Barnes

George Barnes and Bucky Pizzarelli recorded this guitar session after performing as a duo at the Upstairs at the Downstairs for several months prior to making this album, so they were very familiar with each others' playing, which is firmly rooted in swing. With Pizzarelli on a seven-string instrument, and Barnes on the usual six-string, they tackle a wide-ranging program, which includes swing classics, a bit of boogie, standards, originals, and even lame pop songs of the day. Obviously, gems like "Honeysuckle Rose" and "Blue Skies" turn out better than Paul Williams' nauseating "We've Only Just Begun" (which at least omits its banal, repetitious lyrics), and another hit for the Carpenters, Burt Bacharach's sickeningly sweet "(They Long to Be) Close to You." But the duo actually make something out of Blood, Sweat and Tears' biggest hit,…

On this new recording from Orange Mountain Music, pianist Paul Barnes and renowned string quartet Brooklyn Rider collaborate on a new album of music by Philip Glass including two world premiere recordings of major works. The album begins with Philip Glass's 2018 Piano Quintet 'Annunciation' based on the 'Hymn of the Annunciation' from the Greek Orthodox tradition.

Powerhouse singer Mahalia Barnes, one of the most impressive female vocalists to come out of Australia, and her band The Soul Mates have teamed up with American blues-rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa to release an album of Betty Davis covers called Ooh Yea! The Betty Davis Songbook. It explores tracks from Davis sexy, raw funk records of the early 70s. Betty Davis s unique story is still fairly unknown. She married Miles Davis in the late 60s, influencing him with psychedelic rock, and introducing him to Jimi Hendrix. Later, she released three genre-busting albums, 1973's self-titled debut, 1974's They Say I'm Different and 1975's Nasty Gal that have since influenced artists like Outkast, Prince, Erykah Badu, Rick James, The Roots, Ice Cube, Talib Kweli and Ludacris. Mahalia Barnes, eldest daughter of Australian rock legend Jimmy Barnes and recent contestant on The Voice Australia, has been around music her whole life but has always been most heavily influenced by soul, blues and rock n roll.