Streamnotes: August 25, 2016

Mostly jazz records this month, plus a few Christgau picks (Konono No. 1, The Kropotkins, Leland Sundries, Lori McKenna, Dawn Oberg, Walter Salas-Humara, Mestre Cupijó, Joi, Pylon, Senegambia Rebel). I only count two new records that are exceptions: Atmosphere and Hieroglyphic Being -- artists I somehow noticed and checked out based on previous reputation. (Had I done more scouting Dan Weiss might have scared me off Atmosphere, but having played the record twice before finding his review, all he accomplished was to get me to do an extra sanity check spin -- as far as I'm concerned the record passed.)

The new jazz is probably more mainstream than usual. My own mail queue continues to dwindle (or perhaps the seasonal lull in August is just exceptionally severe this year) so probably for the first time since I folded Jazz Prospecting into Streamnotes most of the new jazz records below were downloaded or streamed. But what makes them more mainstream than usual is that I spent most of my time looking for records on Downbeat's Readers Poll ballot that I hadn't heard (74/186 at the time, or 39.79%). I've knocked more than a third of that list off (27 by my running count), and I'll probably get close to 50% before I run out of records available on my streaming service (Napster, formerly Rhapsody). That list did get me to two of the best jazz releases of the year -- tenor saxophonists George Coleman and David Murray -- records I wasn't previously aware of but gravitated to the first day I started scouring that list. Still, in the month since nothing else has proven even remotely as good -- my other streamed A- new jazz records (by Paul Dunmall and Paal Nilssen-Love) weren't on the Downbeat ballot.

The recent compilations section has a couple sets I hadn't heard about but looked interesting: some Africana (Penny Penny, Sunburst), proto-electronica (Close to the Noise Floor). The new Lovano record got slotted there because the tape is 10+ years old. Senegambia Rebel is probably all new, but I decided to file all various artist compilations there -- not sure that's been a consistent standard, but it's one for now.

Old music is mostly tangential to new music. The Peter Kuhn was a belated discovery after I reviewed his old and new music last month. Ellery Eskelin is on the new Stephan Crump album, and he has a new album on Hatology I couldn't find -- instead I came up with an old one I had missed. Barbara Dane and Lori McKenna have good new albums. I didn't get very far with Chucho Valdés, but at least knocked off one of my ungraded CDs -- probably just a bookkeeping error since it wasn't on an ungraded shelf.

Most of these are short notes/reviews based on streaming records from Rhapsody (other sources are noted in brackets). They are snap judgments based on one or two plays, accumulated since my last post along these lines, back on July 30. Past reviews and more information are available here (8483 records).

Recent Releases

Greg Abate & Phil Woods with the Tim Ray Trio: Kindred Spirits: Live At Chan's (2014 [2016], Whaling City Sound, 2CD): Two alto saxophonists, backed by pianist Ray's trio with John Lockwood (bass) and Mark Walker (drums). Woods, who died at 83 thirteen months after these sets, got his start running errands for Charlie Parker, but the 16-years-younger Abate may be the even more resolute bebopper. B+(**)

Joey Alexander: My Favorite Things (2014 [2015], Motéma): Pianist, born Josiah Alexander Sila in Bali, Indonesia in 2003, so that makes him like eleven years old when he recorded this debut, starting with 10:15 of "Giant Steps," 8:13 of "Lush Life," and 4:15-6:50 takes of six other standards plus an original named "Ma Blues" ("inspired" by "Moanin'"). He's joined by adults on bass and drums, and a bit of trumpet on one piece. I'm little inclined to credit prodigies, but this is a pretty enjoyable set of mainstream jazz. B+(**)

Karrin Allyson: Many a New Day: Karrin Allyson Sings Rodgers & Hammerstein (2015, Motéma): Jazz singer from Kansas, has been working the songbook hard since 1992. Blandly sung, backed rather sparely by Kenny Barron on piano and John Patitucci on bass. B

Livio Almeida: Action and Reaction (2014 [2016], self-released): Tenor saxophonist from Brazil, studied (and presumably lives) in New York, part of Arturo O'Farrill's sextet. This taut, professional postbop was produced by O'Farrill, with sons Adam (trumpet) and Zack (drums), plus Vitor Gonçalves (piano), and Eduardo Belo (bass). B+(*) [cd]

Atmosphere: Fishing Blues (2016, Rhymesayers Entertainment): Underground rap duo from Minneapolis, nothing fancy in the beats, just enough to move it along; nothing fancy anywhere else either, just slice-of-life shit that may be him or may be some other fictional dude, but one no more exciting than he be. Typical lines: "I'm not perfect but I try"; "I might be unprepared but I still be here." And yeah, a song about fishing. A-

Audio One: The Midwest School (2014, Audiographic): Another large Ken Vandermark ensemble -- 10 pieces, Chicago locals, sax heavy (Vandermark, Mars Williams, Dave Rempis, Nick Mazzarella), with cornet (Josh Berman), trombone (Jeb Bishop), viola (Jen Paulson), vibes (Jason Adasiewicz), bass (Mick Macri), and drums (Tim Daisy). Pieces by Julius Hemphill, Anthony Braxton, Henry Threadgill, and (best of all) AEC's "Theme De Yoyo." B+(**) [bc]

Karlis Auzins/Lucas Leidinger/Tomo Jacobson/Thomas Sauerborn: Mount Meander (2015 [2016], Clean Feed): Of course, the group name is Mount Meander -- nothing else on the spine, and the individual names are barely legible on the cover. Respectively: tenor/soprano sax, piano, double bass, drums. Recorded in Denmark. Ambitious compositions, pushing limits, they don't always pay off but produce more than a few fine moments. B+(***) [cd]

Lucian Ban Elevation: Songs From Afar (2014 [2016], Sunnyside): Pianist from Transylvania (modern day Romania), home of three trad songs here (one "sorrow" and two "wedding"), sung with much drama by Gavril Tarmure. The band members merit their front cover billing: Abraham Burton (tenor sax), John Hébert (bass), and Eric McPherson (drums), with Mat Maneri (viola) added on 5 (of 9) tracks. The 7:02 solo piano piece in the middle is only one of several things that slow this down. B+(*)

Peter Bernstein: Let Loose (2016, Smoke Sessions): Guitarist, been recording since the early 1990s, his sweet tone and long-lined grooves always a nice touch on other people's albums, but maybe not quite enough to carry his own. With Gerald Clayton on piano, Doug Weiss on bass, and Bill Stewart on drums, a good example of what he's good at. B+(*)

