Wednesday, February 01, 2017

NEW RELEASES: GEORGE COLEMAN - A MASTER SPEAKS; TAHIRAH MEMORY - PRIDE; RYLE – ADVENTURES OF JEFFERSON KEYES

GEORGE COLEMAN - A MASTER SPEAKS

The title certainly gets it right – as master tenorist George Coleman speaks volumes here with his horn – reminding us that he's one of the all-time giants on his instrument, and a player who's really continued to give us so much wonderful music over the decades! Coleman's right at home on the record – which may well be one of his best in years – open and flowing on his solos, but often with a nice sort of bite, even in the mellower moments – that special sort of edge that George has brought to his playing, from his years with Miles Davis to the many decades after. The group features Mike Ledonne on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and George Coleman Jr on drums – making his debut with the elder George here – and Peter Bernstein makes an appearance on one track for some guest guitar. Titles include the originals "Sonny's Playground", "Time To Get Down", "Blues For BB", and "Blondie's Waltz" – plus a great take on "Invitation", and "You'll Never Know What You Mean To Me" and "The Shadow Of Your Smile". ~ Dusty Groove.

TAHIRAH MEMORY - PRIDE

A tremendous debut from Tahirah Memory – an underground soul singer from the same Oregon scene as Jarrod Lawson, who also helped co-produce the album! Tahirah's got a beautifully fresh sound – sharp songs that burst from her pen with a sort of urgency we haven't heard in years – yet delivered with this understated, jazz-tinged style that's never forced or overdone – even when Memory's got these sharp changes in her vocals and instrumentation! Lawson plays piano, keyboards, and most of the other instrumentation – and the record's a great reminder that there's still a huge amount of life in the contemporary soul underground – if you know where to look and listen. Titles include "Time", "Pride", "I Can't Change", "Beautiful Disaster", "All The Time", "Puddin", "Nice Guy", and "Again".  ~ Dusty Groove

RYLE – ADVENTURES OF JEFFERSON KEYES

Fantastic bit of boogie – a contemporary set, but one that it feels like it was lifted from the best of the early 80s underground – from the post-disco, funky club rhythms – right through to the soulful vocals and warm keyboards in the mix! The tunes have a sound that's sophisticated, but very organic too – that best sort of funky flow that you'll remember from the moment when the bigger discos were closing their doors, and club music went back underground and got stripped down to its finest elements! Rob Hardt provides the great keyboards on the record – and vocals are by a variety of singers – including Seest, Flemming Fanoe, Kiki Kyte, Folami, Kenny Thomas, and Sulene Fleming – on titles that include "Keep The Faith", "Busy Dreamin", "Never Gonna Let You Go", "Lift Your Head Up", "Private Eye", "Soho House", and "Something's Got Me Walking On Air". The tunes are positive and upbeat as their titles might imply – and the record's a great one if you go for an Incognito-styled groove!

 




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