North
American singer/songwriter and guitarist Sally Station created Xumapaz
as a melting pot for her own musical experiences and those of the
musicians she has collaborated with in the US, Colombia, France and the
UK. The resulting “global soul” is peppered with performances by a
wonderfully eclectic group of musicians who wrap Station’s words and
music in deliciously diverse grooves to sweetly penetrate the hearts and
souls of listeners.The sparse solo and acoustic trio performances
on UK-produced 6 Outta Sunderland were captured while Sally was writing
and performing between Paris and London and the stateside recording
Chicago Reel is a celebration of Sally’s return to the US after more
than 10 years abroad. The songs on the latest CD, Xumapaz, recorded in
Colombia where Sally has lived off and on since she was 16, feature
Afro-Latin rhythms laid down by renowned Colombian percussionist and
perennial Xumapaz collaborator Luis Pacheco and guest pianist/arranger
Michel Haase. Other veteranos del sabor invited to the party include
Cuban bassist Diego Valdés, Colombian vibraphonist Jorge Emilio Fadul
and American jazz pianist Eugene Uman. The thread running through all
of these productions, however, are the warm and direct lead vocals –
whether in English, Spanish or French, and Sally’s unique and undeniably
feminine point of view.Xumapaz has performed at the Jazz al Parque
and Rock al Parque festivals in Colombia, at Miles of Music and Summer
Fest in Chicago, at Glastonbury and the Fringe festivals in the UK and
Printemps de Bourgs and l’Estival in France, as a 10-piece super-group
and in solo and acoustic trio formations allowing for more intimate
contact with the audience. XUMAPAZ
Doug has been crafting his songwriting skills since the late 60's. Many bands and recordings later, 2013 saw the release of his 3rd solo effort, Blues in the Key of Sea. This new release features Billy Payne from Little Feat. This CD features what has become the core band, with special guests, including Mike Wesolowski (Blues World Order) on blues harp, Danny Gotham on mandolin, Johnny Gallagher (Ireland) on electric guitars, and Tony Bowman on keys (Edgar Winter Band) as well as engineering/co-production. Tom Maxwell (Squirrel Nut Zippers) also contributes on production. The 11 songs on this release are all over the map stylistically, yet form a cohesive Blues/Rock/Americana blend, with truth and heart at the core. One of the common threads throughout Doug's recordings have been his musical connection with Tommy Hartley, a guitar virtuoso who permeates the music. DOUG PRESCOTT BAND
Open Road is a band comprised entirely of lead singers, strong
instrumentalists, daring soloists, and creative entertainers. Drummer
Paul Pierce and saxophonist Kenneth Rice began working together in San
Diego. As Motown, Soul and R&B performers, Kenny and Paul began the
journey which has become Open Road.The addition of San Clemente Guitarist Buddy Mercer, son of Vaudevillian
Bud Mercer, added an important element to Open Road; the ability to
switch musical gears in an instant from soulful blues ballads to high
energy rock and roll classics to George Benson-flavored jazz hitsHolding down the bottom on bass guitar is Tony Isabel. With his funky
bass lines, clean, clear vocals and powerful stage presence “Anthony
Wayne” is the driving force behind the grooves that have become
signature Open Road favorites. Their second guitarist, Tommy Matranga, rounds out Open Road. Tommy
grew up in the Pomona, California area and worked with the likes of
Tommy Lee and Vince Neil of Motley Crue before directing his attention
to his own original music projects. OPEN ROAD THE BAND
Although Meshell Ndegeocello scored a few hits early in her career, the
bassist, singer, and songwriter later opted to concentrate on more
challenging material by exploring the politics of race and sex, among
