"Chasin' The Jazz Gone By" drips with vintage Blue Note jazz cool, and if it doesn't have you reaching for your smoking jacket or cocktail dress and a dry Manhattan from track one, you'd better reconnect with your smooth side.

1. Blue Cycles (feat. Okou)
2. Trading Eights
3. Interlope
4. This Could Be The Start Of Something (feat. Mark Murphy)
5. Straight Up
6. Three Corners
7. Case Study (feat. Okou)
8. Lighthouse
9. Before We Say Goodbye (feat. Mark Murphy)
10. Unsquare Bossa
11. The Devil Kicks
12. Jamming (with Mr. Hoagland)(feat. Mark Murphy)
13. Taxi Driver Theme

Led by Tuomas Kallio (Nuspirit Helsinki) and Antti Eerikainen, this album also features the world-class vocal talent of Mark Murphy and Parisian chanteuse Okou, along with tenor sax heavyweight Eero Koivistoinen, vibes maestro and Blue Note recording artist Severi Pyysalo, and younger talents as drummer Teppo Makynen, and trumpet phenomenon Jukka Eskola. If you're expecting the synthesizers and house beats of the nu-jazz sound, you'd better look elsewhere. While all manner of modern recording techniques were used in making these tracks, the final result is pure, unadulterated, vintage jazz.

The album opens with a nice jazzy, bluesy, torch-styled piece called "Blue Cycles" featuring the voice of Okou. The most striking aspect to this song are the longing melodies of Okou, who sings in duet with some nice saxophone work. A touch of lounge flair shows through from time to time in a song suitable for any joint where cool relaxation is in order.

"Trading Eights" is really going to make you take notice. What's interesting in this one is the way the percussion and instrumentation interact. Jumping along with cymbals heavy and snares muted, the style of the percussion hints at the way electronic music arranges itself, yet the piano, wandering sax and other horns keep the sound well-grounded in its jazzy ways. Very nice.

Mark Murphy makes his first appearance in "This Could Be The Start of Something". Again, you can't deny an attraction to the way the percussion and instruments interact. Kicking off with orchestral strings, Mr. Murphy's dusty, dulcet melodies step in to really take this one back to a pure time in the history of jazz. If you didn't know better, you could easily mistake this for some lost, vintage recording.

The standout's are too numerous to list, and the sound is consistent.

From start to finish this is one solid jazz album. The players take vintage jazz techniques and give them an edgy, modern feel while paying strictest attention to the authenticity of a vintage sound. Although some ears may find the heavy cymbal work to be a little distracting, I'd say they are few and far between. For this listener, the balance is perfect.

The word here: jump on this, slip into your swankest lounge threads, pour something cold and dry, and live it jack.

Add a Comment