caroline Mair, closed her summer of Jazz in Trinidad for 2009 at The Corner Bar August 25, 2009 with what she called a celebration of “life-love-music and all that good stuff.”

Mair threatened to spice up the evening with “some jazz, some trance/ambient, neo-soul, reggae, and some back in time grooves.”

This was her last gig before returning to London.

Mair featured DEAN WILLIAMS on guitars and DJ ANDROID on turntables.  Williams is a child of Jimi Hendrix, Mongo Santamaria and Hugh Masekela; and calypso, reggae and classical music.  DJ Android is principally into electronic dance, but prides himself in being able to incorporate every sound into his sets.  That was a must, playing with Caroline Mair.

Marisa Lindsay’s new CD Deeper Love is out and about

Canada/Barbados

'Deeper Love' by Lindsay

Barbadian born, Canada-based Marisa Lindsay has for the second time in her career teamed up with Caribbean import, Eddie Bullen, to document her work on CD.  The result is Lindsay‘s sophomore effort as a Neo-Soul/Jazz recording artist.  The new album, Deeper Love, is now out on the Thunder Dome label.

Lindsay had a coming out party on August 18 at the Revival in Toronto, Canada to put Deeper Love out there.  Behind her as she did Another Day, Trippin’ Without Your Love, Free a State of Mind (Bubble Song), Dreams, I think I Want to Be In Love and Upswing from the album was a six member back-up band under the baton of her producer, Bullen, himself.

Sample Deeper Love, the track, with the Eddie Bullen Band of Bullen (keyboard), Larnel Lewis (drums) and Andrew Stewart (bass) caught live on video in Collingwood, Ontario.

Not satisfied, dig the audio of the introspective Deeper Love, the finger snapping Missing You, the smooth cut among the lot, Joy, and Marisa’s Blues, all juiced up with reggae flavours.  They are to be found on Lindsay‘s Myspace player.  Also find another set of selections from Lindsay‘s debut Submit2Love.

A blend of traditional jazz , R&B, and meeting on the beach in Barbados for dinner. And somehow you feel like you’ve been there before. (Marisa Lindsay)

My take: Blue Culture at The Corner Bar by Jabari Peter Bem Fraser

Trinidad

Jabari Peter Bem Fraser was one of a band of Jazz minstrels called Blue Culture who piped their followers into The Corner Bar on August 04, 2009.  But here in the Woodshed, Jabari is a one-man fifer, so to speak, drawing the unwitting into the fold with his take on Blue Culture at The Corner Baron August 04.

The logs have been lit,  the coffee is brewed.  The fire is burning, it’s time to be wooed.

by Jabari Fraser

Playing with Blue Culture is always a pleasure.  It is always an enjoyable and learning experience to play and associate with musicians of such talent.  The laughs, antics and lime before, during and after any performance make it all the more sweet.

Jabari Peter Bem Fraser (r), Modupe Onilu (c) hang on every Etienne Charles note (Photo by: Guru Kast)

The gig at The Corner Bar on Tuesday August 4 was a challenging one for me, being the least experienced and qualified member of the band.

Last minute additions and cuts to the set list and the minimal practice-time ensured that I was at my best to keep up with my more-travelled band members and guest musicians.

The large crowd was indicative of both the name the Band is making for itself on the local music circuit and the aggressive internet promotion of the performance.

The set included a poetic opening from poet Muhammad Muwakil.  And to my pleasure and that of my band-mates, he warmed the members of the audience that they might be too bazodee to make their way home after the performance. Following Muwakil was bandleader Karl Doyle‘s NuJazz ‘ Zone‘.  We also played Karl‘s Latin/Kaiso-Jazz ‘Westbound’ and the Go Go/Kaiso ‘Blue Friday.‘

Bandleader Karl Doyle

Blue Culture‘s ska version of Gershwin’s ‘Summertime‘ wet down very well with the audience, especially with Anthony Paul‘s super-smooth sax solo.  The funky ‘All About Groove/Bunkin,‘ composed by Mikhail Salcedo is always a crowd favourite.

I must say I was extremely pleased with the performance of my original, ‘RE: Groove ‘ – R (Rapso) E (Electric) & RE: regarding Groove), especially the Simon Mendoza solo, in an electric synthesizer tone, which really did justice to the meaning of the title of the song.

