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Currently fêted as one of the new British pianist on the block, Kit Downes debuts with an all original selection of compositions accompanied by his current trio comprising Calum Gourlay on double bass and James Maddren on drums. Of immediate interest in ‘Homely’, devoted to his native city of Norwich. Here the building up of atmosphere leads into a long piano solo before bass and drums re-enter. Downes is at his most lyrical with the trio as a whole and reminscent of Brad Mehldau on this number. The waltz-like feel on ‘Tom’s Tune’, devoted this time to Downes’ piano teacher, is an uplifting piece with a simple riff over which Downes engages in a delightful solo. Judging by this album Kit Downes’ influences are wide ranging and take in Andrew Hill and Cecil Taylor as well as Keith Jarrett and Brad Mehldau. A more austere side to Downes’ playing is to be found on ‘A dance took place’, which is almost funereal in tone whilst the opener ‘Jump Minzi jump’ is a quasi-classical piece that becomes freer in form in the second half. Of the ballads on offer, ‘Madame’ displays the more refined side to Downes’ playing as does ‘Golden’ with excellent comping by Downes to compliment Gourlay’s bass soloing.  Overall there is a maturity to Kit Downes piano playing that is to be applauded. No unnecessary flashiness permeates proceedings. Rather he is a supremely soulful pianist and one who, taking a leaf out of Ahmad Jamal’s 1950s innovations, is not afraid to leave silent spaces. The future bodes well for this musician.  Tim Stenhouse

British pianist Liam Noble in his sleeve notes declares his admiration for both the compositions and original playing of Dave Brubeck and this truly excellent homage provides a wonderful oversight of Brubeck’s talents. Obvious contenders for inclusion are the anthemic ‘Take Five’ and ‘Blue Rondo a la Turk’. The former receives a highly unusual treatment with an extended modal intro before the theme finally becomes audible a full two minutes in. The second is barely recognisable from the original before the theme is stated on a piano-drum pattern that shifts up a gear part way through. It is the relatively lesser known pieces that impress most of all with the lengthy nine and three quarter minutes ‘Sixth Sense’ from the ‘Jazz Impressions of New York’ album standing out in particular with bluesy piano from Noble and a lovely bass breakdown. Almost as enthralling is ‘Three to get ready’ (which became a famous French vocal jazz hit for singer Claude Nougaro in the 1960s retitled ‘Le jazz et la java’). In an experimental vein, and this is an aspect of Brubeck’s writing that was admired by the likes of Anthony Braxton and Cecil Taylor, is ‘Rising Sun’ from ‘Jazz Impressions of Japan’ that replicates traditional Japanese folk music. Completing the repertoire is a slice of the Latin tinge on ‘Paloma Azul’, which was performed on a Latin American tour to Mexico by the Brubeck band in the mid-1960s. From the Great American songbook ‘Give a little whistle’ is given a lovely rendition which in parts is Monkesque with impeccable trio ensemble playing. All in all a very apt tribute to Dave Brubeck from a pianist one longs to hear more of in the trio format and outside his better known accompaniment work with the likes of Christine Tobin. It is merely surprising that there not more albums devoted to Brubeck’s compositional craft.  Tim Stenhouse