Jim Black Trio: The Constant (2015 [2016], Intakt): Terrific drummer, has played in numerous important groups -- just to pick a couple, Dave Douglas's Tiny Bell Trio, Ellery Eskelin's Trio, Tim Berne's Bloodcount -- has a dozen or so albums on his own. This is a piano trio, his songs, Elias Stemeseder on piano, Thomas Morgan on bass. Snappy material, especially around the edges. B+(***) [cd]

Black Top: #Two (2014 [2015], Babel): Avant-jazz duo with Pat Thomas on piano and Orphy Robinson on drums, either likely to switch to a wide range of electronic gadgets. On their first album they were joined by saxophonist Steve Williamson, so here they go with another guest, saxophinst Evan Parker. Recorded live. The electronics are sketchy, but the piano breaks up time in interesting ways, and it doesn't take Parker long to jump ahead of the learing curve. B+(***) [bc]

Carate Urio Orchestra: Ljubljana (2015 [2016], Clean Feed): Seven-piece group based in Antwerp, Belgium, probably led by Sean Carpio (drums, guitar, voice), with several musicians I've run across before -- Joachim Badenhorst (clarinets, sax), Pascal Niggenkemper (bass), Frantz Loriot (viola). Complex, some voice (which doesn't help), passages that fade into ambience and others that rise up grandly. B+(*) [cd]

Teri Lyne Carrington: The Mosaic Project: Love and Soul (2015, Concord): Drummer, has a wide range of jazz credits going back to 1984 but she veered into R&B for her 2011 Mosaic Project album, and returned here. Very long credits list, but nearly all of the voices and musicians are female (I see one cut with Billy Dee Williams listed as narrator). The ever-changing guest vocalists give this an air of anonymity. B+(**)

George Coleman: A Master Speaks (2015 [2016], Smoke Sessions): Tenor saxophonist, still remembered primarily as the guy who preceded Wayne Shorter in the Miles Davis Quintet, but he was a master -- his 1991 album My Horns of Plenty is an all-time favorite -- and at 80, recording his first album since 2002, he still is. Classic sax quartet, with Mike LeDonne pacing him splendidly on piano, Bob Cranshaw on bass, and George Coleman Jr. on drums. A-

Cortex: Live in New York (2015 [2016], Clean Feed): Norwegian avant-jazz quartet -- Thomas Johansson (trumpet), Kristoffer Alberts (saxophones), Ola Høyer (bass), Gard Nilssen (drums) -- second album on Clean Feed, may have more but share no relationship I can find with the 1975-79 French avant band Cortex. They can really kick up a storm, making this relatively short live album (35:38) pretty huge. A- [cd]

Larry Coryell: Heavy Feel (2014 [2015], Wide Hive): Guitarist, a fusion pioneer with more than one hundred albums since Chico Hamilton introduced him in 1966. Quartet, produced by Gregory Howe (who has a hand in 4/9 songs), with soprano sax (George Brooks), electric bass (Matt Montgomery -- also credits for 4/9 songs), and drums (Mike Hughes). Fusion, wouldn't call it heavy but not light either. B+(*)

Stephan Crump: Stephan Crump's Rhombal (2016, Papillon): Bassist, ten or so albums since 1997, I especially like his knack for mixing the bass up so it balances evenly with the other instruments -- harder to do here in a two-horn quartet, but he manages it nonetheless. With Adam O'Farrill (trumpet), Ellery Eskelin (tenor sax), and Tyshawn Sorey (drums). A- [cd]

Barbara Dane with Tammy Hall: Throw It Away . . . (2016, Dreadnaught Music): Folksinger, born in Detroit in 1927 of parents who migrated north from Arkansas, moved to San Francisco in the 1950s. I've long regarded her 1959 Anthology of American Folk Songs as a classic, and vaguely recall her longstanding political activism -- her recording career petered out in the early 1970s with FTA! Songs of the GI Resistance and I Hate the Capitalist System -- but wasn't aware she wrote songs with Lu Watters, cut albums with Lightnin' Hopkins and the Chambers Brothers, or one called Livin' With the Blues (with Earl Hines, Benny Carter, and Shelly Manne). She's 88 now, thanks Mose Allison's "My Brain" for getting hers back to work, and her voice has aged fine. Hall's piano trio turns her into a jazz singer, guest harmonica and sax flesh out the blues. Starts with Memphis Minnie, then Leonard Cohen, Abbey Lincoln, Paul Simon, then gets more personal, and political, and/or corny. When she sketches out her dream society and asks "What Kind of Country" that would be, "socialism" is so obviously the answer she doesn't need to mention it (or Bernie). A- [cd]

Kris Davis: Duopoly (2015 [2016], Pyroclastic): Avant-pianist, from Canada, has a dozen or more albums since 2003 establishing herself as a major figure. Duets here with eight partners -- guitarists Bill Frisell and Julian Lage, pianists Craig Taborn and Angelica Sanchez, drummers Billy Drummond and Marcus Gilmore, also Don Byron (clarinet) and Tim Berne (alto sax) -- one tune and one shorter free improv each. All interesting, but Byron and especially Berne are most compelling. Comes with a DVD encrypted so I can't play it on my computer (may be my problem, but not one I feel up to dealing with). B+(***) [cd]

Whit Dickey/Kirk Knuffke: Fierce Silence (2015 [2016], Clean Feed): Drums and trumpet duo, Dickey mostly associated with Matthew Shipp since the late 1980s. Usual caveats about avant duos apply, but hard to fault the interplay. B+(***) [cd]

Paquito D'Rivera: Jazz Meets the Classics (2012 [2014], Paquito/Sunnyside): Cuban-born clarinetist, played in the famous group Irakere there but fled in 1981 to US, recording 55+ albums since then. I passed on this one for obvious reasons -- not least the cover image of six guys dressed up like 19th century plantation owners and martinets. Those are presumably the band, with Diego Urcola (trumpet), Alex Brown (piano), electric bass, drums, and percussion (Arturo Stable). The repertoire is mostly Beethoven, Mozart, and Chopin with one piece from Ernesto Lecouna, all served con clavé, which helps. B

Paquito D'Rivera & Quinteto Cimarron: Aires Tropicales (2012 [2015], Paquito/Sunnyside): Another trawl through classical music Cuban style. The Quinteto Cimarron is a group of Cuban expats based in Spain, a classical string quintet (adds contrabass to the usual two violins, viola, and cello), with only the leader's clarinet to spice things up. Starts with five of D'Rivera's pieces then wanders off through more or less obscure Cuban composers (I assume -- I only see one piece by a member of the Quintet). B-

