Editor's Choice: July 2024 | The best new jazz albums
Friday, June 14, 2024
Including new albums from Chick Corea and Béla Fleck, Zara McFarlane, Tomeka Reid and Kathrine Windfeld Sextet
Listen to selections from this month's Editor's Choices on One Jazz (www.onejazz.net) and below:
We are pleased to present our favourite albums reviewed in the July 2024 issue of Jazzwise. Subscribers can read the full reviews in the July issue and in our Reviews Database. Find out more here: magsubscriptions.com/music-jazzwise
Chick Corea/Béla Fleck
Remembrance
Thirty Tigers
Chick Corea (p) and Béla Fleck (bjo). Rec. 2019
‘Monk’s ‘Bemsha Swing’ is an absolute barnstormer of blistering improv counterpoint in the head, turning to hurtling swing-comping and solo-swapping as it unfolds. Scarlatti gets a cameo role in some deliciously interwoven baroque pirou-ettes, and Fleck’s jagged, zigzaggy ‘Small Potatoes’ hints at the sonically exploratory free-playing ingenuity Corea touched on with 1970-71’s Circle, but which his mainstream acclaim never opened a path back to.’ John Fordham
John Escreet
The Epicenter of Your Dreams
Blue Room Music
John Escreet (p), Mark Turner (ts), Eric Revis (b) and Damion Reid (d). Rec. date not stated
‘Turner’s wispy rounded tone contrasts with Escreet’s resonant piano voice and Revis’ steady acoustic bass balances drummer Reid’s fractured rolls and whip-crack time-bendy beats. Three Escreet originals deliver sharp-angled themes, tense interplay and solos that really count.’ Mike Hobart
Sean Khan Presents the Modern Jazz and Folk Ensemble
Volume 1
Acid Jazz Records
Sean Khan (ss, fl), Andy Noble (p, ky), Mirko Scarcia (b), Laurie Lowe (d) with Rosie Frater-Taylor, Jacqui McShee, Kindelan (v), Dave Pegg (b), Gerry Diver, Miya Vaisanen, Max Baillie (vn), Rachel Robson (vla) and Danny Keane (clo). Rec. date not stated
‘Jazz and folk have always danced together, and Khan celebrates that alliance with a special focus on great singer-songwriters of the late 1960s and 70s. Two Nick Drake songs are covered, ‘Parasite’ and ‘Things Behind the Sun’, both from 1972’s seminal Pink Moon, and two are celebrations of the troubled troubadour, John Martyn’s darkly insightful ‘Solid Air’ and Khan’s own ‘Ode to Nick Drake’, with none other than Dave Pegg guesting.’ Andy Robson
Kiefer Trio
Something For Real
Stones Throw/Bandcamp
Kiefer (el p, syn), Pera Krstajic (el b) and Luke Titus (d). Rec. April 2023
‘It’s Kiefer’s easy-going authenticity and commanding playing, coupled to his dynamite rhythm section, that seals this hugely enjoyable live set. It makes you wish you’d been in the room too.’ Mike Flynn
Zara McFarlane
Sweet Whispers: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan
Eternal Source Of Light
Zara McFarlane (v), Giacomo Smith (cl, ss), Gabriella Swallow (clo), Joe Webb (p), Ferg Ireland (b), Jas Kayser (d) and Marlon Hibbert (steel pan). Rec. date not stated
‘McFarlane’s self-proclaimed favourite Vaughan song, ‘Mean to Me’, is imbued with soulful expression, while the breakneck pace of ‘Great Day’ showcases her impeccable time feel.’ Peter Quinn
David Murray
Francesca
Intakt
David Murray (ts), Marta Sanchez (p), Luke Stewart (b) and Russell Carter (d). Rec. 26-27 November 2023
‘This fine new album with an excellent quartet comprising younger players finds him on stellar form, making the perhaps overlooked point that the 69-year-old saxophonist has always been a strong composer as well as improviser.’ Kevin Le Gendre
Tomeka Reid
3+3 And Then
Cuneiform
Tomeka Reid (clo), Mary Halvorson (el g), Jason Roebke (b) and Tomas Fujiwara (d). Rec. 20-21 August 2023
‘Aside from her work with Nicole Mitchell and Art Ensemble Of Chicago, Tomeka Reid has staked a claim as a key figure among the relatively small number of cellist-composer-bandleaders in improvised music. She is an excellent soloist, as commanding with pizzicato as she is arco, but she also has a gift for writing melodies that can be as charmingly nostalgic as they are seductively unsettling.’ Kevin Le Gendre
Kathrine Windfeld Sextet
Aldebaran
Stunt
Kathrine Windfeld (p), Tomasz Dabrowski (tp), Hannes Bennich (as, ts) Marek Konarski (ts) Johannes Vaht (b) and Henrik Holst Hansen (d). Rec. September 2023
‘While not being a particularly fashionable attribute, Aldebaran is a real grower that reveals more and more of its understated sophistication and emotional depth with every play.’ Selwyn Harris
