The Rifftides staff has done exhaustive auditioning, winnowing and selecting from among hundreds of CDs, DVDs and books hoping to be chosen. The result: a new batch of recommendations. They are compact discs by a pianist and a trumpeter who love Mingus, musical portraits of the seven deadly sins, a Nat King Cole concert that surfaced after 61 years in hiding, a DVD of two elderly avant-garde saxophonists with the energy of teenagers, and a book dedicated to the proposition that Louis Armstrong’s late period was glorious. Please see the listings in the right column under Doug’s Picks.
Archives for June 29, 2011
CD: Knuffke & Stacken
Kirk Knuffke & Jess Stacken, Orange Was The Color (Steeplechase).
Balancing daring and restraint, Knuffke and Stacken address 11 of Charles Mingus’s compositions. Knuffke sets aside his trumpet in favor of cornet to intertwine, contrast and parallel his lines with Stracken’s piano. He achieves remarkable precision and velocity at low volume. Stracken equals Knuffke in the control and articulation departments. Among the highlights: a section of free counterpoint on “Ecclusiastics†and heartfelt treatment of “Goodbye Pork Pie Hat.†The joy of their leap into “So Long Eric†is reminiscent of a cornet-piano team that thrived 85 years earlier: Louis Armstrong and Earl Hines. Also available as a CD.
CD: Joseph Daley
Joseph Daley Earth Tones Ensemble, The Seven Deadly Sins (Jaro).
Inspired by Wade Schulman paintings, Daley wrote orchestral impressions of the sins. To the veteran composer and tubist, earth tones mean low notes. Anchored by tubas, bass saxophone, contrabass sax, contrabass clarinet, contrabass violin and bass trombone, Daley’s variegated writing nonetheless encompasses a full range of orchestral sounds for reeds, brass and percussion. New York stars including Bob Stewart, Scott Robinson, Earl McIntyre and Lou Soloff play it beautifully. Soloff leads the trumpets in a wild plunger-mute depiction of lust. A DVD available from Jaro traces the creation of the music. To see a preview, go here and scroll down.
CD: Nat Cole
Nat King Cole, The Forgotten 1949 Carnegie Hall Concert (Hep).
Cole’s trio and the Woody Herman Second Herd teamed up for a successful concert tour, with Carnegie Hall a high spot. It was recorded but never before issued. Now, here it is, with Cole’s singing and piano playing at a high level. He included many of his famous numbers“Sweet Lorraine,†“Lush Life,†Body and Soul,†“Bop Kick†among themand a terrific new piece called “Cuba Libre†by the trio and bongoist Jack Costanzo. Herman’s band shows up only on a supercharged “More Moon.†It ends the CD so powerfully that we can hope there is more Herman from this occasion.