Louis Hayes' music is full of life and humanity. It is sometimes refreshingly simple and sometimes intricately complex, sometimes light, sometimes dark, but it is always interesting and consistently engaging. Through it all, Louis Hayes has always remained indefatigably optimistic and his latest Savant release is all those things. Throughout the album Hayes, a 2023 NEA Jazz Master, coaxes concise, well-conceived tracks from his players where everybody swings with loads of feeling, and no self-indulgence. From the first note to the last, Hayes creates performances that take veteran jazz listeners into deep jazz waters while at the same time allowing recent converts to safely wade into the invigorating flow of ideas.

In the grand tradition of jazz piano trio records, Lafayette Harris returns to the Van Gelder studios for this release covering a wide spectrum of tunes by composers ranging from Hoagy Carmichael to Stevie Wonder. Harris' sympathies have always been all-inclusive, developed during his stints with Max Roach, Ernestine Anderson and others. His playing keeps one foot rooted in the rich history of jazz piano and the other is knee-deep in contemporary and modern jazz resulting in an album of memorable renditions with subtle colors and elegant nuances. You need a first-rate rhythm section for a trio recording and bassist Kenny Washington and drummer Lewis Nash bring the insight that only their decades of experience can give. The album also boasts the participation of saxophonist Houston Person, this time in the producer's chair. If tasteful, effortless piano playing is to your liking, then you will certainly find great pleasure in the joy, humor and exuberance of Lafayette Harris Jr.

FAR FAR AWAY is a sonic powerhouse, leveraging every aspect of this magnificent, all-star quintet. Kurt Rosenwinkel's searing, innovative playing is on full display, Jim Snidero demonstrates a broadsword of a sound, and the rhythm section of Orrin Evans, Peter Washington and Joe Farnsworth groove and interact at the highest levels of artistry. Building on the 5-star success (Down beat Magazine) of LIVE AT THE DEER HEAD INN, which included Evans, Washington and Farnsworth, Snidero adds fuel to the fire with the addition of Rosenwinkel's highly influential guitar style. The result is an inspired performance bursting at the seams with musicality and drive. Jim Snidero's six originals create the perfect mix of current trends and tradition. Swing, Latin, and Euro grooves are all represented, yet the album is surprisingly cohesive, flowing from one tune to the next. The classics "It Might as Well be Spring" and McCoy Tyner's deeply relevant "Search for Peace" round out this amazing release.

The Alan Broadbent Trio's previous Savant release, New York Notes (SCD 2166), received rave reviews in the international press. The Guardian (UK) wrote, "The bubbling stream of notes is both unpredictable and inevitable, and following it's twists and turns is a joy." Couleurs Jazz (France) proclaimed, "Behold! A precious gem of a jazz recording." "Trio in Motion" finds Broadbent, Billy Mintz and Harvie S reunited in the pianist's New York apartment-studio recording music that is spontaneous, surprising, possessing a sly humor and emotionally involving. Broadbent received two Grammy awards and has collaborated with Natalie Cole (Unforgettable), Herbie Hancock, Sonny Rollins, Diana Krall and Paul McCartney. Each tune on the setlist is imbued with a warm intimacy and the refreshing, slightly piquant glow of intensity which warms both the listener's heart and mind.

I always knew Richie was a great producer of films. When I got to sing some jazz numbers with him and his group I learned something else. The man is a fantastic jazz drummer and an incredible Latin Jazz musician. Enjoy this great music! - Joe Pesci

Ray Mantilla was one of the true conga giants during the 1950s, 60s and 70s recording hundreds of album sessions and pioneering the use of unique combinations of latin percussion instruments. Among his most famous collaborations were with Charles Mingus, Herbie Mann and Max Roach. In 1977, Mantilla was selected by the great jazz ambassador Dizzy Gillespie to accompany him to Cuba as the first US band to visit the island since the travel embargo of 1962. Their joint concerts with Cuba's indigenous bands made musical and political history. For REBIRTH, Mantilla surrounded himself with his long-time colleagues Edy Martinez, Ivan Renta, Guido Gonzalez, Diego Lopez and others, once again proving that the music he made came from his heart as well as from his lifetime of experience. Ray Mantilla was very insistent on titling this recording REBIRTH. After a long illness the irrepressible Ray Mantilla passed away a few short months after completing the sessions for this CD. The music contained here is a fitting tribute to the man and the musician beloved by so many.

Classical Music

Of JD Allen, Giovanni Russonello in The New York Times said, "Mr. Allen has become one of today's most exciting tenor saxophonists not by trying to spotlight his own virtuosity... but by defining a new way of playing in a group." Allen's current release, "Toys / Die Dreaming," is his 14th as a leader and builds on his already rich recorded legacy. His compositions exhibit his philosophy of providing short melodies as the basis of both solo and group improvisation; "Get in and get out," as Allen likes to say. This gives his music a remarkable ever-transforming feel, as if the improvisation was actually part of the composition itself. To bring his music to life, Allen requires players of the utmost talent and creativity and he has certainly found them in bassist, Ian Kenselaar and drummer, Nic Cacioppo. "I found the bad boys of this generation, as far as I'm concerned," says Allen, "guys who are not afraid to dip their toe in the avant-garde a little bit, and then turn around and play the tradition." But tradition to Allen is a development, an unending arc of creativity which begins at the dawn of jazz and to which he is the latest contributor to the music's evolution.