Paquito D'Rivera/Armando Manzanero: Paquito & Manzanero (2016, Paquito/Sunnyside): Manzanero is a Mexican pianist and singer, composer of some 400 songs, now 80. These are his songs, played by the clarinetist's sextet, and he adds his fragile but romantic croon to a few. B+(*)

Paul Dunmall/Matthew Bourne/Steve Davis/Dave Kane: Mandalas in the Sky (2013 [2015], Babel): Avant-sax quartet, with the leader on tenor and flute, plus piano, drums, and bass respectively. Dunmall remains focused throughout, and the stretch where he sits back and lets the piano take over demands our attention too. A- [bc]

Oran Etkin: What's New? Reimagining Benny Goodman (2015, Motéma): Clarinetist (regular and bass), so of course he's been thinking about Goodman. But he starts with a "Prelude" that doesn't allow any measure of swing, and only sporadically rectifies that -- even his cheery, bouncy "King Porter Stomp" only swings in passing. With Sullivan Fortner (piano), Steve Nelson (vibes), Matt Wilson (drums), and Charenee Wade singing two tunes. B+(***)

Sullivan Fortner: Aria (2014 [2015], Impulse!): New Orleans pianist, won a prize and jumped straight to the big leagues for his debut -- not that Universal's Verve group (mostly dba Impulse! these days) actually releases enough, in the US anyhow, to still qualify. The operatic title spooked me away, but turns out this is a very solid sax quartet, with Tivon Penticott on tenor (and soprano), Aidan Carroll on bass, and Joe Dyson on drums. B+(***)

Kenny Garrett: Do Your Dance! (2016, Mack Avenue): Alto saxophonist, one of the major mainstream figures of the 1990s, with Coltrane the obvious influence. Tries for funky here, but no matter how upbeat he keeps it, he can't shake postbop convention, even when he brings in those hippity-hop rappers. B+(*)

Wycliffe Gordon: Somebody New (2015, Blues Back): Mainstream trombonist, more than two dozen albums since 1996, leads the Lexington, Kentucky-based DiMartino/Osland Big Band here -- founded by Miles Osland (alto sax) and Vince DiMartino (trumpet, but I don't see a credit for him here). The band swings, and Gordon turns out to be a pretty fair singer (e.g., "Basin Street Blues"). B+(**)

Mark Guiliana Jazz Quartet: Family First (2015, Beat Music Productions): Drummer-led sax quartet, all members fairly well known: Jason Rigby (sax), Shai Maestro (piano), Chris Morrissey (bass). Postbop, fast ones hold up pretty well, slow ones less commanding. B+(**)

Joel Harrison 5: Spirit House (2013 [2015], Whirlwind): Filed on Napster by "Joel Harrison Octet," but I only count the expected five musicians: Harrison (guitar), Cuong Vu (trumpet), Paul Hanson (bassoon), Kermit Driscoll (bass), and Brian Blade (drums) -- Harrison and Blade also credited for voice, so presumably they're responsible for "Some Thoughts on Kenny Kirkland." MVP is the trumpeter. B+(*)

Cory Henry: The Revival (2016, Ground Up): Organ player, first album, live, sings a bit and has a drummer backing but that's it. Reminds me how ugly solo organ can be, but every now and then comes up with something to make me forget. B-

Hieroglyphic Being: The Disco's of Imhotep (2016, Technicolour): Chicago house producer Jamal Ross, has a real flair for beats, strong again here until he fizzles a bit near the short end. Nine tracks, 33:56. B+(***)

Charlie Hunter: Everybody Has a Plan Until They Get Punched in the Mouth (2016, Ground Up/Decca): Seven-string guitarist, has close to twenty albums since 1995, some with even longer titles, offers a fair approximation of Scofield groove but is more likely to deviate into avant and/or rockish territory. Here he leads a quartet more dominated by horns -- cornet (Kirk Knuffke) and trombone (Curtis Fowlkes) -- with frequent collaborator Bobby Previte on drums. Fave piece is a bit of smeared trombone funk. B+(***)

Grace Kelly: Trying To Figure It Out (2016, Pazz Productions): Alto saxophonist, born Grace Chung in 1992, I first noticed her as a 15-year-old co-leading a pretty good album with Lee Konitz, and recently in Jon Batiste's Late Show band. This one is all over the map with guests who help and some who don't, but she mostly seems to be aiming for something in Terri Lyne Carrington's Mosaic Project's bailiwick. B+(*)

Stacey Kent: Tenderly (2015 [2016], OKeh): Singer, originally from New Jersey but based in England, has close to twenty albums since 1997, sings standards here (including one from Brazil), backed primarily by Roberto Menescal's guitar, with Jeremy Brown on bass and husband Jim Tomlinson on flute and tenor sax. Her voice is well suited to this low key approach. B+(***)

Masabumi Kikuchi: Black Orpheus (2012 [2016], ECM): Japanese pianist, Discogs lists 19 albums since 1970, died in 2015 leaving this solo set as his final testament. B+(*) [dl]

Kirk Knuffke: Lamplighter (2014 [2015], Fresh Sound New Talent): Cornet player, has been prolific since 2008, including six records on Steeplechase I haven't heard. Avant, but rather thin, sketchy, slippery, with Stomu Takeishi on bass and two percussionists. B+(**)

Konono No. 1/Batida: Konono No. 1 Meets Batida (2016, Crammed Discs): Batida is Pedro Coquenão, a DJ born in Angola and based in Lisbon, Portugal, with two albums on Soundway (I recommend the eponymous 2012 Batida). He probably adds something here, but the band's home-brewed Congotronics rule. A-

The Kropotkins: Portents of Love (2015, Mulatta): Named for the Russian anarchist, fourth album since 1996 if we count the eponymous debut, credited at the time to avant-violinist (and sometime banjoist) Dave Soldier. Current lineup includes co-founder Jonathan Kane (snare drum), Lorette Velvette (vocals), Charles Burnham (violin), and Moe Tucker (drums), doing a hillbilly/blues thing several times removed. B+(**)

Steffen Kuehn: Leap of Faith (2015-16 [2016], Stefrecords): Trumpet player, fourth album, funky little thing although the band, with four horns, guitar/keyboards, extra percussion, and various guest stars (best known Bob Mintzer) is more than ample. B+(*)

