Quickie

NEW RELEASE – THE GABRIEL MERVINE QUARTET

The Gabriel Mervine Quartet consists of trumpeter Gabriel Mervine, guitarist Alex Heffron, organist Tom Amend and drummer Alejandro Castano. The Denver-based soul jazz outfit released their new single Quickie on Color Red on August 27.

Quickie is unadulterated boogaloo jazz, modern but strongly rooted in the classic organ and soul jazz format of the mid/late sixties, particularly the commercial Blue Note affairs of Lou Donaldson, Lee Morgan et. al. It’s a catchy, clever melody and arrangement and a strong effort with vigorous statements by all four members.

I love the way Mervine, accomplished trumpeter who cooperated with Terenche Blanchard, Christian McBride, Maceo Parker, Houston Person and was part of funk outfit The Motet, glides over the funky backbeat, a greasy slur here, a surprising backflip of high notes there. Mervine displays a rewarding, balanced vitality.

Color Red confirmed the release of new tracks by the band in the near-future.

The Gabriel Mervine Quartet

Gabriel Marvin Quartet - Quickie

Find Quickie on the Color Red label here.

Scone Cash Players As The Screw Turns (Flamingo Time 2019)

NEW RELEASE – SCONE CASH PLAYERS

Organist Adam Scone guarantees hot, dynamic and hi-level funk and soul jazz.

Scone Cash Players - As The Screw Turns

Personnel

Adam Scone (organ), Dave Guy (trumpet), Ian Hendrickson-Smith (tenor saxophone), Alex Chakour (guitar), Caito Sanchez (drums), Naomi Shelton (vocals #3), Jason Joshua (vocals #2, 5 & 6), John Dokes (vocals #7)

Recorded

in 2015 at Galaxy Smith Studio, New York City

Released

as Flamingo Time 105 in 2019

Track listing

As The Screw Turns
Bokum Hi
My House Is Small (But I Dream Big)
Dr. Red Teeth
The Opportunist
Canned Champagne
They Say It’s Christmas Time
Smoke And Nails
Brass Tacks
The Crown Divide


Adam Scone came up in the late 90s and has been much in demand since. He played with Lou Donaldson, George Braith, Ben Dixon, Melvin Sparks, Lee Fields, Charles Bradley and Naomi Shelton. A specialist of gritty organ grooves, Scone assisted the front-running funk jazz outfit Sugerman Three as well as Hot Pants, The Macktet and J.J. Grey & Mofro.

Scone released five albums, partly under the monicker Scone Cash Players. His latest offering (also on wax) involves a sly funk groove with myriad treats: fantastic vocal cameos by singers Naomi Shelton, Jason Joshua and John Dokes, meaty and sharp arrangements and, foremost, the no-holds-barred organ playing of Adam Scone, who possesses the trance-inducing storytelling ability that we’ve come to appreciate so much in masters like Lonnie Smith and the late Charles Earland. Furthermore, Scone tastefully carries a song with different tonal directions and various degrees of tension and release.

Care to produce a neo-blaxploitation flic? Here’s your soundtrack. That’s an obvious reference. But to be sure, the calibre of musicianship on the best of the classic blaxploit albums couldn’t be overestimated. Bokum Hi, featuring the raw gutbucket voice of Jason Joshua, is the heaviest of the album’s JB’s-type grooves. They Say It’s Christmas Time may be out of season but John Dokes delivers it with zest and sophistication, the lyrics about Brooklyn are in sync with the album’s New York City vibe. Scone vehemently stamps his layered, percussive mark on the boogaloo-ish Brass Tacks. The Q&A between Scone and saxophonist Ian Hendrickson-Smith during the show stopping ballad The Crown Divide is deft and charming.

Then there’s the deep soul of My House Is Small (But I Dream Big), a melancholy song of hard-won hope and togetherness, with the brittle and sagacious voice of Naomi Shelton drifting through the cracks of the back room. If the song is a carriage, the organ of Adam Scone is the horse pulling it to its destination. On the dirty side of the street.

Scone Cash Players

Find As The Screw Turns here.

Check out Scone Cash Players featuring Naomi Shelton with My House Is Small (But I Dream Big) on YouTube here.

