Axl's Catch Groove

I am not a very sophisticated jazz fan, but I know what I like.  My interest in jazz is pretty narrow – basically I love music from 1955 through 1975 with Miles Davis and his alumni being my guide posts.  As I have recently started crate digging vinyl records again one of my other guide posts has been Creed Taylor and CTI Records.  I will buy pretty much anything with the CTI imprint or the Creed Taylor signature. I don’t know much about Creed Taylor other than he is a record producer and eventually had his own label.  His work tends to be more accessible jazz.  What might be called soul jazz or acid jazz, but not quite lite-jazz.  He has been affiliated with some of the most successful jazz acts – for example John Coltrane, George Benson, Grover Washington Jr., Freddie Hubbard, Bob James, and Stanley Turentine.  My guess is that I will be reviewing many Creed Taylor productions in Catch Groove.  I don’t know that much about Creed, but I plan to do more research on him.  Here is a nice article from the WSJ on Creed Taylor: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703730104576260903900205990.html

I have been a sucker for the Jayhawks’ sound since day one.  I have been waiting with anticipation since this release was announced.  The gimmick here is that Mark Olson was back.  I watched the teaser live show on The Current (local MPR radio station) and was enthralled.  I bought the disk within 30 minutes of my local Best Buy opening on release Tuesday this week.  I threw it on my home system and I was underwhelmed.  But subsequent listens have proven there is more there than what I first thought.  This sounds very much like mid-nineties Jayhawks but without a song that really grabs you – at first.  But like I said subsequent listens reward.  This is a texture record – one you have to excavate through the layers.  The harmonies are amazing – no surprise there.  The guitar work is tender – again no surprise there.  I think what is really grabbing me is the arraignments and overall ambiance of the recording – very simple at first listen – but there is a complexity to that simplicity.  I think any Jayhawks fan is going to love this record.  For newcomers – if you like that mid 70’s singer songwriter great production sound, alt country vibe and CSN style harmonies – get this album and listen to it at least 5 times – I think it will become a repeat player in your collection.

You can stream the album from: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/exclusive-album-stream-the-jayhawks-mockingbird-time-20110913

I have not been able to find a full video of The Current show, but i was able to find this excerpt: http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2011/09/13/jayhawks/

By the way The Jayhawks’ web site is pretty amazing – great video clips and some nice bootlegs you can download: www.jayhawksofficial.com

I have long been a Tony Bennett fan.  Several years ago I picked up a two disc “greatest hits” package and I was sold.  I like his voice more than Sinatra and he just has a sense of cool – a guy you would truly enjoy having a glass of wine or cocktail with (somehow Tony does not seem like a beer guy).  The fact that he is a visual artist is a cherry on top.

I picked up Duets from Target (they have a special edition with two more songs) mainly on the hype of Lady Gaga and Amy Winehouse as duet partners.  I have a fondness for Gaga (which I feel odd about given I am a 52-year-old straight male) and I just knew in my heart she would nail a duet with Tony – and she does.

The production is wonderfully over the top on the whole album – lots of orchestration.  This is a great way to introduce yourself to Tony if you are not already a fan.  And if you are fan you will enjoy Tony the gracious host – he makes every duet partner fit like the finely tailored suits Tony wears.

In summary this release is the definition of pop grace and class.  Add as for Gaga – see below how much Tony classes her up!