Zach Larmer Elektrik Band: Inner Circle (2016, self-released): Guitarist, based in Miami, first album, electric keyboards and bass leaning toward funk, but his guest spots for horns up his game -- John Daversa on trumpet and EWI, even more so Brian Lynch on trumpet and Aldo Salvent on tenor sax. B+(*) [cd]

Le Boeuf Brothers + JACK Quartet: Imaginist (2014 [2016], Panoramic/New Focus): The brothers are Pascal (alto sax) and Remy (keyboards), their group including Ben Wendel (tenor sax) and bass and drums. JACK is a string quartet. The first three cuts show some slippery promise, but then comes the long "A Dream" where the strings go classical and Paul Whitworth narrates something about "Josef K." Closes with another extended instrumental set in much the same vein. B- [cd]

Steve Lehman: Sélébéyone (2016, Pi): Alto saxophonist, Anthony Braxton student, has had a couple records of the year (and not just in my book: Mise en Abime topped the Jazz Critics Poll). Goes for something else here, with HPrizm rapping and Gaston Bandimic singing in Wolof, rhythms borrowed from hip-hop and mbalax then freed up some more by drummer Damion Reid. I really don't know what to make of it, but I do love the shifty in-between music, with Maciek Lasserre's soprano bouncing off the alto, Carlos Homs' keyboards, and Drew Gress holding it all together on bass. A- [cd]

Leland Sundries: Music for Outcasts (2016, L'Echiquier): Brooklyn band led by singer-songwriter Nick Loss-Eaton -- thought the name sounded familiar but couldn't find any further discography until AMG credited him with publicity on a Bruce Springsteen album, and I found some saved mail from him hawking albums by artists I don't recall at all. First album after a couple EPs, will appeal to Americana fans but strikes me as much bigger and bolder, though I'm not sure that adds up to better. B+(***) [bc]

Joey Locascio: Meets the Legend (2016, Blujazz): No hype sheet, promo doesn't identify any credits. When I got it, I assumed this must be pianist Joe LoCascio, but I have my doubts now: websites don't indicate any previous records and no one but me seems to have filed this under the pianist. He sings here, and I've seen a picture of him playing guitar. "The Legend" seems to be organ player Joey DeFrancesco. He starts with a parody called "Joey's a Tramp" and rarely strays far from caricature. B+(*) [cd]

Mack Avenue Superband: Live From the 2015 Detroit Jazz Festival (2015 [2016], Mack Avenue): The Detroit-based jazz label has been showcasing their roster at their hometown festival since 2012. The lineups vary from year to year, this one featuring Freddie Hendrix (trumpet), Tia Fuller (alto/soprano sax), Kirk Whallum (tenor sax), Christian Sands (piano), Christian McBride (bass), Gary Burton (vibes), and Carl Allen (drums). Hotter than average mainstream, main takeaway is to be reminded of how much talent Whallum wastes on his own albums. B

Christian McBride Trio: Live at the Village Vanguard (2014 [2015], Mack Avenue): Bassist, earned his headline credentials in the hard bop revival of the early 1990s, leads a trio with Christian Sands on piano and Ulysses Owens Jr. on drums. Sands is fast, flashy, boppish -- put his name on this group and he'd be more famous, but if he had to hire another bassist his group wouldn't be as good. B+(**)

Lori McKenna: The Bird & the Rifle (2016, CN/Thirty Tigers): Singer-songwriter from the country side of Massachusetts, writes good songs and sings them right. Title cut sounds like a case for gun control and an explanation why it isn't happening. A-

Merzbow/Keiji Haino/Balasz Pandi: An Untroublesome Defencelessness (2016, RareNoise): Electronics, guitar and more electronics, drums, resulting in better than average fusion thrash. B+(**) [cdr]

Camila Meza: Traces (2016, Sunnyside): Singer and guitarist from Chile, based in New York, band has jazz credentials -- Shai Maestro (piano, keyboards), Matt Penma (bass), Kendrick Scott (drums), Jody Redhage (cello), Bashin Johnson (percussion) -- but the songs, most in Spanish but some in English, don't swing much. B

Allison Miller's Boom Tic Boom: Otis Was a Polar Bear (2016, Royal Potato Family): Drummer-led sextet, built around the brilliant quartet from her first album -- Myra Melford (piano), Jenny Scheinman (violin), Todd Sickafoose (bass) -- with the addition of two horns: Kirk Knuffke (cornet) and Ben Goldberg (clarinet). Terrific group, with spots of dazzle but also patches that don't. B+(**)

Modular String Trio: Ants, Bees and Butterflies (2014 [2016], Clean Feed): Sergiy Okhrimchuk (violin), Robert Jedrzejewski (cello), Jacek Mazurkiewicz (contrabass, electronics), but there's also a less obvious, unexplained credit: Lukasz Kacperczyk (modular synth). I'm not all that fond of chamber jazz, for for that matter string ensembles, but these plucky abstractions hold my interest. B+(***) [cd]

Murray, Allen & Carrington Power Trio: Perfection (2015 [2016], Motéma): That's David Murray (tenor sax, bass clarinet), Geri Allen (piano), and Terri Lyne Carrington (drums) -- "Power Trio" would have been redundant had they just spelled out those names. I missed this, and passed up Murray on my latest ballot because I hadn't heard anything by him since 2013. My bad. A-

Quinsin Nachoff: Flux (2012 [2016], Mythology): Tenor saxophonist, has a couple albums, this one adds a second sax (David Binney on alto), plus piano (Matt Mitchell) and drums (Kenny Wolleson) but no bass. Jittery postbop, impressive as far as it goes. B+(**) [cd]

Aaron Neville: Apache (2016, Tell It): Unmistakable voice, a New Orleans legend and then some, still mostly generic songs -- exception is the closer, "Fragile World," which I'm tempted to call cosmic but it's actually so down to earth. B+(**)

Paal Nilssen-Love Large Unit: Ana (2015 [2016], PNL): Fourteen-piece ensemble, short on horns (two reeds, one trumpet, one trombone, two tubas), long on percussion including Latin and African specialists, electronics, guitar, two basses, no piano. Three longish pieces, many remarkable passages with blaring horns over electronic squiggles and all sorts of complex rhythm. A- [bc]

Nine Live: Sonus Inenarribilis: Nine Live Plays the Music of John Clark (2016, Mulatta): Clark is a French horn player with a handful of albums from 1980-2003, his side credits including four Gil Evans albums. He wrote the music here, conducted by Thomas Carlo Bo, and is credited with "horn." Group leans toward classical instrumentation, with strings (violin-viola-cello), clarinet, bassoon, keyboards, and 7-string electric bass. B [cd]