Sal Nistico

SPOTLIGHT ON SAL NISTICO –

In the early sixties the line-up of The Herd, Woody Herman’s big band that had spawned such groundbreaking editions as the First Herd with Bill Harris, Pete Candoli and Flip Philips and The Second Herd with the famous Four Brothers section of Zoot Sims, Herbie Steward, Serge Chaloff and Stan Getz, was one of the most exciting to date. It included trumpeter Bill Chase, trombonist Phil Wilson and drummer Jake Hanna. As well as a thickset fellow from Italian ancestry who regularly jumped off the blocks to deliver a hot explosive story. That was Sal Nistico.

See some of Nistico’s lively playing on The Herd’s rendition of Horace Silver’s Sister Sadie on YouTube here.

Nistico was an outstanding straightforward tenor saxophonist who was born in Syracuse, New York on April 2, 1941. He played in the Jazz Brothers band of Chuck and Gap Mangione from 1959 to 1961 and came into prominence in the big band of Woody Herman. He was part of The Herd from 1962 to 1965 and would have regular stints with the bandleader throughout his career. Nistico also played and recorded with Count Basie, Buddy Rich, Curtis Fuller, Dusko Goykovich, Stan Tracey and Chet Baker, spending a big part of his career in Europe.

Fiery in the big band context, Nistico had no shortage of fire as a leader of small group dates, yet leaned towards a more balanced, bop-oriented approach, most likely the environment he enjoyed most. With his strong tone, fluency and slightly-behind-the-beat timing, Nistico fronted straight ahead groups on records with Nat Adderley, Barry Harris, Benny Bailey, Roy Haynes, Frank Strazzeri and Hod ‘O Brien.

From left to right: Heavyweights, Jazzland 1962; Neo/Nistico, Beehive 1978; Hod ‘O Brien & Sal Nistico, Live In The Netherlands, Porgy & Bess, Terneuzen 1986, HodStef Music 2017

Nistico sheds a light on his approach and feelings about modern jazz in a conversation with English saxophonist Tubby Hayes that was published in Cresendo Magazine’s Anglo-American Exchange in 1966 by Les Tompkins. See here.

Tubby Hayes: “there seem to be a lot of younger musicians here (in New York, FM) who are trying to be different for the sake of being different, without actually knowing the roots.”

Sal Nistico: “It’s like — I talked to Coltrane. He used to dig Arnette Cobb, Illinois Jacquet. Those guys have a firm foundation for what they’re doing. A lot of cats put down bebop, and they say it’s old and it’s dated, but that music’s not easy — it’s a challenge to play.”

Nistico was married to singer Rachel Gould. One of five children, their daughter Miriam – theatre maker and musician – shares memories of her background and artistic goals here.

She says: “Sal (…) looked like a gladiator, with a stocky Southern Italian physique, thick curly black hair and a crumpled forehead. People judge books by their covers and most people assumed that Sal was a man with a thick skin, a tough guy. In fact, as is so often the case, he was incredibly sensitive. He had a child’s hatred of cruelty and injustice (…) and he struggled with the machismo and bravado of men on tour.”

Sal Nistico passed away on March 3, 1991 in Bern, Switzerland.

New West Quartet East & West (Fresh Sound New Talent)

NEW RELEASE – NEW WEST QUARTET

Quirky rhythm is the business of the New West Quartet.

New West Quartet - East & West

Personnel

John Gunther (tenor saxophone), Ricardo Pinheiro (guitar), Mike del Ferro (piano on 1, 3, 5, 7 & 8), Massimo Cavalli (bass), Bruno Pedroso (drums)

Recorded

on June 8, 2017 at Estúdio Vale de Lobos in Lisbon, Portugal

Released

as FSNT 576 in 2019

Track listing

Bye-Ya
The New West
Pó Dos Dias
Boulder Blues
Don’t Forget Ornette
Moment’s Notice
Que Falta
Poka Blues


The New West Quartet consists of tenor saxophonist John Gunther, guitarist Ricardo Pinheiro, bassist Massimo Cavalli and drummer Bruno Pedroso, featuring pianist Mike del Ferro on a number of tracks. Pinheiro and Pedroso are from Portugal, Cavalli from Italy. They met the American saxophonist and woodwind player Gunther in 2003 in Denmark and Dutchman Del Ferro in South Africa in 2014 through their work for the International Association of Schools Of Jazz. East & West is their debut album.

