JUKKA
ESKOLA - S/T
Trumpeter from the Five Corners Qt
produces what could be the Jazz album of the year, heavily influenced by
Freddie Hubbard, this is Jazz Fusion at its best and sounds like it could have
been recorded Freddie for CTI in the early 70's. '1974' is a great uptempo
fusion track. 'Kulo' is more mid tempo with some great fender rhodes and Jukka
sounding incredibly like Freddie, 'Duddamdej' and 'Timber Up' have a jazz dance
feel to them with great arrangements. This is great throughout and totally
essential.
 
SOULIVE -
BREAK OUT
Excellent Hammond Organ led
fusion/jazz groove set features archetypal Soulive grooves like 'Reverb' and
'Freedom'. Vocal guests include Chaka Khan on thesingle 'BackAgain'andIvan
Neville on both the heavy 'Got Soul' and funky 'Take It Easy'. Funky Jazz ofan
exceptional standard that is consistent from start to finish. Also recommended
'Turn It Out' 2CD £14.95
COLONEL
RED - BLUE EYE BLAK
Mix of Soul and Broken beats that
excels on the title track with its thought provoking lyrics and nice female
vocal. 'Gotta Be A Place For Us' is a catchy jazz influenced dancer, whilst
'Save A Prayer' and 'Everyday People' have a funk vibe throughout. 'Sanctify'
is another strong dancer and is heavy on the horns combined with lovely Hammond
and guitar. Well worth checking.
VARIOUS -
DEF JAZZ
This Def Jazz production brings
together the likes of Gerald Albright, Roy Hargrove, Rick Braun and Kevin
Toney. Standout is the vocal 'The Rain' that features Ledisi. Try the mid-tempo
head-nodder 'All I Need', the riff laden 'Ghetto Jam' or the heavier 'Give It
Up'. Also try the nice cover of 'Get U Home (Tonight)'. If you liked T.H.U.G or
the Urban Jazz Ensemble this slightly raw set of grooves is for you.
FIVE
CORNERS QUINTET - CHASE THE JAZZ GONE BY
This fine Jazz dance album
includes the in-demand singles like 'Trading Eights' and 'The Devil Kicks'.
Inspired by 60's Hard Bop, Latin, cuts like 'Lighthouse', the ultra fast
'Unsquare Bossa' and 'Three Corners' hit a Jazz groove that will appeal to
lovers of recent Gerardo Frisina and Nicole Conte sets. Legendary Jazz vocalist
Mark Murphy guests on 3 songs.
  Browse all Five Corners Quintet
titles
DWIGHT
TRIBLE - LOVE IS THE ANSWER
Dwight possesses a deep spiritual
voice in a similar vein to Leon Thomas and Andy Bey. Here he teams up with Life
force Trio to produce a slightly more commercial/left field album than his own
brilliant 'Living Waters'. Highlights are the killer jazz dancer 'Freedom
Dance' which features some nice rhodes . 'Try Love' is a more soulful mid-tempo
dancer, and the brilliant title track has a 'rare groove' feel, a strong hook
and powerful message in these troubled times. The mid tempo 'Music' and the
spacey 'Antiquity' also hit the spot, and whilst there's a couple of tracks
which aren't up to it, overall this is an inspiring album.
ALSO AVAILABLE - LIVING WATER
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SKI
OAKENFULL - RISING SON
Incognito's talented keyboard
player delivers an intriguing and interesting album that covers an eclectic
selection. Take the soulful Garage of the infectious 'Let Me Be' featuring Amp
Fiddler or the jazzy vibe of 'So Beautiful'. 'Let It Ride' is a compelling
dance groove with an Incognito feel, whilst the flute led Jazz Funk barnstormer
'A State Of Grace' is the stand-out cut on this varied album.
