Original music from guitarist/composer Jaiman Crunk is provided on Encounters, a large scale production recorded over nearly a two-year period. Crunk?s arrangements of his own music utilize both larger ensembles of over twenty musicians and smaller groups of from two to six performers. The larger group, made up of rhythm section plus brass, winds, and strings, is heard on ?Spuren,? ?Beneath a Leaf,? and ?Let Me Slip Into Your Dreams Tonight,?... read more
The title delivers what it promises: a generous portion of groove that hits you from the very first bar. Indeed, Ben Patterson's search for the perfect groove was his goal when producing the album: "What is groove?" asks the bandleader in the description, and immediately offers a suggested answer: "Groove is essentially a study, a discipline, and an art that transcends style. It's a way of communicating..." Patterson is inspired by genres such... read more
I don't know the reason for the delay regarding the release of this new record by Amit Friedman , Unconditional Love.Finished recording in the summer of 2018, perhaps due to the pandemic hitch that also hit Israel hard, Friedman's third titular job is only now being released almost three years after its completion. Rightly celebrated in his homeland, less known beyond the borders, Friedman leads his sax, especially the tenor, towards a brilliant... read more
★★★★
Trumpeter Cuong Vu moved back to his native Seattle in 2006 to teach, but five years later he's still working with the members of his long-running New York trio, drummer Ted Poor and electric bassist Stomu Takeishi. But on Leaps Of Faith, a gorgeous live recording made in Seattle in April 2010, he brings in second electric bassist Luke Bergman?a former University of Washington student of his who's now a regular... read more
There's more to guitarist Corey Christiansen's third outing as a leader than can be revealed in a cursory listen. There's funk in "When You Want," a hip shuffle in the Grant Green-meets-Jimmy Smith mode; there's easygoing romanticism in "Down Time," a samba in which Christiansen explores deep sonorities as saxophonist David Halliday updates the broad-shouldered Chicago tenor style; there's oddball angularity in the title track, a jaunty workout... read more
ECM Records has been noted for its "Nordic Cool," school, from its many recordings of Scandinavian artists, with pianist Tord Gustavsen coming most readily to mind. Seattle's Origin Records has what can be called its "Northwest U.S. Cool" with recordings from bassist Jeff Johnson, saxophonist Hans Teuber , and the collective trio Scenes, with guitarist John Stowell, drummer John Bishop and, again, Jeff Johnson on bass.
Scenes' eponymous... read more
Former Chicago bassist Lorin Cohen has a new disc out from Origin Records called Home. First off, props to Cohen for some really outstanding arranging on this album. Cohen has created really nice "sonic palates" for his musicians to work with. And Cohen didn't take the easy way out, instrumentally speaking, either. Throughout Home, you'll hear steel pans, harmonica and vibes, along with the usual Jazz rhythm section of piano, bass and drums.... read more
4 1/2 STARS It's amazing what can happen when you take a tight-knit, deep-dish duo reflective of Chicago's jazz riches, add one of the world's most dexterous and expressive vibraphonists, and sweeten the deal with a grooving up-and-comer. Charts are mapped over uncharted territories, musical assuredness carries the day in uncertain realms, and surprises await around every well-constructed corner. This is not-so-simply a beautiful case of... read more
This is just a small collection of the Origin Records reviews. Click here to view all reviews or try to Search for your favorite CD title.
Abate Berihun & The Addis Ken Project - Addis Ken
by Hanna Kay, Cult News (Paris)
Abate Berihun & The Addis Ken Project - Addis Ken
by Budapest, Rudolf Radnai
Abate Berihun & The Addis Ken Project - Addis Ken
by Editor, Bman's Blues Report
Jared Hall - Hometown
by Editor, Bman's Blues Report
Dawn Clement - Dear Ms. Dearie
by Editor, Bman's Blues Report
Jared Hall - Hometown
by Dee Dee McNeil, Making A Scene
Affinity Trio - New Outlook
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
Michael Dease Big Band - Return Trajectory
by Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move
Brad Goode Quintet Feat. Ernie Watts - Live Your Dream: Live at North Street Cabaret
by Thierry De Clemensat, Paris Move
Maja Jaku - Blessed & Bewitched
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect