Nils: Ready To Play

“I got stuck with a $3,000 band bill because the label support just fell flat. The CDs never got to the radio stations with which we had advertising deals, so I had to go to Tower Records and buy twenty-six CDs at retail price to give away on radio. It left me really disillusioned with the genre and stuff,” says Nils.

The New York Sessions

Lisa Hilton’s CD The New York Sessions which hits the streets on August 27 creates a gentle ambience that entices you to crack open a fine bottle of wine and relax in the company of friends, reflecting upon cherished memories and sharing dreams for the future.

The CD opens with Joni Mitchell’s classic tune “Both Sides Now,” interpreted by Hilton in the traditional sense. The CD ends with somewhat of an epilogue and Hilton’s alternate take on the Mitchell tune, a reading that I found particularly inspiring and enjoyable.

David Frank

“Salvador Dali was one of the proponents of the surreal avant-garde painting movement, taking traditional images and reinventing them. It wasn’t only in his art it was in his persona. He was such a flashy and wacky guy, that I have found it interesting to imagine where he went to after he died, because (laughing he says) where he was when he was here was pretty far out. I wondered where Dali went after he died, because he must have gone to some extremely far out place or maybe he created a new one,” says Frank.

Wind Song

The Afro Cuban song “Cuba Duba Do,” might excite Fred Flintstone enough to yell yabba dabba do! Brecker is at the top of his game with a highlight package of trumpet notes. Emedin Rivera’s percussion beats create an island ambience and the keyboarding is scintillating. Unfortunately, the liner notes don’t tell us if the keyboardist for this song is Rob Aries or Nick Bariluk, both are mentioned as players on the CD. In fact, the keyboard chops are spectacular throughout the album.

Good To Go-Go

A perennial fan favorite Spyro Gyra comprised of Jay Beckenstien (saxophone), Tom Schuman (keyboards), Julio Fernandez (guitars), Scott Ambush (bass) and Bonny B (drums, percussion, vocals), have with their current CD Good To Go-Go, lived up to their fans expectations. This time they get the party started with “Simple Pleasures,” and Beckstein’s sweet sax leading the way.

While Buffalo New York is often the brunt of the rest of America’s bad jokes, it has proved to be a great incubator for some of the jazz industry’s more prolific artists such as Spyro Gyra’s, Beckstein and Schuman, as well as Sherrie Maricle of the Diva Jazz Orchestra fame and exciting newcomer, fellow sax man Jack Prybylski.

 The second track from Good To Go-Go, “Get Busy” features some incredible keyboard chops from Schuman and equally prolific guitar riffs by Hoboken, New Jersey’s Fernandez.

Dean Magraw © Andrea Canter

One of the most prolific and popular musicians based in the Twin Cities, guitarist Dean Magraw is also one of the most eclectic, with a thirty-year career spanning genres and cultures, from blues to classical to folk and jazz, from Japanese and Indian to Celtic and middle American. His new release, Unseen Rain, reflects his many influences, but perhaps none more strongly than his allegience to John Coltrane.

 On hearing Unseen Rain, fans of Dean Magraw’s ethereal lines, wandering melodies and global influences will not be disappointed. Other than two covers (John Coltrane’s “Mr. Syms” and Harold Arlen’s “Out of This World”), the program is entirely originals from Magraw and one co-written with bassist Jim Anton (“Plum Blossom”). Coltrane seems to penetrate several tracks, however; Magraw’s cryptic liner notes indicate “a respectful nod to the John Coltrane arrangement” of “Out of This World,” as well as a Coltrane salute on the original “Three Voices.” “Bird in the House” suggests the bop master’s influence, while there are threads of Asian, African, and Middle Eastern roots here and there.