Tune of the Day


"Blue Rondo a la Turk"  on the Two Generations of Brubeck album.  Wow.

There are many fine versions of this tune, but this one gets me dancing, clapping, fist-pounding, whatever, every time....and it's not easy to dance in, what, 9/8?  I love tunes that grow, build, develop, and move through changes.  This one just picks me up and takes me right along with it.  Great melding of jazz and rock idioms, too.  It's fun to imagine Dave Brubeck setting the groove and then sitting back to hear where his kids and their friends take it. 

You can continue exploring Dave and the kids on Two Generations of Brubeck, "The Great Spirit Made Us All".  And Chris Brubeck's rock/jazz band Sky King on "Secret Sauce".

For extra credit, give a "spin" to Chase, "Bochawa" from their last album, Pure Music.

Anyway, that's my two cents today.




77jovian

"Healing Tide", the title song on the Buddy Miller-produced album by the duo of Michael and Tanya Trotter, who go by the unlikely group name of The War & Treaty.

The song is an intense, smoldering-hot slab of Southern Soul/R &B, sung by Michael and Tanya as a duet. Fantastic musical accompaniment by Michael himself on piano, Buddy on electric guitar, Brady Blade on drums, Adam Chaffins on electric bass, and Jim Hoke on organ, baritone sax, autoharp, harmonica, and pedal steel. Jim is a friend of Audiogon member Bill Hart (@whart), and a very talented multi-instrumentalist.

Michael and Tanya are two of the best singers working today, and the whole album is a rare treat: great material, great singing, great musicianship, great production. Recorded live---repeat, live!---on March 15-18, 2018 by Buddy in his home studio in Nashville. Emmylou Harris appears on one track, singing harmony of course. Some tracks feature Sam Bush on fiddle, Russ Pahl on pedal steel, dobro, or banjo, Bill Huber on trombone, and Matt Slocum on cello.

Amongst the handful of my favorite albums of this century. 😉