As one of the key singers in the classic rock steady group the Techniques Winston Riley was already assured of a place in Jamaican musical history. However, this place was well and truly cemented in the pantheon of producers when Winston set up his own label, not surprisingly named after the group which established him in the first place. This very generously timed compilation covers the period from 1967 up to 1992 and as such takes in rock steady and early reggae through the roots era into dancehall and even digital and beyond. Of course the early period is dominated by the sweet harmonies of the offshoot groups from the Techniques (here with the gorgeous rendition of ‘You don’t care’) of the calibre of the Sensations and the anthemic ‘Born to love you’, the Interns ‘Nothing is impossible’ (over the Dave Brubeck ‘Take Five’ riddim) as well as the great individual singers.  Of these, Alton Ellis, Pat Kelly, the classic duo of Dave and Ansell Collins, and an early seventies Johnny Osbourne (with the ska-influenced ‘Come back darling’) are all featured with the latter also turning in the sublime ‘Ready or not?’. Among lesser known, but richly talented vocalists, Jackie Paris (surely named after the New York jazz singer) performs a soulful disco 45 cut from 1978 on ‘Run for your life’ with Ranking Trevor fulfilling DJ toasting duties, Carl Dawkins provides a decidely rock steady feel to the 1970 song ‘Satisfaction’ which would give him his nickname of ‘Mr. Satisfaction’. A fabulous bonus is the Techniques roots style re-working of their original classic ‘Life is a gamble’, a rare 12” b-side which reggae fans immediately flipped over and fell in love with at the time and this is an undoubted compilation highlight. The first half of the compilation also takes the evolution of reggae a step further into early dancehall and a Dennis Brown 45 that was only one of a handful that the honey-toned singer cut for Riley in ‘Let me remind you’ while the seldom recorded Carlton Livingston turns in an excellent performance on ‘You make your mistake’ from 1981, ably assisted by DJ the Lone Ranger over the Joe Frasier riddim from 1981. Other excellent artists include Yami Bolo, Admiral Tibet and Tenor Saw with even the later period Gregory Isaacs making a contribution. As ever from this series, excellent inner sleeve notes and a bumper selection of tunes makes this an unbeatable package for the broad minded reggae fan who would like to dip into various eras in order to fully appreciate the production craft of one Winston Riley. Tim Stenhouse

(both separate CDs - VP) 5/5 and 4/5

Parallel to the extensive series of dub albums, Joe Gibbs was at the forefront of the 12” single revolution in Jamaica during the classic roots era of the mid-late 1970s and both of these genrously timed compilation bear testimony to that era. Volume one covers the period from 1977 to 1980 and characteristic of the Joe Gibbs sound was the choppy rhythm and use of DJs to extend proceedings once the vocal and instrumental parts of the song had passed. Marcia Aitken was one of the lesser known female vocalists, but cut a number of singles for the label including ‘My Man’, with long-time label DJ Trinity following on. Wonderously melodic is the only way to describe the superb Dennis Brown number, ‘How can I leave you’ with Prince Mohammed (actually a pseudonym for another label singer George Nooks) on DJ duties. A rare and sought after song is ‘Cool out soon’ from the seldom recorded falsetto tones of Junior Murvin, best known of course for his marvellous collaboration with Lee Perry and the former is from his classic period in 1979. The Mighty Diamonds recorded for a number of labels, but for Joe Gibbs cut the lovely ‘Just like a river’ with their trademark harmonies to the fore. George Nooks returns as a singer on the excellent ‘Riding for a fall’ while Leo Graham impresses on ‘A win them’. Volume three kicks off in great syle with arguably Marica Aitken’s most memorable tune, ‘I’m not a queen’ while Ruddy Thomas’ inclusion is a very welcome one on two songs, the excellent ‘Every day is just a holiday’ and ‘Windy day’, both featuring Trinity as DJ. Of the rest some of the lesser recognised songs are higlighted from the early 1980s. These include ‘Tourist season’ from Barry Brown with seldom heard DJ U-Mike, Cornell Campbell and ‘Boxing around’ while Freddie McGregor completed ‘First sight loving’ in the same year of 1982 that he recorded the epic ‘Big Ship’ single and album. Donovan Chambers’ ‘On the mountain top’ harks back to the 1970s era while Eek-a-Mouse was very much the new dancehall era in terms ofstyle and lyrics with ‘Virgin girl’, assisted by Lui Lepkie. An excellent ongoing series, then, that is simply irresistable for the quantity and quality of reggae on offer and at an affordable mid-price too. Tim Stenhouse