The audience got a really special treat as we played Michael Jackson’s ‘The Girl Is Mine.‘  We were joined by Etienne Charles on trumpet on that one.  I played in awe as Etienne and Mikhail duelled on trumpet and pan with amazing, precise runs that thrilled the audience.  They competed for the audience’s attention just as Jackson and Sir Paul McCartney competed for the girl on the original recording.

Charles and Salcedo duel

We closed the set with a new arrangement of Mongo Santamaria’s ‘Afro Blue,‘ with the signature Blue Culture call at the top and throughout.  Etienne was back, this time on the congas, while Modupe Folasade Onilu went mobile, joyfully tossing and shaking his shekere and a guest trumpeter traded with Anthony and Mikhail.

Modupe Onilu shakere’s his thing

The appreciation and love of the crowd that we all received after the show was really rewarding.  I felt especially satisfied as most of my close friends were in attendance and even my parents and aunts came to the show!

I felt the same way I feel after every performance, lucky, privileged and extremely grateful for the opportunities that I’ve had since joining the band in October 2008 (my first major musical assignment), especially being the youngest member of the band.

Related Post: Young Lions of TT Jazz by Nigel Campbell

Jabari Peter Bem Fraser’s previous post, from outside the Woodshed: University of Calypso

Martinique’s Biguine Jazz Festival, August 9-13, 2009

Martinique

Switching to the French Caribbean island of Martinique, the Biguine Jazz Festival 2009 entered into a three-day splurge starting August 09, 2009.  During that time, singers and musicians brought to life a fusion of styles, the essence of the island’s culture.

Into its seventh year, Carrefour de la Musique créative des Outre-Mers has consistently attracted their dedicated patrons to massive concerts in various towns around the country.  These fans have, over the years, been introduced to different genres that combine the traditional with the modern to create a new cultural phenomenon.

One of the ways in which this is being pursued is by bringing French Guiana and Guadeloupe to the festival in order to more closely foster the development of a new generation of creative musicians who will expand the tapestry of sounds presented at the festival through the melding of all of their nuanced rhythmic traditions.

The longstanding practitioners of Biguine Jazz like Falfret and Paco Charlery as well as Dominique Bougrainville – who is now coming into the consciousness of the Anglophone community of J-fans – were expected to perform.

Etienne Charles launches into Common Wealth of Sounds

Trinidad

Trumpeter Etienne Charles celebrated the release of his new album Folklore with a listening party and CD signing Monday, 03 August 2009 at Satchmo’s on 42 Ariapita Ave, Woodbrook, Port of Spain.

Back in Trinidad especially for this event, Charles performed a brief set comprising of a few cuts from the 11-track CD including ‘Santimanite‘ and the title track.

Etienne Charles at Satchmo's (Photo credit: Gillian Moore)

Backing up Charles to a packed Satchmo’s club was a home-grown band of saxophonist Anthony Woodroffe, bassist Reynold Woodroffe, pianist Ronald Acquis, drummer Karl Doyle and percussionist Modupe Folasade Onilu.

The trumpeter told the Trinidad Guardian, “I just feel lucky to be able to present who we are to a whole new audience.” The American audience in particular has embraced Folklore, he says, “captivated by the power of our stories,” thus pushing the CD up the US Jazz charts.

Charles returns to the United States later this year to take up a teaching position at Michigan State University. But before he does, he has a few more engagements in the land of the hummingbird.

The very next one was Common Wealth of Sounds on Sunday, June 16, 2009. Common Wealth was put on by The Jazz Alliance of Trinidad and Tobago. It featured “America’s Classical Music” performed by Charles (trumpet), compatriots Clive Zanda, Dave Marcellin (piano), Douglas Redon (bass) and Sean Thomas (drums), as well as two overseas saxophonists, Barbadian Arturo Tappin and St. Lucian Luther François.

Swing time for Common Wealth of Sounds was 06:00 pm at the C.L.R. James Auditorium, Cipriani Labour College, Valsayn, Trinidad on Sunday, August 16.

Some of these very artists (Charles, Tappin, Zanda, Thomas) and others (Trinidadians, Clifford Charles – guitar, Jason Baptiste – pan, Chantal Esdelle – piano, and Dr. Hollis Liverpool aka Mighty Chalkdust) were scheduled to lecture at JATT‘s “Summer Holistic Jazz Workshop.“

François, Zanda and Tappin (Image courtesy Trinidad and Tobago Guardian)

Common Wealth of Sounds formed part of the JATT‘s “Summer Holistic Jazz Workshop.”  The workshop was launched at AURA on Tuesday, August 11 and got under way on Wednesday, August 12 at the National Library of Trinidad and Tobago.  It came to an end on Tuesday, August 18, 2009.  By that time, the students were fully exposed to Sean Thomas‘ Calypso Real Book, Theory Classes, Dr. Barry Harris’ phrases, lectures and videos of Jazz masters in action.  They would also have participated in Jam Sessions with their lecturers and interacted with the public on the subject of Jazz.