Northern Winds and Voices: Inside/Outside (Sisällä/Ulkona) (2016, Edgetone): Sub: "Finnish music imagines in new ways." The other name on the cover is Heikki Koskinen, who plays piano, flutes, kantele, and electric trumpet ("e-tpt"). Steve Heckman and Rent Romus play various reed instruments, Noah Schenker bass, and Kati Pienimaki Schenker sings (mostly in Finnish). Despite the jazzbos, still pivots on folk/classical foundation, often lovely, sometimes arch. B+(*) [cd]

Dawn Oberg: Bring (2015, Blossom Theory): Christgau split an EW post between her catalog and rapper DejLoaf's, no doubt relishing the contrast. I gave a respectful nod to her 2012 album Rye but not a second spin, so missed whatever literary quirks sold him on the album. I note here big words and twisty melodies -- Wikipedia lists her genres as "cabaret, jazz" -- but the only songs I get are the one hooked with "suck" and the super-obvious "Republican Jesus" -- sharpest political song I've heard in years. Nine songs, 27:38. B+(***)

Adam O'Farrill: Stranger Days (2016, Sunnyside): Trumpet player, son of pianist Arturo O'Farrill, grandson of arranger Chico O'Farrill, has a couple albums as The O'Farrill Brothers with brother Zack O'Farrill (drummer here), but this is the first under his own name. Quartet with Chad Lefkowitz-Brown (tenor sax) and Walter Stinson (bass), moving formidably away from the family's Afro-Cuban roots, leaning slightly to the avant side of postbop. B+(**)

Arturo O'Farrill Sextet: Boss Level (2013 [2016], Zoho): Cuban-American pianist, actually born in 1960 in Mexico in between countries, but grew up in the family trade -- his father was a famed big band arranger -- and has two sonns in his group: Adam on trumpet and Zack on drums. Also Livio Almeida (tenor sax), Travis Reuter (guitar), and Shawn Conley (bass). Seems intent on pushing boundaries here, no matter how often they trip him up. B+(*)

Nils Økland Band: Kjølvatn (2012 [2016], ECM): Norwegian violinist, also plays viola d'amore and hardanger fiddle, has a dozen or so albums since 1986. Backed by saxophone, harmonium, double bass (Mats Eilertsen), and percussion/vibraphone, none adding more than tinges to the brooding strings. B+(**)

Francisco Pais Lotus Project: Verde (2016, Product of Imagination): Guitarist from Portugal, has a couple previous albums. This one has Myron Walden (tenor sax), Godwin Louis (alto sax), Julian Shore (piano), Connor Schultz (bass), and Ferenc Nemeth (drums). Mixed bag, including some shifting rhythmic interest but also a couple of rather ordinary Pais vocals. B+(*) [cd]

Aaron Parks/Thomas Fonnesbaek/Karsten Bagge: Groovements (2014 [2016], Stunt): Pianist from Seattle, was kind of a big deal in 2008 when his debut album, after work with Terrence Blanchard, landed on Blue Note. Picked up this bassist and drummer in Copenhagen, and they fit like a glove. B+(**)

Sergio Pereira: Swingando (2016, self-released): Brazilian guitarist, based in US after a decade in the Netherlands, sings some, band includes some top names: Helio Alves (piano), Nilson Matta (bass), Duduka de Fonseca (drums). B+(*) [cd]

Gregory Porter: Take Me to the Alley (2016, Blue Note): Jazz singer, songwriter too I presume, fourth album since 2011, highly regarded if you believe the polls. Has a nice rich baritone and doesn't indulge in the tics and idiosyncrasies that I find so annoying in male singers, yet he always strikes me as an empty shell, puffed up and vacuous. So again and again, just when I think this isn't so bad I notice that it's still pretty dumb. B-

Herlin Riley: New Direction (2016, Mack Avenue): Drummer from New Orleans, only his third album although he has dozens of side credits since 1985, especially with Ahmad Jamal and Wynton Marsalis. With Bruce Harris (trumpet), Godwin Louis (alto/soprano sax), Emmet Cohen (piano), Mark Whitfield (guitar), Russell Hall (bass), Pedro Martinez (congas). Often flashy, but the thing I most related to was the leader's home town vocal at the end. B+(*)

Jason Roebke Octet: Cinema Spiral (2014 [2016], NoBusiness): Chicago avant-bassist, has a few albums of his own and more with other Chicago players, many of whom he rounded up for his octet: Josh Berman (trumpet), Jeb Bishop (trombone), Keefe Jackson (tenor/soprano sax, contrabass clarinet), Greg Ward (alto sax), Jason Stein (bass clarinet), Jason Adasiewicz (vibes), Mike Reed (drums). The rhythmic foundation is always shifting, and the horns sway to and fro or just shoot out in odd directions, a universe in perpetual turmoil. B+(***) [cd]

Roji: The Hundred Headed Woman (2016, Shhpuma/Clean Feed): Basically a duo, with Gonçalo Almeida (bass and loops) and Jörg A. Schneider (drums) laying down an avant-noise foundation, and guests Susana Santos Silva (trumpet) and Colin Webster (baritone sax) joining for three tracks each (out of seven). B+(***) [cd]

Jim Rotondi: Dark Blue (2015 [2016], Smoke Sessions): Mainstream trumpet player, sixteen albums since 1997, all on labels that specialize in that sort of thing. With Joe Locke (vibes), David Hazeltine (piano), David Wong (bass), and Carl Allen (drums). B+(*)

Jerome Sabbagh/Simon Jermyn/Allison Miller: Lean (2014 [2016], Music Wizards): Tenor sax trio, Sabbagh also plays soprano, with Jermyn on electric bass and effects, Miller on drums and more effects. Sabbagh, originally from France, has a half-dozen albums, started postbop but never got too comfortable there. B+(**) [cd]

Walter Salas-Humara: Work: Part One (2015, Sonic Pyramid): Singer-songwriter, has mostly worked in the long-running alt-indie band the Silos, also associated with a band I remember more fondly, the Vulgar Boatmen, but he's kicked out a couple solo albums -- one in 1988, another in 1995, more recently. This seems to be new "acoustic" versions of old 1980s-vintage songs, with Richard Brotherton's guitar/dobro/banjo/mandolin, Mary Rowell's violin/viola, and Amy Allison's "supporting voice." B+(**)

