What's New on WDCB... with Paul Abella

Blue Moods – Force & Grace (Posi-Tone Records)

Blue Moods is the brainchild of Posi-Tone head Marc Free. So far, they’ve put out three albums, each showcasing the music of a great musician and composer. Myth & Wisdom was all about Charles Mingus, Swing & Soul gave us the music of Duke Pearson, and their latest release, Force & Grace, is dedicated to the work of Freddie Hubbard. The band centers around saxophonist Diego Rivera, bassist Boris Kozlov and pianist Art Hirahara. On Force & Grace, Vinnie Sperrazza is the drummer of choice, and pianist Jon Davis appears on six of the songs recorded here. Interestingly, Blue Moods is more than happy to go off the beaten path on these songs. “Little Sunflower” not only gets a slightly different groove, but it also gets modified harmonically, as well. “Happy Times,” gets a hint of New Orleans and a little of Jelly Roll Morton’s Spanish Tinge, as opposed to its original swinging arrangement. Two of my favorite Freddie Hubbard compositions ended up in the mix, too, with “Crisis” and “Gibralter” and both are played nicely, given playful updates, and they’re a lot of fun to listen to. Then again, pretty much everything here is. Which is easy to do when you’re working with such great source material in the first place.

Hans Luchs – The Spell is Broken (Fresh Sound/New Talent)

The last I’d heard about guitarist Hans Luchs was when he was still living in Chicago. He had his own album out (Time Never Pauses) and was playing some great music with a band called The Humble Organisms. Fast forward to 2025, and what do I see in the mail? A brand-new album from Hans Luchs called The Spell is Broken. These days, he is a matured guitarist with a lovely tone, gorgeous ideas, writing really pretty songs. Joined by pianist Mike King, bassist Simon Wilson, drummer Adam Arruda, and on four songs, saxophonist Daniel Berkey, The Spell is Broken is a fine effort. Luchs wrote all of the songs, and there’s a nice amount of diversity to be found in the eight tunes found here. “Azizam” opens the album on a swingin’ note that let’s us know exactly what we’re in for. “Your Truth or the Truth” is tasteful modern jazz with layers worth digging through on repeated listenings. “Incongruent Thoughts” is a charming ballad. The proceedings close out with “Overdue, ” a clever song with a simple and quite hummable melody. The Spell is Broken is a tasty album from top to bottom, and I look forward to getting a chance to share it with you.

Bruce Harris & Ehud Asherie – Thank You, Barry Harris! (Arbors Records)

Barry Harris was a top tier Jazz pianist, a Jazz educator, and on some level, a Jazz philosopher, too. The number of musicians I’ve seen through the years that were touched by Harris is huge, and on the aptly titled Thank You, Barry Harris, two of his students, trumpeter Bruce Harris and pianist Ehud Asherie pay tribute to the man who clearly had a huge impact on their lives. Of the nine songs on Thank You, Barry Harris, seven of them were penned by Harris, including well known gems like “Nascimento” and “Sphere.” The title track comes from Asherie, and “The Prodigal Son’s Blues” was written by Bruce Harris. The spirit and joy of Jazz come through on every one of these tracks, and with that in mind, Thank You, Barry Harris, as a tribute to the man, is a rousing success.