Weather Report Procession

A new Weather Report lineup makes its debut here, with Victor Bailey filling Jaco Pastorius' shoes, Omar Hakim on drums, Jose Rossy on percussion, and Joe Zawinul now thoroughly in charge. But contrary to the conventional wisdom which claims that WR went downhill after the departure of Pastorius/Erskine, the new lineup actually recharged WR's creative batteries; the material here is superior to that of the previous two albums at least. Bailey, while not Jaco's technical equal, is mobile enough to project through the texture, and Hakim has the versatility and swinging Third World rhythmic influences that must have appealed to Zawinul. "Procession" itself is a masterly Zawinul tone poem, with moody electronics and voices building to an emotional crescendo and ebbing away, a high point in WR's output.

This double-CD has 24 different groups of fusion musicians (including some from Europe) paying tribute to Weather Report. Despite the personnel and often the instrumentation changing from track to track, there is a unity to the project and many of the bands sound quite a bit like Weather Report, either purposely as part of the tribute or naturally. The programming is somewhat random and the bands bring back the sound, grooves, and spirits of Weather Report rather than necessarily always sticking to their compositions. All in all, this is a heartfelt and very well-played tribute that can also serve as an introduction to a cross-section of some of today's top fusion musicians, many of whom are not household names yet.

Weather Report - Live In Cologne 1983 (2011) {2CD Set, Art Of Groove AOG80052CD}
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© 1983, 2011 Art Of Groove / WDR | AOG 80052 CD
Jazz / Fusion

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of Weather Report the Zawinul estate is proud to release this live document of the band's performance in Cologne, Germany, on May 13th, 1983. This is the first time that this wonderful concert has been available and it's released simultaneously on 2CD. By this time leaders Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter had produced some of the most innovative and best selling jazz of the 1970's, often in the company of some of the foremost musicians of that time including Jaco Pastorius and Peter Erskine. By 1983 this bass and drums team had departed and Zawinul and Shorter completely refashioned the band bringing on board a new, younger, rhythm section including Victor Bailey, Omar Hakim and Jose Rossy.

Weather Report - The Columbia Studio And Live Recordings (2017) {24CD Set Columbia-Sony Music 88985467492} (Complete Artwork)
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© 2017 Columbia / Sony Music | 88985467492
Jazz / Fusion / Jazz Rock

24CD set. Collects every Columbia live and studio album from "Weather Report" (1971) to "Legendary Live Tapes : 1978 - 1981" (2015). This is an incredible set of all of their studio and live albums. The sound is fantastic and love listening to it over and over again. They did a great job putting this set together without taking away from the music. The sound is great.

Here's more proof that Weather Report actually became a more potent, life-affirming musical force after the departures of its best-known sidemen. Things begin on an oddly commercial note with a pop song "Can It Be Done," sung by Carl Anderson, that actually lays out Weather Report's credo, searching for sounds never heard before. Then Joe Zawinul and company get down to business with the funky "D-Flat Waltz," marked by Omar Hakim's flamboyantly complex drumming. Zawinul's synthesizer textures become thicker and more flexible with the help of newly-introduced digital instruments, and the funk element in general becomes more pronounced than on any record since Tale Spinnin'.

The Nels Cline Singers - Initiate (2010) {2CD Set Cryptogramophone cg143}
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© 2010 Cryptogramophone | cg143
Jazz / Rock / Avant-Garde Jazz / Experimental / Guitar

Guitarist Nels Cline has generated a high profile since becoming a member of Wilco, but it’s his solo work that defines him – he can always be counted upon to thwart expectations. Initiate is the fourth album by the Nels Cline Singers, a power trio with Devin Hoff on contra and electric bass, and Scott Amendola on drums, percussion, and electronics. Initiate is a double-disc recorded by producer David Breskin and engineer Ron Saint Germain. The first disc is a studio recording, the latter was cut live in San Francisco in 2009.

Wayne has re-signed to Blue Note Records, and has released his first album as a leader for the iconic label in 43 years with the release of Without A Net, a searing new album with his long-running quartet featuring pianist Danilo Perez, bassist John Patitucci, and drummer Brian Blade.
Without A Net is a 9-track musical thrill ride that consists of live recordings from the Wayne Shorter Quartet’s European tour in late 2011, the one exception being the 23-minute tone poem “Pegasus” which features the quartet with The Imani Winds recorded at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. The album features six new Shorter compositions, as well as new versions of his tunes “Orbits” (from Miles Davis’ Miles Smiles album) and “Plaza Real” (from the Weather Report album Procession).

Various Artists - Let Me Tell You About The Blues - Detroit: The Evolution Of Detroit Blues (2010) {3 CD Box Set}
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© 2010 Fantastic Voyage / Future Noise Music Ltd. | FVTD070
Blues / Regional Blues

Detroit in the 1940s and ‘50s didn’t have a thriving record industry like Chicago. Detroit artists went there because that’s where the companies were. Even musicologist Alan Lomax made just one visit for the Library of Congress in 1938, when he recorded Calvin Frazier and Sampson Pittman. Nevertheless, enterprising individuals like Jack and Devora Brown, Bernard Besman and Joe Von Battle did their best to reflect the city’s musical talent.