Walter Salas-Humara: Explodes and Disappears (2016, Sonic Pyramid): New songs, clear and straightforward, easy-going and catchy. B+(***)

Susana Santos Silva/Lotte Anker/Sten Sandell/Torbjörn Zetterberg/Jon Fält: Life and Other Transient Storms (2015 [2016], Clean Feed): Trumpet player from Portugal, saxophonist from Denmark, piano-bass-drums from somewhere in Scandinavia. Two long pieces, joint improvs at Tampere Jazz Happening in Finland, pretty much an ordinary day in the life of the European jazz avant-garde, including no short amount of complex and exhilarating. B+(***) [cd]

Ches Smith: The Bell (2015 [2016], ECM): Drummer, with Craig Taborn (piano) and Mat Maneri (viola) also listed on the cover but after the title, hence my parsing. Smith wrote all the pieces. ECM's Manfred Eicher has a knack for making free jazz sound like easy listening: no sharp edges here, the viola sounding typically weepy, but occasional patches sound compelling. B+(*) [dl]

Luciana Souza: Speaking in Tongues (2015, Sunnyside): Brazilian jazz singer, dozen albums since 1998, this one backed by Lionel Loueke (guitar), Gregoire Maret (harmonica), Massimo Biolcati (bass), and Kendrick Scott (drums), her tongues Portuguese, English, and scat -- I suspect mostly the latter. B

Bill Stewart: Space Squid (2014 [2016], Pirouet): Drummer, close to a dozen albums since 1995. With Seamus Blake (tenor/soprano sax), Bill Carrothers (piano), Ben Street (bass). Surprisingly soft for Blake, but the piano has some bite. B+(*)

Stirrup: Cut (2016, Clean Feed): String-driven avant trio: Fred Lonberg-Holm (cello, guitar), Nick Maori (double bass), Charles Rumback (drums). Seems pretty straightforward: propulsive beat, string drone, easier on guitar but the cello has more bite. A- [cd]

Markus Stockhausen/Florian Weber: Alba (2015 [2016], ECM): Trumpet player, son of famed avant-garde composer Karlheinz Stockhausen, leads with flugelhorn here, in duets with the pianist. Eloquent, serene, very lovely. B+(***) [dl]

John Stowell/Michael Zilber Quartet: Basement Blues (2012-15 [2016], Origin): Guitar and alto sax (plus some piano), backed by bass (John Shifflett) and drums (Jason Lewis). Pair have had several albums together, and Stowell has a long career in jazz guitar. Flows easy, lyrical and tasteful. B+(**) [cd]

Marcus Strickland's Twi-Life: Nihil Novi (2016, Blue Note): Saxophonist, initially a tenor who also played a pretty mean soprano but he spreads out here to alto and bass clarinet, and sings some too. His group has spread out too, starting as a power trio and now up to five or six plus guests including singers and narrators and producer (and sometime bassist) Meshel Ndegeocello. Jean Baylor's songs rarely rise above nu soul, the band favoring soft funk, with the saxophone rarely rising above the groove. B-

Sundae + Mr. Goessl: Makes My Heart Sway (2016, self-released): Goessl is guitarist Jason, who provides minimal but adequate backing for standards singer Kate Voss, who treats songs like "Young at Heart" and "After You've Gone" with respect, as if they're fragile. (Exception: "Pretty Little Thing.") B+(**) [cd]

Chucho Valdés: Tribute to Irakere (Live in Marciac) (2015, Jazz Village): Phenomenal Cuban pianist, founder in 1973 of the popular group Irakere, which continues to be led by his son, Chuchito, while he's moved on, but here takes a reflective look back. Hard to judge on limited tracks and info, but it's hard to top his piano solos. [NB: based on 3/6 cuts, 23:17/69:38] B+(**)

Marlene VerPlanck: The Mood I'm In (2015, Audiophile): Standards singer from Newark (née Pampinella, married trombonist Billy VerPlanck for fifty-some years until his death in 2009), has recorded since 1955 with one of her best 2014's I Give Up, I'm in Love. She's past 80 now, though the only indication I hear of that is that she's picking more obscure songs, bringing them vibrantly to life. With Andy Panayi (sax/flute), Mark Nightingale (trombone), John Pearce (piano), Paul Morgan (bass), and Bobby Worth (drums). B+(***)

Miroslav Vitous: Music of Weather Report (2010-11 [2016], ECM): Czech bassist, a beneficiary of that good old Communist focus on classical music, finagled a scholarship to Berklee in 1966, dropped out and headed for New York where he was toasted as a jazz prodigy, falling in with the crowd that turned into fusion supergroup Weather Report -- a group I must admit I've never developed any real fondness for, but which, given his age, he could easily recall as the high point of his life. He looked back in 2009's Remembering Weather Report, and again here, although he also wants to nudge the music in directions both more avant and classical, in effect to rewrite history in his own image. He doubles up at soprano/tenor sax (Gary Campbell and Roberto Bonisolo) and drums (Gerald Cleaver and Nasheet Waits), and he occasionally sets aside his bass to help Aydin Esen out on keyboards. B+(**) [dl]

Charenée Wade: Offering: The Music of Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson (2015, Motéma): Jazz vocalist, first album, bites off a group of songs with lyrical, political power and more than a little quirk. Perhaps a bit too respectful, but worth rehearing this way. B+(***)

Recent Reissues, Compilations, Vault Discoveries

Joe Castro: Lush Life: A Musical Journey (1954-66 [2015], Sunnyside, 6CD): Bebop pianist (1927-2009), born in Arizona, grew up in Bay Area and worked there and in Hawaii before moving to New York in 1956, recorded three albums there before moving back west. Doesn't seem like an especially significant figure -- my only prior reference to him was Zoot Sims with the Joe Castro Trio Live at the Falcon Lair, recorded in 1956 but released on Pablo much later. Lacking the booklet, I have to wonder why Castro doesn't play on one full disc ("Joe Castro's Friends: The Teddy Wilson Jam Sessions") and 4 (of 12) cuts on another (an previously unreleased album by the Teddy Edwards Tentet). High points include fine small group sessions with Stan Getz, Lucky Thompson, Sims, and/or Edwards. B+(**)

Don Cherry/John Tchicai/Irène Schweizer/Léon Francioli/Pierre Favre: Musical Monsters (1980 [2016], Intakt): Recorded at Willisau in north-central Switzerland, hence the all-Swiss rhythm section, the headliners playing trumpet and alto sax. Danish-born Tchicai joined the New York avant-garde in the mid-'60s, picking up a pronounced Ayler influence (and shout), while Cherry started out with Ornette Coleman and went global. Impressive piano too, and terrific work from Favre. A- [cd]

