Spiritmuse Records proudly presents ‘Kahil El’Zabar’s America the Beautiful’, a tour de force musical testament that speaks directly to the heart, mind and spirit. Kahil El’Zabar composed, arranged and conducted ‘America the Beautiful’ to speak musically about the turbulent issues in America (and the world) today, as well as his hopes and love for a better tomorrow.
Abdullah Ibrahim (born Adolph Johannes Brand on 9 October 1934 and formerly known as Dollar Brand) is a South African pianist and composer. His music reflects many of the musical influences of his childhood in the multicultural port areas of Cape Town, ranging from traditional African songs to the gospel of the AME Church and ragas, to more modern jazz and other Western styles. Ibrahim is considered the leading figure in the subgenre Cape jazz.
Saxophonist David Murray continues his cross genre initiatives on this undeniably exciting, 2003 release Now Is Another Time. With this effort, the artist enlists his longtime running mates, trumpeter Hugh Ragin and baritone saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett to complement a huge cast of Cuban musicians. This large ensemble Latin jazz extravaganza packs a mighty blow, from beginning to end. Here, the band churns out radiant, multi-layered horn arrangements atop the Cuban masters' sweltering percussion grooves and the soloists' blaring exchanges.
Several editions of Beaver Harris' 360 [Degree] Music Experience have been documented, though sporadically and not always with the care the drummer's ambitiously conceived endeavors deserve. A Well Kept Secret, the first release on Hal Willner's Shemp label, has a horrifyingly handsome Ralph Steadman-illustrated cover, good sound, and substantial contributions from main soloist Pullen, all members of the seemingly larger sextet, and arranger/french horn player Sharon Freeman. She charted Gorйe, a 17-minute suite named for the tiny isle off Senegal where ships boarded slaves for the New World.
This 2-CD set takes the 1974 album Mingus At Carnegie Hall (Atlantic) and adds seventy minutes of previously unissued material recorded at the same concert.
Mingus led many great bands during his career, but those from the the late 1950s and early 1960s have tended to be perceived as representing his belle epoque, overshadowing some equally outstanding later aggregations. One of these is Mingus' mid 1970s quintet with trumpeter Jack Walrath, tenor saxophonist George Adams, pianist Don Pullen and drummer Dannie Richmond, who are featured on the 1975 portion of the Bremen set. The previous year, Mingus led a sextet including Adams, Pullen and Richmond, in which Jon Faddis was the trumpeter and Hamiet Bluiett played baritone saxophone…