All press News

Labels with local ties get Grammy nods

Publication: Durham Herald-Sun
Author: Cliff Bellamy
Date: December 1, 2011

DURHAM – Two locally connected recording labels – Merge Records and saxophonist Branford Marsalis’ label Marsalis Music – were nominated for Grammy Awards on Wednesday.

The Montreal-based band Arcade Fire earned Durham-based Merge Records its first Grammy Award when they took home Album of the Year in February for “The Suburbs.” Another Arcade Fire recording project earned the label a nomination this week. The Merge recording “The Suburbs – Deluxe Edition (Scenes from the Suburbs),” with art direction by Vincent Morissett, was nominated for Best Recording Package.

Saxophonist Miguel Zenón has been nominated for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album for “Alma Adentro: The Puerto Rican Songbook,” on the Marsalis Music label. Zenón was also nominated in 2009 for Best Improvised Jazz Solo and Best Latin Jazz Album for his Marsalis Music recording “Esta Plena.” Read more »

Submitted by Bobby on December 2nd, 2011 — 10:13am

The too-short, yawn-inducing list of 2012 jazz Grammy nominees

Publication: Ottawa Citizen Jazzblog
Author: Peter Hum
Date: December 1, 2011

I am glad to see that Gerald Clayton, Miguel Zenón and John Hollenbeck were nominated — New blood! New blood! — but otherwise, it seems to me that in previous years, the people who chose the jazz nominees were more astute and progressive.

To read Peter Hum’s commentary regarding the Jazz Grammy nominations and see a full list of the nominations, visit his blog post here.

Submitted by Bobby on December 2nd, 2011 — 10:30am

Miguel Zenón @ The Edye Theatre 11.19.11

Publication: JazzWeekly.com
Author: George Harris
Date: November 20, 2011

It’s not often that you hear something that is not only new, but also  enjoyable. Alto saxist Miguel Zenón seems to have found a new path for jazz by melding traditional music from his native Puerto Rico with John Coltrane-esque jazz with his team of Luis Perdomo, Hans Glawischnig/b and Henry Cole/dr . Together, they created music that combined the  romanticism of latin melodies with the adventureness of modern jazz, satisfying both soul and mind in a way rarely achieved these days.  Read more »

Submitted by Bobby on December 2nd, 2011 — 10:33am

Grammys: Jazz nominees mix fresh faces with familiar reliables

Publication: Los Angeles Times Blog
Author: Chris Barton
Date: November 30, 2011

Realistically, an Esperanza Spalding-type surprise just doesn’t happen every day. A year removed from jazz barging into the major categories with Spalding’s rewarding best new artist win, Grammy voters opted for a return to normalcy with their jazz nominations announced Wednesday. Read more »

Submitted by Bobby on December 1st, 2011 — 11:38am

The sounds of Christmas are upon us!

Publication: Louisiana Weekly
Author: Geraldine Wyckoff
Date: November 21, 2011

Harry Connick, Jr. Trio
The Happy Elf
(Marsalis Music)

With a cover decked out with all the bells and whistles of a holiday album directed at children – an illustration of a plump Santa Claus, a Christmas tree and smiling elves – one would naturally presume that Harry Connick, Jr.’s CD, The Happy Elf , was filled with music for toddlers. However, that’s not quite the case. The release does stand as a companion disc to the noted pianist and vocalist’s picture book for kids of the same name. Musically, however, it goes beyond hum along tunes for the younger set.

The album begins with Connick narrating The Happy Elf book, that has also been produced as a stage musical. The tale of the kind elf who was just crazy about Christmas could act as a heart-warming, Yuletide bedtime story for children. The first cut, also dubbed “The Happy Elf,” follows through in spirit with its joyful and danceable demeanor. Connick and his trio with part-time New Orleans resident, bassist Neal Caine and long-time drummer Arthur Latin, playfully sleigh ride into a jazz mode that can engage parents and children alike. Importantly, it, like the following, easy-going “Santarrific” doesn’t play down to the kids. Rather the tunes act as an introduction to jazz and blues that could, hopefully, lead to a love of the music. Read more »

Submitted by Bobby on November 30th, 2011 — 10:30am