The AT&T San Jose Jazz Festival 2009

United States / San Jose, California

This festival was filled to the brim with acts, big and small.  But from the Caribbean Jazz perspective, we singled out for mention the John Santos Sextet who performed on the Latin Jazz Stage on Sunday, August 09, 2009, 2:00 pm.

Santos, a four-time Grammy nominee, is arguably, one of the leading Afro-Latin percussionists in the world today in addition to being a respected and recognized record and event producer.

He has, however, found his niche in the innovative use of traditional forms and instruments within the context of contemporary music.

Santos has studied, performed and recorded with the foremost Afro-Latin and Jazz masters of our time.  He has garnered from them the diverse styles, rhythms, concepts that he has applied to his own Puerto Rican and Cape Verdean familial traditions.

That is the John Santos Sextet at the San Jose Jazz Festival on Sunday, August 9, 2009.

Young lions of TT Jazz

Trinidad

Young lions of TT Jazz

first published by

Nigel Campbell

August 12, 2009 on Nigel’s Profile

For the first three weekdays in August, young lions in the sphere of Jazz music in Trinidad preened and pointed the way for musicians of other genres and generations to duplicate.  On Monday, August 3, Etienne Charles launched his new CD Folklore at a listening party at the Jazz-themed restaurant, Satchmo’s in Woodbrook.  In anticipation of a short live set, the crowd grew larger than the dining room that hosted it as the night moved on.  Etienne, and fellow young lion, saxophonist, Tony Woodroffe Jr., recently back from studies at Leeds University, played their instruments with a maturity belying their ages.

Etienne‘s music represents the genesis of a transformational moment that comes in generations.  Back in 1956, Sparrow marked that kind of generational shift that propelled calypso forward through the shortened zenith of Belafonte’s Calypso age a year hence.  Trinidad and the diaspora are richer for Charles‘ and Woodroffe‘s sojourn into the musical spaces that exist for local musicians who are brave enough to go into them without fear of the rhetoric of failure.

Folklore is an impressive achievement, and solidifies in my mind that Etienne is at a place musically that most local musicians have not even seen much less entered.  Things can only get better with more interaction with this artist of both profound intellect and subtle style who uses the cannon of local rhythm and melodies to create the new.

A wiser scribe than I once wrote that Jazz is “the sound of surprise,” and I was surprised by the following night’s performance of Karl Doyle’s Blue Culture at The Corner Bar.  The energy was sustained over an hour with a mix of originals and covers that featured the aforementioned Woodroffe and Charles together with Mikhail Salcedo who is becoming the star soloist on the tenor pan.

That youthful energy and large crowd were signals to me of a changing of the guard in the local Jazz scene.  The ultimate surprise was of course the consistency and maturity of the jam!  When the “cats” wailed, the crowd wooed; a musical call and response that grew with every song.  There can be no backing down at this point for Karl and his crew.  Blue Culture have shown that Jazz fusion can be entertaining and popular.  Kudos to them.

Jazz is predominantly about the primacy of the individual voice.  Jazz requires its musicians to make something new each time they take the [band]stand…Not “interpreting” in the way of classical musicians, but inventing themselves anew each night.
Richard Williams, Jazz – A Photographic Documentary (New York: Crescent Books, 1994) 15

Caroline Mair represents, to some, a challenge because of her sound, her look, her personality. Debuting the SONGBIRDS…live series by Production One Ltd. at AURA Restaurant, Caroline performed, for a sold out paying crowd, a set of both original and covers of ballads from the cannon of Broadway to Marley.  No one can fault her for stage presence.  Either you have it or not.

Caroline Mair with Williams (g) and Onilu (p)

Backed by Dean Williams and Modupe Folasade Onilu, she purred, crooned and delivered. There can be no looking back to a time when the female voice was relegated to backing vocals.  This female voice is interpreting the music in ways that are unfamiliar or even uncomfortable for audiences that chauvinistically hold onto examples that are ironically, not of their making.  This individual voice that can both echo a remembered tone and sustain an original searing note has the potential to breach the boundaries of performance spaces globally.  It is an identifiable sound that we can call our own.