other topics. From her 1993 Maverick label debut through her releases of
the 2010s for Naïve, she built a discography of recordings that defied
classification through progressive mixtures of jazz, R&B, hip-hop,
and rock. Initially held in regard primarily for her bass playing and
bold lyrics, her songwriting, which often examined dark interpersonal
issues, was just as exceptional.Michelle Lynn Johnson, born on August 29, 1968, spent the first few
years of her life in Germany. Her father was both a military man and a
jazz saxophonist. She relocated with her family to Virginia in the early
'70s. As a youngster, Johnson developed an interest in music; during
her teenage years, she began to play regularly in the clubs of
Washington, D.C., but eventually settled down in New York City after a
stint of studying music at Howard University. By this point, she was
going by Me'Shell NdegéOcello — her adopted last name Swahili for "free
like a bird." After auditioning for several bands, including Living
Colour, NdegéOcello struck out on her own and often performed solo with
just a bass, drum machine, and keyboard. In the early '90s, she was one
of the first artists signed to Madonna's Warner-affiliated Maverick
label.NdegéOcello's debut album, 1993's Plantation Lullabies, was produced
with David Gamson, as well as with André Betts and Bob Power, and
involved input from a wide range of musicians, including DJ Premier,
Joshua Redman, Bill Summers, Wah-Wah Watson, and David Fiuczynski. An
impressive first album, it spawned the hit "If That's Your Boyfriend (He
Wasn't Last Night)" and received three Grammy nominations. A duet with
John Mellencamp on a cover of Van Morrison's "Wild Night," released a
year later, brought her more mainstream attention; it peaked at number
three on the Billboard Hot 100. MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO
Philip Maurice started his musical journey early in life, being taught
to sing by his mother when he was four years old. He later developed a
love for percussion, and eventually played in a jazz quintet at 13 years
of age.
By the time Philip entered college, his musical taste and desire
shifted towards contemporary jazz and classical music. Philip also
discovered that the acoustic piano made a statement in the pieces that
won his heart. He soon experienced a transformation causing his ear to
be tuned to a menagerie of ideas, styles, and compositions.
Philip Maurice believes making "Life Music" is one of the purposes
for his life on the earth. Many have described the musical renditions of
Philip Maurice as soothing, stress-relieving, atmosphere- changing
experiences. These musical experiences are carefully crafted and
designed to take you on a journey of relaxation. Many have commented
that they are the perfect companion for driving! PHILIP MAURICE
Multi - faceted performer Holly Burke is "an orginal voice and she makes
the flute shout and weep" Gabriel Hasselbach #1 Smooth Jazz Award
Winner 2011. Holly Burke has a Bachelor's Degree in Music and Theatre
and a teaching credential from Cambridge University. Holly's credits
include an International Broadcast Award from the Hollywood Radio and
Television Society. She has performed on CBC TV and radio, NPR, CITR
and at the San Diego Jazz Festival and the Vancouver Du Maurier Jazz
Festival. She has many VO and TV credits including Special Unit 2, Cold
Squad V1, The Dead Zone, and It's a Girl Thing, with Mia Farrow. Holly
has recorded on over twenty five projects including working with Terry
and Scott Jacks, Linton Garner and Clark Burroughs. Holly has recently
released her own CD "Nature Girl" which was conceived during a 6 month
sojurn in the Costa Rican rainforest where she gained a new appreciation
for nature and all its wonders. Holly & her band The Naturals bring
depth, wonder and fireworks to every performance. Don’t be surprised if
you find yourself singing and dancing.