Close to the Noise Floor: Formative UK Electronica 1975-1984 (1975-84 [2016], Cherry Red, 4CD): Mostly obscure -- I recognize maybe 10 names out of 61, and only a couple of those count as famous -- this runs closer to what we used to call new wave, with side glances into industrial and proto-noise, than to what later emerged as electronica, and not just due to minimal danceability. Booklet probably adds some historical value, and this may provide a starting point for exploring various paths. B+(*)

Mestre Cupijó E Seu Ritmo: Siriá (1973-78 [2014], Analog Africa): Brazilian band led by an alto saxophonist, hails from somewhere in Brazil's Amazonian backwaters (Cametá), far enough from the coastal cities that the music here bears more likeness to Colombian cumbia (or even salsa) than to bossa nova or even forró, and better than average cumbia at that. I don't see where anyone says so, but this looks to have been compiled from four 1973-78 albums, including one called Siriá and another Siriá Siriá. A-

Joi: Joi Sound System (1999-2007 [2016], RealWorld, 2CD): Originally two British brothers, Farook and Haroon Shamsher (mother from India, father from Bangladesh), mixed strong electronic dance beats with occasional Bengali spices on their 1999 debut album, released the year Haroon died. A second album in 2001 started with field recordings Haroon had made before his death, and a third album appeared in 2007. This compilation is a "best-of," although at this length they couldn't have left much out. A-

Daunik Lazro/Joëlle Léandre/George Lewis: Enfances 8 Janv. 1984 (1984 [2016], Fou): Alto sax, bass, trombone (and toys), all very rough, with Léandre singing some, if that's what you want to call it -- operatic screech is more like it, but at least it blends into the general chaos rather than towering above it. B+(*) [cd]

Joe Lovano Quartet: Classic! Live at Newport (2005 [2016], Blue Note): Major tenor saxophonist, the reigning guy in Downbeat's polls, his annual albums have slowed down a bit lately with nothing from the studio since 2012, and now this vault item. With Hank Jones (piano), George Mraz (bass), and Lewis Nash (drums), doing three originals, two songs by the pianist's brother Thad, and one from Oliver Nelson. Solid outing, of course, especially strong finish, and it's nice to hear the late pianist again. B+(***)

Joe McPhee/Paal Nilssen-Love: Candy (2007-14 [2015], PNL, 7CD): Sax-drum duets, McPhee often switching off to pocket trumpet. The first was previously released in 2008 as Tomorrow Came Today: I gave it an A- at the time, and still find it remarkable, but I don't really have the patience to sort out the rest -- three from Norway 2007-08, two Milwaukee 2012-14, one Chicago 2012, and one Japan 2013. Suffice it to say that the closer you pay attention, the more you'll be dazzled. [Available individually as downloads.] B+(***) [bc]

Penny Penny: Shaka Bundu (1994 [2013], Awesome Tapes From Africa): First album from the Shangaan star, a Tsonga from northeast South Africa, near the Mozambique border, recorded just after the Apartheid regime fell. Bouncy enough, the chorus packed behind the singer, but not exactly awesome. B+(**) [bc]

Pylon: Live (1983 [2016], Chunklet): Athens GA band, not as much fun as the B-52s nor as tuneful as R.E.M. but a proximate missing link, issued their best album (Chomp) the same year as this live set. Don't recall it clearly enough to compare, but this strikes me as leaner, common in live recordings of the period. B+(***)

Senegambia Rebel (2016, Voodoo Rebel): Filed this under African VA compilations, which it is at first glance, but the various artists are mostly European remixers, the African input limited to field samples that are given beats so primitive and so very complex they belong to Africa, and could only really be at home there. A- [dl]

Sunburst: Ave Africa: The Complete Recordings 1973-1976 (1973-76 [2016], Strut): Tanzanian group, lead singer from Zambia, issued their only LP in 1973 (Ave Africa), collected here with various singles and radio tapes -- there also seems to be a "limited cassette" with early demos. Key instrument is organ, which gives it something of garage rock feel. B+(*)

Old Music

The Chambers Brothers: Time Has Come: The Best of the Chamber Brothers (1966-71 [1996], Columbia/Legacy): Soul group, started out in a Baptist choir in Mississippi, relocated to Los Angeles in the 1950s, finally put an album out in 1965 and scored their only top-20 hit in 1968 ("Time Has Come Today"). Nothing essential here: two singles edits of their hit, a better one called "Funky," a 10:25 live "Wade in the Water." More rock than soul, more limited but similar to the Isley Brothers. B+(**)

Barbara Dane: Trouble in Mind (1957 [2011], Stardust): First album, all blues -- six (of ten) so titled -- backed by San Francisco Dixielanders, with trumpet (Pete Stanton), trombone (Bob Mielke), clarinet (Darnell Howard), piano (Don Ewell), and bass (Pops Foster) but no drums. Seems slightly off, although Maria Muldaur later built a career along these lines -- more jug band, no clarinet, but it's the latter I like best. B+(*)

Barbara Dane/Earl 'Fatha' Hines and His Orchestra: Livin' With the Blues (1959 [2013], Fresh Sound): Not the famous big band Hines had given up but a septet of all stars (except for the two trombonists): Benny Carter (trumpet), Plas Johnson (tenor sax), Leroy Vinnegar (bass), Shelly Manne (drums). The pianist is hard to mistake, but the band plays tight behind a singer who only adds something beyond a fine voice to the songs -- "Why Don't You Do Right" is the standout. B+(**)

Barbara Dane: On My Way (1962 [2013, Fresh Sound): The original Capitol cover adds: "soul, shoutin' and the blues . . . the exciting voice of Barbara Dane." Another jazz group, this one led by cornetist Kenny Whitson, with piano, bass, guitar, bass, drums, and congas -- no one I've heard of -- with background vocals by the Andrews Sisters ("of Berkeley"). Kind of splits the difference between the Dixielanders and the All-Stars. Helps that the songs are more varied, although "The Hammer Song" and "Mama Don't Allow No Twistin'" go a bit too far. B+(***)

Barbara Dane & Lightning Hopkins: Sometimes I Believe She Loves Me (1961-65 [1996], Arhoolie): Five cuts previously released on the back side of a 1966 Hopkins album, fifteen more that had to wait three decades for the CD era. Includes some solo Dane in her folkie mode, but the best cuts are balanced with Hopkins' sly drawl. B+(**)

