George Freeman has been part of jazz for nearly a century. Brother of Von and uncle of Chico Freeman, he's worked with the greats, such as Charlie Parker and Ben Webster. Appearing on the recording is legendary organist Joey DeFrancesco, going into the studio just a couple of months before his untimely death. DeFrancesco admired Freeman's work on a Jimmy McGriff LP so it is quite touching that the two were able to collaborate here. Also featured on 4 tracks is bass phenom Christian McBride stoking up some swinging performances with Freeman. Drummers Lewis Nash and Carl Allen provide propulsive rhythms throughout. It must be said, however, that the pulsing heart of the band is Freeman himself, who plays with integrity and enthusiasm and who continues to bring an impressive lifetime of experience to his work.

Kenny Burrell has appeared on so many essential jazz K recordings that jazz history and his biography seem irretrievably intertwined. He has recorded 97 albums under his own name and several hundred with other artists including Duke Ellington, Herbie Hancock, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Tony Bennett, Billy Holiday, Sonny Rollins, Jimmy Smith, Art Blakey, Nat King Cole, Ray Charles, and Louis Armstrong. On Unlimited 1 Burrell is captured live at the West-Coast jazz mecca, Catalina's, with a well-oiled big band, The Los Angeles Jazz Orchestra Unlimited, which is made up of some of the West Coast's greatest jazz men and studio players. Burrell leads the group, solos and sings through a set list of original tunes, standards and, of course, what would a Kenny Burrell record be without some some Duke Ellington?

HORIZON AHEAD

JOEY D

Few singers have the emotional depth and versatility of Abbey Lincoln. With a voice capable of evoking the joys and pains of life, she has carved a niche as a singer, songwriter, and storyteller for over 40 years. As a singer, she avoided 'grandstanding' and rarely, if ever, improvised; she did, however, wring a lyric for it's emotional content, while bringing a searing, dramatic quality to the musical line.

UNITED

Jazz trumpeter, composer and author Jeremy Pelt has certainly never shied away from themed albums so one might expect something cinematic from the enigmatically-titled Soundtrack. However, as Pelt himself explains, "I've certainly done plenty of concept albums, but in this case there's nothing I'm on a soapbox about. It's been a tough time for all of us, so let's not worry about sending messages for a minute. Here we are, playing some songs and having some fun." Having fun the band may be but along the way they make some compelling jazz weaving a beguiling tapestry of kaleidoscopic colors with Pelt's sultry and communicative trumpet to the fore surrounded by Chien Chien Lu's hypnotic vibraphone and pianist Victor Gould's subtle splashes of the Fender Rhodes. The inclusion of Brittany Anjou on Moog synthesizer and the rarely-heard Mellotron may imply a real electronica aspect present on the recording but, quite to the contrary, Pelt uses them sparingly and incorporates them brilliantly into the group's tonal palette. Their appearance does occasionally bring a certain 70s independent jazz vibe to the proceedings but they far from define the sound of the group. Anne Drummond's silvery flute on two tracks adds yet another dimension to the already wide spectrum of colors on this latest album in the discography of the sometimes surprising but always inspired Jeremy Pelt.

Very few artists stay at the top of their game for their entire career. However, Freddy Cole's velvet unhurried singing style remains every bit as cool and hip as it was when his first record was released in 1964. Pianist John di Martino, bassist Elias Bailey, guitarist Randy Napoleon and drummer Quentin Baxter, are trusted associates of Cole who respond to his inimitable sense of swing with now intuitive assurance. Guest saxophonist Joel Frahm displays a sympathetic style that puts him in league with such earlier illustrious Cole saxophone allies as Houston Person and David "Fathead" Newman. Time has been kind to Freddy Cole, who is currently singing with the vitality and zest of a man half his age. His seasoned voice is as affecting as ever, his understanding of a song's expressive anatomy never more incisive. His unimpeachable artistry, rather than longevity, is what positions him as today's vocal jazz master.

With this, his third outing as a leader on HighNote guitar master Russell Malone returns with his talented quartet, featuring the potent pianism of Rick Germanson, the solid underpinnings of Luke Sellick on bass, and drummer-extraordinaire Willie Jones III. Malone possesses phenomenal technique, a warm luminous tone, an innate sense of swing, and his distinctive chording. The set consists of a wide range of songs including funk, ballads, up-tempo hard bop performances and even a pop tune and a TV theme. Malone varies the instrumental textures and tone colors throughout to reveal his considerable inventive melodic art. This latest recording is further proof that Russell Malone is one of the top guitarists in jazz, here backed by his superb trio of masterful musicians.

Hailed by Newsweek for his pure melodic genius, Harrell is widely recognized as one of the most creative and uncompromising jazz instrumentalists and composers of our time. He is that rare improviser who never resorts to cliche, a talent who seems to have an unlimited reserve of melodic ideas. On ROMAN NIGHTS, Tom Harrell once again exhibits the talent, creativity and touch of genius which led the New York Times, Jazz Times and Entertainment Weekly to unanimously proclaim him "the premier trumpeter of his generation."

The Cedar Walton of 1977-78 was the Cedar Walton of Beyond Mobius, the Pentagon, Firm Roots and Animation. His sympathies at the time ranged from Fusion groups to larger ensembles and leading his own quartet featuring the players on this live recording from the Keystone Korner. The quartet was an acclaimed group who played and toured together regularly from the late 70's into the early 80's. Released here for the first time anywhere, these performances bristle with excitement and electricity and is an important document rescued from oblivion by HighNote Records.