2010 marks the centenary of one of the most influential jazz guitarists of all-time and arguably France’s greatest jazz musician (though Belgians will doubtless dispute his place of birth). Born into a manouche gypsy family, Reinhardt overcame prejudice and physical disability(possessing of a limited number of fingerswith which to play guitar strings) to become an inspirational figure and one whose music symbolically represented freedom and liberty, and the perfect antidote to the repressive nazi regime that occupied France at the time. The evolution of French jazz history is inextricably caught up in the Django story since it was a group of jazz afficionados, Le Hot Club de France, who would make up a quintet that would accompany Reinhardt on many recordings during his swing period. This lavishly assembled digipak box set with accompanying extensive bi-lingual notes only touches the surface of his craft and there is in fact a mammoth 25 CD box set for Django fanatics and completists.
However, the aspiring Djangologist will be more than satisifed with no less than one hundred and four tracks contained within the more compact box set and this covers virtually everything he recorded including the famous late period sessions from 1953, formerly contained on a double CD ‘Pêche à la Mouche’, and which hint at what Django might have sounded like had he lived at least another ten or fifteen years. Among the joyous music on offer there are first of all Djangofied versions of the popular tunes of the day. These include marvellous renditions of the Gershwins’ ‘I got rhythm’, Ellington’s ‘It don’t mean a thing’, Hoagy Carmichael’s ‘Georgia on my mind’ as well as other evergreens such as ‘The Sheik of Araby’ and ‘You’re driving me crazy’. However, Reinhardt was an accomplished composer and some of these have become instant classics and include the reflective ‘Djangology’, ‘Swing 39’, ‘Mélodie au crépuscule’ and the gorgeous ‘Swing 39’ to name but a few. For virtually all of these compositions the co-writer was Stéphane Grappelli and the violinist/pianist was the key collaborator in Django’s career. Their playing together complimented each other’s musical genius perfectly and they duet to wonderful effect on ‘Dinah’ and the decidely orientalist tones of ‘Oriental shuffle’ and ‘Nagasaki’. Secondly, Reinhardt was fully capable of performing in more intimate musical settings and there is evidence of this on the solo guitar of ‘Parfum’ with a discernible flamenco influence, or on the duo with bassist Louis Vola on ‘You, rascal you’. By the 1940s Reinhardt had rightly acquired an international reputation and such was his influence in the US, particularly on American jazz guitarists, that in September 1944 U.S. Special Forces employed his talents to perform with no less than Fred Astaire at the Olympia in Paris. Django, though, was beginning to be influenced in turn by the new emerging be-bop phenomenon and would by the early 1950s be playing in a very different quintet comprising of trumpet, saxophone, piano and bass and drums, in other words the quintessential be-bop line up of the era. From this latter period of his career the masterful ‘Vamp’ and ‘Nuits de Saint-Germain-des-Près’ were recorded. By 1953 Django was performing with some of the Young Turks of French bop including bassist Pierre Michelot and pianist Maurice Vender (later to be singer Claude Nougaro’s principal accompanist) and from these sessions come the fabulous ‘Nuages’ and a terrific version of ‘Brasil’ (possibly influencing fellow guitarist Grant Green to record the song for Blue Note a decade later) while from a slightly later April 1953 session found Django in the company of vibraphonist Sadi Lallemand as well as the then upcoming pianist Martial Solal (soon to record the soundtrack to Jean-Luc Godard’s ‘A bout de souffle’ new wave classic and become a contemporary legend of French jazz in his own right). Sadly Reinhardt’s life was tragically cut short and we will never know how he might have reacted to the modal innovations of John Coltrane and Miles Davis. What is beyond question is the seminal influence that Django Reinhardt has exerted on countless generations of jazz guitarist and these range from Wes Montgomery and George Benson through to the current crop of Djangophiles across the Channel from Christian Escoudé and Birelli Lagrène to Babik Reinhardt.

