Danilo Perez: Across the Crystal Sea (2008)

Danilo Perez was born in Panama in 1966. He is considered one of the finest contemporary pianists and jazz composers of our era.

Danilo started his musical training at 3 years old with his father Danilo Sr, a professional bandleader and singer, gave Danilo Jr. his first set of bongos. By the time he was 10 years of age he was studying the European Classical Piano repertoire at the National Conservatory in Panama, eventually transferring to the Berklee College of Music to study Jazz composition and then serving as a professor at the New England Conservatory of Music. While growing up in Panama, Perez was notably influenced by the works of Gershwin, Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, and his mentor in spirit Thelonious Monk.

Tracklist:

1. Across The Crystal Sea

2. Rays And Shadows
3. Lazy Afternoon
4. The Purple Condor
5. If I Forget You
6. (All Of A Sudden) My Heart Sings
7. The Saga Of Rita Joe
8. Another Autumn
Personnel:
Danilo Perez — piano
Claus Ogerman — conducted and arranged
Cassandra Wilson — vocals (on 3 & 6)
Christian McBride — bass
Lewis Nash — drums
Luis Quintero — percussion
Bruce Dukov — concert master
Across The Crystal Sea - Conducted and Arranged by Claus Ogerman
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Terence Blanchard: Let's Get Lost (2001)

Entertainment Weekly (6/8/01, p.77) - "One of jazz's trumpeters-of-choice has settled on a ripe concept, with inviting tunes by great American songwriter Jimmy McHugh. Wisely, Blanchard calls on several fine singers..." - Rating: B+

CMJ (6/11/01, p.23) - "...Thoughtful and reaching arrangements that simmer with the same blue flame that fueled Miles Davis' '50s work....This is a no-brainer for fans of vocal and traditional jazz."

Down Beat (8/01, pp.66-7) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Blanchard's buttoned-down performance is consistently restrained and thoughtful....adroit and distinctive....with some attractive interpretive and sometimes idiosyncratic departures..."

Personnel: Terence Blanchard (trumpet); Diana Krall (vocals, piano); Jane Monheit, Dianne Reeves, Cassandra Wilson (vocals); Brice Winston (tenor saxophone); Edward Simon (piano); Derek Nievergelt (bass); Eric Harland (drums)

Tracklist:

1. Let's Get Lost — (with Diana Krall)

2. Too Young to Go Steady — (with Jane Monheit)
3. You're a Sweetheart
4. I Can't Believe That You're in Love With Me — (with Dianne Reeves)
5. I'm in the Mood For Love
6. Don't Blame Me — (with Cassandra Wilson)
7. I Can't Give You Anything But Love — (with Jane Monheit)
8. Exactly Like You
9. Can't Get Out of This Mood — (with Dianne Reeves)
10. Lost in a Fog
11. On the Sunny Side of the Street — (with Cassandra Wilson)
Let's Get Lost
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Cassandra Wilson: Dance to the Drums Again (1992)

On this early-1990s release, guitarist Jean-Paul Bourelly began a string of increasingly sympathetic producers. Production, and judicious instrumentation, are crucial to Cassandra Wilson's deep, arch aesthetic. Here, her smoky voice finds a casual, sensuous, tenor-sax richness amid Bourelly's electric-guitar riffing. Her singing suggests many inspirations. Betty Carter and Nina Simone, certainly, but Ella, Sarah, and Billy echo in her poise, personality, and stylishness. Dinah Washington and Carmen McRae come to mind as well. Also formative were Wilson's 1980s contributions to New York's M-Base collective. They involved exploration of all the African-American musics then afloat. M-Base also was committed to artistic self-definition. Here, 6 of the 10 selections are by Wilson, including 'Don't Look Back,' one of her several anthems of black resilience.

Cassandra Wilson: Glamoured (2003)

'Glamoured' is a Gaelic word meaning to be whisked away, says vocalist and songwriter Cassandra Wilson, explaining the title of her new CD. 'It's like being in a daydream, those split seconds when you're transfixed and your eyes don't move and you have to shake yourself out of it. This album captures the feeling of that reverie.'
Indeed, Wilson sets such a mood with her trademark mix of first-rate originals and adventurous covers of other songwriters' works, this time picking material by Sting, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Muddy Waters and Abbey Lincoln. Such eclectic tastes come naturally to Wilson, who began her musical career performing in and around her hometown of Jackson, Mississippi. 'Down South, musicians have to be able to play in many different circumstances and in many contexts,' she says. 'They have to play jazz, they have to integrate the blues, and they have to know country. And the lines are kinda blurry sometimes, 'cause that's what everybody wants to hear.'
For the recording of 'Glamoured' Cassandra once again returned to her hometown of Jackson, Mississippi with a list of good songs and an open mind. 'For some albums, I'll have a very clear idea of where I want it to go,' she says, 'but this time I had questions about what kinds of sounds to explore.'