smooth jazz – ContemporaryJazz.com

Contemporary Jazz on Twitter in July

August 2, 2009

I’ve posted over 500 tweets of contemporary jazz news, release dates, and site information on Twitter in the last few months. It’s how I communicate quick contemporary jazz items of interest. In today’s quick-moving world, this is how I get most of my information – through brief, one-sentence notifications. Later, I can go back and read more about something or compose a blog post. Follow my tomorrowjazz tweets on Twitter!

I keep a list of my most recent tweets here on the site, but here are some items you might have missed.

Smooth jazz takes another blow as The Weather Channel replaces it with classic rock for Weather on the 8’s.
Miroslav Vitous’ new CD honors Weather Report http://is.gd/1oYMf
New release from jazz pianist Eldar coming August 25. Called Virtue, it has guests Nicholas Payton and Joshua Redman.
Pandora and three others might be ok but that doesn’t mean it’s smooth sailing Internet radio. http://is.gd/1sYhv
Mike Stern’s Big Neighborhood out 8/11 w/ Dave Weckl, MMW, Steve Vai, Esperanza Spalding, Eric Johnson, Terri Lyne Carrington, and more.
B.B. King calls George Benson “the best guitarist in the world in all kinds of music.” http://is.gd/1yQhp
One of today’s greatest jazz composers, Terence Blanchard, releases Choices on August 18th. Recorded in New Orleans. http://is.gd/1zHt7
Chuck Owen & The Jazz Surge release The Comet’s Tail: Playing The Compositions of Michael Brecker on 8/11 w/guest stars. http://is.gd/1AYmC
Pat Metheny writes about his upcoming “orchestrionics” recording. It’s going to be interesting. http://is.gd/1L7tI
Far Out Recordings-Brazilian Music Sampler Free at Amazon MP3 Store. With Marcos Valle, Joyce, Azymuth, Sabrina Malheiros. http://bacn.me/9ja
Didn’t know Larry Carlton was joining Steely Dan on six dates during their current tour.

New CDs and DVDs In May

May 3, 2009

Here is a list of new CDs and DVDs coming in May that I’m aware of. Click to order the CD from Amazon.com, or to download MP3s. Your purchases through these links help the site!

May 5
Poogie Bell Band – Get on the Kit |
Jim Beard w/ Vince Mendoza – Revolutions
Incognito – Live in Jakarta DVD

May 12
Return To Forever – Live at Montreux 2008 DVD / Blu-ray
Stanley Clarke Trio w/ Hiromi and Lenny White – Jazz in the Garden |
Candy Dulfer – Funked Up! |
Charnett Moffett (feat. Will Calhoun) – The Art of Improvisation

May 19
Richard Elliot – Rock Steady |
Nicola Conte – Rituals |
Terri Lyne Carrington – More To Say… (Real Life Story: NextGen) |

May 26
Gary Burton, Pat Metheny, Steve Swallow & Antonio Sanchez – Quartet Live!
Diana Krall – Live In Rio DVD / Blu-ray

Paul Brown & Marc Antoine Tickets and CDs Giveaway

May 3, 2009

Contemporary jazz guitar collaborations between label mates have resulted in some memorable recordings over the history of the genre. The first ones that pop in my head are George Benson and Earl Klugh (Collaboration on Warner Bros.) and Lee Ritenour and Larry Carlton (Larry & Lee on GRP). Peak Records joins in on the tradition with Paul Brown and Marc Antoine. Their new release is ForeignXchange. Brown was the go-to producer for smooth jazz for a long time before starting a solo career. Antoine has had a notable smooth jazz career for over 15 years. I’ve heard his beautiful “Storytime” (from Urban Gypsy, one of his first releases) on a PBS Kids sponsor message a number of times.

The recording has guest performances from Philippe Saisse, Gregg Karukas, and Jessy J. The more noteworthy tracks I heard had the horn section of Jerry Hey, “Bill Richenback” (though I think the liner notes mean Bill Reichenbach), and Dan Higgins. If I programmed a Sunday Brunch show, I’d be playing “Foreign Exchange.” Worth mentioning is that Brown and Antoine are both listed as writers of each of the ten songs on ForeignXchange.

You can experience Brown and Antoine live. They’ll be on tour and I’m happy to be able to give away to one lucky person a pair of tickets to the KIFM festival in San Diego on May 23 where Marc and Paul will be performing. The winner will also get a signed copy of ForeignXchange. I’m also giving away a couple of copies of the CD.

To win the ticket and autographed CD, just respond to this post with your favorite Paul Brown or Marc Antoine (or other smooth jazz) song, concert experience, etc. Make sure you include a valid email address so I can contact you with details.

To win a copy of the CD, follow me on Twitter! I’ll direct message two random winners to ask for a mailing address. I love Twitter because I can convey quick information much faster than blogging. That’s my primary method for announcing contemporary jazz news.

This contest ended on Friday, May 1. The winner was notified on Sunday.

Hear “Foreign Exchange” – Quicktime | Windows Media

Thanks, Carol Archer

March 23, 2009

Radio & Records, an industry staple, has ceased publishing its smooth jazz chart. It had been published for 15 years. Carol Archer, the only editor for the format for its entire tenure, posted a fond farewell. Carol was one of the first to write about jazz on the web back in the mid-90s. She mentioned my site which was a huge boost. I’m sure I still have that cut out in my files somewhere. I thanked her then and do so again. Thanks, Carol, and best wishes!

New Music DVDs

March 3, 2009

Here are some new DVDs you might be interested in. Some are already available and the rest will be out by the end of the month. Clicking through and buying these through Amazon.com earns the site a commission.