Barbara Dane/The Chambers Brothers: Barbara Dane and the Chambers Brothers (1966, Folkways): Soul group, started out in a Baptist church choir in Mississippi before moving to Los Angeles, and would have a minor hit in 1968 and fade by 1972. A church singer herself, she finds common ground in gospels and civil rights anthems. B+(*)

Barbara Dane: FTA! Songs of the GI Resistance (1970, Paredon): Dane and husband Irwin Silber started their own label in 1970, putting aside all political inhibitions. She recorded this in coffee houses near army bases in Texas, Georgia, and North Carolina, eliciting a fair amount of sing-along, even for the line about "Viva Che Guevara." B+(***)

Barbara Dane: I Hate the Capitalist System (1973, Paredon): Politically abrasive folk music, singer and guitar, augmented by guests on a few cuts which hardly change the tone. The title song, written by Sara Ogan Gunning, is awkward as you'd expect. Moves on to more conventional folk themes, including two songs with "Massacre" in the title. B+(*)

Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim Black: Arcanum Moderne (2002 [2003], Hatology): Tenor sax trio, one of several albums they put together from 1996-2009 establishing Eskelin as one of the finest avant saxophonists of the time. Parkins plays accordion as well as piano, and is credited with sampler, many options for filling out the sound. A-

Don Ewell Quartet: Man Here Plays Fine Piano (1957, Good Time Jazz): A stride pianist, played with many trad jazz bands including a stint with Jack Teagarden from 1956 to 1962. Quartet adds Darnell Howard (clarinet), Pops Foster (bass), and Minor Hall (drums). Songs are good ole good uns, from "Everybody Loves My Baby" to "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now." B+(**)

Don Ewell: Denver Concert (1966 [2004], Storyville): Singer Barbara Dane featured on the cover, but the original album was built around three medleys with just piano and bass: one each from Jelly Roll Morton, Earl Hines, and Fats Waller. Barbara Dane joins in for songs like "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" and "Wild Women Don't Have the Blues" -- the extra cuts added to the CD all feature her. B+(**)

Irakere: The Best of Irakere (1978-79 [1994], Columbia/Legacy): Cuban band, a pioneer in Afro-Cuban folkloric/jazz fusion, founded in 1973 by pianist Chucho Valdés, they managed to get two US albums released on Columbia before Paquito D'Rivera and Arturo Sandoval defected. They are combined here, minus one song from Irakere and two songs from 2 -- at least the first one a live concert tape. They showcase a wide range of looks, some quite remarkable. B+(***)

Peter Kuhn Quartet: The Kill (1981 [1982], Soul Note): Clarinetist (B flat, bass), the last of several albums Kuhn recorded before his long hiatus (ended in 2015), with Wayne Horvitz (piano, synthesizer), William Parker (bass), and Denis Charles (drums). Four pieces, the 22:59 title cut filling the second side, a tour de force. A-

Leland Sundries: The Foundry EP (2012, L'Echiquier, EP): Six songs, 24:38, lacks the big sound of the new album, but that lets the singer-songwriter come through clearer. B+(**)

Lori McKenna: Paper Wings and Halo (2000, Orchard): Folkie debut, girl with guitar and fifteen songs, an austere sound that burrows into your brain because her words and voice have a rough-hewn eloquence. B+(**)

Lori McKenna: The Kitchen Tapes (2001 [2004], Gyrox): Demos recorded in her kitchen on a minidisc recorder with "a cheap little microphone and my notebook, filled with a writing binge." B+(*)

Lori McKenna: Pieces of Me (2001, Signature Sounds): Second album, bigger label, evidently more budget as I hear some piano, but the key thing is the songwriting, real and vivid. Not sure more listening wouldn't bump this a notch. B+(***) [bc]

Lori McKenna: Bittertown (2004, Signature Sounds): Seems like a step back to a harsher sound, but maybe that's just playing up the whole bitter thing. B+(**)

Lori McKenna: Massachusetts (2013, Liz Rose Music): Christgau counts six "fairly astonishing" and six "more country-generic" songs, and offhand I'd say that's about right. B+(***)

Chucho Valdés: Live at the Village Vanguard (1999 [2000], Blue Note): Quartet, which for the Cuban pianist means you get an extra percussionist, Roberto Vizcaino Guillot, on conga and bata drums, as if the piano wasn't percussion enough. Also credits Marya Caridad Valdés with "vocalization" -- she sings one number, impressively. A- [cd]

Revised Grades

Sometimes further listening leads me to change an initial grade, usually either because I move on to a real copy, or because someone else's review or list makes me want to check it again:

Dawn Oberg: Rye (2012, Blossom Theory): Still cannot credit her singer-songwriter fare as jazz, but the writing is sharp (if bookish), her piano strong, her voice kind of odd, which fans may come to celebrate. [was: B+(*)] B+(***)

Additional Consumer News:

Previous grades on artists in the old music section.

• Barbara Dane: Anthology of American Folk Songs (1959 [2006], Empire Music Group): A-
• Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim Black: One Great Day . . . (1996 [1997], Hatology): A-
• Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim Black: Kulak 29 and 30 (1997 [1998], Hatology): B+(***)
• Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim Black: Five Other Pieces (+2) (1998 [1999], Hatology): B+(***)
• Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim Black: 12 (+1) Imaginary Views (2001 [2002], Hatology): A-
• Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim Black: One Great Night . . . Live (2007 [2009], Hatology): B+(***)
• Ellery Eskelin: 13 other albums
• Irakere: La Collección Cubana ([1998], Music Club): B-
• Lori McKenna: Unglamorous (2007, Warner Brothers): B+(***)
• Lori McKenna: Lorraine (2011, Signature Sounds): B+(*)
• Chucho Valdés: Bele Bele En La Habana (1998, Blue Note): B+
• Chucho Valdés: Briyumba Palo Congo (1998 [1999], Blue Note): A-
• Chucho Valdés: Chucho's Steps (2009 [2010], Jazz Village): B+(***)
• Chucho Valdés: Border-Free (2013, Jazz Village): B+(*)

Notes:

Notes

Everything streamed from Napster (ex Rhapsody), except as noted in brackets following the grade:

• [cd] based on physical cd
• [cdr] based on an advance or promo cd or cdr
• [bc] available at bandcamp.com
• [sc] available at soundcloud.com
• [os] some other stream source
• [dl] something I was able to download from the web; may be freely available, may be a bootleg someone made available, or may be a publicist promo