ALL SKI OAKENFUL TITLES - HERE
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JAGUAR -
JAGUAR
Incredibly recorded in Iceland,
this album is a throwback to late 70's horn led Disco Funk a la Sun/ Brass
Construction. The vocals are an acquired taste but the grooves on cuts like
'Body Party', 'What's Going On' and the infectious 'It's All Over' are
full-blown dancers. Hints of P Funk and early Patrick Adams style Disco floor
fillers ('Funky Junky') will also keep the dancers happy. Check the driving and
familiar sounding 'Must Be Good'. If you liked the Sunshine Band album from
2004 then this is up your street - albeit stronger.
KEVIN
YOST - FUTURE FLASHBACK
Kevin Yost has built a reputation
for 'electronic' Jazz grooves and whilst 'Future Flashback' has that electronic
influence it is much more 'organic'. If you enjoyed groove driven Jazz like St
Germain or Marc Moulin, then this set of very funky tunes such as 'Deep Inside
My Soul' and the Latin vibe of 'Close To You'. 'What Is Cool' is a Jazz groove
that will get finger popping and 'Free' is slinky and riff-laden. This album is
in danger of being overlooked, unfortunately.
TEDDY ROK
7 UNIVERSAL FOUR
Fine eclectic Jazz album from
Finland includes the standout jazzy Soul of 'Feel' with its infectious bass
line and the heavy groove driven 'Askaa' among the standouts. 'Steady' is a
fine mid-tempo piece, whilst 'Inujam' and 'Around The Clock' add an Afro Beat
vibe to the mix. Refreshingly strong and different. Teddy is one of the main
driving forces behind the Nu Spirit Of Helsinki and the Five Corners Quintet.
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VICTOR
DAVIES - HOXTON POP STARS
UK Soul/Jazz vocalist delivers a
fine acoustic sounding set that brings Terry Callier in his prime to mind. Cuts
like the gentle breezy 'Morning Sun' and the made for summer 'Fly Away' are a
joy. The dancer 'Fire' ups the tempo, it is however the laid back grooves like
'Walking In The Rain' that enchant. Nice set.
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S TONE
INC - LUZ Y SOMBRA
Schema on point again, this strong
Jazz set includes several fine Latin tinged dancers like the shuffling
'Emotional Dancing', the foot tapping 'Dreamer' and the gorgeous 'Beira Do
Mar'. Check the smokier 'Con Mi Sombra' with its slower tempo and infectious
piano riff.
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DOWN TO
THE BONE - SPREAD LOVE LIKE WILDFIRE
Possibly DTTB's best album so far!
Check the pulsating Jazz Funk of 'Memphis Groove' or the blistering
'Hammerhead'. The Latin pile driver 'Latin Sagebrush' or the slightly more
restrained 'Wildfire Woman' that has a late 60's West Coast feel add spice,
whilst the down right dirty 'Pure Funk' adds some grit. 'Angel Baby' features
the distinctive vocals of N'Dambi on what is a funky slice of contemporary
Soul. The addition of a full brass section adds punch and an harder edge on
this superb album.
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SABRINA
MALHEIROS - EQUILIBRIA
Daughter of Azymuth member Alex
Malheiros, Sabrina who guested on 'Brazilian Soul' delivers a super fine
Brazilian Jazz set this perfect for balmy summer days. Optimistic cuts like
'Terra De Ninguem' and the jazzier 'Love Sorte' walk that fine line between the
best Brazil has to offer and soulful Jazz. The hypnotic 'Vibrasom', the funky
Jazz flavoured 'Eu Sous Mais Eu' and the riff-laden 'Passa' are all gems. This
is music to smile by.
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RON BLAKE
- SONIC TONIC
(ltd edition with remix cd) Sax
player at the recent Me'Shell Ndegeocello gigs, Ron has a great tone infl by
John Coltrane. The album is a mixture of Spiritual, lightly funky and straight
ahead jazz. Highlights are the funky 'Tom Blake', which has a great hook, the
two parts of the epic 'Invocation' a tough spiritual workout and the title
track with its Caribbean feel. Produced by Me'Shell with Christian McBride bass
in evidence throughout this a refreshingly different album.
