December - 2018

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DAVE KOZ & FRIENDS 2018 CHRISTMAS TOUR at The Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts

Jonathan Widran

Dec 25, 2018

DAVE KOZ & FRIENDS 2018 CHRISTMAS TOUR at The Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts

There was a sweet, engaging moment somewhere in the middle of the Dave Koz & Friends’ 2018 Christmas tour stop at Cerritos Center for the Performing arts when the popular saxophonist and all around showman reflected on the fact that this was the 21st Anniversary of this, the most enduring of all contemporary jazz holiday traditions. “How many of you have been to the show all 21 years?” Then he joked, “I don’t even know if I’ve been to all of them!” Fortunately for his fans a

IL DIVO, The Timeless Tour at The Dolby Theatre

Jonathan Widran

Dec 25, 2018

IL DIVO, The Timeless Tour at The Dolby Theatre

A decade and a half after reality TV judge and mega-producer Simon Cowell brought Urs Buhler (from Switzerland), Sebastien Izambard (France), Carlos Marin (Spain) and David Miller (U.S.) together to form Il Divo, the four piece multi-national vocal group remains one of the millennium’s great musical phenomena. With over 30 million albums sold and 160 certified gold and platinum hits in 35 different countries, the quartet pioneered the genre of operatic pop, or “popera,” in cl

Jonathan Widran

Dec 22, 2018

SEX PEOPLE, Cal-Island: Season One

In over 25 years of writing about independent artists, there’s one word I have never encountered nor put to page or screen: polysexual. But we’re in a brave new world where such things are a bit fluid and much more socially acceptable, so all bets are off when we describe someone’s identity and what leads them to create unforgettable music. The origin story of Sex People, a uniquely L.A. bred collective, is fascinating and bears recounting. Everything begins with a sixth gene

THE EBONY HILLBILLIES, 5 Miles From Town

Jonathan Widran

Dec 18, 2018

THE EBONY HILLBILLIES, 5 Miles From Town

You first hear the raw, organic, Americana laced magic in the hoppin’ fiddle and streetcorner percussion that grabs your heart on “Hog Eyed Man,” the exuberant instrumental that launches 5 Miles From Town - the latest full length album from string band sensations The Ebony Hillbillies. From there, you’ll be captivated by the part vocal/ part instrumental swirl of R&B, bluegrass, country, jazz, folk, what have you that will help you understand how this five man, two women phe

Jonathan Widran

Dec 18, 2018

NORMAN JOHNSON, The Art of Life

For veteran Jamaican born guitarist Norman Johnson, everything changed in high school when he caught wind of George Benson’s seminal album The Other Side of Abbey Road. He began playing seriously, studied at the Hartford Conservatory of Music and the Hartt School of music and began carving out a career as a sideman with greats like Bill Mays, Harvie Swartz and Steve Gadd. While certain tracks on his latest EP The Art of Life draw powerfully from the Benson influence – most no

JUSTIN MORELL, Concerto for Guitar and Jazz Orchestra

Jonathan Widran

Dec 17, 2018

JUSTIN MORELL, Concerto for Guitar and Jazz Orchestra

This masterfully rendered, alternately sweeping and introspective three movement concerto gives us a deeper understanding, in several remarkable ways, of how uniquely disparate elements can come together to create an extraordinary work. Front and center are composer Justin Morell, featured guitarist Adam Rogers and John Daversa, who directs and conducts the Frost Concert Big Band (from the University of Miami), which features 13 horns and five piece rhythm section. The trio l

Jonathan Widran

Dec 17, 2018

BETTY BRYANT, Project 88

A multi-talented jazz treasure in her hometown of Kansas City, her longtime home base of Los Angeles and far beyond for decades, vocalist, pianist and composer Betty Bryant gives a whimsical shout out to producer Robert Kyle at the end of the liner notes on her extraordinary latest album Project 88: “Again, thank you dear Rob for turning my little joke into a reality.” The joke most likely had to do with the fact that she’s spent her life mastering, caressing and illuminating

Jonathan Widran

Dec 14, 2018

MICHAEL KOLLWITZ, Serenity III

Entering into the mystically melodic, soul transporting musical world of Michael Kollwitz via his exquisite new collection Serenity III: More Peaceful Music on the Chapman Stick, the feeling is one of a cool and calm euphoria. While the lush and compelling compositions he plays on the unique stringed instrument are designed for gentle reflection and meditation, these chill vibes are balanced by the extreme joy of discovery of a wonderful artist whose music I wish I had been i

Jonathan Widran

Dec 14, 2018

ROB MULLINS, The Nearness of You

Nearly 30 years after first enjoying Rob Mullins’ wildly imaginative traditional and contemporary funk-jazz on classic, hard to find albums like “5th Gear” and “Jazz Jazz,” it’s inspiring to see that he continues to create inspiring works that engage and excite upon first listen and endure in the heart and mind long after. An incredible 35 recordings into his career, the versatile pianist’s new, live in the studio trio collection The Nearness of You finds him alternately at h

RAY GREENE featuring DOW BRAIN, Tell Me The Story of Christmas (a jazz influenced holiday album)

Jonathan Widran

Dec 14, 2018

RAY GREENE featuring DOW BRAIN, Tell Me The Story of Christmas (a jazz influenced holiday album)

Tell Me The Story of Christmas, a richly heartfelt, soul-transcendent collaboration between former Tower of Power and current Santana vocalist Ray Greene and keyboardist/co-producer Dow Brain, is billed as “a jazz influenced holiday album” for obvious, swinging and improvisational reasons. Yet what sets these 13 spirit expanding rays of musical light (10 classics, 3 vibrant originals) apart is the fact that traditional and contemporary urban jazz are just the foundations of a

Jonathan Widran

Dec 10, 2018

LAURA DICKINSON 17, Auld Lang Syne

The Laura Dickinson 17’s alternately boisterous/partying and wistful/longing Auld Lang Syne is an engaging, surprise filled holiday collection with a deeper mission beyond the entertainment. Beyond simply celebrating a cool yule with bold and snappy brass and sass big band arrangements performed by L.A.’s most illustrious studio jingle cats, the multi-talented Grammy winning producer and vocal contractor fashions a deeply heartfelt tribute to a hopeful vision of that time of

Jonathan Widran

Dec 10, 2018

ALAN PASQUA, Soliloquy

It’s always nice when legendary performers strip their sound down to the basics and reveal the deeper soul and more personal emotion driving their artistry. Legendary pianist Alan Pasqua has one of those wild, expansive jazz and pop/rock resumes that one minute finds him recording with Bob Dylan and Santana and then grooving with Stanley Clarke, Randy Brecker and late greats like Tony Williams and Michael Brecker. While most of his own discography is swinging trio dates, he g

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