Monday, March 28, 2011

Monty and One for All Live - Bob Stewart

In Hal Leonard's 2005 book -- "The Greatest Jazz Pianists of All Time" -- Monty Alexander placed in the top five of all time. In his homeland of Jamaica, he received the highest honor bestowed on an artist, Commander in the Order of Distinction. He has spent the majority of his career traveling the globe playing the great concert halls. The master pianist is at the pinnacle of his illustrious career with his newest CD -- "Uplift" -- which presents a handful of those never-before-released performances. Alexander displays a telepathic musical connection with his trio mates, bassist Hassan Shakur and drummers Herlin Riley and Frits Landesbergen.

Versatile virtuoso brass man Mac Gollehon returns to the jazz recording scene with "Mac Straight Ahead." One of the most recorded trumpeters in music today, Gollehon cut his jazz chops with the big bands of Buddy Rich and Stan Kenton and went on to become a member of mentor Lester Bowie's Brass Fantasy and Ray Barretto's ensemble. Gollehom reaffirms his jazz roots with this amazing outing that finds him in the role of a one-man brass section, overdubbing both trombones and trumpets to create the sound of a roaring big band. Special guests include baritone sax great Ronnie Cuber, bass trombonist Sam Burtis and drummer Victor Lewis.

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