New Releases Spotlight: Week of August 15, 2016

This week in the Music Lounge, our music director Paul Abella has an “all-piano” edition of three new releases!

Let’s talk about some great new music from Chicago’s very own Erwin Helfer, as well as Fred Hersch and Roberta Piket…

Is Erwin Helfer a blues guy or a jazz guy?  I don’t know, but I know I like him, and on his latest, Last Call, we hear him mostly doing the solo piano thing on a whole bunch of classics, such as "Pennies from Heaven," "St. James Infirmary," and others.  Also, Katherine Davis and John Brumbach join him for "Bright Lights, Big City."  It’s nice music, and it makes for a fun listen.  I hope you like it as much as I do!


 

It’s always nice to hear some new Fred Hersch, and his latest, Sunday at the Village Vanguard, doesn’t disappoint.  Joined by John Hebert on bass and Eric McPherson on drums, this disc is at times contemplative, deeply moving, and unabashedly swinging.  It’s really nice to hear a Kenny Wheeler song ("Everybody’s Song But My Own"), and as always, Hersch does nice work playing Monk ("this time, it’s We See").  It’s a beautiful album!

 

Roberta Piket has a new disc out paying tribute to one of the greats of jazz piano titled One for Marian: Celebrating Marian McPartland.  What makes this disc so interesting is that much of its contents are Marian’s compositions.  And if you’re not familiar with McPartland’s writing, you’ll get a nice dose of it, including "Kaleidoscope," which you might recognize as the theme to Piano Jazz (heard on WDCB, Wednesdays at 7pm).


 

…more to come soon, in The Music Lounge.  ‘Til next time, keep your ears open!