freedom suite

"echoing the style of guru’s jazzmatazz, jazz vocalist and multi grammy nominee nnenna freelon join hip-hop quartet the beast torelease 'freedom suite', a 10-track collection of creative reflections on jazz and hip-hop hosted by 9th wonder.

drawing from a traditional jazz canon as well as hip-hop “standards” from the recent past, the album brings a live jazz sound to some of the most loved tracks in popular music. the album features six original songs written and produced by the beast and also re-makings of modern classics such as mos def’s “umi says,” johnny mercer & hoagy carmichael’s “skylark,” and lauryn hill’s “doo wop”. the project has guest appearances from branford marsalis, phonte (of the foreign exhchange/little brother), yahzarah and geechi suede (of camp lo).

recognizing the importance of talking about the convergence of jazz and hip-hop and its role in forward-thinking culture, the album also features conversations among some of hip-hop and jazz’s greatest intellectual minds including ?uestlove, herbie hancock, amiri baraka, branford marsalis, angela davis and more."

heritage

"hypnotic brass ensemble are one of a kind. graced with soul, funk, and spirituality these guys have captivated audiences worldwide. their music is a combination of all genres. with the undeniable drive of hip-hop, the freedom of rock and the melodic thread of R&B these guys are nothing short of unique.

all band members are the sons of legendary sun ra trumpeter phil cohran. the group began performing together as children (some as early as 3 years old). in 1999 they formed what is now known as the hypnotic brass ensemble and have performed or collaborated with some of the greatest musical stars of the last two decades. from mos def to maxwell, wu tang clan’s ghostface killah to UK superstar damon alburn, erykah badu to fela kuti’s drummer tony allen. if you don’t know these guys you’re missing out.

during one of their many stays in dublin with choicecuts, hypnotic decided to shack up in a studio located high in the dublin mountains to rehearse for a week and write new material. hypnotic and choicecuts had a bit of down time in between these sessions and with plenty of guinness and jameson in tow chose to rework some of their favourite records from other artists that have influenced them both.

hypnotic know their fans. they also know their fans know real music. the heritage EP released by choicecuts with hypnotic is a nod to that fact, a sprinkling of the hypnotic dust over some of the tunes that influenced the band and their musical direction over the course of their lives."

hypnotic brass ensemble - spottie (free download)

lloyd miller & the heliocentrics

"following their award-winning collaboration with ethio jazz godfather mulatu astatke (sunday times world music album of the year), pioneering UK collective the heliocentrics resurface alongside another fascinating jazz enigma, ethno-musicologist, jazz maestro and multi-instrumentalist, lloyd miller.

learning various instruments and immersing himself in new orleans jazz through his father, a professional clarinet player, lloyd miller first trained himself in the styles of george lewis and jimmy giuffre and cut his first dixieland jazz 78 rpm record in 1950. during the late ‘50s, his father landed a job in iran and miller began to develop a lifelong interest in persian and eastern music forms, learning to play a vast array of traditional ethnic instruments from across asia and the middle east.

he toured Europe heavily, basing himself in switzerland, belgium, sweden, germany (where he played with eddie harris and don ellis) and, most famously, in paris where he worked with oddball bandleader jef gilson, a phenomenon in french jazz during the early ‘60s. miller returned to the middle east during the ‘70s, landing his own TV show on NIRTV in tehran under the name kurosh ali khan. his show became a national fixture and ran for seven years.

miller has since been a vocal ambassador for preserving the traditions of many forms of wastern music. In recent years, his mid-‘60s album ‘oriental jazz’ has become a collector’s favourite and the UK’s jazzman label have issued a compilation, ‘a lifetime in oriental jazz’, covering work from across his career. the renewed interest in his music has spawned this new collaboration with the heliocentrics, a freeform mix of eastern arrangements, jazz and angular psychedelics and represents the heliocentrics’ most accomplished work to date".


lloyd miller & the heliocentrics - nava

jyoti (ocotea)

jyoti is georgia anne muldrow's jazz persona. the name derives from the sanscript word for 'light' and is also the name given to her by family friend and jazz great alice coltrane. this alias is used by muldrow for her jazz-inspired works when taking a break from her soul/hip-hop hybrid sound with non-comformative production and song structures. the album 'ocotea' is clearly influenced by late 1960s/early 1970s avant-garde and electronic jazz. this sound is modernised and makes for an intriguing release, a half-hour instrumental journey lead by her ancestral orchestra and guided by experimental synthesizers. it will be interesting to see how the jyoti project develops over the future, you can buy the debut here.


jyoti - black mother

1958 jazz drumming

a short clip of jazz drumming from 1958 with gene krupa, lionel hampton and chico hamilton.

hi-hat club vol. 3 the jazz files

this album comes from german dj & producer dexter and provides some great jazz samples arranged around a contemporary hip-hop beat. this dusty sounding record retains a modern element and even looks forward to the future of the relationship between jazz & hip-hop. quotes and samples are interspersed from interviews and tv shows adding to the narrative of the album.