HOLLY BURKE
Keepin’ It Going is Ken Husbands’ third release as a leader and the
second with this group, featuring Aaron Germain on bass and Otto Huber
on drums. It moves fluidly from the funk inflected opening track to the
fast samba of the closer, passing through swing, odd metered grooves,
African influences and out-and-out fusion on the way. This group has
been working together in the San Francisco Bay area for several years
and they have developed a cohesive ensemble approach. The original
compositions are formally rigorous while leaving room for each of the
musicians to display team-oriented virtuosity. Contemporary influences
such as John Scofield and Wayne Krantz can be heard in Husbands’ guitar
playing, and the title track evokes the world fusion of Weather Report,
but this trio has its own sound and compositional approach that
incorporates a wide range of musical styles, integrating odd time
signatures and complex harmonies seamlessly into energetic grooves. KEN HUSBANDS
Nat Birchall is one of the UK’s most special musicians, a spiritual,
soulful saxophonist who has drunk deeply from the endless well that is
the music of John Coltrane. A modest man, Birchall is happy out of the
limelight but nonetheless has found international acclaim for a series
of fine albums on Matthew Halsall’s Gondwana label as well as more
recently his own Sound Soul and Spirit imprint. This,
his sixth album, is his first ever live recording and is released on
vinyl and download only. A decision Birchall took on listening to the
tapes and thinking the music really suited the warmth of vinyl. It
features the core band from his last recording World Without Form:
pianist Adam Fairhall, vibist Corey Mwamba, bassist Nick Blacka (GoGo
Penguin) and drummer Paul Hession. They all bring something to the music
as Birchall explains: “Adam has been in the band since the beginning
and he's there because he understands the music and plays with
conviction. Corey is in the band because of his unique approach to
playing, it doesn't actually matter that he plays vibes. I asked him to
play because of his playing, not his instrument. He is a free spirit but
knows when to play and when not to play. Nick is a great bassist who
has a great ability to improvise strong melodic lines within his
accompaniment, which is actually pretty rare. Paul is a very great
drummer who can play seamlessly throughout a piece if it goes from
"time" to free tempo and back again, and makes it sound natural”. The
recording came about when Birchall played two nights at the Duende Jazz
Bar in Larissa, Greece in May 2013 – where, despite the tiny stage, the
warm welcome and overwhelmingly positive reaction to the music inspired
the band to reach deep within themselves for two nights of truly
inspired music. Thankfully the tapes were rolling and despite the tiny
stage and proximity of the mics (a nightmare for mixing) the music was
really happening. As Birchall recalls: “There was such a positive
atmosphere at the gigs, with people so obviously coming to hear the
music with open arms ( and ears ) that we felt very blessed to be on
stage. I think the record documents how the band sounds on a given
night, with original songs, and one or two by other people, played in an
extended way. With everyone able to stretch out and play as long as they like”. NAT BIRCHALL QUINTET
Beat Funktion was born in 2007 in the Swedish town of Uppsala, just
north of Stockholm, as a temporary five-piece constellation for a number
of spontaneous club gigs where traditional jazz music was needed for a
young dancing audience. To shape the band's repertoire of old jazz
standards, pianist Daniel Lantz took the liberty of borrowing
inspiration from musicians and bands within groove-based genres in the
70s and late 60s, such as James Brown, Bob James, Eumir Deodato, Herbie
Hancock, Roy Ayers, Fela Kuti, Curtis Mayfield, Lonnie Liston Smith,
Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis, Cannonball Adderley and others, not to
mention film music by composers like Lalo Schifrin and Bill Conti. This
resulted in a series of original arrangements of jazz standards
tailor-made for the band, which utilized the stable, dance-friendly and
lush-sounding framework of pumping disco funk and R&B paired with
the rhythmic and harmonic freedom of jazz improvisation. It became an
immediate success with audiences, and accordingly, the very special
jazz-funk sound of the band was born.After a number of overwhelmingly successful performances, enjoyed by
listeners as well as dancers, the band became a permanent working unit
and since 2008 it is an impressive six-piece-band consisting of Karl
Olandersson on the trumpet, Olle Thunström on the tenor sax, Johan Öijen
on the electric guitar, Daniel Lantz on the Fender Rhodes, Pal Johnson
on the electric bass and Jon Eriksson on the drums. Although keeping a
few classic funk cover tunes as part of the repertoire, pianist Daniel
Lantz nowadays provides the band with new, groovy original music in the
vintage 70s vein. Additional musicians like percussionists and vocalists
occasionally join the band for more powerful live performances.In the autumn of 2010, Beat Funktion released their debut-album THE
PLUNGE for Do Music Records, a production that has culled takes together
from multiple previous studio and live recordings to form a whole. On
the album, the sound of the band is enhanced with percussion, live
acoustic strings, vocals and Moog synthesizers. It features a majority
of Lantz' own compositions, plus a funk version of George Gershwin's
classic jazz standard ”Summertime”. The disc has received praise
worldwide with agents and reviewers of jazz, funk, soul and rare
grooves, not to mention DJs. The band is currently scheduling their fourth album, MANDY'S SECRET, to
be released in August of 2014, which will be co-produced by Daniel Lantz
and pianist and producer Mats Björke from famed rock band Mando Diao. BEAT FUNKTION
