DR Big Band Feat. Mike Stern Chromazone (2008)

This sequel to the 2003 tribute Word of Mouth Revisited showcases the compositions and arrangements of the legendary bassist Jaco Pastorius. It features Pastorius-influenced bassists, including Victor Wooten, Mark Egan, Gerald Veasley, and Marcus Miller, with a number of Pastorius' ex-sidemen, from trumpeters Randy Brecker and steel drummer Othello Molineaux to drummer Peter Erskine. Peter Graves–a bandmate of the flashy bassist when they both lived in Florida–leads this big band and sticks close to Pastorius' original conceptions, as evidenced by the Latin-tinged "Las Olas," guest-starring the Cuban bass giant Israel "Cachao" Lopez.

Swing into the holiday spirit with BIG BAND HOLIDAYS II, the sequel to the critically acclaimed 2015 release from the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis. Featuring original arrangements of holiday classics selected from Big Band Holiday concerts spanning from 2015 to 2018, nine-time GRAMMY Award winner and Pulitzer Prize winner Wynton Marsalis and the JLCO are joined by an all-star assortment of guest vocalists, including Veronica Swift, Denzal Sinclaire, Catherine Russell, Audrey Shakir, and the Queen of Soul herself, Aretha Franklin.

Brian Lynch’s first big band album connects the trumpeter’s lifelong passion for reading with his expansive vision as a composer/arranger. And while the dedications on The Omni-American Book Club: My Journey Through Literature In Music reveal Lynch’s deep interest in African-American literature and social justice, one need not be familiar with authors W.E.B. DuBois, Albert Murray, Ned Sublette, Naomi Klein, Masha Gessen, Isabel Wilkerson, Ralph Ellison, Chinua Achebe, Amiri Baraka and A.B. Spellman to fully enjoy this Afro-Caribbean-fueled, two-disc collection of strikingly fresh, intricately arranged original compositions.