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POVO - WE
ARE POVO
Fine dance Jazz that mixes sultry
vocal tracks with outstanding instrumentals like the awesome single 'Uam Uam'
(ART Farmer's 'Mau Mau', the driving 'Bee Da Bau' and the modal 'We Are Povo'.
Also try the quirky 'Good & Bad', the slow swinger 'Ed The Bull' or the
smoochy vocal 'Perfect Day'.
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JAZZTRONIK - SAMURAI
The title track was a huge
keyboard led Jazz house track that set the dancefloor alight, when released on
a Jap 12" a year ago. 'Nana' is a samba style dancer with nice percussion
, sax (ala Sadao Watanabe) and Rhodes, whilse 'Arabesque' is an unusual
mystical dancer with nice flute and a heavier beat. 'Dance With Me' is a more
straight forward jazz house dancer. The standout is 'Colour Of Days' (not on
vinyl) a modal jazz dancer with great scat vocals from Yurai sounding a little
bit like Bembe Segue. Interesting albeit inconsistant album.
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U-NAM -
PAST BUILDS THE FUTURE
French musician U-Nam teams up
with some heavyweights to produce a good soul/jazz album. The stand outs are
'Love's Taken Over' feat Rahsaan Patterson , a great driving uptempo dancer ,
and the mid tempo 'Right Here Right Now' feat Phil Perry and Jeff Lorber. 'Blue
Mood' is another good soulful dancer feat Leedia, whilst 'Take Da Time' feat
Abiodun of Last Poets is a great spoken word led groove. The rest of the album
is quality slightly funky smooth jazz with Lorber featuring on four more
tracks.
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GEORGE DUKE - DUKE
'Duke' is probably George's finest album in 20 years! This
eclectic mix traverses many of the diverse styles of the man's music. Standout
is the Jazz Funk opus 'Hybrid', but check the dancer 'Saturday Night', the
beautiful 'No One' featuring Rachelle Ferrell and the smooth 'Trust'. On the
Soul side check the haunting 'Somebody's Body' or the breezy Brazilian
flavoured 'Sausalito'. 'Duke' is an exceptional strong album that will appeal
not only to the diehard George Duke fans.
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BAH SAMBA
- 4
Excellent mix of Fusion, Soul,
Funk and Boogie. This album takes the sound pioneered by the Sunburst Band to
another level. Their take on 'Portuguese Love' is already creating waves, but
check the (potential) weekender anthem 'Let The Drums Speak' featuring Bill
Curtis (plus other members) of the Fatback Band. 'You! You! You!' is a
blistering Latin/West Coast workout, whilst 'Doober' is classy made for a
summers day instrumental. Also check the Curtis-ish arrangements on 'Far
Away.'
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HIPNOSIS
- CARROUSEL
European Jazz is enjoying
something of a revival. Hipnosis comes from Germany and boy can they play.
Whilst sharing some of the Jazz dance flavours that groups from Italy's Schema
label and Ricky Tick in Finland, the group's approach is different if not
quirky. They are also very much in the tradition of Germany's MPS label
(60s/70s), absorbing and interpreting a wide range of musical styles. Try 'The
Opposite Of Hamburg', the Eastern flavoured 'Proscuitto Di Fama' or 'Nimm Mich
Mit' that enjoys a compelling dance groove. On the modal side 'A Mad Angel' is
an exploratory and inventive piece. This album takes you on a 60's Jazz style
journey that is never less than enthralling and always exciting.
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MESHELL
NDGECELLO/SPIRIT MUSIC OF JAMIA DANCE OF THE INFEDEL
Deep jazz album, mainly downtempo
featuring some great playing from the incredible line up feat Roy Hargrove,
Kenny Garrett, Jack Dejonette, Don Byron etc, and Me'Shell on bass. The most
accessible tracks are 'Aquarium' feat Sabina Scuba on vocals an eerie mid tempo
number that builds and really grows on you, 'The Chosen' feat Cassandra Wilson
and 'Heaven ' feat Lalah Hathaway. This album takes a few listens to really get
into but is worth the patience.
