New Releases Spotlight: Week of December 8, 2014

Hey everyone, we’re back with another installment of New Releases in the Music Lounge.  This week, we look at David Hazeltine’s tribute to Cedar Walton, the latest from Joshua Redman’s supergroup James Farm, and Jimmy Greene’s lovely tribute to his daughter, Beautiful Life.

David Hazeltine - I Remember Cedar
First up, David Hazeltine has a new disc out on Sharp 9 Records called I Remember Cedar.  A collection of tunes mostly written by Cedar Walton, this is not only a great reminder of Hazeltine’s tasteful and straight ahead playing, but also Walton’s terrific ability to craft a memorable song.  "Clockwise" and "The Holy Land" are two of my favorites, but there is a lot to choose from on this tasty disc.  Hazeltine is joined by his longtime trio mates: David Williams on bass and Joe Farnsworth of drums.  The result is a nicely grooving, swinging disc with A LOT of great tunes. 

James Farm - City Folk
Joshua Redman’s put out another disc with his James Farm quartet.  Alongside Redman in this group of modern heavyweights is pianist Aaron Parks, bassist Matt Penman and drummer Eric Harland.  This is some heady music to be sure, and for fans of modern jazz, there is a lot to like here.  I’m fond of the song "Aspirin," and the ballads here (especially "Unknown") are gorgeous.

 

Jimmy Greene - Beautiful Life
Finally, Jimmy Greene has turned tragedy into beauty on his latest release, Beautiful Life.  Jimmy’s daughter, Ana, was one of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting in December 2012.  Two years later, Greene has channeled his grief into a heartfelt album he titled Beautiful Life.  This is an all-star affair with a lot of guest spots, including Kenny Barron, Kurt Elling and Cyrus Chestnut, among others.  While WDCB will be focusing mainly on the instrumental cuts, this is definitely an album worth picking up.  Buy it by following the 'Find on iTunes' link on WDCB’s online playlist. 

Next week I’ll be back to tell you about a few of the great holiday discs that have come out this year.  Check in on Monday for another edition of New Releases in WDCB’s Music Lounge!