i hear music

billie holiday was a seminal jazz singer and songwriter, and despite a voice that somewhat lacked range, she brought a deeply emotional and intimate aspect to her performances. i am posting a track from the 'remixed & reimagined' album, a record that i think overall doesn't particularly work very well, but i am a fan of how the track 'i hear music' was re-worked. for me this remix does bring the importance of the original recording to the forefront, without being lost in some overpowerful electronic/house beat. the brass and piano samples almost reply to eachother in conversation, while billie's wonderful verse is preserved with the right balance of cut-up sampling - a balance which is unfortunately absent from the rest of the soulless album leaving the listener to feel that the over-production is only detracting from the originals. nevertheless, 'i hear music' is both elegant and energetic, and would not seem out of place on one of the amazing verve remixed complilations.


listen here...



download...

billie holiday - i hear music (swingsett & takuya's mighty fine remix) [sharebee]

stompin' at the savoy

having recently completed an essay on the harlem renaissance of 1920's america, much of my research revolved around the celebration of black culture and the roots of african american heritage through the medium of art, literature, music, and progressive thought. the creation of intellectual arts worked to uplift the african american people during a time of severely unstable race-relations, producing a new sense of pride and distinction. jazz music was undoubtedly the defining sound of the 1920's. duke ellington, for example, worked to portray an authentic representation of black life in his music, with many of his songs reflecting the urban harlem culture. at the bottom of this post you will find the track 'stompin' at the savoy', an effortlessly uplifting track which oozes charm and sophistication.


the image below is winold reiss's 'drawing in two colours'. much of the art created during the harlem renaissance encompassed the positive image of 'the new negro', a reinvention of the african american into an energetic yet respectful image. i recommend anyone interested in jazz music or american history to familiarise themselves with the works of claude mckay, langston hughes, zora neale hurston, and jean toomer, as these were all major influences in the roots of jazz as we know it today.


download...

duke ellington - stompin' at the savoy [mediafire]

bird's lament

moondog, real name louis thomas hardin, was a blind american composer, musician, and poet, who chose to live on the streets of new york for nearly 20 years. often known as 'the viking of 6th avenue' for his home-made attire based on his interpretation of the norse god thor, he once met charlie parker in the streets of new york and they had planned to jam together. touched by parker's death, moondog wrote the song 'bird's lament' in his memory. it has that wonderfully smooth brass ensemble mixed with the classically upbeat jazz drumming. 'bird's lament' was later sampled by electronic musican mr. scruff in the track 'get a move on' which features on the 1999 album 'keep it unreal'. below you can find the original song...



listen here...



download...

moondog - bird's lament [megaupload]

bobby darin

bobby darin, a grammy award-winning singer and one of america's most popular big band performers, has one of those instantly recognisable voices in music. darin was unfortunately subject to severe health problems throughout his life. it is likely this is responsible for giving him such a strong drive to succeed within the limited lifetime he feared remained. he had a string of hits in the late 50's and early 60's, many of which he composed himself. his renditions of other songs were also executed to the highest quality; it is claimed even frank sinatra called darin's version of the classic 'mack the knife' the definitive version. his music has an almost nostalgic feel when listened to now, and i think to some degree it's a shame popular music of today doesn't draw more of an influence from that era. his music is always satisfying to hear and is the perfect blend of swing jazz and pop.

bobby darin - beyond the sea [mediafire]

bobby darin - beyond the sea [yousendit]

the philadelphia experiment

the philadelphia experiment - not to be confused with the alleged US military experiment where a naval ship was rendered briefly invisible - is a collaboration between ahmir thompson (otherwise known as questlove/?uestlove, drummer for acclaimed hip-hop act the roots and producer for artists including common and al green), uri caine (jazz pianist and composer), and christian mcbride (jazz bassist). this one-off album was dedicated to recognising philadelphia's profound legacy of jazz and soul.

even though each member hails from philadelphia, they all bring their unique musical style to this collaboration. caine's avant-garde piano, mcbride's jazzy bass, and thompson's hip-hop drumming style all result in a very funky album unrivalled in originality. they have achieved a completely fresh approach to a style of music which consistently features in 'greatest albums of all time' lists; bringing that style of improvisational jazz into the 21st century. this album is a flawlessly executed homage to the greats of music. in particular, 'trouble man theme' is a rendition of marvin gaye's 'trouble man' which has been transformed into what some people have described as a 'revival-like groove'. not to be overlooked is the hidden gem of a track at the end of the album where mcbride plays a stripped back cover of 'just the two of us' by grover washington jr with a slapped bass rhythm line and handclaps. with repeat listens you can really appreciate the influences behind this highly successful experimental venture.

the philadelphia experiment - 'trouble man theme' [mediafire]

the philadelphia experiment - 'trouble man theme' [yousendit]