I must now compare these three performances with others I have attended in the week prior.  August started good! Crowd. Excellence. Innovation.  These young lions rule.  Everyone else, watch out.  These performances, as a group, stand as a declaration of a new age.  Both in terms of crowd support and performance, that generational shift I have been speaking about is here and now!

One could easily identify four generations:

• The Scofield Pilgrim Generation – those pioneers who were Scofield‘s contemporaries and successors such as Rupert Clemendore, Clive Zanda, Ralph Davies, Errol Ince
• The protégés of the Scofield Generation ranging from Raf Robertson, the Boothman brothers, David and Michael, to “Professor” Philmore and Dave Marcellin
• The New School – students of higher learning in music who finally challenged the status quo in the new century, and who have recorded prolifically: Theron Shaw, Clifford Charles and Ming together with Sean Thomas, and
• The Young Lions – Etienne Charles, Tony Woodroffe Jr., Mikhail Salcedo, et al.

To be at the cusp of change in the culture of a country is to be blessed.  The American experience showed the movement from swing to bebop to cool and beyond.  Our challenge is to recognize and reward the vanguards at the gate.

It is now possible for artistes to easily record and distribute their performance and original output.  To validate that output with critical acknowledgment and financial support is the goal of the modern audience.  To do that over the generations is to be conscious of one’s place in a civilized society.

(Images courtesy Gillian Moore – Etienne Charles; Blue Culture – Karl Doyle; SONGBIRDS…live – Caroline Mair)

Blue Culture, in ripping form at Corner Bar, August 4 2009

Trinidad

by Ming

Bandleader, Élan Parle

The Corner Bar was packed to capacity, not with the usual middle age “jazz” crowd but with the youth.  Early twenties was the order of the day (or night) and Blue Culture did not disappoint.  Led by bandleader Karl Doyle, Blue Culture went through an energetic set of original and re-worked standards with gusto.  On stage were Mikhail Salcedo, Jabari Fraser, Simon Mendoza, Modupe Onilu and Karl Doyle with recent Leeds University UK graduate, saxophonist Anthony Woodroffe Jr.

The band was in ripping form and excited the room with their own brand of Calypso-Jazz.  That they appeal to young rockers, jazzers, whatever, is wonderful.  The creation of a new audience to the local Jazz scene is welcome news.

I liken their energy to American band Soulive, uptempo grooves, repeated mantra-like riffs followed by blinding steelpan and saxophone improvisation.

Karl Doyle

Their originals, composed by pannist Mikhail Salcedo and some by Karl himself are wonderful pieces.  Blue Culture is a group to look out for.  The future of improvised music looks bright in Trinidad and Tobago.

Mikhail Salcedo

View Blue Culture, Corner Bar gallery on Facebook

Recalling the 51st Grammy winners for Jazz and other Improvisations, 2008

Best Contemporary Jazz Album

Category 45

(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of INSTRUMENTAL tracks.)

• Randy In Brasil
  Randy Brecker
  [MAMA Records]
• Floating Point
  John McLaughlin
  [Abstract Logix]
• Cannon Re-Loaded: All-Star Celebration Of Cannonball Adderley
  (Various Artists)
  Gregg Field & Tom Scott, producers
  [Concord Jazz]
• Miles From India
  (Various Artists)
  Bob Belden, producer
  [4Q/Times Square Records]
• Lifecycle
  Yellowjackets featuring Mike Stern
  [Heads Up International]

Category 46

Best Jazz Vocal Album
(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of VOCAL tracks.)

• Imagina: Songs Of Brasil
  Karrin Allyson
  [Concord Jazz]
• Breakfast On The Morning Tram
  Stacey Kent
  [Blue Note]
• If Less Is More…Nothing Is Everything
  Kate McGarry
  [Palmetto Records]
• Loverly
  Cassandra Wilson
  [Blue Note]
• Distances
  Norma Winstone (Glauco Venier & Klaus Gesing)
  [ECM]

Category 47

Best Jazz Instrumental Solo
(For an instrumental jazz solo performance. Two equal performers on one recording may be eligible as one entry. If the soloist listed appears on a recording billed to another artist, the latter’s name is in parenthesis for identification. Singles or Tracks only.)

