In this month's Artist Feature on saxophonist James Brandon Lewis, who continues his busy schedule as a leader and sideman throughout town, he offers his thoughts on the elders who have preceeded and embraced him and other young musicians: "I respect their journeys, their lives and commitment." So it is fitting that this up-and-comer shares space in this issue with a luminous roster of elders. 92-year-old vocalist Tony Bennett (On The Cover) could have his age reversed, given how perpetually youthful and hip to the times he continues to be in this, his eighth decade as a performer. He plays Radio City Music Hall and is also honored by the Jazz Foundation of America at its A Great Night in Harlem. 80-year-old vibraphonist Mike Mainieri (Interview) has been a professional musician for almost as long, starting out
a child performer and continuing in both the jazz and rock spheres, most notably with the Steps Ahead band; that group is honored by the NYU Jazz Orchestra at Blue Note with Mainieri as guest of honor. And 86-year-old drummer Billy Kaye (Encore), whose resumé is a Who's Who of Jazz, continues to be active, leading a weekly jam session at Fat Cat.
On the Cover: TONY BENNETT
By Andrew Vélez; photos by Mark Seliger (courtesy of RPM Productions) and Bryan Adams/Trunk Archive
Born into a working class Italian family, Astoria native Anthony Dominick Benedetto is the embodiment of the Great American dream. At 92, he is the pre-eminent singer of the 20th and 21st centuries, embraced and beloved by audiences of all generations. The winner of 19 Grammy awards, he has sold more than ten million records just in the past decade. Bennett is at Radio City Music Hall Apr. 13th and honored as part of the Jazz Foundation of America's Great Night in Harlem at the Apollo Theater Apr. 4th.
Interview: MIKE MAINIERI
By Jim Motavalli; photo courtesy of the artist
Even if you don't know the name, you probably have a record featuring vibraphonist/arranger Mike Mainieri. Those Steps and Steps Ahead albums? He founded the band. Do you own Paul Desmond's Summertime, Kenny Burrell's A Generation Ago Today, Art Farmer's Big Blues with Jim Hall, Pat Martino's Starbright or any Buddy Rich albums from the late '50s-early '60s? That's Mainieri. He played dates—at a very young age—with Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins and Wes Montgomery. Mainieri was also a ubiquitous pop music studio denizen. After turning 80 last July, Mainieri is still working. A family issue sidelined him for a couple of years, but now he's back at it full time, still vigorous and full of ideas. Mainieri is at Blue Note Apr. 29th.
Artist Feature: JAMES BRANDON LEWIS
By John Pietaro; photo by R.I. Sutherland-Cohen
James Brandon Lewis, 35, remains sufficiently spry to maintain the "Young Lion" status attributed to him by those elders, yet he's increasingly viewed as a galvanizing force. His career highlights have been substantial thus far but with each passing year there comes an expansion of Lewis' presence as a saxophonist, composer, activist and conceptualist. To many, he stands among the torch-bearers in a long line of tenor giants. Lewis is at El Barrio Artspace Apr. 14th, Joe's Pub Apr. 19th with Carl Hancock Rux and Brooklyn Conservatory of Music Apr. 28th.
Encore: BILLY KAYE
By Russ Musto
"A gig is a gig is a gig. That was the expression they used to say," Billy Kaye remembers and at 86 the drummer has had more than his share. Kaye is at Fat Cat Mondays.
Lest We Forget: DON SHIRLEY
By Mark Keresman
Don Shirley, who died six years go this month at 86, was a pianist who strode between the jazz and classical worlds. But in the first half of the 20th century opportunities in the latter sphere for an African-American musician were limited. Shirley established himself as a soloist leading small groups, performing a mélange of classical, jazz, gospel, show tunes and pop music of the day.
Record Label Spotlight: DRIFF
By Eric Wendell
With 16 CD releases and two digital downloads, Driff showcases the adventures of Jorrit Dijkstra and Pandelis Karayorgis and the different endeavors to which their minds are privy. With the label "transatlantic improvised music" serving as the masthead of their carefully curated music, Driff showcases a shared passion for ever-evolving jazz traditions.
CD Reviews
(this month's performance venues in parentheses):
Joshua Redman—Come What May Nonesuch (Blue Note)
Friends & Neighbors—What's Next Clean Feed (Shapeshifter Lab)
Yotam Silberstein—Future Memories Jazz and People (Dizzy's Club)
Chicago Edge Ensemble—Insidious Anthem Trost
The Bridge Sessions 09—Stroboscope Bridge Sessions
The Thing—Again Trost
Paal Nilssen-Love—New Japanese Noise PNL (244 Rehearsal Studios)
Andrew Raffo Dewar/John Hughes/Chad Popple—Reflejo pfMENTUM
Emile Parisien—Double Screening ACT
Paul Rogers/Olaf Rupp/Frank Paul Schubert—Three Stories About Rain Sunlight and the Hidden Soil Relative Pitch
Count Basie Orchestra—All About That Basie Concord (Apollo Theater)
Joe Fiedler—Open Sesame s/r (The Jazz Gallery)
Carlos Henriquez—Dizzy Con Clave (Live From Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola) RodBros Music (Rose Theater)
Carlos Franzetti—Ricordare Sunnyside
Christina Von Bülow—On The Brink of a Lovely Song Storyville
Michael Wolff—Swirl Sunnyside (Knickerbocker Bar & Grill; Birdland Theater)
Keith Oxman—Glimpses Capri
Various Artists—On The Corner Live!: The Music of Miles Davis Ear Up!
