August 25, 2018 will mark what would have been the 100th birthday of Leonard Bernstein, and while the maestro passed away in 1990 at the age of 72, he left behind a lifetime of remarkable music in multiple genres. A number of classical releases have been issued for the Bernstein centennial, but a new entry concentrates on the popular side of the composer. The 2-CD anthology Jazz Loves Bernstein, on the Decca Broadway label in association with Verve and UMe, collects 27 examples from the
The story of Tappan Zee Records is very much the story of Bob James. The versatile keyboardist, arranger and producer established the Tappan Zee label in 1977 to maximize the crossover success he had already experienced at Creed Taylor's CTI label. Cherry Red and Robinsongs' new 2-CD, non-chronologically arranged collection The Very Best of Tappan Zee Records presents an appealing cross-section of Tappan Zee's finest work from artists like James, Richard Tee, Earl Klugh, and Steve Khan. The
Cherry Red's Robinsongs imprint is turning up the Cool Heat with a new 2-CD, 25-track collection celebrating The Best of CTI Records and featuring many of the classic jazz label's most renowned artists including instrumentalists George Benson, Freddie Hubbard, Hubert Laws, and Stanley Turrentine, and vocalists Nina Simone, Patti Austin, and Esther Phillips. Chances are, if you think of a jazz artist, it wouldn't take many degrees of separation to reach Creed Taylor. The esteemed producer
In a career spanning three decades, Grammy-winning saxophonist Grover Washington Jr. recorded roughly 25 albums, earned a No. 2 Pop single with Bill Withers, supported countless other vocalists, and recorded music of genres from funk to opera. (Yes, opera!) Washington passed away in 1999 at the age of 56, but not before having made his mark on the worlds of jazz and pop alike. His legacy has recently been celebrated by Cherry Red's Robinsongs label on the new 2-CD Definitive Collection. This
Cherry Red’s Robinsongs label, which has recently been responsible for reissues from jazz greats like Hank Crawford, Richard Tee and Ramsey Lewis, has turned its attention to producer-arranger-composer Bob James with the two-for-one release of his 1980 and 1981 albums, H and Sign of the Times. The electric piano master has been making records as a leader since 1963 – his most recent is 2013’s Quartette Humaine with saxophonist David Sanborn – and this pair comes from the early years of his own