Album Reviews

If you're not acquainted, Pink Martini is either a large band or a "small orchestra" of 12 and occasionally more, created back in 1997 by Portland pianist Thomas M. Lauderdale and the group's lead singer China Forbes. The two began collaborating for fun while at Harvard.

The concert promoter, tour organizer, record label owner Norman Granz had a knack for assembling groups that produced successful sessions like this. Benny Green's somewhat defensive annotation tells you the story: Webster had been popular during the big band "swing" era as a member of Duke Ellington's band as its first star tenor saxophonist. He was one of the "big three," the others being Lester Young and Coleman Hawkins.

Anyone who thinks exploitation/commercialization is a recent development wasn’t around in the aftermath of George Harrison’s discovery of Indian music and his use of a sitar on “Norwegian Wood.”

Mose Alison meets Steely Dan meets Gary Wilson is the best I can do to describe this hipster member of Hollywood's famous Dragon family's recent CD. 

While still with The Jeff Beck Group, Rod Stewart signed as a solo artist with Lou Reizner, an American Mercury Records producer living in the UK at the time, who had his ear to the musical firmament.

Patricia Barber's café blue remains a musically and sonically stunning set seventeen years after its initial release on CD and later on a truncated vinyl edition. It's set in a dark, atmospheric musical space that recording engineer Jim Anderson captured perfectly, bathing Barber's sultry voice in a mysterious shroud of reverb created not by artificial means as was common at the time, but by establishing an improvised chamber under some stairs at CRC (Chicago Recording Company) where the record was produced.

Don’t let the October 16th 1956 mono recording date fool you: this Jean-Baptiste “Illinois” Jacquet session was recorded in Los Angeles, probably at legendary Radio Recorders, and the sound will knock you down.