Dann Zinn - Day of Reckoning - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

From Freddie Hubbard's burner InchTake It to the Ozone,Inch to the moody and spare reading of Elvis Costello's InchAlmost Blue,Inch Flexicon's unified yet eclectic mix further solidifies Marriott's standing as one of the finer voices in jazz today both as a trumpeter and producer. Along with his band of saxophonist Mark Taylor, pianist Bill Anschell, bassist Jeff Johnson, drummer Matt Jorgensen and special guest Joe Locke on vibes, Marriott visits jazz classics such as InchSpring Is HereInch and InchDetour AheadInch, pop tunes from Costello and John Barry, and a trio of thoughtful originals.Inch... serious chops and a luxuriant trumpet sound... Inch JazzTimes.

Jim Knapp's music is full of intensity, emotion and creative textures. His music should be more known. It's among the best of orchestral jazz being written these days. - MARIA SCHNEIDER. The career and music of Seattle-based composer/arranger and trumpeter James Knapp is a known and respected quantity in the inner circles of jazz music, inhabited by it's musicians, bandleaders, journalists and educators. Those fortunate enough to gain awareness of the intrinsic beauty of his music, place the work of his Composers and Improvisers Orchestra of the '70s-'80s, and his more recent assemblage, the 13-piece Jim Knapp Orchestra, in the upper echelon of modern jazz composition. For this 2009 session, we find the band focused and in top form, as it often was during a very active period in the early 2000s. Made up of a highly creative collection of colleagues from the Cornish College of the Arts, former students, and Seattle professionals, the music was approached with seriousness, dedication and honor, with the fun and fulfillment that comes with that level of involvement very evident.

The Wild Reeds have made a name for themselves in part through their tightly interwoven vocal harmonies and their impressive blend. But take a look at their songwriting and their performances, and you'll see that they're each very unique as individuals. After a particularly challenging year, they emerged with Cheers, a record that gave each songwriter unlimited freedom to reflect, explore, and create on their own, which simultaneously solidified the group dynamic into something stronger than ever before.