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SILHOUETTE BROWN - SAME
Excellent album produced by Dego
(4 Hero) and Kaidi Tatham (Agent K) that fuses Neo-Soul with Nu Spirit Beats,
think Jill Scott Meets Agent K. Featuring two top U.K. soul/jazz vocalists
Bembe Segue and Deborah Jordan who has a sweet voice similar to Sy Smith. The
music soaks up 70's and 80's Jazz Funk (Roy Ayers, George Duke, Patrice
Rushen)and 80's soul (Loose Ends). 'Who's In Charge' is a barnstorming dancer
with heavy bass, 'Check It (Calling You) with some great drumming, 'They Cant
Tell Us' a breezy uptempo jazz dancer, and 'Just A Little More' a nice
mid-tempo soul track are the highlights but the album is very strong
throughout.
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CASBAH 73 - MOODS AND GROOVES
Jazz funk and Jazz House album
from Spain that includes some nice grooves like 'Cabo Verde Strut', 'Still
Going On', and the horn and keyboard led floor filler 'Kaldis Brew'. Sounds
like something a cross between mid 70's Groove Merchant label and MFSB/Peoples
Choice updated to todays beat, well worth checkiing out.
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LARS BARTKUHN - DREAMLAND
Instrumental jazz fusion and jazz
house from Norway, but in a style similar to that of recent Jap Jazz. 'Thought
Of You' has a Pat Metheny influence but grooves along. The more uptempo and
haunting 'Discover The World' and 'Dreamland' are floorfillers, butbthe
highlight is 'Treasure Everywhere' reminiscent of George Benson's MAW outing
'You Can Do It Baby'. A varied and interesting album.
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LOUIE VEGA - EXTENSIONS
The remix set to Louie's EOL set
of 2004 is just asimpressive as its predecessor. Inc Kenny Dope's superb mix of
'Cerca De Mi', which starts off as a mid tempo soul joint then builds into a
huge dancer. Blaze guest on the latin tinged 'Sunshine' and the berautiful
acoustic version of 'Love Is On The Way'. DJ Spinna gets his hands on 'Better
DAy' bringing it down a notch and pushing Raul Midon's vocal to the fore. An
album for soul and latin fans, Superb
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ALEXANDER ZONJIC - SELDOM BLUES
Flautist Zonjic delivers the best
Smooth jazz album for some time. With guests like Jeff Lorber, Kirk Whalum and
Peter White - what else would you expect! Try the 80's Jazz Funk groove of
'Sweat' or the delicate Peter White co-written 'Isabela'. Angela Bofill adds
vocals to a cover of her own 'Under The Moon Over The Sky'. A refreshing slice
of Smooth Jazz.
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DWIGHT TRIBLE - LIVING
WATER
Magnificent deep spiritual jazz
album from the voice of Build An Ark. Vocally and musically Dwight is
reminiscent of Leon Thomas and Andy Bey. He brilliantly covers Clifford
Jordan's modal 'John Coltrane' and Hubbard's 'Little Sunflower'. The highlight
is his take on Coltrane's 'Africa', which he turns into a jazz dancer. He also
covers Bartz/Bey's 'Celestial Blues' and add lyrics to 'Footprints' which
really works. A very special, mesmerising and uplifting album. Highly
Recommended.
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PAOLO FEDGRIGHINI - SEVERAL PEOPLE
This consistant 'cool'jazz album
will appeal to those who dug Nicola Conte and Gerardo Frisini's recent albums.
Mainly catchy uptempo dancers and modal grooves with the two keyboard players
leading and vocals from Ermanno Principle on 'Please Don't Leave', 'Another
Face' and the great 'Oriental Smile'. Sweet voiced Claudia Bernhard leads on
the uptempo 'Spread Your Love' and the jazz dancer 'Blu Night In Africa'. Also
check the instrumentals 'Circus In C Minor' and 'Urban Savage'
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