In the course of his career, Tom Harrell has left his mark across a wide range of styles, including propulsive bebop, rhythmic Afro-Cuban jazz, studied classical compositional procedures and soothing smooth jazz. In any Tom Harrell performance or recording you will search in vain for Freudian high-note jabs and dazzling displays of over-heated velocity full of empty technique. There's a remarkable ease and affability to Oak Tree, a recording which features melodies that occasionally sound as inevitable as life itself. And these melodies are played by a quartet which may be one of Harrell's most symbiotic ensembles; the fluency of superb pianist Luis Perdomo sometimes providing extensions and commentary to Harrell's improvisational thoughts, the extremely musical drummer Adam Cruz constantly adjusting both his tone and the intensity of his pulse as each composition dictates and bassist Ugonna Okegwo a secure, steady anchor and superb improviser. As for the leader himself, he favors concise, intense solos where the supremacy of his improvising abilities lies as much in what he chooses to leave unsaid as what he allows to peal out from the bell of his horn. You can write volumes and use any superlatives you like to describe Harrell's playing but, simply put, he is one of those rare figures who has extended the communicative possibilities of the jazz trumpet while establishing himself as one of the art form's most important composers.

Tenor saxophonist Houston Person's playing has a lot in common with an ideally brewed cup of coffee. Both are bold, satisfying, smooth, eye-opening and addictive once experienced. Whether it be during smoldering blues-tinged numbers, up-tempo takes on old favorites, or sultry, late-night balladry, Person never fails to deliver a performance where expressivity reigns supreme. The band is made up of a group from Person's cadre of regular colleagues with guitar great Russell Malone adding his sensitive voicings and swinging rhythms to the mix. The album's title is an homage to the legendary engineer Rudy Van Gelder. Person's first recording as a leader was done at Rudy's fabled Englewood Cliffs studio and they continued their friendship until Van Gelder's passing. But this is a not a backward-looking memorial album. That is not Person's style. Based on his performance schedule and his extensive discography, Houston Person, like his fans, is always looking forward to his next gig.

For his latest HighNote release, Eric Alexander is once again in the Rudy Van Gelder studio with his long-time collaborators Harold Mabern, Joe Farnsworth and Nat Reeves for a program of originals, standards and not-so-standards delivered with the prerequisite imagination and daring that has made Eric Alexander a place among the elite jazzmen of today.

LOVE STORIES

2018 release. The Black Art Jazz Collective's mission statement celebrates African-American cultural and political icons. At the core is a modernism that conjures up the classic bands of Art Blakey and acoustic Miles Davis. But with the contemporary soul-fueled solos and locked-in rhythm the band is more likely to launch into a counterpoint riff or the spacious funk of hip-hop than the svelte lines of a classic walking bass. The Black Art Jazz Collective delivers strong original tunes and purposeful, form-hugging improvisation that keeps things looking forward rather than back. And with trumpeter Jeremy Pelt on ebullient form, and saxophonist Wayne Escoffery's muscularity contrasting with the tenderness of James Burton III's trombone, the focus never becomes diffuse or wavers.

MAKE NOISE

TWOGETHER

In the studio again for HighNote, George Cables takes a lifetime of experience and distills it into an unhackneyed program of originals, standards and not-so-standards that pays tribute to those artists whose talent, personality and in some cases genius have left their indelible marks on George Cables the man and the musician.

Edward Kennedy Ellington was known as "The Duke," a most appropriate and fitting title for the man, the artist, and the musical creator who would become possibly the single most towering figure in all American music. Ellington's legacy is vast, with perhaps a total of 3,000 composed works overall. Here, we're concentrating on Ellington's more familiar song forms performed by the likes of David 'Fathead' Newman, Cedar Walton, Mark Murphy, Houston Person, Eric Reed, Sheila Jordan and others. This anthology, at a midline price, should be on the shelf of anyone who loves the work of "The Duke."

Tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander made his first CD as a bandleader at the age of 25. That was 17 years ago and, oddly enough, you can still sometimes see Alexander described as an "up-and-coming" jazz saxophonist. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth he's fully developed into one of the finest bebop saxophonists in the world and the proof is in this session. With Harold Mabern, Nat Reeves and Joe Farnsworth providing the rhythmic spark, Eric presents an imaginative program recorded by Rudy Van Gelder.

Hearing tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander is one of the great treats in jazz. There are few artists on stage today who combine chops, imagination and technique with a fluidity of ideas as he does. This imposing improviser is reunited here with pianist David Hazeltine and they're joined by another jazz great, the always daring trumpeter Jon Faddis on a couple of the tracks. Add in the swing engendered by bassist John Webber and drummer Joe Farnsworth and you have a formula for excellence, if ever there was one. Alexander produced the session and there is a strong latin feel throughout thanks to the contributions of vibrant percussionist Alex Diaz spurring the band on with a whole trunk load of Latin percussion instruments. In addition to the Sergio Mendes & Brazil '66 title tune, the set-list features a satisfying mix of originals and covers all given the patented Alexander treatment.

NUMBER FIVE

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Limited 180gm vinyl LP pressing. Wallace Roney's music is a tough, taut and intransigent continuation of the arcane forms and structured freedoms of Miles Davis' 1960s quintet. Listeners often associate Roney with Davis, thanks to Roney's work with the jazz legend early in Roney's career. But at this point, Davis' impact on Roney can be considered mostly historic, with Roney's playing larger in scope, firmer in tone and sharper in attack than Davis'. Today, Wallace's set lists feature easy-on-the-ear themes that mask harmonic complexities, while solos are fueled by strong moods and sustained rhythmic drive informed by the spectre of Davis but far from imitating him. With the Grammy-winning composer/pianist Patrice Rushen on hand with guest reedman Gary Bartz and Wallace's sidemen of choice, Ben Solomon, tenor sax, Buster Williams, bass and Lenny White, drums, the musicians deliver a blisteringly accomplished and creative session.