An unconventional but unmistakable groove runs level with impassioned musical conversations and a rapacious concern with melodic rhythm. Gunther’s The New West, for instance, is reminiscent of, just to give you an idea, John Scofield’s A Go Go, without the Hammond organ. Except Pinheiro and Gunther break out of the grease, in fact travel out there in space, two alien creatures absorbed by a lively evaluation of that peculiar animal, the earthling.

Four fellows (indeed five, counting Del Ferro) speak both individually and as a unit. The group’s edgy interpretations of the blues – Cavalli’s Boulder Blues and Pinheiro’s Poka Blues – leave plenty of room for the lyrical Cavalli, who evidently, and to our great pleasure, highly esteems the value of the upright bass not only as a time-keeper but also as an independent voice. Simultaneous improvisation pops up here and there and is at the core of Cavalli’s Don’t Forget Ornette, obviously a reference to the late Mr. Coleman. The bassist’s humorous quote of Deep Purple’s Smoke On The Water is at the tail end of the challenging, captivating tune of sparse harmonic movement and shifting tempo. Pinheiro’s Pó Dos Dias and Gunther’s Que Falta are sensuous slow and medium-slow songs, dripping with hot Mediterranean sunlight and humid nights, the web of twisty alleys barely noticeable through the fog… Enjoyable side dishes to the grand improvisational boeuf of East & West.

The melody of John Coltrane’s Moment’s Notice is a funky kind of polka, the remaining changes are taken in gritty 4/4. Gunther – on tenor saxophone – is an archeologist who patiently looks for ancient clues in a cave. He develops a story with measured grace, injecting a husky bended note here, a vivid U-turn there. Gunther’s got a lithe tone and a fluidity reminiscent of Clifford Jordan. Del Ferro expresses similar elasticity. Thelonious Monk’s Bye-Ya has been more of less cha cha cha-fied. Pinheiro works around the beat with much aplomb. He has found a fascinating balance between angular phrasing, sinuous, exotic lines and crunchy, repetitive licks.

Weirdly, The New West Quartet wouldn’t be out of place in a little bar in Havana, Cuba or Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Without a doubt, the rowdy and thoroughly entertained crowd would intuitively grasp the group’s excellent and refreshing re-evaluation of mainstream jazz.

New West Quartet

Find East & West on Fresh Sound Records here.

Winetone

Radio Ga Ga. For the generation of post-war jazz fans, radio was the predominant means of discovering jazz artists, besides the odd purchase of a record or dive into the collection of a parent or relative.

Few radio shows were as enchanting as The Voice Of America’s Jazz Hour, hosted by Willis Conover. It wasn’t strictly on air in the United States. The waves went as far as Western Europe, where music lovers added the show to their favorite diet, that also included shows of the legendary Radio Luxembourg station.

No one who recounts the enjoyment of the show leaves out the recollection of Conover’s stately delivery. His warm baritone voice would, for instance, introduce Freddie Freeloader from Kind Of Blue . The speed of the voice slow as a turtle walk: “On trumpet, Miles Davis, on tenor saxophone, John Coltrane, on alto saxophone, Cannonball Adderley, on piano… Winetone Kelly.

(From left to right: Wynton Kelly; Willis Conover; The Cannonball Adderley Quintet, Plus)

You can see the smile on Kelly’s face. Ergo the title of one of Kelly’s tunes: Winetone. (here) It’s a medium-tempo blues tune that appeared on The Cannonball Adderley Quintet’s Plus album from 1961. That’s plus Wynton Kelly. Well, Winetone.

The White Blinds Sing A Simple Song (F-Spot 2019)

NEW RELEASE – THE WHITE BLINDS

Drop the needle on the brand-new 45rpm platter by The White Blinds, a cover of Sly Stone’s Sing A Simple Song.

The White Blinds - Sing A Simple Song

Personnel

Carey Frank (organ), Matt Hornbeck (guitar), Michael Duffy (drums)

Recorded

in 2018 at Rich Uncle Records, Los Angeles

Released

as FSPT 1011 in 2019

Track listing

Side A:
Sing A Simple Song
Side B:
Klapp Back


We love those 7inch babies, a format tailor-made for a powerhouse trio like The White Blinds, which while thoroughly up-to-date, harks back to the halcyon soul jazz days, when every joint had a jukebox and Curtis Mayfield, James Brown and a slew of hip and funky organists were the saints that soothed the souls of folks in the hood. The release of Sing A Simple Song/Klapp Back is part of the Homage Series of Los Angeles-based F-Spot Records.

