What's New on WDCB... with Dan Bindert

Antonio Adolfo – Love Cole Porter (AAM Music)

The skilled Brazilian pianist-arranger has developed a style for his octet that puts an appealing Brazilian sway behind any composition he takes on. He’s released a string of albums that have brought new life and a personal stamp to the music of Brazilian legends like Antonio Carlos Jobim and Milton Nascimento as well as jazz titans like Wayne Shorter. On his latest, Adolfo presents a set of ten Cole Porter classics, including evergreens like “Night and Day,” “Love for Sale” and “Just One of Those Things.”  

Greg Skaff – Re Up (Soulmation Records)

Wichita, Kansas born & raised, NYC-based guitarist Greg Skaff has mostly been known as a fine practitioner of soul jazz flavored music and an especially tasteful organ group guitarist – his first big break many years ago was a five year stint backing Stanley Turrentine. He’s more recently been exploring a more stripped down sound in a guitar/bass/drums trio format and that’s how we find him on his latest disc Re Up. In the company of bassist Ugonna Okegwo and drummer Jonathan Barber, Skaff applies his still soul-tinged style to seven compact originals as well as interpretations of classic compositions by Thelonious Monk and Duke Ellington.   

Brian Bromberg – LaFaro (Be Squared Productions)

The legacy of the influential but ill-fated bassist Scott LaFaro serves as inspiration for this beautifully realized set of trio recordings from bassist Brian Bromberg. With a California-based trio including pianist Tom Zink and drummer Charles Ruggiero, Bromberg and company explore a set of a dozen tunes – including “Waltz for Debby,” “Gloria’s Step” and “Nardis” - mostly associated with the early ‘60s Bill Evans Trio that LaFaro originally reimagined the role of the bass with more than 60 years ago. One of the standouts is a Bromberg-penned that features his work on piccolo bass, “Scotty’s Song.”