In the Groove, Jazz and Beyond

Curtis Bro

This week's podcast features our guest Zaccai Curtis and the music of the Curtis Brothers. We follow the development of their latin influenced jazz from the early Insight days when the band was based on young Hartford musicians, to a more mature evolved sound of the Curtis Brothers Quartet, and finally the recently released Hard-Bop based Completion of Proof album. This latest band is comprised of some of Art Blakey's alumni (Brian Lynch, Donald Harrison, Ralph Peterson). The Blakey influence is strong, but the Zaccai's compositions maintain a subtle Latin flavor that the Curtis Brothers are so well known for. We start out the show with a Miles Davis piece, Footprints to celebrate the master's birth date. For more information on the Curtis Brothers, please check out their informative website.

Featured Album

The Curtis Brothers - Completion of Proof on CD Baby

Track ~ Artist ~ Album
Footprints ~ Miles Davis ~ Miles Smiles
Necessity ~ Insight ~ A Genesis
Sudan and Darfur ~ Insight ~ A Genesis
Yuba Citrico ~ Curtis Brothers Quartet ~ Blood Spirit Land Water Freedom
Sol Within ~ Curtis Brothers ~ Completion of Proof
Manifest Destiny ~ Curtis Brothers ~ Completion of Proof

New Jazz Workshop

This special 1 hour 40 minute edition of Jazz and Beyond features Jackie McLean, and an interview with Lummie Spann, alto sax player and co-founder of New Jazz Workshop. The show begins with a tribute to JMac, who would have been 81 years old this past week. Jackie meant so much to the Hartford jazz scene, including our on-air guest. Lummie Spann joins us live in the studio to talk about his latest musical project, the release of a new CD from the New Jazz Workshop. First Lummie speaks with us about his personal experiences with JMac and his development as a jazz musician in Hartford. The show continues with more music from Art Pepper, Skerik, Trane, Esperanza, Larry Young, and Lee Morgan.

Featured Album

New Jazz Workshop on CDBaby

Track ~ Artist ~ Album
Confirmation ~ Jackie McLean ~ New Wine in Old Bottles
Minor March ~ Jackie McLean ~ The Jackie Mac Attack
Optimism ~ Jackie McLean ~ Fire & Love
Underground ~ New Jazz Workshop ~ Underground on CDBaby
World of Wonder ~ New Jazz Workshop~ Underground on CDBaby
A Night in Tunisia ~ Art Pepper ~ Friday Night at the Village Vanguard
Summer Pudding ~ Skerik Syncopated Taint Septet ~ Live at the Triple Door
Naima ~ John Coltrane ~ Giant Steps
I Know You Know ~ Esperanza Spaulding ~ Esperanza
Mr. Pc ~ John Coltrane ~ Giant Steps
Softly as in a Morning Sunrise ~ Larry Young ~ Unity
Lost and Found ~ Lee Morgan ~ Expoobident
Pheonix ~ New Jazz Workshop ~ Underground

World Jazz Part 2

We continue our World music theme with part 2 of last week's show and podcast. This week we begin with the latin rhythms of the Curtis Brothers and Flamenco music from Dave Holland. We then travel east and hear some interesting sounds from mandolin master Snehasish Mozumder. Fareed Haque, Vijay Iyer and the band Garaj Mahal show us different interpretations of Eastern influenced jazz fusion.

Featured Album

Jazz and North Indian Styles - Snehasish Mozumder & S.O.M. on iTunes

Track ~ Artist ~ Album
Bouncin with Bud ~ Curtis Brothers Quartet ~ Blood-Spirit-Land-Water-Freedom
Hands ~ Dave Holland and Pepe Habichuela ~ Hands
NY Seven ~ Snehasish Mozumder & SOM ~ Jazz and North Indian Styles
32 Taxis ~ Fareed Haque ~ Flat Planet
Entropy and Time ~ Vijay Iyer-Prasana-Nitin Mitta ~ Tirtha
Adana ~ Rudresh Mahanthapa Indo-Pak Coalition ~ Apti
Witch Doctor ~ Garaj Mahal ~ more mr. nice guy

World Jazz Part 1

Jazz is world music. This week (and next) we journey around the world with jazz music fused with rhythms and exotic sounds of Africa, India and Latin America. Sonny Rollins may have started the trend with his exploration of island calypso rhythms. Artists like Michele Rosewoman and Regina Carter have brought African sounds into their music, we also feature some Indian-Jazz fusion from composer Marc Rossi along with Prassana. Next week I will podcast Part 2 of this show with more world jazz.

Featured Album

Mantra Revealed - Marc Rossi Group on iTunes

Track ~ Artist ~ Album
St Thomas ~ Sonny Rollins ~ Saxophone Colosus
Jazz Impressions of a Kriti ~ Marc Rossi Group ~ Mantra Revealed
Refuge In The Rhythm ~ Marc Rossi Group ~ Mantra Revealed
Eshu Laroye ~ Michele Rosewoman and Quintessence ~ The In Side Out
Kanou ~ Regina Carter ~ Reverse Thread
Chcho's Steps ~ Chucho Valdez & the African Cuban Messengers ~ Chucho's Steps