• Be-Bop
  Terence Blanchard, soloist
  Track from: Live At The 2007 Monterey Jazz Festival (Monterey Jazz Festival 50th Anniversary All-Stars)
  [Monterey Jazz Festival Records]
• Seven Steps To Heaven
  Till Brönner, soloist
  Track from: The Standard (Take 6)
  [Heads Up International]
• Waltz For Debby
  Gary Burton & Chick Corea, soloists
  Track from: The New Crystal Silence
  [Concord Records]
• Son Of Thirteen
  Pat Metheny, soloist
  Track from: Day Trip
  [Nonesuch Records]
• Be-Bop
  James Moody, soloist
  Track from: Live At The 2007 Monterey Jazz Festival (Monterey Jazz Festival 50th Anniversary All-Stars)
  [Monterey Jazz Festival Records]

Category 48

Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group
(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of INSTRUMENTAL tracks.)

• The New Crystal Silence
  Chick Corea & Gary Burton
  [Concord Records]
• History, Mystery
  Bill Frisell
  [Nonesuch Records]
• Brad Mehldau Trio: Live
  Brad Mehldau Trio
  [Nonesuch Records]
• Day Trip
  Pat Metheny With Christian McBride & Antonio Sanchez
  [Nonesuch Records]
• Standards
  Alan Pasqua, Dave Carpenter & Peter Erskine Trio
  [Fuzzy Music]

Category 49

Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
(For large jazz ensembles, including big band sounds. Albums must contain 51% or more INSTRUMENTAL tracks.)

• Appearing Nightly
  Carla Bley And Her Remarkable Big Band
  [WATT]
• Act Your Age
  Gordon Goodwin‘s Big Phat Band
  [Immergent]
• Symphonica
  Joe Lovano with WDR Big Band & Rundfunk Orchestra
  [Blue Note]
• Blauklang
  Vince Mendoza
  [Act Music and Vision (AMV)]
• Monday Night Live At The Village Vanguard
  The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra
  [Planet Arts Recordings]

Category 50

Best Latin Jazz Album
(Vocal or Instrumental.)

• Afro Bop Alliance
  Caribbean Jazz Project
  [Heads Up International]
• The Latin Side Of Wayne Shorter
  Conrad Herwig & The Latin Side Band
  [Half Note Records]
• Song For Chico
  Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra
  [Zoho]
• Nouveau Latino
  Nestor Torres
  [Diamond Light Records]
• Marooned/Aislado
  Papo Vázquez The Mighty Pirates
  [Picaro Records]

Category 85

Best Instrumental Composition
(A Composer’s Award for an original composition (not an adaptation) first released during the Eligibility Year. Singles or Tracks only.)

• The Adventures Of Mutt (From Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull)
  John Williams, composer (John Williams)
  Track from: Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull — Soundtrack
  [Concord Records]
• Alegria
  Chick Corea, composer (Chick Corea & Gary Burton)
  Track from: The New Crystal Silence
  [Concord Records]
• Claire’s Closet
  Russell Ferrante, composer (Yellowjackets Featuring Mike Stern)
  Track from: Lifecycle
  [Heads Up International]
• Danzon De Etiqueta
  Dave Grusin, composer (Lee Ritenour & Dave Grusin)
  Track from: Amparo [Decca]
• Hit The Ground Running
  Gordon Goodwin, composer (Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band)
  Track from: Act Your Age
  [Immergent]

Category 86

Best Instrumental Arrangement
(An Arranger’s Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.)

• Define Dancing (From Wall-E)
  Peter Gabriel & Thomas Newman, arrangers (Thomas Newman)
  Track from: Wall-E — Soundtrack
  [Walt Disney Records]
• Down In The Valley
  Frank Macchia, arranger (Frank Macchia Featuring The Prague Orchestra)
  Track from: Landscapes
  [Cacophony]
• Duke Ellington’s Sound Of Love
  Michael Abene, arranger (Joe Lovano With WDR Big Band & Rundfunk Orchestra)
  Track from: Symphonica
  [Blue Note]
• St. Louis Blues
  Bob Brookmeyer, arranger (The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra)
  Track from: Monday Night Live At The Village Vanguard
  [Planet Arts Recordings]
• Yesterdays
  Gordon Goodwin, arranger (Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band Featuring Art Tatum)
  Track from: Act Your Age
  [Immergent]

Category 87

Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s)
(An Arranger’s Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.)

