2014 Jazz from New York native, Jersey City resident Tim Hegarty – Tribute!!

Tim Hegarty’s new album is titled Tribute which was released by Miles High Records on in January of 2014. the album is Tim’s way to say thanks to those who taught him and influenced his playing. Tributees include: Dexter Gordon; Frank Foster ; George Coleman; Jimmy Heath; Joe Henderson; John Coltrane; Sonny Rollins; and Thelonious Monk. After listening to the album, I’d say he done them proud. Currently, the album is lucky #13 on the JazzWeek Jazz Chart this week and rising! On the album, Hegarty plays both tenor and soprano saxophone and his fine sax is accompanied by the piano…

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XNA – When We Changed You – Symphonic Prog from the USA!!

XNA is a Symphonic prog/Progressive Rock band from the United States. For the last few days their debut album When We Changed You has been in my listening rotation. As I listened to the album, it was obvious that these guys were heavily influenced by Genesis and other early prog bands. On several tracks images of Jethro Tull popped into my head! My wife listened to a short portions of the album, didn’t really like the lyrics and thought that the singer was a little too theatrical. But how can music that is influenced by Genesis not be theatrical! When…

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2014 Blues from Damon Fowler – Sounds of Home!!

I first encountered Florida native Damon Fowler a few years ago when he released his second album on Blind Pig Records Devil Got His Way, now his third record on the label Sounds of Home sits at # 4 on the Roots Music Reports Blues Chart and it’s rising!! Now that was when I officially listened to Damon Fowler’s music but Damon Fowler the musician who plays not only a terrific guitar but also steel guitar, dobro and lab steel has played on albums from artists like Jeff Beck, Buddy Guy, Johnny Winter and Edgar Winter, Robin Trower, Gregg Allman, Jimmie Vaughan, Junior Brown, Rick Derringer, Delbert McClinton, and many others. so…

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Blues on the Rock Side from Sean Chambers – The Rock House Sessions

When I started my blog Me, Myself, Music and Mysteries, one of the first young blues artist whose music I explored was Sean Chambers. At that time he had just released his album Ten Til Midnight, initially, I couldn’t find the album on any of the music sites I use, so I listened instead to his 2007 release Humble Spirits and I was very, very impressed by his musicianship. What I didn’t know at the time was that from 1998-2003 Sean had toured with Hubert Sumlin, played lead guitar and was his band director! Sean was also named “One of the top…

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Today in Music – Feb 10, 1961 – Jazz Trumpet Player Paolo Fresu was Born!! (Video)

This morning the name that caught my attention on the list of birthdays at All About Jazz was Paolo Fresu,a trumpet player. Paolo is in fact not only a trumpet and flugelhorn player, but he is also an arranger and composer. And an award-winning  one at that!!  Paolo was born in Berchidda, Sardina on February 10, 1961 and he his musical career has spanned the last 30 years in which he has performed on over 300 albums.many as a sideman and lots as a leader of his quintet.But wait there’s more…(if you call now – just joking) He is also  according…

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Today in Music – Feb 9, 1982 – Vibraphonist Behn Gillece is born in New Jersey! (with video)

One of the reasons that I explore the daily birthdays at All About Jazz is that it gives me names of musicians that I don’t know, like yesterday, when I discovered  Pawel Kaczmarczyk the great young Polish jazz pianist. The odds of coming across his name elsewhere are pretty low. Anyway, the first name on the birthday list is actually someone I already knew, but only because when I was checking the birthdays at All About Jazz, I  saw his latest album on the same page! That artist is  Behn Gillece and the album is Top Shelf. Behn Gillece was born on this…

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Today in Music – The Safari wishes a Happy 30th Birthday to Polish jazz pianist – Pawel Kaczmarczyk!

Today Polish jazz pianist, Pawel Kaczmarczyk celebrates his 30 birthday. Pawel was born in Krakow of Feb 8, 1984. By the time he was in high school Pawel and his band, began to participate in jazz festivals, winning first prizes and awards and he hasn’t stopped since! In 2001 he founded the KBD trio with Michael Barański and Paul Dobrowolski. Were inspired music in the style of Bill Evans , Herbie Hancock andWayne Shorter . A year later, the trio took first place at the 26th International Competition for Young and Debuting Jazz “Jazz Juniors”, and he was recognized as the best instrumentalist of the competition. Trio won the Grand…

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The Safari Explores the Music of Terrence Blanchard – Magnetic!

I’ve written it before and I am sure I will write it again during the years from 1980 to 1995 there was so much going on in my life that there was little time for musical explorations. During that period our family grew to include four children Nick (1979), Andrew (1982), Peter (1986) and Elizabeth (1990). Along the way our family lost my wife’s mother to breast cancer (1982 at the age of 48), my wife’s grandmother, and father, my father (1984) the way our sons Nick and Andrew both had medical problems, and mu wife had to miscarriages!! Anyway you…

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The Safari finds more Finnish Progressive Metal – Anthriel – The Pathway!!

Antreil = Progressive metl from Finlad

Anthriel – Progressive Metal – Finland The other day I was surfing MOG looking artists who are like ones that I like and I came across Anthriel and their 2010 release The Pathway. I gave it a 30 second test and I liked what I heard so it went on the iPhone. This morning it was part of the soundtrack playing while I did some work around the house.  What a fine progressive metal album this is, with a little bit of everything – there’s some hard-driving guitar work from Timo Niemsto, drumming from Jari Kuokkanen. which often flows into some melodic…

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2014 Blues – Tommy Castro and the Painkillers – The Devil You Know!!

Sometimes my first impressions suck! See I once said after the première of the TV show Cheers that it was pretty good except I wasn’t sure about the theme song! And I said that I didn’t know how long they could keep up the premise of the TV show Perfect Strangers! How about for eight seasons!! And after the first listen to The Devil You Know, the new release from Tommy Castro and the Painkillers I wasn’t sure if it was that good! Hey, it’s very, very and maybe a few more verys, good! I think that on the first…

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