01/11/08
CONCORD
CANNON RE-LOADED/various: Whew, is it 1991 in here or what? Back in the days of yore when the economy and the record biz both sucked, top call fusion cats huddled around the fire making killer records just to keep their chops up and get out of the house. Looks like the same thing is happening again. It isn’t Cannonball Adderley’s centenary or anything like that, but since he’s gone, and we just lost his side kick Joe Zawinul as well, the remaining cats should get out of the house and tip the cap to the fallen greats. That’s just what Tom Scott, Nancy Wilson, Larry Goldings, Marcus Miller, Steve Gadd and a few other of the killer fusion cats did. This is one of those records that didn’t have to be made, but since some of the original Adderley dates still sound great although a little dated, it’s nice that the new generation know about him with a sound that’s brought forward on all fronts. Everyone shows up in top form and the sound is alive. A very dandy journey thought the past for the well rounded jazzbo.
JAZZ PROMO SERVICES
KEITH MARKS/Foreign Funk: This funky flute man has been around 35 years and it seem safe to say he must have been influenced by Herbie Mann’s pre-disco soul/funk/jazz/pop crossover albums from London Underground to Turtle Bay when Mann’s funky flute made cover tunes alright. Marks is known for playing high profile gigs where the listeners still want you to be a human jukebox even if the gigs are tonier than bar mitzvahs. He covers the familiar, but like Mann, he adds his own special sauce to the mix so the celebrants have to do more than politely applaud at the end of the song. Simply a solid entertainer, he’s here to save our ears from dolts playing jazzish muzak.
(Markai)
ROCK PAPER SCISSORS
DEEPAK RAM/Steps: Hey, talk about your world jazz date in the spirit of John McLaughlin’s Shakti, this is the place for the next wave to start. An Indian South African playing jazz on indigenous instruments, Ram does a fine job of really kicking it. Giving world beat a real kick in the pants, the cat that loves his work brings something totally new to Coltrane, and the vibes flow from there. If you’ve dug anything from Paul Horn to Mickey Hart and their world beat excursions, you’re sure to really get down with this set. Hot stuff.
(Golden Horn)
Volume 31/Number 72
January 11, 2008
MIDWEST RECORD
830 W. Route 22 #144
Lake Zurich, IL., 60047
CHRIS SPECTOR, Editor and Publisher
©2008 Midwest Record