• Alfie
  Vince Mendoza, arranger (Traincha & The Metropole Orchestra)
  Track from: The Look Of Love — Burt Bacharach Songbook
  [Blue Note]
• Grace
  Cedric Dent, arranger (Take 6)
  Track from: The Standard
  [Heads Up International]
• Here’s That Rainy Day
  Nan Schwartz, arranger (Natalie Cole)
  Track from: Still Unforgettable
  [DMI Records]
• Johnny One Note
  Don Sebesky, arranger (John Pizzarelli)
  Track from: With A Song In My Heart
  [Telarc International]
• Lazy Afternoon
  Claus Ogerman, arranger (Danilo Perez)
  Track from: Across The Crystal Sea
  [Emarcy]

Category 90

Best Album Notes

• Art Of Field Recording Volume I: Fifty Years Of Traditional American Music Documented By Art Rosenbaum
  Art Rosenbaum, album notes writer (Various Artists)
  [Dust-To-Digital]
• Debate ’08: Taft And Bryan Campaign On The Edison Phonograph
  Patrick Feaster & David Giovannoni, album notes writers (William Jennings Bryan & William Howard Taft)
  [Archeophone Records]
• Kind Of Blue: 50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition
  Francis Davis, album notes writer (Miles Davis)
  [Columbia/Legacy Recordings]
• Rare & Unreleased Recordings From The Golden Reign Of The Queen Of Soul
  David Ritz & Jerry Wexler, album notes writers (Aretha Franklin)
  [Rhino/Atlantic]
• The Unsung Father Of Country Music: 1925-1934
  Henry “Hank” Sapoznik, album notes writer (Ernest V. Stoneman)
  [5-String Productions]

Category 91

Best Historical Album

• Art Of Field Recording Volume I: Fifty Years Of Traditional American Music Documented By Art Rosenbaum
  Steven Lance Ledbetter & Art Rosenbaum, compilation producers; Michael Graves, mastering engineer (Various Artists)
  [Dust-To-Digital]
• Classic Columbia, OKeh And Vocalion Lester Young With Count Basie (1936-1940)
  Scott Wenzel, compilation producer; Malcolm Addey, Michael Brooks, Matt Cavaluzzo, Andreas Meyer & Mark Wilder, mastering engineers (Lester Young With Count Basie)
  [Mosaic Records]
• Debate ’08: Taft And Bryan Campaign On The Edison Phonograph
  David Giovannoni, Meagan Hennessey & Richard Martin, compilation producers; Richard Martin, mastering engineer (William Jennings Bryan & William Howard Taft)
  [Archeophone Records]
• Polk Miller & His Old South Quartette
  Ken Flaherty, Jr., compilation producer; Marcos Sueiro Bal, Ken Flaherty, Jr., Kurt Nauck & Glenn Sage, mastering engineers (Polk Miller & His Old South Quartette)
  [Tompkins Square]
• To Be Free: The Nina Simone Story
  Richard Seidel, compilation producer; Mark G. Wilder, mastering engineer (Nina Simone)
  [RCA/Legacy Recordings]

———————

Category 92

Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
(An Engineer’s Award. (Artists names appear in parentheses.))

	Consolers Of The Lonely Joe Chiccarelli, Vance Powell & Jack White III, engineers (The Raconteurs) [Third Man/Warner Bros.]
	Just A Little Lovin’ Al Schmitt, engineer (Shelby Lynne) [Lost Highway Records]
	Lay It Down Jimmy Douglass, Russell “The Dragon” Elevado & Jon Smeltz, engineers (Al Green) [Blue Note]
	Still Unforgettable Steve Genewick, Al Schmitt & Bill Schnee, engineers (Natalie Cole) [DMI Records]
	We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. Dyre Gormsen & Tony Maserati, engineers (Jason Mraz) [Atlantic]

Category 9

Best Pop Instrumental Performance
(For solo, duo, group or collaborative performances, without vocals. Singles or Tracks only.)

	Love Appetite Steve Cropper & Felix Cavaliere Track from: Nudge It Up A Notch [Stax]
	I Dreamed There Was No War Eagles Track from: Long Road Out Of Eden [Eagles Recording Company II]
	Fortune Teller Stanley Jordan Track from: Energy [Heads Up International]
	Steppin’ Out Stanley Jordan Track from: State Of Nature [Mack Avenue Records]
	Blast! Marcus Miller Track from: Marcus [Concord Jazz]

Category 10

Best Pop Instrumental Album
(For albums containing 51% or more playing time of INSTRUMENTAL tracks.)

	Sax For Stax Gerald Albright [Peak Records]
	Greatest Hits Rerecorded Volume One Larry Carlton [335 Records]
	Jingle All The Way Béla Fleck & The Flecktones [Rounder]
	The Spice Of Life Earl Klugh [Koch Records]
	A Night Before Christmas Spyro Gyra [Heads Up International]

Jack DeJohnette‘s Peace Time [Golden Beams/Kindred Rhythm] won Best New Age Album.

