Bman's Blues Report

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Unbridled: The Flying Horse Big Band Meets George Garzone , from The Flying Horse Big Band and it's melodic and fully of power. Opening with John Coltrane 's Giant Steps , George Garzone leads the way on vibrant tenor sax, and a Latin beat with Paul Van Wormer of lead alto, Leon Edge on clarinet, Edmund Quint Johnson V on sax, Fortunato Occhino on sax, Colin Urbina on bari sax and Jeff Rupert  on sax, Alex Kastner, Joshua mercado, Robert Schmidt and Phebe Rich on trumpets, Daniel Tenbusch on piano, HNoah Charles on guitar, Carlos Barreto on bass, Max Terechenok on drums, Daniel Parrish, Samuel Dufresne, Gabe Funk and Benjamin Fuller on trombone. Solid interpretation and cool opener. Hot potato, Chasin' Tail is really moving with Johnson really kicking it on tenor sax. Full horns and kick ass drums by Jamesly Jean-Mary gives a meaty background making this one of my favorites on the release. It Gets Better is ...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, A Message From The Flying Horse Big Band , by The Flying Horse Big Band and it's energetic. Opening with Free For All , the band is off to a hard run featuring Josh Mercado, Adam Zapf, Robert Schmidt, Phebe Rich and Elijah Simmons on trumpet and hard driving James Fortune on drums. Edmond Quint Johnson lays on a nice tenor solo, joined by Paul Van Wormer on lead alto and Micah Silverstein on alto, Steven Grant on tenor and Noah Mosca on bari. Dan Parish, Ralph Rodriguez, Gabe Funk and Ben Fuller on trombone are on brass, Noah Charles lays in a nice guitar solo and Michael Santos on bass and Jack Hoag on piano rounds out the field. Peace is a real nice ballad featuring Mercado on solo trumpet and Parish on trombone. With it's warm melody and rich harmonies, it's certainly my choice track on the release. Johnson belts out a real nice tenor solo and Jamesly Jean-Mary holds down the drum spot. Very nice. Latin fla...

 I just had the opportunity to review the most recent release, Blues and Cubes , from The Jazz Professors , and it's a full helping for straight up jazz. Opening with Blue Lamp , Jeff Rupert on sax and Dan Miller on trumpet share the lead on this first track exploring the work of Picasso. Joined by Per Danielsson on piano, Bobby Koelble on guitar, Marty Morell on percussion and Richard Drexler on bass. Cool opener. On Les Damoiselles D'avignon , Morell sets a tasty drum rhythm and Drexler's aggressive lines really have his bass humming. Danielsson lays out a terrific piano solo, followed by Rupert whose fluid sax work is undeniable. Koelble's fret work avoids the cliché with clean, thoughtful articulation. Very nice.  I really like Charlie Parker's Segment with it's paired trumpet/sax lead and tight yet highly active bottom by Drexler. Rupert's lead sax lines, punctuated by Danielson is really nicely matched with the great trumpet attack by Miller. Excellen...