Needless to say Django’s legacy is assured and you can join in the celebrations of the manouche gypsy legend at tribute festivals in London (17-25 January International Gypsy Swing Guitar festival http://www.djangoreinhardtfestival.co.uk ) and Paris (19-30 January http://www.lesnuitsmanouches.com ) this month, and probably numerous venues throughout the world during the course of 2010. The annual Samois-sur-Seine guitar festival to the south east of Paris near Fontainebleau is a fitting tribute to the enduring legacy of one of France’s greatest ever cultural ambassadors. ‘Djangologie’ provides an excellent overview of the guitarist’s career complete with loving pictorial illustrations of Django by Bruno Vacaro.  Tim Stenhouse

Currently receiving many plaudits and for many the first time of hearing the quasi-octogenarian German saxophonist Heinz Sauer, this is an excellent duo recording that sounds as fresh as a daisy. The idea behind the recording is in large part to pay homage to the seminal ‘Kind of Blue’ album (though other standards are included as well as original compositions) and the genius of Sauer and piano accompanist Michael Wollny, with Joachim Kühn occasionally switching duties with Wollny, is to pare down the sound to the bare essence and provide a wonderfully intimate surrounding in which the legendary pieces are discovered as if for the very first time. Consequently ‘All Blues’ is transformed into a haunting number with the plaintive saxophone of Sauer recalling that of the early 1960s Coltrane. On ‘Flamenco Sketches’ Wollny sets the scene beautifully with modal Evansesque touches while on ‘Sophisticated Lady’ Sauer reveals the influence of Archie Shepp in his playing. Kühn excels as soloist on ‘Lover Man’ and the duo of Kühn and Sauer on ‘In a sentimental mood’ is reminiscent of the famous Ellington and Coltrane pairing that recorded together for Impulse. Sauer has followed an interesting career trajectory having played first of all in the Albert Mangelsdorf band between 1960 and 1978 while opening himself up to freer influences in the Baden and Baden Free Jazz Orchestra in 1969 as well as playing with German guitarist Volker Kreigel who recorded on MPS during the 1970s. The duet partnership with pianist Michael Wollny dates from 2001 and with a forty-six year old age gap one cannot but recall the musical symbiosis that existed between the late Michel Petrucciani and saxophonist Charles Lloyd with the latter thankfully being tempted out of retirement, and subsequently enjoying an extended second-half career. Arguably the best duo recording since the magical live duets between Hank Jones and Joe Lovano of a few years back, and the best pairing since Steve Lacy and Mal Waldron enthralled us with their presence. Tim Stenhouse

Straddling classical and jazz music, this recording from Swiss-French pianist Thierry Lang interestingly features a cello quartet, flueglhorn, bass and no drums. One is immediately taken back to the debate on Third Stream music that the likes of Gunther Schuller explored back in the 1950s and that many pianists from André Previn to Bill Evans had been eager to investigate ever since. The ensemble impress on the nice modal intro to ‘Le vieux châlet’ which features a Freddie Hubbard inspired flugelghorn solo and an extended piano one from Lang that sounds as though Herbie Hancock has been a major inspiration. The project as a whole explores the folkloric melodies of Swiss composer and priest Abbé Joseph Bonet from the first half of the twentieth century and there is no little skill in transposing these compositions into a classical/jazz environment. One finds a decidely contemporary feel on the Miles Davis influenced ‘Adyu mon bi payi’ with funk bass in evidence while the uptempo piece ‘A mole són’ begins with a classical feel on cello before bass and flugelhorn enter and Lang once agains solos beautifully. Great lyricism is displayed on the opener, Le Ranz des vaches’, devoted intriguingly to the calling of cows being milked. Perfectly illustrating the music on offer being at the crossroads of classical and jazz music is the lengthy ten minute ‘L’Immortelle de Jean’ with a romantic solo from Lang taking over from the cello. This will not be to everyone’s tastes and purists on either side of the musical fence may turn the ears and noses up at such an enterprise. Broad-minded music fans will find much to enjoy here, however, and as artifically created musical boundaries continue to fall, it is likely that increasingly more musicians will be tempted to find the common ground that surely does exist between classical and jazz musical genres.  Tim Stenhouse