Primary Source: Grammy.com

Previous Post: The 50th Annual Grammy Awards winners list, 2oo7

Vaughnette Bigford and Anthony Woodroffe Jr. do charity SHOW

Trinidad

Jazz singer, Vaughnette Bigford, and saxophonist Anthony Woodroffe Jr., gave of their time and talent Saturday, August 01 2009 at a charity show to benefit the United Way of Trinidad, and by extension, the NGOs who provide support to the vulnerable elements of the Trinidad society. Simply Helping Our World: An evening of Cocktails, Culture & Couture, the brain child of corporate donor, PCS Nitrogen was organised by its in-house PCS United Way Trinidad and Tobago Fundraising Committee.

SHOW was a billed as a multi-faceted charity extravaganza hosted at the Hyatt Regency Ballroom in Port-of Spain. The proceeds from this event were supplemented by company staff donations, matched by their employer.

Bigford and Woodroffe Jr. and Friends performed to the backdrop of fashion illustrations by the students of the Caribbean Academy of Fashion and Design at the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT).

Woodroffe Jr. is nearing completion of his Jazz Studies at the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. Bigford continues on her quest to hone her vocal skills as she gears up for the next stage of her career, a bona fide recording artist.

(Sources: newsday.co.tt, trinidadexpress.com, guardian.co.tt for photo credit)

Jazz in July: An Amazing Weekend of Jazz

Trinidad

Jazz in July: An Amazing Weekend of Jazz

by Ronsta Joseph

Designed as a part tribute to late kaiso legend Carlton “Lord Blakie” Joseph, Jazz in July at Queen’s Hall on the Weekend of July 25th and 26th was, to me, the premier Jazz event of 2009.

From an amazing local cast, to a changeover time yet to be matched by many of the more popular events and productions, this show was a shining example of the kind of quality for money that should be derived at events of this nature and stature.

Mungal Patasar opened the show with his unique brand of exotic excellence, while the amazing “fire sticks” Dane Gulston with his pan tricks and antics, wowed the crowed with steelpan splendour.

The Diva herself, Glenda Collens, and her band Medea left both those in the audience and backstage literally glued to her performance, as she belted out amazing standards and rearranged versions of musical favourites that worked to keep patrons completely enthralled.

R’kardo St’Von set the pace on the Saturday night with complete rhythmic flamboyance.  Accompanied in part by Ms Jermaine Wilson, R’kardo proved why he is known in the industry for his versatility and style.

All in all, Saturday’s performances led patrons intending to attend only one night of Jazz literally fishing for Sunday night tickets. This group of performers really kept the audience alive and captivated from start to tail end, which made for a notable start to what turned out to be a marvelous weekend for all in attendance.

Sunday however, proved to be the bigger night with regards to filled seats as it featured the ever beautiful, ever talented, Cheryl Pepsii Riley and her band.

Not to be outdone by her foreign counterpart, the sultry and ever stylish and talented Vaughnette Bigford opened the evening on a note that kept patrons’ expectations on a high throughout.

Nigel Supersad, new to the big stage, but by no means any less effective, turned out an immaculate performance on pan that opened the appetite of those waiting in anticpation for the weekend’s headline act.

Guitarist Theron Shaw headed an amazing quartet that served as accompanists to the local acts for both shows.  However Shaw showed his true worth as a musician when he gave a divine solo rendition of Lord Blakie’s 1962 Road March hit “Maria” at Sunday’s show.  That performance brought the Blakie fans throughout the building to their feet.

By the time Cheryl and her full band took to the stage, patrons redeemed all that was promised in the preshow hype surrounding her first visit to Trinidad.  To put it mildly, the audience was in absolute awe as this multi-talented performer and her very competent and eclectic band of musicians, perfected their task of entertaining and fulfilling the expectations of those in attendance.

“She must come back” has been the constant cry of those who were fortunate enough to bear witness to this incredible event.  “What a complete and awesome cast” and “you guys should take this show on the road” were also included in the post show comments made to the promoters of Jazz in July about this amazing weekend of Jazz.

The Victory International promoters and the team certainly outdid themselves by pulling off a stellar production.

Parliamentarian Chanra Sharma, who incidentally was the winner of a door prize donated by Cascadia Hotel (one of the sponsors for Jazz in July), also publicly hailed praises to the Victory crew on stage for a stellar job on their first musical production and also expressed his desire to make a financial contribution to assist the group in their continuing efforts to promote such events.