The White Blinds are drummer Michael Duffy, organist Carey Frank and guitarist Matt Hornbeck. The Hammond groove outfit, one of the most prolific organ combos on the West Coast, is a greasy, well-oiled rhythm machine whose version of the flower power funk classic Sing A Simple Song does justice to both Sly & The Family Stone and Charles Earland, the organist known as The Mighty Burner, who presented his killer version on the 1970 Prestige album Black Drops.

The trio’s heavy groove is sustained by precise and powerful drum patterns and breaks, tantalizing New Orleans Funk guitar licks and full-bodied chords and hypnotizing organ lines, which add a drop of acid in a refreshing glass of lemonade.

Side B’s Klapp Back is penned by The White Blinds and marked by a similar tight pocket, as well as a streetwise conversation between Frank and Hornbeck that works well as the introduction to Frank’s solo, which is all crunchy and screaming Hammond B3. Both tunes would work well as the introduction to The White Blinds.

The White Blinds

Find Sing A Simple Song/Klapp Back on F-Spot Records here.

Nick Hempton Night Owl (Triple-Distilled 2019)

NEW RELEASE – NICK HEMPTON

Gritty, entertaining and thoroughly modern. Saxophonist Nick Hempton’s Night Owl keeps the flame of organ combo jazz burning brightly.

Nick Hempton - Night Owl

Personnel

Nick Hempton (tenor & alto saxophone), Peter Bernstein (guitar), Kyle Koehler (organ), Fukushi Tainaka (drums)

Recorded

at G.B’s Juke Joint Night Club, New York City

Released

on Triple-Distilled in 2019

Track listing

Night Owl
I Remember Milady
After You’ve Gone
I’m A Fool To Want You
10th Street Turnaround
Corner Bistro
It Shouldn’t Happen In Dreams
Listen Hard, Speak Easy
Macao Mood


Nick Hempton has been a fixture on the New York scene since 2004. Besides notable cooperations with Roy Hargrove, Joe Magnarelli and Peter Bernstein, the Australia-born tenor and alto saxophonist has released five albums as a leader, four of which were recorded with the Nick Hempton Band, a group that brought him to venues and festivals around the globe. Cherishing a particular passion for classic 60’s organ jazz, Hempton has finally come around to produce a full-blown session of the archetypical format of sax, Hammond organ, guitar and drums. Assisted by guitar maestro Peter Bernstein, organist Kyle Koehler and drummer Fukushi Tainaka, Hempton presents a set of blues-based original tunes like the shuffle grooves Night Owl and Macao Mood, boogaloo-ish Corner Bistro, the Latin-tinged tune I Remember Milady, the greasy backbeat-driven Listen Hard, Speak Easy and ballads I’m A Fool To Want You and It Shouldn’t Happen In Dreams.

Night Owl is a hot barbecue, its smells mingling with chatter and claxons on the corner of Lexington & 110th Street, neon signs keeping an eye on the hustlers, smoke rings swirling around the customers of the dingiest bar uptown, sax wailing… The nightlife, it ain’t no good life, but it’s my life… The album combines barroom excitement with modern jazz finesse, the blend that is the prerequisite for first-rate soul jazz. The sax playing of Hempton is firmly on the forefront and shades of Stanley Turrentine, Dexter Gordon, Lou Donaldson and a sleazy and husky bite complete the accessible style that is all Hempton’s own.

Bernstein is his customary crystalline, slightly angular yet melodic self, Koehler is a lively, tasteful player and Tainaka’s accompaniment is meaty and swinging – Tainaka’s resume includes stints with Lou Donaldson, Lonnie Smith and Melvin Rhyne. At one time, during After You’ve Gone, the band’s flow might remind you of the fluent bop groove of Sonny Stitt’s organ group with Don Patterson. Stitt, by the way, followed a long line of interpreters of the composition like Duke Ellington and Charlie Parker. Like his forefather, Hempton is the kind of guy that devours the harmonically active changes. A moment later the quartet delivers a slice of touching balladry. Hempton’s sweet-tart take on It Shouldn’t Happen In Dreams, subtle shifts of the beat underlining heartbreak and a sense of foreboding, is the mark of a thoroughly mature jazz musician. Night Owl is highly entertaining evidence of Hempton’s flexible and passionate approach of organ jazz.

Nick Hempton

Find Night Owl on Amazon here.

Check out Nick Hempton’s website here.