Unfortunately it's not very often that we get to hear Mike LeDonne, world-renowned Hammond B-3 organist and leader of the acclaimed Groover Quartet, fronting a piano trio session-especially one that unfolds in as swinging, soulful and intuitive fashion. But given the caliber of artists involved, this won't come as a surprise since on this CD LeDonne works two of his closest and most accomplished friends: bassist Christian McBride and drummer Lewis Nash. It's no coincidence, then, that this unprecedented studio alliance sparks instant chemistry and conviviality. With a stack of new arrangements under his arm, LeDonne and company made the trek across the Hudson to the famed Van Gelder Studio and emerged with an album remarkable for it's spontaneity, creativity and sheer joy in the act of making music.

2019 release from the jazz tenor saxophonist. "I've been fortunate to have performed with so many wonderful musicians in the past but I live in the present and it hasn't stopped. I certainly enjoy what I'm doing these days." The consistently intriguing Seven Rays is yet another accomplishment in Jerry Bergonzi's productive and significant career. It finds the great the saxophonist reveling in jagged, tightly coiled phrases and steeped in remote harmonic progressions. His angular riffs, unexpected silences and big, barreling low pitches continue to underline how personal Bergonzi's approach to jazz is. Yet the charismatic nature of his delivery and the steely brilliance of his tone proves so compelling that his art speaks eloquently to both the esoteric theoreticians and the most casual of listeners.

If you trace the path of alto saxophonist Jim Snidero's varied output for Savant, you'll note transitions with regard to instrumentation and personnel: from organ combo to quartets with guitar or piano, to the animated quintet music of tributes to Miles (MD66) and Cannonball Adderley (Jubilation!). With Waves of Calm, the veteran altoist enters a period of zeroing in on the essentials. As the saxophonist himself says, "I find myself editing more and more. I've been playing saxophone for a long time, and could easily play a lot more notes...[but now] you're just looking for the right note at the right moment, searching for that one perfect thing." With trumpeter Jeremy Pelt on half the tracks, piano phenom Orrin Evans at the Steinway & the Rhodes and Nat Reeves and Jonathan Barber completing the rhythm section, it would Jim Snidero has indeed found that"perfect thing."

Mike LeDonne belongs to an elite group of musicians - those who have mastered the piano AND the organ while creating original voices for each. However, here on It's all Your Fault, LeDonne sits down at the organ, puts his foot on the pedals and lays down some of the hippest organ licks you're likely to hear. Two groups are featured on this recording. Mike LeDonne's Groover Quartet has had the rare opportunity to play and record together for twenty years and counting. They had no difficulty integrating their sound into this all-star big band put together by Mike and his preferred arranger and conductor, Dennis Mackrel. Recorded in the famed Van Gelder studio and actually using the original Hammond C-3 organ that Jimmy Smith et al. Used to record the music within this recording is adventurous. It's a continuation of the groove that was established years ago by organists interacting with big bands and it reveals to us the Blues, the Rhythm & Blues and the Jazz that Mike heard coming up through the jazz ranks.

The deftly titled Hand Painted Dream is the culmination of guitarist / arranger / leader Peter Hand's work with some of the best musicians anywhere and whose collective efforts have produced an extraordinary testament to the best in modern big band music. With the supremely talented Camille Thurman contributing a track each on saxophone and vocals, the ensemble can easily be considered an "all-star" group, with trumpeters Eddie Allen & Valery Ponomarev, saxophonists, Don Braden, Bruce Williams, trombonist James Burton III and a dream rhythm section of James Weidman, Harvie S, Steve Johns and Hand himself. The resulting band is at once bold & beautiful, swinging & suave while consistently playing the imaginative arrangements with extraordinarily nuanced musicianship.

Sisterhoods have been steadily moving toward the forefront of the jazz scene. Elevated by purpose and promise, and upholding the virtues of equality and community, these sororities have become a substantial force in the music today. Monika Herzig, a thoughtful composer and inventive pianist, has become a key figure in the movement toward enlightenment. To take the message into the studio and out on the road, Herzig has assembled an all-star band of greats - "Sheroes" as she likes to call them - who selflessly work together in presenting a judicious blend of covers and originals. Leni Stern's guitar helps to frame each song in the proper light; cellist Akua Dixon adds varicolored hues in her appearances; bassist Jennifer Vincent and drummer Rosa Avila (along with guest percussionist Mayra Casales) form a flexible unit capable of buttressing with strength and sensitivity; Lakecia Benjamin's alto shines in it's flights; while the flute-trombone partnership of Jamie Baum and Reut Regev proves to be a match made in heaven. With Herzig's pen and piano serving as the ties that bind, this declaration of unity truly delivers. All hail the conquering Sheroes.

A fount of harmonic ingenuity, melodic integrity, and rhythmic authority, Jerry Bergonzi has long been a standard-bearer of sorts for the jazz community. A prolific composer prone to taking deep dives that put serious theory into profound practice, his discography is filled with smart and imaginative originals that twist and turn in unexpected fashion. But a passion for standard gems of yesteryear, the lingua franca of jazz, also fires his creative impulses and figures into his work. In fact, the tried-and-true classics serve as a source of limitless potential for his horn. This follow-up to his Spotlight on Standards session once again features Bergonzi's slightly off-center take on the tenor-organ-drums trio format while the songs on this set list function as both reminders about Bergonzi's eminence in the jazz world and love letters from the man to the music. "I just adore the melodies of these tunes. I love standards. People always tell me, 'Man, you've got to make more records like this,'" Bergonzi says, "and I'm happy to oblige. I'm just delighted that Savant is totally behind me and this music."