Bill Evans we Met

2019 is a milestone year for altoist Will Vinson. It’s twenty years since he relocated to New York from his native London, and commenced an exploration that led him into the heart of that city’s legendary scene, where the tradition and the avant-garde intersect. Seven records as leader have confirmed his stature: now, for his debut on Whirlwind, titled four forty one, he’s dug into his contact book to present the realization of a long-held dream - to record with five of the greatest contemporary piano masters.

There seem to be few subjects that do not interest my friend Tobias Lindstad. He is well-versed in literature, art, and philosophy, he throws himself into debates with an open mind and has kept his fascination for the mysteries of the universe. Above all, he displays a nearly all-encompassing appetite for good music in the most diverse genres. He never stops finding inspiration in classical and modern chamber music, in cool jazz and free-form improvisation, in avantgarde rock, in folk music, and in subtle pop melodies; really, he finds inspiration in all kinds of beautiful, strange, challenging and/or alluring music.

The Beatles played their last advertised public concert on 29 August 1966 at Candlestick Park, San Francisco. The American tour had been unsatisfactory. The group had tired of uncritical audiences who came only to scream and onstage It was proving impossible for them to do justice to their increasingly sophisticated material. Exhaustion and the pressures of fame had finally taken their toll. They returned to Britain determined to concentrate on pushing he boundaries of pop music in the recording studio. They had matured as artists and were ready to enter a new phase in their career, a feeling passionately expressed at the time by John Lennon, ´we can create something that's never been heard before, a new kind of record with new kinds of sounds.

There are bonds that cannot be broken. Brotherhood and musical understanding are two such bonds. Pianist Chano Dominguez and bassist Javier Colina grew up together exploring musical genres that moved them like no other, namely jazz and flamenco (a music that is inherently tied to their Spanish identities and heritage). Their new recording, Chano & Colina, reunites the two after 15 years of pursuing differing musical courses.

James Dean and Marlon Brando were the glamorous heroes of the silver screen in the 50s. Character actors, sex symbols, blasé eccentrics with a penchant for extravagance. Role models for the rebellious youth: the embodiment of cool. A new attitude towards life was spreading around the USA. 'The Birth of the Cool' also happened at the same time in the field of jazz, leading it to become the soundtrack of a generation. Miles Davis, John Lewis and the Modern Jazz Quartet, Dave Brubeck and Chet Baker (the 'James Dean of jazz') gave jazz a whole new direction: the search for a special 'cool' atmosphere based on tone and space in jazz, on substantial melodies with a laid-back approach designed for the collective. But this music was never cold-cool, it was merely played and conceived with what one might call a cool head.

Through Tony Bennett's long, remarkable career, it's possible to trace the evolution and endurance of vocal pop and jazz in the 20th century. Unlike his idol Frank Sinatra, Bennett was too young to be part of the first wave of the Great American Songbook in the years before World War II.

The Giving Trio is a Chicago-based jazz group with a style and sound reminiscent of late 50's and 60's cool-jazz and pop music. Think: Bill Evans, Lennie Tristano and Lee Konitz. Spice all of that up with hints of Motown, The Beach Boys and The Beatles and you'll have yourself a good taste of The Giving Trio’s aesthetic. The trio is made up of John W. Lauler on upright bass, Justin LaForte on guitar, and Alex Kerwin on alto saxophone. John and Alex met while attending Columbia College Chicago, and after graduating they continued to work together on the Chicago music scene. They began to meet and play together regularly in 2014, building a repertoire of their favorite jazz standards and classic pop tunes. From these sessions they developed a group rapport and began playing out as The Giving Trio.

Oberlin Conservatory professor and in-demand double bassist Peter Dominguez mixes jazz standards, covers and a couple of originals on this acclaimed solo bass recording. Dominguez proves to be a dynamic presence and a masterful arranger throughout, Hinton's instrument's sound rings clear and true at every turn, and there's nary a lull in activity or creativity across these ten tunes. Solo bass dates are often a tough sell, but this one isn't. "Groove Dreams" hits all the right marks and holds attention from beginning to end.