Erin McDougald—Outside The Soiree Miles High
Alfredo Rodriguez/Pedrito Martinez—Duologue Mack Avenue (Miller Theater; Rockwood Music Hall)
Michaël Attias—échos la nuit Out of Your Head (Greenwich House Music School)
Anthony Braxton—Quartet (Willisau) 1991 Studio hatOLOGY
Wild Man Conspiracy & Chris Cheek—Live at the Bimhuis Red Piano (Rockwood Music Hall; Halyard's; Smalls)
Ulysses Owens Jr.—Songs of Freedom Resilience Music Alliance (Village Vanguard; Smalls)
Eric Reed—Everybody Gets the Blues Smoke Sessions (Smoke)
Logan Richardson—blues PEOPLE Ropeadope (Harlem Stage Gatehouse)
Harriet Tubman—The Terror End of Beauty Sunnyside
John Marshall—The Saint Petersburg Sessions Organic Music (The 75 Club at Bogardus Mansion; Smalls; Little Branch; The Django at Roxy Hotel)
Randy Brecker/Mats Holmquist with UMO Jazz Orchestra—Together MAMA Foundation (ShapeShifter Lab; Dizzy's Club)
Randy Brecker—Rocks Piloo (ShapeShifter Lab; Dizzy's Club)
Wayne Shorter—Emanon Blue Note
Matt Lavelle/Reggie Sylvester—Retrograde ESP-Disk (Michiko Rehearsal Studios)
Yuval Amihai—I Ain't Got Nothin' But The Blues Fresh Sound-New Talent (Bistro Jules)
Tomeka Reid/Filippo Monico—The Mouser Relative Pitch (Happylucky no.1; The Jazz Gallery)
Stephane Wrembel—The Django Experiment IV Water Is Life (Town Hall; Barbès)
Misha Mengelberg, Peter Brötzmann, Evan Parker, Peter Bennink, Paul Rutherford, Derek Bailey, Han Bennink—Groupcomposing ICP-Corbett vs. Dempsey
Derek Bailey/Evan Parker—The London Concert Incus-OTOROKU
Ralph Alessi—Imaginary Friends ECM (Greenwich House Music School)
Various Artists—Amarcord Nino Rota Hannibal-Corbett vs. Dempsey
Pete McCann—Pay For It On The Other Side McCannic Music (Bar Bayeux; Bar Next Door)
Karin Krog & Georgie Fame—On A Misty Night Odin
Stephan Crump/Ingrid Laubrock/Cory Smythe—Channels Intakt (The Jazz Gallery)
Chad Taylor—Myths and Morals Ears & Eyes (The Stone at The New School)
SFJAZZ Collective—Live: SFJAZZ Center 2017 SFJAZZ (Jazz Standard)
Walter Smith III/Matthew Stevens/Joel Ross/Harish Raghavan/Marcus Gilmore—In Common Whirlwind (Village Vanguard; The Jazz Gallery)
Charles Mingus—Pithecanthropus Erectus Atlantic-Speakers Corner
Willie Nelson—My Way (Willie Nelson Sings Sinatra) Legacy
Gabrielle Stravelli—Pick Up My Pieces (Gabrielle Stravelli Sings Willie Nelson) s/r (Birdland)
Jim Snidero—Waves of Calm Savant (Smalls)
Dezron Douglas—Black Lion Black Lion (Irish Arts Center; Smalls)
Sheila Jordan—Lucky To Be Me Abeat (Local 802; Birdland Theater)
Stephen Riley—Hold 'em Joe SteepleChase (Smalls)
Amu—Weave Libra
Satoko Fujii Orchestra Tokyo—Kikoeru (Tribute to Masaya Kimura) Libra (The Stone at The New School)
Satoko Fujii Orchestra Berlin—Ninety-Nine Years Libra (The Stone at The New School)
THe OGJB Band—Bamako TUM (Roulette)
Duck Baker—Spinning Song Avant-Triple Point
Lucas Gillan's Many Blessings—Chit-Chatting With Herbie JeruJazz
Miho Hazama—Dancer in Nowhere Sunnyside (Jazz Standard)
Ben Paterson—Live at Van Gelder's Cellar Live (The Players Club; Mezzrow)
The Rempis/Daisy Duo & Guests—Dodecahedron Aerophonic (244 Rehearsal Studios)
Dave Rempis/Matt Piet/Tim Daisy—Throw Tomatoes Astral Spirits (244 Rehearsal Studios)
Dave Rempis/Brandon Lopez/Ryan Packard—The Early Bird Gets Aerophonic (244 Rehearsal Studios)
Dale Fielder—Scene From A Dream Clarion Jazz
Jessica Pavone—In The Action Relative Pitch (Brooklyn Conservatory of Music)
Misha Tsiganov—Playing With The Wind Criss Cross (Russian Vodka Room)
Stephen Gauci/Sandy Ewen/Adam Lane/Kevin Shea—Live at the Bushwick Series Gaucimusic (Bushwick Public House)
Barry Guy Blue Shroud Band—Odes and Meditations for Cecil Taylor)/Intensegrity (The Small Formations) Not Two
...and Plenty More!
Look for other sections like In Memoriam, On This Day, In Print, On DVD, VOXNews, NY@Night, Recommended New Releases, Birthdays, and our invaluable Event Calendar.
Thanks so much for reading The New York City Jazz Record, the city's only homegrown gazette devoted to the music.