With complimentary wine and hors’ d’oeuvres adding to the class and tasteful ambiance set by Victory, the many patrons who missed out on this event, truly missed a great tribute to a musical icon as well as a well thought out showcase of Jazz in all its elements.

We most definitely will not miss Jazz in July 2010.

“dis is we ting…and we luv it bad”

Ronsta Joseph is the offspring of musical icon Carlton “Lord Blakie” Joseph and one of the promoters of the group “Victory International.”  She is on a mission to promote our region’s gift of culture, talent and style in all its shapes and forms to the world.

Havana’s Irakere Jazz Club, open for business

Cuba

Cuban pianist Chucho Valdés is best known as one of the founder members of the Cuban Latin Jazz band Irakere.  The band broke up many years ago and since then Valdés has made a name for himself as a solo performer par excellence.  Now, Valdés has added Jazz Club to his portfolio.

With the Irakere Jazz Club on Calle 0 Nr. 314 (between Calle 3ra and Avenida 3ra), Miramar, Havana, Cuba, nightlife has been greatly enhanced by the live music of emerging Cuban and international (largely Brazilian-Cuban) Latin Jazz soloists.

The Irakere Jazz Club was developed out of the proverbial ashes of first the old Rio Club, a disco haven for Havana’s low life prior to it being turned into Johnny’s Jazz Club later in the 1970’s.

The Irakere Jazz Club opens daily from 9:00 pm-3:00 am.  Damage: Cub$10. Phone 209-3389.

Been to the Irakere Jazz Club?  Share your experience with us.

Source: professionaltravelguide.com

Previous Post: Chucho Valdés makes a rare stop in Canada

R3, a gazillion thumbs up!

Trinidad

The R3 (R to the Power of 3) show was a wonderful concept that brought together three talents under one roof, the Daaga Auditorium, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine. Trinidad on July 25, 2009.  They were vocalist/flautist Ruth Osman, and singers Russell Leonce and Rizon.  One enthused fan, who was lucky to make it out in one piece, with her heart and head in tact was Brenda B. Butler.  Here is how Brenda B Butler saw it.

by Brenda B Butler

“R3”.  “R to the Power of 3” (Russell Leonce, Ruth Osman and Rizon).  Wow!  What a FAN..TAS..TIC show – from start to finish.

Not even fifteen minutes of a blaring fire alarm that tripped because of a fog effect could dim the brilliance of these artists on stage.  As a matter of fact, that challenge served to highlight their professionalism.  The show most definitely went on!

Everyone, featured artistes, back-up vocalists (each of whom could hold his or her own as a soloist) and musicians alike, was on point.  Of course, performers critique themselves hard & would be aware of all the “flaws,” but for the AUDIENCE it was near perfect.  We were treated to an amazingly talented group of young people making their mark and bringing God to the people through their music.

A magical, musical weekend…just what the doctor ordered (and God granted) to bring healing to my heart (had lost a friend the day before)

The shows’ concept was excellent.  No one artiste led the billing; in fact their performances intertwined: each would do a song or two and then the other would follow.  And when not doing lead, two Rs would back-up the featured R.

Of special impact to me was when Russell and Ruth sang the opening lines of Rizon’s “Reach,” and then when Rizon and Ruth did the same thing on Russell’s “Unchanging.”

Rizon and Ruth sang the opening lines of Russell's "Unchanging"...killer!

That was a stroke of genius in my opinion, and the effect was indeed powerful.  There was an obvious, beautiful connection between them; it was undeniable.  And clearly, they love and respect each other –  that shone through.

The three R’s ended the show with a heart-string-tugging cover of “Great is Thy Faithfulness.”

"Great is Thy Faithfulness"

A gazillion thumbs up!

Special big-up to Erica Ashton who manages these 3 amazing talents (among others)…job well, well, well done…kudos, kudos, kudos.  Looking forward to the encore!

Brenda

The following night I attended “Jazz in July”…which was actually the finale of a 2-night Jazz extravaganza at Queen’s Hall. Special thanks to my friend Fay for treating me to that fantastic evening (even though we were celebrating HER birthday) So…well, I’ll tell you about it in my next posting.

In the meantime, view my photo gallery on my Facebook profile by clicking the image below.

Photo credits: Brenda B Butler

Previous Post: Once Upon a Time…at Jazz in July